Displaying blog entries 1-10 of 12
Residential SFRS Home Sales (Closed) for March 2012
a comparison (by county)
LAKE PORTER LAPORTE
March 2010 292 132 76
March 2011 274 109 77
March 2012 295 116 80
Residential Home Sales (Closed) for February 2012
a comparison (by county)
LAKE PORTER LAPORTE
Feb. 2010 239 68 47
Feb. 2011 228 82 58
Feb. 2012 250 106 48
According to LaToya Irby, About.com Guide
1. Paying late
Thirty-five percent of your credit score is your payment history. Consistently being late on your credit card payments will hurt your credit score. Pay your credit card bills on time to preserve your credit score.
2. Not paying at all
Completely ignoring your credit cards bills is much worse than paying late. Each month you miss a credit card payment, you're one month closer to having the account charged off.
3. Having an account charged off
When creditors think you're not going to pay your credit card bills at all, they charge off your account. This account status is one o the worst things for your credit score.
4. Having an account sent collections
Creditors often use third-party debt collectors to try to collect payment from you. Creditors might send your account to collections before or after charging it off. A collection status shows that the creditor gave up trying to get payment from you and hired someone else to do it.
5. Defaulting on a loan
Loan defaults are similar to credit card charge-offs. A default shows that you have not fulfilled your end of the loan contract.
6. Filing bankruptcy
Bankruptcy will devastate your credit score. It's a good idea to seek alternatives, like consumer credit counseling before bankruptcy.
7. Having your home foreclosed
Getting behind on your mortgage payments will lead your lender to foreclose on your home. In turn, the late payments will hurt your credit score and make it harder to get approved for future mortgage loans. (For possible alternatives see my "Foreclosure Options" page on this website - Linda)
8. Getting a judgment
A judgment shows you not only avoided your bills, the court had to get involved to make you pay the debt. While they both hurt your credit score, a paid judgment is better than unpaid one.
9. High credit card balances
The second most important part of your credit score is level of debt, measured by credit utilization. Having high credit card balances (relative to your credit limit) increases your credit utilization and decreases your credit score.
10. Maxed out credit cards
Maxed out and over-the-limit credit card balances make your credit utilization 100%. This is least ideal for your credit score.
LAKE PORTER LAPORTE
January 2010 188 60 35
January 2011 220 91 59
January 2012 246 89 47
Just another service by Linda Howard, keeping you informed about the market.
This recent article was published in the Northwest Indiana Times
| Northwest Indiana home sales level out in 2011 | |||
Keith Benman, Times of Northwest Indiana Years of housing crisis-driven declines in home sales finally halted in 2011, with region Realtors selling slightly more homes than the previous year, according to year-end sales numbers from the Greater Northwest Indiana Association of Realtors. Realtors in the five counties covered by the association sold 6,881 homes in 2011 as compared with 6,873 in 2010, an increase of just 0.1 percent. Although the increase is scant, it is being cautiously welcomed by Realtors, who had seen home sales decrease every year since 2007. "I do think the economy, though it is still weak in general, has seen noticeable improvement, and consumers are noticing," said Peter Novak, CEO of the Greater Northwest Indiana Association of Realtors. "People are starting to take that plunge." Home sales received a big boost in early 2010 as buyers sought to close deals to get in on expiring federal tax credits. When those ended, sales again began extending the decline that began in 2007. Through the first half of 2011, sales fell another 14.3 percent. But in July, sales were up 25 percent and they rose every month after that. "We had about a year period where it was just ugly," Novak said. Nationally, home sales ended the year on a rising note, with sales of existing homes of all types up 3.6 percent in December as compared with one year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors. For all of 2011, U.S. existing home sales were up 1.7 percent with 4.26 million homes sold. "The pattern of home sales in recent months demonstrates a market in recovery," said Lawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors chief economist. "Record low mortgage interest rates, job growth and bargain home prices are giving more consumers the confidence they need to enter the market." Interest rates on conventional, fixed 30-year home loans fell to an average of 3.96 in December, their lowest on record, according to Freddie Mac. The housing market still has a long way to go to crawl its way back to normalcy. The number of homes sold in Northwest Indiana in 2011 is 39.4 percent less than the 11,349 sold in 2006 at the peak of the housing boom, according to Greater Northwest Indiana Association of Realtors data. In December, 561 existing single-family homes were sold in Northwest Indiana, as compared with 518 in December 2010, for an 8.3 percent increase. The Greater Northwest Indiana Association of Realtors covers sales in Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Jasper and Newton counties. In Lake County, existing single-family home sales in December increased 19.3 percent. Lake County also had a healthy boost in selling prices, with the median selling price increasing 11 percent to $119,900. In Porter County, existing single-family home sales were down 10.4 percent. But the median selling price was up 2.3 percent to $148,400. |
One of nature's more beautiful sights is Lake Michigan in the winter. Check out this fabulous photo. Enjoy!
According to the Commerce Department data, housing starts rose in June 14.6%. This increase was above estimates from most analysts'.
Also, the Census Bureau and Department for Housing and Urban Development said single-family starts in June were up 9.4%.
Northwest Indiana survived what is now being named "The Blizzard of 2011" !!!! If you're reading this and live anywhere in one of the 31 states that was affected by this monster of a storm I hope you and your families are safe and warm. It was pretty incredible here where I live! My husband and I live on 5 acres outside of the city. We have a number of out buildings and there were times during the "lake effect" snow that I couldn't see them at all! Needless to say, we're still trying to dig out from all of it.
Is it just my imagination or are the winter's getting more severe! It seems like the last 3 years have been more snow, more cold and I am, less tolerant!
I AM however grateful though, that we didn't lose power and we had money enough to stock up the refrigerator so we were able to eat. (Thank You God).
I don't think the ground hog could even get out here, let alone see his shadow!
Welcome and Happy New Year. Let's start the new year off right with getting on a positive path! Homes are still selling, although the market may be a little soft right now. As is everything in life, life=change and real estate is no different. Mortgage rates are still incredibly low. If you're looking for a lender that you can count on, please contact me. I work with qualified, very experienced lenders only. Call me today - 219-921-6640 or email me at lhoward@boulderbayrealty.com
and Happy New Year!!
Displaying blog entries 1-10 of 12
