Housing data this past month is giving many reasons to jump for joy.

It’s no mystery that housing has been on a bumpy path since 2007, but the past month, a wide range of data has come out all but endorsing a new housing recovery.

From home sales, to interest rates, to construction data, everywhere you look nowadays, there’s another reason to smile about where housing is headed. And with that in mind, here are the eight reasons to be ecstatic for real estate in 2012:

1. Home Sales – Existing-home sales in April were 14.4 percent higher than last year, and new home sales were 9.9 percent higher in the same period.
2. Prices – Long the black eye to housing’s progress, prices have begun tightening up. The median price for existing-homes was up 10.1 percent from last April, and values were up in CoreLogic’s latest HPI for the first time since July 2011.
3. Inventory Levels – The nation’s housing inventory has remained low, further stimulating buyer demand. New-home inventory is near record lows at 5.1 months supply, and for the overall market, inventory is 21 percent lower than last May.
4. Interest Rates – Rates on fixed-rate mortgages continue to reach historic lows, with rates for the week ending May 17 falling to 3.79 percent…until they fell further for the week ending May 24 to 3.78 percent.
5. Incomes – Realtor income increased by 2.3 percent in 2011, according to NAR’s latest member profile.
6. Affordability – Housing affordability is now at a 40-year high, according to research from Case-Shiller Fiserv.
7. Foreclosures – Foreclosure filings in April were the lowest in five years, falling 14 percent from last year.
8. Construction – Housing starts were up nearly 30 percent in April from last year, and spending for March, the most recent month of data from the Census Bureau, was up 6.0 percent from March 2011. As a result, builder confidence has soared to its highest levels in five years.

Online syndication has become a source of considerable debate among agents the past year.

Internet syndication has changed the real estate industry as we know it, but that doesn’t mean that all brokerages want to use it.

Edina Realty, the Twin Cities-based brokerage that famously pulled its listings from Trulia, was in the news again this week, announcing it would also pull its properties from the even more popular Realtor.com. Edina, though, is not the only brokerage to take this step, and we thought we’d look at the four most common arguments against online syndication.

1. Control – Some brokerages have stated that by listing on third-party sites, they lose control of their listings, and are unable to effectively track traffic and client interest. Indeed, Bob Peltier, Edina’s CEO, said his brokerage will be re-upping the emphasis on its website to drive traffic.
2. Listing Costs – Concerns have also been raised that by listing on syndication sites, listing agents are left out of the mix, and will not be properly compensated by sales commissions.
3. Legality – This one is fairly common, that third-party sites operate without any of the legal and financial obligations to the listings that agents and brokerages must deal with – so, therefore, the data and services they provide are not held to the same standards as those of brokerages.
4. Unequal Representation – By far the most common argument, though, involves the advertising models of the syndication sites, and how agents from competing brokerages are allegedly placed next to the listings of disgruntled brokerage. This was the primary reason that the GoodLife Team, based in Austin, TX, pulled its listings from Trulia.

Opinions vary wildly on syndication, and chances are it will continue to be a contentious issue going forward as the Internet continues to influence how real estate operates.

The good times keep on rolling in Miami's real estate market.

With yet another month of median price increases, April marked a five month long stretch of home price increases for Miami. Condos led the way with an incredible 30 percent year-over-year increase.

Single-family home prices also posted strong yearly increases at 8.2 percent. In addition to prices, here were some of the other positive details in the Miami Association of Realtor’s report:

• Existing single-family home sales in Miami-Dade were up 7.2 percent from April 2011, but condo sales were down 12.0 percent.
• Inventory continued to fall, declining in Miami-Dade by 34 percent from last year and by 4.04 percent just from March. Total housing inventory in the U.S. was up 9.5 percent over the same period, but down 20.6 percent from last year.
• Distressed properties remain in strong demand, accounting for 47 percent of Miami-Dade’s sales for April; still, that’s down from 59 percent last year and 49 percent in March.
• International buyers were busy as ever – all-cash sales were 64 percent of total closed transactions, with the financing method driving 46 percent of single-family sales and an amazing 77 percent of condo closings; nearly 90 percent of international buyers in Florida use all cash.

“Miami single-family home and condominium prices continue to trend upwards due to the record demand experienced last year,” said Martha Pomares, 2012 chairman of the board of the Miami Association of Realtors.  “Price appreciation should continue due to limited supply and strong demand from both U.S. and international buyers and investors.”

