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Vol. 10 No.7
NAR Economist: Housing starts are vastly inadequate
seller last fall when they toured. That is, until after the deal settled and the client “you feel was meeting a neighbor a little who informed violated” him, “I just want you to know the guy who sold the house knew he had a buyer the minute you walked through.” The neighbor was able to repeat the conversation between the client and broker when they had first toured the property. “It’s one of those things where it is the person’s home, they have the right to do whatever—but you feel a little violated,” DeFelice says. Sellers may be “desperate” for feedback and turn to recorders to get it, says Ilyce Glink, author of 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask. Brokers may want to hang a sign in the home or include a note on the listing form to alert other real estate professionals that there is a surveillance device on the property. © Copyright National Association of Realtors Reprinted with permission.
Fewer new homes were in the pipeline in February, as housing starts for combined multifamily and single-family homes plunged 7 percent month over month, the U.S. Commerce Department reports. Housing production for the month was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.24 million units. “The fall in housing starts in February is a movement in the wrong direction,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of REALTORS®. “The key Yun to economic prosperity at this juncture of economic expansion is to produce more new homes. That will help with job creation and reduce the swift price appreciation in several markets.” A total of 1.2 million homes were constructed last year, which Yun calls
“vastly inadequate.” February’s figure is just barely above year-ago levels, he adds. “It’s not enough,” Yun says. “While relaxing regulations on smallsized community banks may spur more construction loans for building, labor shortages in the industry continue to stunt overall activity.” See Housing Starts | Page 2
What’s next for Fannie and Freddie? In less than six short months, we may be celebrating a rather dubious anni- By Jon Paukovich versary: It’s been 10 Chief Lending Officer Ent Credit Union years since the gov- — ernment sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were named wards of the federal government. For a decade, under both Democratic and Republican administrations and Congresses, efforts to resolve their fate have repeatedly been stalemated. As key players in the secondary mortgage market, Fannie and Fred-
Peak Producers
WCR Luncheon
Jay Gupta's February Housing Stats
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Mobile Issue (Beta)
Are you being spied on during showings?
Be careful: You and your buyer may be under surveillance when touring a property. Some sellers are using surveillance cameras inside their home to record the sight and sound as prospective buyers walk through. The increase in these home recordings—many from security systems that owners already have installed— are raising some concerns surrounding privacy in real estate transactions, MarketWatch reports. Jill Comfort, a real estate pro in Phoenix, told MarketWatch she recalls recently walking through a home with her client and spotting several surveillance cameras that appeared to be “following us” and that made her and her client feel “awkward.” “I can understand where some sellers are leery of strangers walking through their house, but that’s what happens when you put your house on the market,” Comfort says. Andie DeFelice, a broker with Savannah-based Exclusive Buyer’s Realty Inc. and the president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents, said she was unaware she and her client had been watched by the
March 26, 2018
www.csrej.com
die purchase a significant portion of mortgages lenders make. Due to the financial collapse, as private capital withdrew from the secondary market, Fannie, Freddie and the Federal Housing Administration subsequently guaranteed about 90 percent of all new mortgages. As such, they now influence mortgage interest rates and the amount of capital that lenders have available for funding new mortgage loans. In short, Fannie and Freddie’s impact on the housing industry can’t be overstated. See Fannie & Freddie | Page 7
National News............ Page 2 Local News................ Page 10 On the Move.............. Page 13 Local Expert.............. Page 14 Around the Corner....... Page 15
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