For the first time since 2010, all three major S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices ended the second quarter of the year with positive annual growth rates.
With fewer properties being available, but more buyers looking to invest in a home, the prices have gone up, according to the Wall Street Journal. In addition to the drop in supply and boom in demand, the share of non-distressed home sales is rising and the share of foreclosures and short sales, for the most part, is falling.
The national composite index was up 1.2 percent in the second quarter compared to the same time one year ago and 6.9 percent higher than in the first quarter of 2012.
In addition, CoreLogic's July National Foreclosure Report stated that foreclosures were down 16 percent, with the total for July of this year hitting 58,000. June's rate this year was 62,000 while in July 2011 it hit 69,000 homes.
With the market continuing to steadily improve, lenders would be wise to invest in an amortization calculator, to ensure that any new borrowers are given a payment plan that is best-suited to their financial needs. That way, they are less likely to fall into a bad situation with their newly purchased home.
"The decline in completed foreclosures is yet another positive signal that the housing market is continuing on a progressive path of stabilization and recovery," Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic said to Mortgage News Daily. "Alternative resolutions are helping to reduce foreclosures and often result in a more positive transition for the borrower and lower losses for investors and lenders."
According to Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic, some of the alternatives that borrowers are taking advantage of are short sales and modifications to their mortgages. As such, lenders would be wise to invest in quality loan management software to help them fine tune loans to individual borrowers' needs.