Green Pointe Homes

Mortgage Thoughts for Northwest Indiana

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Fri, 18 Oct 2013 13:31:00 +0000

Sent in by Rob Rud a good friend in the Valparaiso real estate and mortgage industry:

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2013 a year of beginnings

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:40:00 +0000

Welcome to the new year, albeit a few days late for this announcement. We are officially pulling together floorplans and pricing for our first starts of the year. The cold has pushed our planning into March, but we are getting there quickly and excited.

If you are looking to build in NW Indiana this year, we'd like to get to know you. Frankly we're only going to build a few homes this year and we want to find the right relationships. Let's meet and get acquainted and then decide if we want to build together.

Steve and Julie Dalton
Green Pointe Homes
219-465-8352

Ever read Man in Full

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 18:50:00 +0000

What a great book.

That's not what this post is about, but thought I'd just throw it out there. Today I'm speedblogging my way around all my sites, less than one hour was the goal.

We've talked politics, running, reading, writing, mortgages, home building, and technology. What else is there? I'm out there and transparent, posted a photo this morning of the sunrise and plan to take one of the sunset tonite.

But for now, keep moving and head on over to the grand-daddy of them all, the site that makes me a little bit of money and gets the most traffic day after day. Northwest Indiana Politics

Rob Rud - mortgage banker knows home building

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 15:37:00 +0000

For many years I built new homes in Northwest Indiana, roughly 250 over 8 years to be exact. My key lending professional and mortgage advisor was Rob Rud. Here's an excerpt from Rob's most recent post:

Watch the home builders

August 3rd, 2010

The economy is watching closely, very closely, the results and actions taken by large home builders. During the run-up of housing activity and job creation of the 2000-2007 cycle, home builders set the tone and created millions of jobs ...

I highly recommend Rob and his team, call him today, or go to Rob Rud Mortgage Banker.

Realtors are stuck in 1980

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:18:00 +0000

Hello REALTORs it's time to stop, drop, and roll. It's not 2008 anymore, and homes aren't all fire sales. You need to change your language, your attitude, your pricing, your approach ... or get out of the business because right now you're just hurting all of us.

I was talking a bit on twitter with Dave Woodson, a social media guru and consultant with businesses that actually believe in growth. He got me thinking about the state of our industry right now. We seem to have a lot of the wrong people and not very many of the right. Let me be frank, and this won't go well for a lot of real estate professionals out there:

You aren't worth 7%, or 5% or even 3% of the sale of my home. If my home sells for $200,000 do you seriously think that signing a couple pages of boilerplate contract is worth $6,000 or $10,000 or more? I know I get access to your MLS, but you have heard about Zillow and the internet right? I'm betting that sign, that continually leans to the side in my front yard, cost you $150. I'm betting your MLS membership is about $1,500. So you're telling me that you need to make $10,000 for watching me sign your documents, when in all actuality someone else sold my house to the new buyers?
If all you're going to do is talk in inside baseball recession language, you're only hurting the sale of my home, property values in general, and your own income. When you say things like "let's make a low ball offer and see what they do" or "no one is getting approved for mortgages right now" or "we can list it there, but it will have to be reduced before we'll get any showings" ... you show me that you don't really understand selling. I want my home sold, if all I needed was an order taker I'd have someone in Pakistan handle it. The recession is over, housing is in full recovery, and rates are at historic lows ... pull your head out of the sand and start selling at full price!
You don't really understand mortgage finance, as a matter of fact it so confuses you that you just hand me and your other customers off to the few remaining lenders in a now over-regulated mess. Sure you told me that the rates were 4.5% yesterday, but do you even know what makes up that rate? Do you know anything about mortgage approvals or how long it takes to get one, or even what real closing costs are now that President Obama fixed housing. (ie. closing costs are now double 2008) It's time you sat down and listened to one of the survivors, things are a lot different and you need to know what you're doing.

Most homes aren't in foreclosure, as a matter of fact in NW Indiana only about 5% are. Stop lowballing every house you look at.

Due to Mitch Daniels' tax caps, most homes have seen property taxes plummet in NW Indiana, and could go down even more this year.

