housing

Michigan home builders have trouble finding skilled workers

Steve Carmody — Wed, 29 May 2013 16:30:01 +0000

Building permits are up by more than a third this year in Michigan. Home prices are also rising.

These should be great days for Michigan’s homebuilding industry, which nearly ground to a halt during the recession.

But there’s a problem: not enough workers.

A survey finds a third of Michigan homebuilding contractors are having trouble finding enough workers to do the job.

Fraudulent loan activity declines in Michigan

Steve Carmody — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 17:13:16 +0000

Fraudulent loan activity declined slightly in Michigan at the end of last year.

Kroll Factual Data checks loan applications for phony buyers, attempts to misrepresent the value of homes and other fraudulent information.

Kroll president Rod Bazzani says there's been a surge in home loan refinancing, which may explain the decline. He says refinancing more than doubled last year.

Michigan's home foreclosure rate closer to the national average

Steve Carmody — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 04:38:00 +0000

Michigan’s home foreclosure rate is no longer among the nation’s worst.

Realty Trac reports Michigan ranked 16th in the nation in home foreclosures in March. That is a far cry from a few years ago when the state had the nation’s highest foreclosure rate.

Mary Townley is with the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. She credits the authority’s “Step Forward” program for providing assistance to people at risk of losing their homes…

There is growing optimism in Michigan's home building industry

Steve Carmody — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 15:37:50 +0000

Michigan’s home builders are optimistic about the year ahead.

The recession walloped Michigan’s home building industry. Many builders went out of business. Others merged and focused on home remodeling.

But a new survey shows Michigan’s home builders are optimistic about getting back into the business of building new homes. They say pent up consumer demand, especially for more expensive homes ($200,000 to $800,000), is pushing up the Michigan Housing Index.

Several local cities rank high on a list of the best places to rent out single family homes

Steve Carmody — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 04:14:00 +0000

A new report finds three regional cities are good places to buy and rent out single family homes.

A new Realty Trac survey lists Detroit, Saginaw and Toledo among the 20 best markets in the country to own and rent single family homes. Florida cities dominate the rest of the list.

The top 20 are based on the markets with the most potential cash flow and capitalization rates on a 3-bedroom home.