Finally, we have seen the right move by the Feds which will help the housing market and get some more buyers into the marketplace. However, not much will change the slide of the housing market over the next two years or so. In fact, the underlying issues of restrictive lending rules, the cut in sub-prime mortgage loans and the problem with funding jumbo loans are going to be with us for some time. They will cause major headaches for the housing market and the economy in general. Since the Feds reduced the key lending rate by ½ point just two days ago, two more mortgage lenders have gone out of business.

1.    Impac Lending

2.    E-Trade

So far, 158 lenders have collapsed due to no worldwide market to sell mortgage backed securities to. Therefore, they have run out of lending capital and have consequently closed their doors. Countrywide, the country's largest lender, has stopped all sub-prime lending and has laid off 12,000 employees. The interest rate move by the Fed is a great temporary fix for home sellers because it gets more buyers into the market, especially into the lower end. However, the key interest rate reduction will not compensate for the lack of capital in the mortgage market.

The implementation of restricted lending rules and the elimination of sub-prime mortgages will be major problems hampering the cure of current housing ills. Sub-prime mortgages had a place in the real estate market and were the cause of the major real estate boom over the past four years. Losing out on this huge market share will have a major negative effect on the real estate market and the economy to come. However, if you are a smart seller, here is a great video tip from Barbara Corcoran, the country's real estate guru, on "How to Sell Your Home Without Losing Your Shirt "

Click Here: Barbara Corcoran - NBC

(As seen on NBC - The Today Show)

General Market Indicators

This week, the real estate inventory has lightly increased by 150 homes. This is not good, as any increase simply adds to the misery. Expect the market to further increase due to the foreclosures hitting the market. The increase to 31,486 homes, while insignificant, means a net increase of 400 homes since the beginning of the month. The unsold inventory throughout the various counties we are tracking is still at very high numbers. Osceola County leads the pack with 38 months. Seminole County is the best with 14 months.

Since the 1st of January 2007, unsold inventory has a net increase of 8480 homes.

The number of sold homes, compared to last year for the same period, is 43 % lower, which reflects the start of last year's decline in home sales. In comparison to the same period in 2005, sales are 59% lower. Sales for the 4-county region are 37% below last year. As we continue into the fall, the gap between last year and 2005 is going to narrow. In the fall of 2005/6, we started to see home sales tapering off. The market continues to show a lot of weakness. Buyers are very concerned about the prices dropping and are making lower offers.

• Market Indicator – 100% buyer market
• Sales Demand Activities – Slow/Unchanged
• Sales last year (August) to this year (August) - 41% lower
• Resale Inventory – increased by 200 homes
• Trend Indicator – flat to downwards
• Cumulative Market Time – Volusia County (125 days), Seminole County (101 days), Lake County (137 days)
• Unsold Inventory Supply - Orange County (21.4 months), Seminole County (14.0 months), Lake County (26.0 months), Volusia County (20.1 months), Osceola County (38 months)
• Areas that face the biggest challenge to sell homes are: Lake, Volusia & Osceola Counties.

New Condo Website, Click here

The area marked in red shows inventory availability of over 12 months.

The area marked in red shows inventory availability of over 12 months.

The area marked in red shows inventory availability of over 12 months.