Bush's tax reform appears dead on arrival

President Bush's Federal Tax Reform advisory panel issued two sets of recommendations this month.

[via Real Estate - Topix.net]

Lowest Price and Great Area..Near Tower District

Just Listed 11/18/04 2004 N. Fruit, Fresno Ca $169,900
The home is 2 Bedrooms, 1 Bath and approx 689 SF Asking price $169,900, is well below the median price in Fresno. The home is currently rented for $720 per month. The tenant would like to stay if sold to investor.

Fresno Home Market Changing Fast!

The Fresno real estate market, like most other areas is changing from a sellers market to a buyers market. We now have nearly 1900 active listings in the Fresno MLS, nearly twice the inventory of a year ago! It's been a great ride for sellers and owners the last few years, but now we are in an adjustment period that is flattening prices. It's a great time to be a buyer in today's market. There are many more homes for sale now, and buyers have more to choose from. I don't think prices will drop drastically, but this is a healthier market, where competitive pricing is the key to making a sale happen.

Nation's luxury homes prove a tougher sell

Most open houses feature a hovering real estate agent, a stack of listing sheets, and -- if you're lucky -- a pot of coffee and some cheese and crackers.

[via Real Estate - Topix.net]

Real Estate: Home costs getting higher

With the cost of building materials escalating, developers are finding it harder to calculate the final cost of their projects — causing some analysts to wonder whether the price increases are realistic.

[via FresnoBee.com: Real Estate]

Forget about housing boom or bubble -- data say a bit of normalcy likely

The Las Vegas housing market has traded in its go-go performance of 2004 for a little sanity, local analysts said.

[via Real Estate - Topix.net]

Mortgage Defaults on the Rise in California

Mortgage defaults in California rose for the first time in more than three years during the third quarter, as slower price gains and riskier loans gave struggling homeowners less margin for error, data released Thursday showed. A separate report released Thursday showed other signs of a cooling housing market, as inventories of unsold new homes nationwide rose to a record. During the July-September ...

[via KnowledgePlex.org News]

Real Estate: Urban villages welcome

Across the street from Freedom Elementary School are the beginnings of Clovis' innovative southeast urban village.

[via FresnoBee.com: Real Estate]

Metro: Fair offers tools to owning a home

First-time home buyer Judy Lopez of Fresno can describe exactly what she and husband Omar are looking for in a home.

[via FresnoBee.com: Metro]

Metro: San Joaquin flood plain to expand

Proposed Federal Emergency Management Agency guidelines about how far floodwaters might reach could hinder building and farming and spike flood insurance rates along the San Joaquin River.

[via FresnoBee.com: Metro]

More Homeowners With Good Credit Stuck With Higher-Rate Loans

Low interest rates and aggressive marketing campaigns have driven home lending to record levels. But increasingly Americans with good credit are being saddled with loans designed for high-risk borrowers. These higher-cost loans have been the fastest-growing segment of the mortgage market — accounting for 20% of the home loans issued last year, up from 10% a decade ago. Freddie Mac, the government ...

[via KnowledgePlex.org News]

Metro: Clovis gears up for new schools

Clovis Unified School District's new education complex is under way at International and Willow avenues, the booming district's latest push into vineyards and orchards as it tries to keep pace with growth in northeast Fresno and Clovis.

[via FresnoBee.com: Metro]

Real Estate Agents May Face Big Shakeout

The easy money may be disappearing. In recent years, Sacramento's high-priced housing market has lured thousands to train as real estate agents, many hoping to cash in on the real estate boom. But now that homes are taking longer to sell and the market appears to be cooling off, many real estate professionals are predicting a shakeout that will force new agents to leave the business and veteran sellers ...

[via KnowledgePlex.org News]

Federal Courthouse Completed in Downtown Fresno

The new federal courthouse is the tallest building in Fresno, and maybe the most impressive.

[via KFSN Front Page headlines]

No time for greed

Economist and Sarasota resident John Tucillo puts it bluntly. "Sellers are always the last to know" when the market has turned, says the former chief economist of the National Association of Realtors.

[via Real Estate - Topix.net]

Metro: Justice has new home in Fresno

The heart of California has a stunning new federal courthouse worthy of the region's growing national stature.

[via FresnoBee.com: Metro]

Fearing peak is near, more homeowners selling

With some homeowners fearing prices are peaking, the number of local homes for sale jumped 23 percent in September compared to the previous month, according to Multiple Listing Service statistics.

[via Real Estate - Topix.net]

Home Prices Place Harsh Demands On Would-Be Buyers

Record-breaking home values have jeopardized the American dream for more and more Southern Californians who aspire to the security and stability of homeownership but find the prices and sacrifices too much to bear. The hot real estate market has generated unimaginable wealth for homeowners but has left others priced out of the market, feeling they'll never get their piece of the dream. Five years ...

[via KnowledgePlex.org News]

Valley becomes more costly for home buyers

The latest consumer alert reveals it's getting tougher to find affordable housing in the valley.

[via CBS 47: Local News]

Metro: Dispute clouds casino proposal

A dispute between two local Indian tribes each claiming to have historical ties to a piece of land in the Fresno County foothills could jeopardize plans for a new $250 million casino and hotel.

[via FresnoBee.com: Metro]