Question: I've been told real estate investment trusts offer great diversification. But do they really? Last year REITs lost 38% - that's a bit worse than the S&P 500. --Brian M., Greenwich, Conn. Answer: Historically, devoting part of your portfolio to real estate investments trusts - shares of firms that own or manage properties - has indeed raised your returns and reduced your investment risk. You don't have to search too far to find a time when holding REITs boosted your returns: From 2000 through 2002, when the S&P was down 38%, REIT indexes returned 49%.

via money.cnn.com

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has slashed interest rates from 1% to 0.5%. The reduction means rates have now fallen almost 5% in the last year, having stood at 5.25% in February 2008. Miles Shipside, commercial director, of Rightmove, said: “The Bank Base Rate cut is obviously good news for both those homeowners on tracker mortgages and those looking to move. However, for the market to return to a state of normality we would repeat the need for sensible loan-to-value ratios and income multiples to be made available to buyers, at reasonable interest rates.”

via yourmortgage.co.uk

Tucked into the economic stimulus package signed by President Barack Obama last week was $2 billion to expand a nascent and controversial program to help cities and states buy and fix up foreclosed homes. Last month, the Department of Housing and Urban Development signed off on hundreds of grants to all 50 states totaling almost $4 billion. The Neighborhood Stabilization Program, as it’s known, was passed last year as part of a housing rescue plan that was regarded at the time as the most significant housing legislation in a generation.

via bradenton.com

High end property prices in the Philippines are expected to suffer a sharp downturn in 2009, especially in Manila, because of the economic downturn, it is claimed.
Industry analysts are expecting demand from foreign property investors and experts to fall and this will have a major impact on the real estate markets. According to Christian Cruz, senior economist at Global Property Guide, prices of luxury units in Manila could be affected as expats are called back to their countries because of ongoing job cutbacks.

via propertywire.com

The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has cut interest rates by 0.5% to 1.5%, the lowest level in the Bank's 315-year history. The reduction follows a 1% cut a month ago and a huge 1.5% cut in November. The decision has been met with mixed reviews however, with some commentators claiming borrowers won’t feel any benefit.

via yourmortgage.co.uk

The real estate market is so awful that buyers are now scooping up homes for as little as $1,000. There are 18 listings in Flint, Mich., for under $3,000, according to Realtor.com. There are 22 in Indianapolis, 46 in Cleveland and a whopping 709 in Detroit. All of these communities have been hit hard by foreclosures, and most of these homes are being sold by the lenders that repossessed them.

via finance.yahoo.com

The Government is improving the help available for homeowners facing mortgage arrears, and ultimately repossession, because they have lost their jobs. Changes to Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) were outlined last year and due to take effect from April 2009 but the worsening of the credit crisis and rising unemployment have prompted ministers to bring forward the new measures. From today, the means-tested benefit is available after 13 weeks, rather than 39 weeks.

via financemarkets.co.uk

In Durham County, property taxes are due next week, but there is a big spike in the number of people willing to pay late penalties if they can pay in installments.
Million dollar golf course mansions surround north Durham's Treyburne Country Club, but the owner of two homes has one for sale for less than the tax value. The owner also owes Durham County $28,000 in property taxes and wants to make late payments.

via abclocal.go.com

Economists predicted the 20-city S&P/Case-Shiller index would decline 17 to 18.4 percent. The S&P/Case-Shiller index declined for the 27th straight month with all 20 cities showing a drop in prices. In Phoenix, prices dropped 33 percent and in Las Vegas, 32 percent. The decline of housing prices in Atlanta, Seattle and Portland exceeded 10 percent for the first time. "The bear market continues; home prices are back to their March 2004 levels," David Blitzer, Chairman of the Index committee at Standard & Poor's said in a statement.

via tothecenter.com

Rates on 30-year mortgages fell to a record low for the third straight week and borrowers took advantage of the drop, sending new applications soaring. With the Federal Reserve on the verge of pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into the devastated U.S. housing market, mortgage rates have plunged to the lowest level since Freddie Mac started tracking the data in April 1971.

via google.com

Federal Reserve researchers found that 169 independent mortgage companies ceased operations in 2007, crimping credit to consumers as the economy plunged into a recession. The data signal the waning of lightly regulated mortgage lenders that thrived with funding from Wall Street firms and investors hungry for yield. Non-bank lenders’ share of the high- priced loan market, which includes subprime loans, fell to 20.5 percent in 2007 from 50.6 percent in 2004, the Fed study said.

via bloomberg.com

Whether you're a home buyer, seller or an owner, you probably have one central question about this market: Where are prices headed from here? You can gain some insight into the pricing puzzle by focusing not just on home values, but on rental rates. Housing economists have long used a home price/rent ratio as one way to gauge whether or not home prices are inflated or undervalued.

via mortgagesolutions-online.com

Dramatic actions by the Federal Reserve Bank to slash interest rates to nearly zero and pump money into mortgages have set the table for a wave of mortgage refinancing that could save money for millions of homeowners and be a boon for banks. Some observers have said 30-year rates could drop below 5 percent. The national average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 5.53 percent Wednesday, according to Bankrate.com.

via thetimes-tribune.com

Back in August, Calculated Risk pointed out some good news/bad news: subprime delinquencies had peaked, but the Alt-A rate resets don't peak until late 2009, suggesting that delinquencies and foreclosures could be with us well into 2010. They made the excellent point that, relative to subprime, a smaller proportion of Alt-A mortgages had been securitized. That means that vulnerable mortgages remain on bank balance sheets and are likely to weigh those down for some time to come.

via seekingalpha.com

Families in Norfolk will be among the first in the country to benefit from the Government's new £200m mortgage rescue scheme. Broadland District Council has been picked as one of 60 councils which can “fast track” the scheme, which could reduce the amount up to 6,000 people pay in mortgages each month and head off home repossessions. Chancellor Alistair Darling announced the scheme would be rolled out nationally in January, but people in Broadland will be able to apply from December 11.

via eveningnews24.co.uk