Econintersect: In real estate it is often said that there are only three important things: location, location and location. There should perhaps be a footnote to 
that: credit. A credit.com column by Gerri Detweiler on MSN Money has compiled a list of the six state-wide housing markets with the strongest recoveries and also the five weakest. The four data factors in the rankings: (1) delinquencies, (2) average credit scores, (3) current rate of new mortgage originations and (4) foreclosure inventory. The data used by credit.com came from Experian-Oliver Wyman Market Intelligence Reports and from CoreLogic. GEI News reports Corelogic data as it is released.
The following are the six states with the strongest housing markets according to Detweiler (starting with the best):
- North Dakota
- Minnesota
- New Hampshire (tie with South Dakota)
- South Dakota (tie with New Hampshire)
- Nebraska
- Montana
The five weakest states (starting with the worst):
- Nevada
- Delaware
- Florida
- Illinois
- South Carolina
Go to the article a MSN Money for details on each state.
Watch the following video from CNBC (22 February 2013) which discusses the rate at which people who have gone through a foreclosure, short sale or other mortgage default are returning to the housing market. Diana Olick saye that 1.5 million defaulters will be eligible to return to the home purchase market by the beginning of next year.
A website AfterForeclosure.com provides information about how those who have been through a mortgage default can get back into the market to buy a home. This website is operated by the same folks who have been running YouWalkAway.com for several years.
There are some who argue that the euphoria about the housing market recovery is complete;y wrong. Keith Jurow reports that data in many markets is still showing price declines and the number of foreclosures yet to come will be overwhelming. Adam Whitehead recemtly said that the housing market recovery is a case of smoke and mirrors.
Sources:
- Housing recovery boom, bust states (Gerri Detweiler, credit.com, MSN Money, 12 March 2012)
- Diana Olick on CNBC (22 February 2013)
- Links in the article.