FHA is still out there, meaning that buyers can buy with as little as 3.5% down payment. And frankly if they don't have the money today, they will by the time you and your little "offer" game are over. Show them how to save, show them how easy it can be to buy right now at 4.5% interest rates. If they have a 580 credit score, hold their hands and get them to 620.

I'm sorry, I really am because the last great fight I had with a real estate professional ended up with she and I not talking for many years. But I was right then, and am now. You aren't worth more than I will make selling my house or even close to $10,000. In many ways your industry like the mortgage industry is so over-regulated that you resemble amateur attorneys more than anything else.

Sell please, sell with everything you've got.

I once had a old and wise builder tell me "Steve, a realtor is someone who sees an inevitable bus collision about to happen, and throws themselves in front of it just in time" ... Create something that isn't there now, or you really will have become the buggy whips of 2011.

Less homeless inventory soon

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 12:54:00 +0000

Typically I leave posts about not for profits and homelessness to those that specialize in this stuff. But I actually know a bit about this subject and want to venture an opinion:

First, homelessness is up a bit in the last couple years in Northwest Indiana, including Valparaiso for those that think we don't have any.

Second, eliminating Spring Valley's homeless program and turning the units into low rent units may be good for the market and even good for the tenants ... I am curious where we think the homeless will now go? Partly my own fault since I haven't been attending the coalition meetings. Seriously where?

Third, the men's shelter came under some attacks last year for daring to let homeless men put up tents in the back, next to a railroad track and an asphalt plant. Because we'd prefer they go ... where?

Thought please ....

NAHB updates on mortgages

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Wed, 26 May 2010 18:02:00 +0000

May 24, 2010

Fannie Mae Tightens Lending Standards, Helps Distressed Home Owners

Tightened Lending Standards
In an effort to return to more prudent underwriting, Fannie Mae has announced that it is tightening lending standards for adjustable rate and interest-only mortgages. Starting on June 19, home buyers who acquire an ARM with an initial fixed-rate period of five years or less will have to qualify at the note rate plus 2% or at the fully indexed rate. Because few consumers are choosing ARMs in the current market, the immediate impact of this change should not be substantial; however, ARMS will become more popular as interest rate levels increase. As for interest-only mortgages, Fannie Mae is structuring this option for borrowers who are in a position to choose it as a financial management tool rather than as a tool to make their monthly payments more affordable. To be eligible for interest-only loans, borrowers must demonstrate the ability to qualify for the loan when the interest-only feature ends and the payment is based on principal and interest. The borrower must also have a credit score of at least 720 and have 24 months of reserves at a minimum. Meanwhile, Fannie Mae has also announced the retirement of seven-year balloon mortgages as a standard mortgage product. More information is available in Nation's Building News.

Helping Distressed Home Owners Reenter the Housing Market
In separate news, Fannie Mae is making it easier for distressed borrowers to purchase new homes in the future. Changes described in its Announcement SEL-2010-05 are designed to reward owners who worked with their loan servicers when they experienced difficulty repaying their mortgage debt. Under Fannie's new policies, home owners who avoided foreclosure by exercising pre-foreclosure solutions such as a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, short sale or pre-foreclosure sale will not have to wait so long to qualify for a mortgage to buy another home. For example, after a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, home owners currently have to wait four years, but the new policies allow those who make a downpayment of 20% to get back in the housing market within just two years; under extenuating circumstances, such as the loss of a job, they will only have to put 10% down. Fannie Mae says these changes are aimed at addressing the needs of the housing market following the recession. The moves should also help home builders, mortgage lenders and Realtors by contributing to the ongoing housing recovery. For more information on either of the above items, please contact Steve Linville at 800-368-5242, x8597.

P.S. If you are getting serious about building a home, it's time to talk to our sister company Green Pointe Homes. Affordable newly built homes in Northwest Indiana starting under $200,000 right now! Call today. 219-465-8352 Steve Dalton

Chesterton Indiana - Coffee Creek

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 25 May 2010 10:39:00 +0000

The coffee creek saga (read the rest here - this is only a partial post from Northwest Indiana Politics)

In what has become the longest running slow motion car crash in Northwest Indiana developments, once again coffee creek in Chesterton is in the news. The Times reports that a bank is Illinois is owed $12 million by the developers and is suing for default.

