Foreclosures filings on Dallas-Fort Worth homes are up 32% in the third quarter of 2009 compared to last year. Foreclosures filings were issued on 15,880 properties for the third quarter of 2009 compared to 12,050 postings during the same period last year. We have not received the national numbers for the third quarter, but ending with the second quarter of 2009 there were estimated to be in excess of 1,500,00 properties posted.
From 1970 to 1989, residential buildings accounted for 33% of energy consumption in the U.S. According to the most recent figures, residential buildings accounted for 22% of energy consumption in the U.S. This is largely due to better insulation, and energy-efficient windows and appliances.
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Though the country has begun to pull out of its recession, the housing market still has a significant role to play in the tentative recovery efforts. It was the subprime collapse that precipitated the avalanche of unemployment and general economic slowdown, and with real estate transactions making up 15% of the economy, it is easy to see why economists are hesitant to claim that the end is in sight with various regional markets still struggling. Housing prices are still down 30% from their peak in 2006, and over the country, they may fall another 5-10% this year according to Moody's economy.com.
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With concerns about the state of the economy still floating around in the national news, it can be difficult to say just what all the hullabaloo has to do with the local housing market. 　There is good news and bad news.
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With prospects for the housing market looking up, the construction companies are responding. According to the Commerce Department, the construction of new houses and apartment units rose 2.8% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 519,000 units, exceeding the expectations of economists who had been examining the market. Applications for building permits decreased during the month of January, but only after two months of solid gains; overall the seasonally adjusted annual rate was 17% higher than the same time during the previous year. The trend was mirrored nationally and regionally.
read more » Foreclosure rates are one factor among many in a housing market that seems to be pulling in every direction at once. Last quarter observed a decrease in the number of foreclosures of homes in the state of Texas. The Texas market, affected less by the housing bubble and bolstered by the region's relatively low unemployment rate, looks to be coming out stronger than markets in other areas.
read more » Homebuyers who plan to take advantage of the federal government's $8,000 tax credit extension had better act fast. In order to qualify, you and the realtor must sign the purchasing contract by April 30, and the actual closing must occur by the end of June. If you want to beat the rush, block out plenty of time (around filing for taxes, of course) so that you can make your final decision with time to spare.
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