
I knew it was coming, but I guess I was hoping it wouldn't be quite so tunnel-visioned. The Realtor's chief economist, Lawrence Yun, released his Housing and Economic Forecast this afternoon. The extension and expansion of the first time home buyer tax credit was the lead, as expected, with Yun claiming it would bring not only home sales but home prices back out of the basement in 2010.
FHA: "Bailout Doesn't Apply." Those are not my words, but the words of HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan toward the end of a lengthy explainer on the FHA's annual actuarial report, released this morning.
I'm back on the foreclosure bandwagon again, especially after getting the Treasury's Home Affordable Modification Program status report this morning, and its glaring omission of any information as to how many borrowers are actually keeping up with the payments on their trial modifications.
While we all worry so much about the auto industry, I find it astounding that we don't pay all that much attention to the battered industries behind the battered housing market.
While the Realtors and Home Builders and Mortgage Bankers all bask in the glow of the home buyer tax credit extension/expansion, we all need to turn our attention to the real drag on a housing recovery: Foreclosures.
In landslide votes, the extension/expansion of the first time home buyer tax credit passed both houses of Congress and is now on its way to the President's desk for signing tomorrow.