NAR's purchase of the 437 N Rush building gives the association control of an entire block of real estate.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced earlier this week its purchase of 437 N Rush, a two-story building that borders the west side of the association’s Chicago headquarters off Michigan Avenue.

NAR will now own the entire block on which its office sits, and for more details about the transaction, we spoke with Doug Hinderer, NAR’s senior vice president.

1. 437 N Rush was previously owned by the Wrigley Company.
2. The deal, which was for $1.45 million, was conducted with Phil Hoffer of GNP Realty representing NAR and Bruce Miller of Jones Lang Lasalle representing the Wrigley Company.
3. GNP normally represents NAR in its real estate dealings, considering it has a long-standing relationship with the association and is the management company in charge of its headquarters.
4. There were no commissions involved in the deal; both brokerages were independently compensated by the parties they represented.
5. The purchase was an all-cash transaction.
6. The building will not result in any direct financial benefit to members, at least in the form of reduced membership dues or refunds.
7. The true benefit, Hinderer explained, is in how the new building “enhances the equity and value” of NAR’s headquarters, especially that it prohibits any speculative development of the lot that could negatively impact the value of NAR’s building.
8. Also, Hinderer said the building made sense as an investment; it was better, after all, for NAR to invest in prime real estate during a downturn, rather than allow the money to sit in the bank and collect interest. “If we decide to sell in a year for a profit, people will say it was a great investment,” Hinderer said.
9. NAR does have not have any near-term plans for the building. They could knock it down and expand their headquarters, or maintain the property as is and continue to collect revenue from the building’s tenets, which include the Phil Stefani’s 437 Rush Italian Steakhouse. The amount of revenue, Hinderer said, is confidential information.
10. If NAR does ultimately decided on doing something with the building, it will have been the result of a multi-tier process. First, NAR’s Building Committee, a 12-member body composed of commercial Realtors that manages NAR’s three buildings, will draft a proposal for the land; then, NAR’s Finance Committee will analyze the proposal and see if it makes financial sense; then, finally, NAR’s Board of Directors will make a final decision on the plan.

Appraisals can be a chore, but there are ways to engage in the process.

Appraisals – can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em. A topic we have covered numerous times, appraisals have been a consistent source of headaches for agents in the post-boom market, with contract failures a common result of the process.

As agents, you are not powerless when it comes to appraisals, and these are three things you should consider:

1. Localization – Make sure your lender finds an appraiser that is locally based, especially one that is familiar with your county or a neighboring county. It has become increasingly common for lenders to outsource the appraisal process, resulting in appraisers from far-off areas who have little knowledge of the nuances of your market.
2. Credentials – Always, always request that the appraiser have the necessary certifications and designations, such as the SRA, or senior residential appraiser distinction from the Appraisal Institute, or the MAI designation.
3. Engage – Do not be afraid of meeting and engaging with your appraiser. Even if the appraiser is locally-based, chances are you have a better grasp of your property’s market than they do; share that knowledge with them. It will better ensure that short sales, foreclosures and other distressed comps do not negatively impact your home’s value.

The merger of NAR's credit union with Northwest Federal Credit Union will offer members new services.

The National Association of Realtors announced this week the merger of its Realtors Federal Credit Union (FCU) with the Northwest Federal Credit Union.

The end result of a nine-month inquiry by Bob Goldberg, the senior vice president for sales, marketing, business development and strategic initiatives at NAR, and Martin Edwards, the chairman of the board for the FCU, the partnership plans on offering numerous benefits to NAR members. Here are five of the most notable:

1. Assets – The FCU was already, at $75 million in assets in just three years, the fastest growing credit union in the U.S. in 2011, and its merger with Northwest adds $2.1 billion in assets and 60 years of experience to its ranks.
2. Nuance – Northwest has a myriad of clients it services (it began servicing the CIA), so it has a unique understanding of how independent contractors, a la Realtors, function.
3. Approval – The board of directors for both credit unions approved the merger unanimously, and NAR members voted for it in overwhelmingly numbers.
4. High Tech – With the merger, Northwest now has access to FCU’s state-of-the-art 24/7 virtual banking system, the first of its kind for credit unions.
5. Shared Responsibility – FCU members can now utilize the brick and mortar complexes that are part of Northwest’s Shared Branch Network, which allows FCU members to access 4,300 credit union branches and personally conduct their banking affairs.
6. Diversify – The FCU will also have access to accounts and financial products that it could not offer. Launched during the banking crisis, the FCU’s offerings were, in the words of Goldberg, “limited,” but with Northwest, it can now offer more advanced business loans, deposits and commercial products.
7. Early Edition – Goldberg said all the pieces for the merger should come together by Aug. 1 of this year, and because of that, members can begin filing for those new financial offerings now.

