3Q Home Sales Down in 80% of U.S. Cities

(CBS)

(AP) A real estate group says home prices fell in eight out of every 10 U.S. cities in the third quarter of this year as heavily discounted distressed sales made up 30 percent of all deals.

But home sales continued their climb, with quarterly sales outpacing the second quarter and the previous year's figures, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday.

The median sales prices of existing homes declined in 123 out of 153 metropolitan areas compared with the same period a year ago. Prices rose in the other 30 cities.

The national median price clocked in at $177,900, or 11 percent below the third quarter last year.

"The decline in the national median price has moderated recently, and a shrinking supply of unsold inventory suggests we are getting closer to price stabilization in many areas, " said Lawrence Yun, the group's chief economist, in a statement. "But we need a steady stream of financially qualified buyers to further reduce inventory and get us to a self-sustaining market."

Prices in Fort Myers, Florida, plunged 40 percent to $98,000 from a year ago, the worst in the U.S. Las Vegas saw its median price tumble almost 35 percent to $138,500 year-over-year.

The federal tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time homebuyers helped boost sales in the third quarter. U.S. home sales grew in 45 states from the second quarter, with 28 states posting double-digit gains.

Total quarterly sales hit a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.3 million, up more than 11 percent from 4.76 million in the second quarter.

President Barack Obama signed a bill last week extending and expanding the federal tax credit. Now, buyers who have owned in their current homes for at least five years are eligible for tax credits of up to $6,500. First-time homebuyers — or anyone who hasn't owned a home in the last three years — would still get up to $8,000. To qualify, buyers have to sign a purchase agreement by April 30, 2010, and close by June 30.

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[nowhiningallowed]

The Congress, Freddie, Fannie and the FHA caused the initial problems and haven't done anything to make certain the problems aren't repeated. They insist on encouraging people who haven't any business getting a home in the first place to go out and get one anyway. Home ownership is a privilege not a right. Banks need to tighten credit to avoid deadbeats getting something they're totally unqualified to get. Some recovery!

[us_1776]

The housing crisis was caused by massive overdevelopment of real estate funded by the big banks. The mortgage crisis developed because housing prices fell apart because of the massive over-supply problem. And although people like to point to the subprime mortgages, it wasn't just a subprime mortgage problem. The banks engaged in institutionalized fraud in that they had perverse incentive programs that resulted in them writing mortgages to people that did not truly qualify. And that included all types of mortgages, subprime and every other type of mortgage. The banks did this out of sheer greed. And now they have foreclosed on and collapsed the lives of millions of Americans. For problems which the big banks themselves are totally responsible for creating.

[mljohns00]

U.S. tax policies have artificially inflated home prices for decades. Why do we think we should pay people to build and buy homes that aren't needed?

And now, we are paying first-time homeowners to buy the homes that have been reposessed from their former owners, who got caught in the Government-caused recession. Why are we doing this?

[bubbadubba]

<<<<The big banks are single-handedly responsible for the mortgage crisis, the housing crisis, the economic crisis and the resulting economic disaster that has happened to so many millions of people.>>>>

And yet even after getting bailed out by the taxpayers they are still giving huge bonuses and salaries to the people who destroyed the US.
Does anyone else (other than Limbaugh, Hannity or Beck of course who say they deserve the bonuses) find that odd?

[Skirtlifters]

He's not asleep. He's the Shill in Chief now. Dem or repub makes no diff...they all play the game.

[us_1776]

The big banks are 100% to blame for the entire collapse of the housing market and the economy.

They funded massive overdevelopment of real estate that generated enormous amounts of housing supply that eventually overwhelmed demand and crashed housing prices. And demographers and others were warning that there was no justification for all this massive real estate development. And the banks did all this in the name of greed. They saw all those lucrative mortgages that they would be able to write on all that real estate development that they were funding. And then they engaged in mortgage fraud through perverse volume incentives to mortgage brokers both internal and external and wrote mortgages to just about anyone without regard to qualifications. And this involved not just subprime mortgages but all categories of mortgages.

The big banks are single-handedly responsible for the mortgage crisis, the housing crisis, the economic crisis and the resulting economic disaster that has happened to so many millions of people.

[bubbadubba]

The plan is working.
The wealthy who control the banks are jacking up mortgage interest rates even though they are getting the money at 0% to lend and home sales are down 80%.
The plan is to destroy the entire real estate market then buy everything up cheap, start loaning again, then sell all that property for trillions in profits while not paying taxes thanks to Bush and the Republican tax welfare for the wealthy.
This is the same thing the wealthy did during the last depression, they got away with it then and they are getting away with it now.
I can't believe Obama is acting like a Republican and not doing anything about his scam.
Mortgages should be at 3% according to most economists and that would engergize home sales and refinances and boost the economy.
Are you asleep Mr. President? WAKE UP.

[cbsblogger]

Bubba...I agree. Those who caused this debacle- i.e. the bankers and financiers and cohorts of the Fed Reserve are making sure it plays out so that only their cronies benefit.

The financiers caused it and now they get free money. Interest rates are being pushed down to near zero for savers so that they are forced to put their savings into the grand scam casino called Wall street.

Why didn't the US Treasury issue savings type bonds paying reasonable rates such as 4% offering secure debt so that Americans could buy our nation's debt for their retirement, instead of selling it to the Chinese? Answer: So that Wall Street gets to haul in the loot and once again shaft Americans when it crashes again.

George Carlin said it best. The game is fixed and you ain't part of the club