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The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had declined in June, slightly improved in July. The Index now stands at 59.5 (1985=100), up from 57.6 in June. The Present Situation Index decreased to 35.7 from 36.6. The Expectations Index rose to 75.4 from 71.6 last month.
“Consumer confidence posted a modest gain in July, the result of an improvement in consumers’ short-term outlook,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. “Consumers’ appraisal of current business and employment conditions, however, was less favorable as concerns about the labor market continue to weigh on consumers’ attitudes. Overall, consumers remain apprehensive about the future, but some of the concern expressed last month has abated.”
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Foreclosure filings – default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions – declined 25 percent in the first six months of 2011 compared with the previous six months and 29 percent from the first half of 2010, according to a report by RealtyTrac. A total of 1,170,402 U.S. properties received foreclosure filings.
Foreclosure filings were reported on 222,740 U.S. properties in June, an increase of nearly 4 percent from the previous month, but a decrease of 29 percent from June 2010. June was the ninth consecutive month where foreclosure activity decreased on a year-over-year basis. Default notices, scheduled auctions and REOs were all up on a month-over-month basis, but down on a year-over-year basis in June.
“Processing and procedural delays are pushing foreclosures further and further out – we estimate that as many as 1 million foreclosure actions that should have taken place in 2011 will now happen in 2012, or perhaps even later,” said James J. Saccacio, chief executive officer of RealtyTrac. “This casts an ominous shadow over the housing market, where recovery is unlikely to happen until the current and forthcoming inventory of distressed properties can be whittled down to a manageable number.”
California registered the nation’s third highest state foreclosure rate, with 1.96 percent of its housing units (one in 51) receiving a foreclosure filing during the six months. A total of 263,500 California properties received a foreclosure filing in the first half of 2011, the nation’s highest total, but down 13 percent from the previous six months and down nearly 23 percent from the first half of 2010. California foreclosure activity decreased on a year-over-year basis for the 19th straight month in June, but default notices and REOs increased on a month-over-month basis, continuing a sawtooth pattern in the monthly numbers.
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Calif. median home price: May 2011: $$291,760 (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. highest median home price by region/county May 2011: San Mateo: $810,000 (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. lowest median home price by region/county May 2011: Merced $113,000 (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. Pending Home Sales Index: June 2011: 119, an increase of 1.9 percent compared with prior month. (Source: C.A.R.)
Calif. First-time Buyer Affordability Index: First quarter 2011: 53 percent (Source: C.A.R.)
Mortgage rates: Week ending 7/14/2011 30-yr. fixed: 4.51 fees/points: 0.7% 15-yr. fixed: 3.65 fees/points: 0.6% 1-yr. adjustable: 2.95% Fees/points: 0.5% (Source: Freddie Mac)
The Obama administration is ramping up talks on how to revive the housing market, which is weighing on the economic recovery.
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http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304584404576440033488980192.html?mod=WSJ_RealEstate_LeftTopNews
