Worst Housing Crisis Hits Since Great Depression

October 15, 2007 (PRLEAP.COM) Business News
The mortgage melt down has developed into the worst housing crisis since the Great Depression, according to the latest report from Housing Predictor. Hundreds of thousands of conventional mortgage borrowers are being foreclosed.

The crisis not only has the ability to cause a recession, according to the new Housing Predictor report, but analysts only question its severity and how much of an impact it will have on the overall U.S. economy.

This last March Housing Predictor was the first to forecast the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates by the end of 2007 and set out on a path of interest rate cuts in order to lessen the severity of the crisis. The Fed cut the bench mark lending rate by a half point and has indicated further rate cuts will be made.

More than 250 cities housing markets in all 50 U.S. states are tracked by Housing Predictor and the over-whelming majority are seeing home prices fall, many at the fastest rate of deflation they have seen since the 1930's. Home sales in the majority of markets are slower than at the peak of the U.S. Savings and Loan Crisis. However, little more than a handful of states are still seeing markets appreciate.

Housing Predictor provides independent housing market forecasts and keeps visitors up to date on changing market conditions with insightful analysis of the real estate market. The web site is regularly consulted by consumers, leading mortgage companies, Wall Street investment bankers, real estate firms, banks and retail businesses for its accurate forecasts.

Housing Predictor forecasts that more than 3-million foreclosures through 2009 due to the subprime crisis and other problems in the conventional mortgage market. New bills in Congress to aid home owners are being worked on to stem the tsunami of foreclosures, but the Congressional process is slow and appears to help few home owners under pressure by lenders in foreclosure.

The proposals introduced by legislators so far address only primary residences, and do not address investors needs. An estimated 5 million adjustable rate mortgages are set to be re-set in the U.S. through 2009 and at least a third are mortgages held by investors.

A Housing Predictor poll determined the over-whelming majority of Americans do not want the U.S. Congress to bail out mortgage companies and Wall Street investment bankers from the foreclosure crisis.

Read the latest details in the full Housing Predictor report on the real estate crisis, check your forecast and search foreclosures at http://www.housingpredictor.com