- Delinquencies will go down, but foreclosures will go up. Fewer borrowers will fall behind on their payments next year, thanks to the strengthening economy and refinancings…..But many borrowers who fell behind on their payments during the housing crisis are still in limbo: That means that some delinquent loans haven’t yet entered the foreclosure process.
- Rents will rise — which is a bad thing. With fewer people buying homes and more people losing their homes to foreclosures, the rental market is only going to get tighter .
- Mortgage rates will inch up — which will probably be a good thing. A stronger economy will push Treasury bonds and mortgage rates up because inflation becomes more likely and investors demand higher rates to hold bond . .. Gradual economic recovery is good news for the housing market even if it means higher mortgage rates — We’ll have higher rates for a reason we can cheer.
Jed Kolko from Trulia made the above predictions: Kolko
“My crystal ball is never as crystal-clear as I’d like, but I do think that we can expect a gradual economic recovery to move the housing market a few steps back toward normal in 2012.”
Summarized from report in the Huffington Post