The Housing Bubble Blog

A report from The Daily News in Washington. "In a rental climate favorable for landlords, out-of-town investors have been flocking to Cowlitz County. They are having a major impact on the housing market. Mike Rodley, a California investor who owns 65 rental units in Kelso and Longview, said he...

A report from Las Vegas Now on Nevada. "Experts in real estate describe the downtown Las Vegas housing market in these words: The demand is high, and the inventory is low. The Fremont 9 is a major new housing complex that is expected to open later this year. The complex will add several hundred...

A report from Dow Jones Newswire on China. "China's housing market has defied gravity and government restraints for two years, floating on a tide of bank loans and speculation. Until now. In Beijing and Shanghai -- two of the country's largest markets -- and other megacities, sales have stalled and...

A report from Global News in Canada. "It was tough at the top for people who sold their luxury homes in Vancouver last yea, according to Sotheby’s International Realty Canada’s 2017 Year-End Top-Tier Real Estate Report. When you break those sales down into three price segments, the most expensive...

A weekend topic starting with the Citizen Times in North Carolina. "When discussing the West Asheville real estate market, one highly technical term surfaces repeatedly. 'Oh yeah, it's insane — it is,' Delias Thompson said with a laugh, standing in front of the home she recently built with her...

A report from the Seattle Times in Washington. "Rents are dropping significantly across the Seattle area for the first time this decade, as a flood of new construction has left apartments sitting empty in Seattle’s hottest neighborhoods. The biggest rent decreases were mostly in the popular Seattle...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "ESG Kullen just closed on a bulk condo deal in Delray Beach, and plans to immediately renovate and sell them off individually. The real estate firm paid $7.5 million for 93 units at the 275-unit Murano at Delray Beach, according to Mark Meland, an...

A report from Kings County Politics in New York. "With Canarsie and East New York leading the way, foreclosures in Brooklyn doubled last year and were at their highest levels in over a decade, according to PropertyShark. The reports found that 827 homes were scheduled to be auctioned in Brooklyn...

A report from the Sauk Prairie in Wisconsin. "Kirkland Kettleson, Realtor/Broker with Century 21 in Wisconsin Dells, said 2017 was a sellers’ market and 2018 should be the same. 'If you were selling a home (in 2017), you were able to get top dollar and have your home sell in a very short time,'...

A report from the Denver Post in Colorado. "Metro Denver should see another 12,000 apartments come on the market in 2018, continuing a long and unprecedented streak of multi-family construction, said Greg Willett, chief economist with RealPage. Builders delivered 10,854 new apartments in metro...

A report from the Associated Press on Washington. "A lawsuit filed in Seattle contends that a local developer and prominent real estate agency conspired to prey on Chinese nationals and inflate luxury home prices. The Seattle Times reported that two plaintiffs who bought adjacent newly built homes...

A report from the Edmonton Journal in Canada. "My name is Julia Lipscombe and I’m a renter. Not only that, I’m happy with our current situation. That said, my husband and I are in our mid-30s. Among our friends, we’re in the minority. I thought about this while reading a recent Globe and Mail...

A weekend topic starting with Delaware Business Now. "Gary Hindes is continuing his battle with the boards of home lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Hindes is the managing partner of New York-based Delaware Bay Co. and has been active in Democratic Party circles in Delaware. Delaware Bay...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "The crazy-hot real estate market that Boulder County has experienced the past four-plus years began to cool in 2017, but you might not know it. Homes are still selling for record highs. Well-priced properties still bring multiple offers. And...

A report from CNBC on New York. "Manhattan real estate sales and prices took a fall in the fourth quarter, and they're likely to slide even further this year after the new tax rules take effect. Total sales volume fell 12 percent compared with the fourth quarter of last year — the lowest quarterly...

A report from Vice Magazine on Canada. "Canada’s real estate market is bound to take a hit this year thanks to the government’s new mortgage rules that took effect on January 1st. Buyers who are making down payments of more than 20 percent on a home, do not need mortgage insurance — they will now...

A report from Mansion Global on California. "The last remaining condo unit owned by serial home flipper Ellen DeGeneres at the Beverly West building in Los Angeles is pending sale as of December 19, according to listing records. The two-bedroom spread was most recently asking $6.95 million, after...

To commemorate the 10 year anniversary of 2007, my post from December 31 of that year. The San Francisco Chronicle reports from California. “Beaming with pride, Johnnie Pitts stacked up piles of legal documents on his living room floor the Wednesday before Christmas. The San Francisco Muni driver...

What's your housing bubble prediction for 2018? From ten years ago. "I predict that 2008 is when the housing bubble outside the US starts to deflate. This includes Canada, Mexico, UK, Spain, and others. The rest of the world is still in 'it’s different here' denial, but in the end, economic...

It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "The U.S. housing market is buzzing, pushed by a slim supply of homes for sale. And few metros have had the frantic energy of Portland. But the latter half of 2017 brought an unexpectedly cooler market than 2016. Now, bidding wars are no longer the...