Housing News

Mortgage rates in the U.S., already increasing at the fastest pace in a decade, are poised to rise even further after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the central bank is ready to slow its purchases of Treasuries and bonds backed by housing loans.

Chairman Ben Bernanke ended weeks of speculation Wednesday by saying the Federal Reserve will likely slow its bond-buying program this year and end it next year because the economy is strengthening.

Mortgage rates have spiked over the past few weeks, rising at the fastest pace since 2010, sparking fears that the housing market could weaken and undermine the country's economic recovery.

The U.S. Federal Reserve has put a lot of its eggs in the housing basket. After all, a healthy housing sector brings benefits to the economy.

The Wisconsin Realtors Association says May sales are up about 18 percent compared to the same month last year.

Where have all the carpenters gone? Home builders across the United States are scratching their heads for an answer as they struggle to assemble crews to keep up with growing demand.

But the market is on the up with the average price for April this year 2,430 higher than in December 2012, the report by LSL Property Services and Acadametrics shows.

The median price of a previously owned house in California soared 31.9 percent in May, the largest year-over-year increase in more than three decades as sales of more expensive properties increased and inventory remained tight, a trade group said Monday.

Housing starts rose less than expected in May, likely reflecting labor and material constraints, but the overall trend remained consistent with strength in the housing market.

The number housing starts rose 7 percent to an annual pace of 914,000 homes, according to a government report out Tuesday.

Orlando-area residents Anne and Brian Fuselier look out over the Indian River recently from the third floor of their vacation home in New Smyrna Beach.News-Journal/DAVID TUCKER NEW SMYRNA BEACH - Anne and Brian Fuselier searched about a year and half - from "Vero to Palm Coast" - before they finally found their dream second home.

Wall Street is ramping up financing to private-equity firms buying homes to rent, helping them accelerate purchases as competition increases and prices jump .

The Wisconsin Realtors Association says for the 23rd-straight month, home sales is on the rise - up 18.2% from a year ago.

There were more than 9,000 homes put under agreement in Massachusetts last month, the most for any month since the Massachusetts Association of Realtors began tracking data in 2004.

This March 5, 2013 photo shows a sale pending sign in the front yard of a home in Mt.

When he takes questions this week after a Federal Reserve meeting, Chairman Ben Bernanke will confront investors' fear that rates are headed higher.

In this Monday, May 6, 2013 photo, construction is underway on the infrastructure of a multi-acre housing development in Zelienople, Pa.

For the first time in seven years, most U.S. homebuilders are optimistic about home sales, a sign that construction could help drive stronger economic growth in coming months.

Is the housing recovery for real? It looks that way, as a key measure of home builder confidence crossed a major threshold Monday.

For the first time in seven years, most U.S. homebuilders are optimistic about home sales, a sign that construction could help drive stronger economic growth in coming months.