I have some personal experience with this development, and a whole lot of dismay that a terrific idea has been so thoroughly destroyed by small minded and petty leaders. Some highlights, and feel free to add your own recollections:

Sand Creek was originally the private course for one of the steel mills, I think US Steel
Sand Creek was at some point developed for housing, and things went bad back in the 80's
Sand Creek was sold off to NIPSCO under a for profit non regulated unit called Lake Eerie Land Company. The realtors who were marketing the site were essentially pulled in house and Lake Eerie Land began purchasing more land adjacent.
In the mid-90's a movement which is alternately called neo-urbanism or new urbanism rose up, and Lake Eerie Land designed a substantial project adjacent to Sand Creek Country Club which would feature a downtown, lifestyle mall, hundreds of homes, and live work style community. Coffee Creek would eventually win numerous national awards for planning and design, but the market in NW Indiana wasn't quite ready.
Local home builders were always thought to be too small and too normal, so they were overlooked and under-utilized, the Coffee Creek marketers kept thinking that it was going to have to be a big builder or group from Chicago. One entire section of Coffee Creek was sold to the Carpenters Union as a fully developed neighborhood investment, for roughly 5 times its actual value and it was actually never fully developed.
Ultimately it became whispered knowledge that the realtors, now in house, for Coffee Creek paid some incentives to get the Carpenters Union to buy this bad investment, and some of these guys ultimately went to jail. Still the project sat with roughly a dozen homes on 1,000 acres. No retail, no lifestyle center, no neo-urbanism.

Continued on Northwest Indiana - Porter County Politics

Real Estate in Indiana - Mortgages

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Wed, 19 May 2010 10:30:00 +0000

Wow, I was wrong on mortgage interest rates. I really felt we'd be running closer to 6% on rates by now, and we're actually looking at cracking 5% again today! Why?

One of my favorites, the markets believe that conservative politicians that are winning in primaries in the US this year will begin to roll back the massive levels of debt being sponsored by the Obama administration
Europe borrowed their way all the way to bankruptcy, especially in Greece and possibly Ireland. As Europe begins the process of cutting the size of government, and bailing out these nations, we are getting the benefit of "flight to quality" investors here in the US.
Real Estate is actually recovering, which should be pushing rates up, but the markets are so worried about a double dip that inflation fears are staying in the background.

This all adds up to some seriously low interest rates, at the same time that the real estate market here in Northwest Indiana is really starting to hum along. I put my own house on the market (7,000 sq feet and $650,000 for anyone interested) ... and believe it will sell pretty quickly.

P.S. The Matt Evans Team is handling my listing - my wife Julie works with Matt at Keller Williams Real Estate here's Matt's webpage: Matt Evans Team Valparaiso Real Estate

Julie's Webpage for your next listing: Julie Dalton Professional Real Estate in Northwest Indiana

All the talk - election fever in Indiana

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 04 May 2010 17:48:00 +0000

Ok, so maybe you've been more concerned about the our economic recovery this spring ... or perhaps keeping an eye on the steel business since so much of Northwest Indiana is tied to their success.

But today the talk and buzz online is the primary election in Northwest Indiana. Our affiliated site Northwest Indiana Politics (aka Porter County Politics in the old days) is covering breaking news today live. Join us there and come back here tomorrow for news on mortgage rates and housing sales.

Jumbo mortgages improving

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 13:27:00 +0000

When the mortgage markets pulled violently back from the edge of chaos in 2007 and 2008 one loan that went sky high was the jumbo loan. Jumbo loans are an important part of the real estate market financing options that we need to begin a solid long term recovery.

News this week that rates have finally begun to come down, as investors are once again looking at solid credit jumbos for securitization and better pricing.

Marketwatch report on Jumbo Mortgage Rates Falling ... Jumbo market improvement.

