Virtual Open Houses

A controversial $3.9 billion federal program aimed at saving neighborhoods blighted by foreclosure is hitting hurdles that could threaten its effectiveness.

We spend a lot of time here on the HotProperty blog gauging the health of the real estate market and pointing to clues about where it might be heading.

But today, we need your help. Tell us about the nagging questions you have about the housing market (example: How hard it really is to get a loan or what's the best way to go about securing one? What might a housing recovery look like? Is this a good time to buy an investment property?)

We'll collect the best questions and try to answer them in a week or two. No question is too small. But we’ll be looking to answer questions that will be helpful to a large number of readers and, preferably, haven’t been answered in previous stories.

So send questions early and often to prashant_gopal@businessweek.com. We've closed the comments on this post because we'd like you to e-mail us directly. If you'd like your name to be included in the story, please send it to us along with a phone number where we can reach you during the day.

Look forward to hearing from you.

UPDATE:
Thanks to those who have already sent in questions. One request, try to word your questions in a way that they're relevant to a larger audience. In other words, rather than spelling out your personal housing situation, ask me a broader question. Here's an example of a great question we received: Does the traditional rule of thumb that housing shouldn't cost more than 2.5 times annual income still apply today?

Keep the questions coming!

The month Jennifer Galdes moved into her condo in the Albany Park section of Chicago, the local paper suggested that the area was up and coming. Six years later, she's still waiting for a Whole Foods.

The gap between buyer and seller pricing expectations on commercial real estate is closing, and with owners eager to sell properties to escape debt maturities or just to pocket cash to address financial demands, it has become a buyers market. Taking advantage of the appealing prices, Behringer Harvard has just acquired two apartment properties totaling 746 units in separate transactions valued at an aggregate $136 million.

The analysts at the investment firm Sandler O’Neil recently did a tour of the Manhattan apartment market with some of the biggest publicly-traded management companies including Avalon Bay and Equity Residential.

The news is that rents are off approximately 15%, much as in other parts of the country. The vancancy rate is up to 6%. In the past, Manhattan apartment buildings were almost always fully leased.

New tenants are demanding at least one month free rent. In some cases landlords are also paying the real estate agent’s fee—typically a month and a half’s rent. Tenants in New York used to get stuck paying that in the past.

The concessions are keeping traffic high, Sandler O’Neil says, as some chronic "deal shoppers" look for the best rent. The lower rents have also attracted some tenants from the Boroughs and New Jersey to move to Manhattan. Some tenants have traded down to smaller units or taken on a roommate to reduce their expenses.

Keep in mind we’re still talking about expensive apartments. A 1 bedroom that rented last year for $4,400 is only down to $3,700 now.

Your big remodeling plans may be on hold for a while, but that doesn't mean you have to miss out on this buyer's market for home improvements. Just go small.

From the nether reaches of the Internal Revenue Service a new tax rule recently emerged (Revenue Procedure 2009-45), the effect of which will be to let real estate borrowers pursue possible modifications to securitized loans--ones that are at risk of default--without triggering tax penalties. Previously, administrative tax rules imposed severe penalties for changes made to commercial mortgage pools or investment interests after the startup date of the securitization vehicle. This naturally had the effect of keeping borrowers mum until default had actually occurred or was nigh.

Question: I bought a home and qualified for the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit. I'm still a bit confused, though, about the payback rules. Can you explain them? --Jessica G., Houston, Texas

1. Chances are good that you'll come across one. During the heyday of no-money-down lending, you were unlikely to have a buyer using a government-insured Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan, which lets borrowers purchase a home with a down payment of as little as 3.5%. Now FHAs are the only game in town for anyone who can't put down the minimum 10% many banks require to get a conventional loan.

The stimulus package is well, stimulating. According to the Associated Builders and Contractors trade group, the nation's construction backlog for July rose 8.9 percent to 6.1 months. The backlog is a measure of how much work construction companies have. The increased business is all coming from infrastructure projects, not new housing developments or factories.

“The stimulus passed in February is turning into contracts, actually money being spent,” says the trade group’s chief economist Anirban Basu. “It’s mostly road resurfacing, water and sewer projects. That’s the fastest way to get money out the door.”

Basu figures about $131 billion of the $787 billion in stimulus money that Congress approved is going toward infrastructure. Some states, including Texas and California, have jumped on the funding opportunities faster than others.

All this is about jobs. President Obama is saying nearly one million jobs have been saved through the increased government spending.

“One can debate if the rate of return is what it ought to be,” Basu says. “Would it make more sense long term to be repairing our air traffic control system, building nuclear power plants or high speed rail?”

Well, let’s look on the bright side. Fewer potholes.