There is no fat lady scheduled to sing anytime in the near future – at least not when it comes to the rate of foreclosures that continue to pummel the housing market.  The demand for housing remains low, while a large number of foreclosed homes keep entering the market.  With this loop seeming to be unending, the housing market may remain stagnant for many more years to come.  According to MSNBC.com,

Now, foreclosures are sweeping up a broad swath of homeowners. Many of whom have simply fallen victim to the tough economy. About 30 percent of homeowners with mortgages have less than 5 percent equity, including many who are underwater, or owe more than their house is worth. If home prices continue falling, that puts roughly $650 billion worth of outstanding mortgages at risk…

If you can stay put, do it.  If you have to sell, you may be in for a long, unpleasant ride.  If you are buying, there should definitely be a deal out there for you!

During the ongoing mortgage meltdown fiasco, we have seen a lot of military personnel lose their homes thanks to the same problems faced by the general population.  We have been in underwater, second mortgage rates have jumped in price to the point of being unpayable, and job loss or medical issues have hammered the population.

In all this, we have also found many military families have lost their homes because they were improperly foreclosed upon.  And by “we” I mean federal investigators.

What did they do?  For starters from MSNBC.com,

The law the lenders were accused of violating, the Servicemembers’ Civil Relief Act, provides protections to military personnel. Under the law, they can’t be evicted and creditors can’t seize their property while they’re on active duty.

The Justice Department began its investigation earlier this year after separate inquiries from the U.S. Marine Corps and Sgt. James Hurley, whose home in Hartford, Mich., was foreclosed upon by Saxon in 2005 while he was in Iraq. Hurley settled with Saxon earlier this year for an undisclosed amount.

Shame!

It is an honor to salute all our military personnel today – both currently serving, those who served in the past, and for the members and their families who gave their lives for the freedom we all enjoy today. Thank you, our military families!

Photo by Dru Bloomfield via flickr creative commons.

Thinking about buying a home?  If you have good credit and a 10- to 20-percent down payment (or if you find a rural housing loan and can get $0 down), mortgage rates remain low!  From the Tennessee Association of Realtors,

The 30-year fixed mortgage declined last week to 4.63 percent, down from averages of 4.71 percent the previous week and 4.93 percent a year ago, Freddie Mac reports. Interest has mostly risen this year until recently, but mixed economic reports have more investors seeking the safe haven of U.S. government debt — which has lowered Treasury yields. The 15-year fixed loan fell to 3.82 percent from 3.89 percent; and the five-year adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.41 percent, down from 3.47 percent.

[SOURCES: Freddie Mac; Information, Inc.]

Call your favored, trusted lender today if you might be considering a home purchase.

These stairs I could never walk.  Never walk straight, that is.  Be sure to click through and look at all the photos of the trippy stairs from Design Milk.

H/T Brittney.

Where mortgage companies have severely tightened their lending standards, there remains some options for families who seek to own a home without a lot of money down and without extremely high credit.  The USDA rural home loans are still available, but there are some catches, according to Beginning Farmers.com,

To be eligible, families’ housing must be inadequate based on the family’s size. The USDA does not allow loans to purchase oversized homes, and will determine a reasonably-sized home per the family’s size. Borrowers must be able to afford the mortgage payments each month.

There may also be restrictions on where qualified houses are located.  For example, it is doubtful someone could qualify for a rural loan and live in a downtown district of a city of any size.  Contact your local lender to learn more!

Photo by sultry via flickr creative commons.

The challenge of living in a hallway could be greater than just how much living space is available, but what do you do with all the walk-through traffic?  This 78-square foot living space can’t even be called an “apartment.”

From the Gothamist,

“It’s simple, efficient, convertible, and zen enough to be comfortably habitable,” though there were some challenges. He says, “I think such small spaces really need custom responses so i put together my own furnishing. The most challenging part was trying to build the bed/couch inside the space… rotating full 4×8 sheets of ply and playing the sliding square game but with furniture and building materials.”

But where do you cook?  I guess in New York, you don’t really have to.