Call me today if you are looking to refinance or buy a home over $400,000

Final two weeks - to use tax credit

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 18:52:00 +0000

From Building Indiana

Have you found that home you want to buy ... it's time to do it!

Hoosiers have gone in for the federal home buyer tax credit in a big way.

What is the federal homebuyer tax credit program worth to Indiana?

Try $269 million to nearly 40,000 Indiana residents who bought a home since April 2008, when the program began.

Only 13 states have filed for more tax credits than Indiana.

A new state-by-state breakdown of the tax credits, released Monday by the Internal Revenue Service, shows a total $12.6 billion in credits granted in a congressional attempt to stimulate the housing market that was hit hard by the recession.

A new series on Green Pointe Homes

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 21:20:00 +0000

I am writing a new series at our Green Pointe Homes blog entitled:

How to build a new home in Northwest Indiana

Check it out and let us know if you have additional comments or questions.

Mortgage Rates Up further today

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 15:13:00 +0000

With news of home sales increasing even more, and inventories inevitably dropping ...

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Enticed by an expanded tax credit, home buyers came back into the market in February, the National Association of Realtors said Monday, reporting a seasonally adjusted 8.2% increase in its pending home sales index.

The index had fallen 7.8% in January and was down 20% from the peak in October, just before the scheduled expiration of the original tax credit for first-time home buyers.

Following February's surprise increase, the pending home sales index is up 17.3% compared with a year earlier.

The increase in the index "supports our view that existing home sales will rebound over the spring, before the homebuyer tax credit expires for closed contracts in June," wrote Peter Newland, an economist for Barclays Capital.

Watch for another update later today, but our advise to all real estate buyers is get under contract and lock.

Mortgage Interest Rates - April 1, 2010 Update

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 16:16:00 +0000

I only wish this was an April's Fools Day prank - but rates are climbing this morning on the news that the Federal Government is stopping its aggressive mortgage bond purchase program. This was long ago telegraphed and no great surprise in the bond market.

But supply and demand is a constant, and with less buyers the prices do drop. In mortgage parlance this means that less investors want to purchase mortgage bonds with 4.5% face values and this pushes up the interest rate yield they require to purchase them.

In short, mortgage rates are moving firmly above 5.5% and my gut says we're not done with this upward run. I've been saying it for a month now, if you are looking for a home ... by all means make that contract and get your loan locked.

Steve

Valparaiso Mortgage Rates

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 15:01:00 +0000

I had a customer ask me to post an update on where the mortgage rates are priced right now, so here is that post:

Going into last week mortgage interest rates were rocking up and down between 5% and 5.25% for 30 year fixed rate mortgages, best to state in Indiana since some companies price higher in Illinois and Michigan. Indiana property values have leveled off and we get better pricing than surrounding states. That's good news!

In the middle of last week mortgage rates began a climb upwards toward and over 5.5% for 30 years fixed. Some experts are even suggesting rates will go higher tomorrow after the Federal Reserve stops buying mortgage bonds in support of pricing as they have done for the last 16 months.

What's all this mean for you?

If you are looking for a home, get that contract agreed so we can get you locked prior to any additional increases in rate.
If you have postponed refinancing, better jump before it doesn't make any sense to do so
If you are wanting to build a new home .... probably no better time than now. We work closely with Green Pointe Homes in Valparaiso and they can help you find a lot and price a home pretty quickly.

Call me today 219-465-8352 if you want to discuss your options.

Jobless Claims today

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 12:30:00 +0000

Interest rates moved up yesterday as it appears we're in the slow climb toward 6% on mortgages.

Today - Jobless claims down a tad from last week's numbers to 442,000 ... but still no feeling that employers are on any kind of hiring binge.

An eye on Washington

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 17:51:00 +0000

I know many of you think I spend too much time talking about politics and not enough time throwing out statistics about home sale values, mortgage rates, or appraisals. But frankly the Northwest Indiana real estate market is quite a few months into a recovery that may well last for the next decade or more. The last sustained real estate recession in 1979 kicked off a recovery and expansion that lasted until 2007.