Real estate in Florida, from Miami to Orlando, has been stellar in 2012.

The Florida Association of Realtors (FAR) yesterday released sales data on the Sunshine State’s real estate market in April, and the results were expectedly optimistic.

The housing markets in Florida, and especially the local Miami area, have utterly transformed in 2012, and FAR’s report contained three especially promising trends that have developed in recent months.

1. As noted by Summer Greene, FAR’s president, pending home sales have risen nearly 38 percent for single-family homes and 25 percent for townhouses and condos, with multiple offers clamoring for many of the properties.
2. The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes rose 10.2 percent in April from last year, and the condo-townhouse price rose 16.1 percent.
3. Inventories continue to remain competitive, with single-family homes at a 5.8-month supply and condo/townhouses at a 5.7-month supply. Lower inventories will help further with prices and demand.

John Tuccillo, FAR’s chief economist, said the trend in pricing is especially positive.

“The housing numbers for the state of Florida continue to signal recovery,” Tuccillo said. “The increase in both median and average prices suggests that investors are having a strong impact on the market, soaking up lower priced inventory and causing buyers to move up the price ladder.”

New home sales posted hefty year-over-year increases in April and showed another cause for optimism among builders.

The housing recovery continued rolling along this morning, with the Commerce Department reporting that new home sales rose 9.9 percent in April from last year.

Florida Realtors are extending their international reach this week with a business trip to Spain, a sensical trip considering all the Spanish architecture in Miami.

Florida Realtors President Summer Greene, along with state Governor Rick Scott, is in Spain this week, wooing influential Spaniards and convincing them to develop in the Sunshine State.

The five-day trip, which also includes 60 additional Florida business executives, will feature meetings with Spanish government officials and business leaders, and a promotion of next year’s 500th anniversary celebration of Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon’s landing in Florida in 1513.

Greene said such trips are invaluable to the future of Florida.

“It is vital to our future to encourage business investment and diversification,” Greene said. “Development missions like this one offer a prime opportunity to demonstrate the benefits of establishing a business – and home – in Florida.”

Also up for discussion is Amendment 4, a state ballot initiative that will be voted on Nov. 6, 2012. The amendment would empower the Florida Legislature to prohibit increases in the assessed value of homestead property, and of specified non-homestead properties, if the fair market value of the property decreases.

It would also reduce the cap on annual changes in assessments of non-homestead property from 10 percent to 5 percent; and provide an additional homestead exemption for first-time buyers equal to 50 percent of the median home price in the county. The additional exemption would be gradually reduced until it expires within 5 years.

Jeff Morr, the founder/CEO of Majestic Properties in Biscayne Corridor and Master Brokers Forum board member, said that with the problems Spain has been having, it makes sense for Florida and Miami to raise its international profile with the country.

“There’s definitely a global market for Miami,” he said.

Housing starts are an influential stat for real estate, but can they be trusted?

Housing starts are among the most influential collections of data in the world of real estate, but a Washington Post blog has laid bare some troubling flaws with the data’s collection.

Here are the five most notable inconsistencies with the statistic:

1. Housing starts data came out last week, and amidst the promising increases (which we, like many other outlets, reported on), was this fact – starts rose 2.6 percent, but they could have fallen by 12.2 percent or risen by 17.4 percent. Why? The Census Bureau’s margin of error was 14.8 percent.
2. As the Chief of the Bureau’s Residential Construction Branch, Raemeka Mayo, explained to the Post, the Bureau follows a process to collect its data. First, it gets fresh building permit info from 900 of around 19,000 offices that issue permits.
3. Then, after identifying the properties to track, they follow all projects with five or more housing units, but only 1 out of every 50 other projects.
4. How they follow the construction is similarly scattered. Once construction begins, the Bureau visits the sites or chats with the builders/property owners, and follow up each month until the project is completed and becomes part of the Bureau’s housing completions total.
5. The reported margins of error for the past three months were the following: 15.6 percent in March, 15.9 percent in February and 16.8 percent in January.