My biggest concern right now, as it relates to real estate values and mortgage rates, is the high level of borrowing by the Federal government for last year's stimulus and this new health care takeover. There was some phony talk of the health care takeover "saving" us money, of course this is like my wife saying she "saved" me $100 by buying something we didn't need for $100 dollars that used to be priced at $200. The key is we didn't need it, we didn't save anything, we spent $100.

If we continue like drunken sailors borrowing, then rates will continue to rise. As they rise it will reduce the number of families that can afford to buy your home, your condominium, your property. This is not good for your value or for continuing to reduce inventories. This is why I pay attention to politics, too much for some of you still I'm sure.

Real Estate Pros in NW Indiana

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 15:18:00 +0000

I like to showcase some of the region's best real estate teams, and since I just met Matt Evans this week for coffee thought I'd do a round-up of his online locations here. Matt and his team work in the highly successful Keller Williams Northwest Indiana Real Estate team.

Living in Valparaiso Blog

Matt Evans' Active Rain Blog

Matt's blog on Trulia and Profile

Keller Williams - The Matt Evans Team

The Matt Evans Team - Facebook Fan Page

Keller Williams NW Indiana Blog

Zillow profile

When a majority of home buyers use the first real estate professional they talk to, after doing a preliminary search online, it's great to see Matt's team focusing on being in all the places that a customer may be looking. I found listings on literally dozens of online sites, MLS just isn't enough anymore, by Matt and his team.

In my search to team up with creative and aggressive real estate professional in Northwest Indiana, this is the type of team I want to align with. Glad to have met Matt.

Call me if you are looking for a real estate professional in NW Indiana, let's talk about how to choose a really important advisor and ally in this very important trek this year. 2010 ... the YEAR to BUY a HOME!

Steve 219-465-8352

Northwest Indiana Mortgages today

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:05:00 +0000

Let's shoot straight today, here's what rates are doing:

The bond market looks to open slightly lower, meaning higher rates, but mortgage companies will probably hold at or near Friday rates. That means that for 10 weeks straight we've been at or below 5.25% this year. You all know, those that read regularly, that I don't believe rates can possibly stay this low due to inflationary pressures. The key question is when do they push upward to 5.5% and above?
There was a lot of talk about ratings agencies, they rate bond deals for risk, during the run-up to the bubble burst in real estate values. Some investors suggesting that ratings agencies didn't do a good job explaining that mortgage bonds were getting more and more risky. Today a story that suggests Moody's is worried about of all things, United States debt. With the massive runup of debt in the last 18 months, the Obama administration is learning they can't just print money and hope no one notices.
What would be best for the market would be a solid push upward in the value of the Dollar, not the best for exports, but this would bring down the worries about inflation and slide the cost of oil down enough to bring down gasoline and energy prices.

All Greek to you? Want to talk more about the value of your investments, especially the big one in your home? Give me a call at 219-465-8352 or email me.

Northwest Indiana Mortgage and New Homes
Steve Dalton - Daltonsbriefs Daily Housing Upadates on Twitter

Do I qualify for homebuyer tax credit?

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:55:00 +0000

An often heard question right now as homebuyers are flooding into the market looking to take advantage of the credit. Here's a good video explaining some potential pitfalls:

Homeownership is the best Stimulus

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 13:25:00 +0000

The writers over at the Times blog push forward one negative theory that is rolling around, namely that more families should be renting, well of course we believe this is hogwash. First the Times article:

Knocking the home buyer tax credit

Category: NWI in the News

The economics blog Calculated Risk takes on the notion of expanding and extending the home buyer tax credit, claiming it will cost taxpayers more than $100,000 for each additional house sold.

The thinking is that the $8,000 tax credit primarily goes to people who were going to buy a house anyway, and so doesn’t have much stimulative effect on the home market.

There’s another effect, evidenced by something I overheard at our Editorial Advisory Board meeting, where one of the members talked about not being able to get tenants for rental property he owns.

On this very subject, the article from the Las Vegas Sun, which the blog post cites goes into detail.

The reasons we find this so frustrating:

Calculated Risk is merely a negative talking anti-economy bunch. They don't like homeownership, they wanted the bubble and aren't too happy to see the economy already bouncing back.
Who cares if landlords now have some competition, that's good for the market. Perhaps take the opportunity to fix up your property while it's empty.
Homeowners make the best community citizens, they stay, the keep maintained, they are part of the neighborhood.

If you are renting now, your rent is going to go up this year. Time to talk about buying a home. Let's talk today!

NW Indiana real estate market update

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 12:07:00 +0000

From Jana Caudill team:
Northwest Indiana Real Estate: January 2010 Existing Home Sales Data From NAR

One thing not mentioned in Jana's article is that as existing home sales increase, inventories drop which supports prices. This is good for sellers, and even better for those that are wanting to look at building a home. If you have been on the sidelines, waiting for home sales to improve so you can Build a New Home in Northwest Indiana, let's talk.

HOME SALES DATA FROM NAR RELEASED:

While home sales in January slowed, home sales are still way above January 2009 levels!

Nationwide existing home sales dropped 7.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate1 of 5.05 million units in January from a revised 5.44 million in December, but remain 11.5% above the 4.53 million-unit level in January 2009.

As expected it is the delay between shopping for a home and closing on a home that has caused the slight drop.

However, more excitingly again is the news that the level of inventory fell again, this time by 0.5% to 3.27 million existing homes for sale which represents a 7.8 month supply at the current sales pace. Raw unsold inventory is 9.6% below a year ago and is the lowest since March 2006!

The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $164,700 in January, unchanged from a year earlier. Distressed homes, which accounted for 38 percent of sales last month, continue to downwardly distort the median price because they typically are discounted in comparison with traditional homes in the same area. Also, it was noted that first time homebuyers represented 40% of home sales in January while investors accounted for 17% of sales. Buyers shopping for homes also increased 9.4%. Regionally, here in the midwest home sales only declined 6.9% but are 8% higher than January 2009.

Here is a breakdown of Lake and Porter counties:

Lake County existing single-family home sales

January 2010: 188

January 2009: 203

Change: down 7.4 percent

Porter County existing single-family home sales

January 2010: 60

January 2009: 63

Green Pointe Homes - NW Indiana Home Builder

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:06:00 +0000

After a long wait the following announcement this morning:

Announcement - Home building again

We are so excited to be making this announcement finally -

Julie and I had the opportunity for 10 years to build homes in Northwest Indiana, mainly for first time home buyers. We loved the business and were blessed to build for over 200 families.

In 2007, sadly the mortgage business went haywire and we were left standing with far too much inventory and almost zero home buyers. We won't go into all the gory details but our lives were turned upside down overnite and it has taken us until now, almost three years later, to make this announcement!

Green Pointe Homes, our forray back into home building, will be based in Valparaiso. For the time being we're going to go slow, working one on one with our customers. Since Steve is trained as a mortgage banker he will be working with first time buyers, buyers who need assistance with credit repair or saving for down payments. You can check out his daily post on Northwest Indiana Mortgages, for rates and ideas on how to prepare to buy your home.

Positive sign for home building

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Dalton) — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 16:52:00 +0000

Although no one wants to see the prices go up for homes, at least those who are buying or building them, this is a positive indicator that home building and construction are looking up:

Via Marketwatch - After all, U.S. housing starts posted their lowest annual figure since 1945, slumping to 554,000 units in 2009 -- the same year in which some experts said lumber demand dropped to the lowest point in modern history. See story on December housing starts.

But there's a bigger story here that involves everything from actual and expected demand from China and Haiti, to the impact of global stimulus measures and production cutbacks in a market that has supposedly suffered along with the globe's major economies.
At first glance, the lumber market doesn't appear very miserable. Charts show that futures prices for lumber climbed to a high above $280 per 1,000 board feet

I will be one of the first to predict local home building will begin to recover in March of 2010 here in Northwest Indiana and we should have our best year since 2006.

If you are looking for a home builder in Northwest Indiana, let's talk financing and your options first. Then I'd be glad to give some pointers on choosing that home builder, I have more than a little experience there.

Steve
219-465-8352
Email me