Homeowners facing foreclosure have doubled in the Albuquerque area metro area over the past year, but not all of them stand to lose the roof over their heads. One in every five houses going into foreclosure appears to be owned by real estate speculators, according to Irvine, Cal. based Realty Trac. They bought the houses on speculation that an easy profit could be made on a resale. Nationwide, speculative home buying was much more common. Close to one out of every three houses going into foreclosure appears to be speculator-owned, RealtyTrac reported.

The Albuquerque metro ranked 86 out of 100 cities tracked by RealtyTrac in the third quarter, with one out of every 415 households in some stage of foreclosure. A year earlier in the third quarter of 2007, the rate was much better at one in every 880 households.

Cities with high foreclosure rates, particularly in the Sun Belt, have one thing in common: dramatic drops in home values. The biggest problem with dropping home values is that a homeowner can end up owing more on his or her mortgage than the house is worth.

The Albuquerque metro's residential market is seeing some of the same downward pressure on home prices. The median sales price of an existing single-family house dropped 5.4 percent to $193,025 in the third quarter compared to the same period a year earlier, according to the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors. Median means half of houses sold for more and half sold for less.This year's decline in median home price is the first time since 2000

New Mexico is ranked in the nation's top 10 for home mortgage equity, according to a survey that uses negative equity as its key metric. Just 8.2 percent of New Mexico's 186,844 mortgages were showing negative equity at the end of September. The survey, conducted by First American CoreLogic, shows New Mexico had the eighth lowest negative equity among the 50 states. Nevada at 48.7 percent and Michigan at 39 percent had the most negative equity. Negative equity is calculated by comparing the current estimated value of a home against its outstanding mortgage debt.

The national negative equity stands at 18.2 percent. Many homes with negative equity end up as foreclosures as homeowners simply walk away from their homes because they are worth less than the mortgage owed. The survey also shows near-negative equity mortgages and there are 11.7 percent of New Mexico's mortgages in that catagory. Arizona,, California,and Florida are all approaching 30 percent levels of negative equity. Conversely New York is strong at just 4.4 percent. Colorado is at 18.c percent.

To determine where home prices are expected to rise most in the next couple of years, Forbes.com looked at projections for housing starts from the National Association of Home Builders and job growth projections from Moody's Economy.com

Forbes identified cities that are likely to be vibrant markets bcause jobs are increasing and the housing market wasn't overbuilt during the boom.

"The logic is pretty straight forward"' says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com. "People will spend as much on housing as their income will allow them. Housing prices are very closely tied to household income over the long run when you look at business cycles".

According to Forbes, these are the 10 cities where home prices are most likely to rise:

*Albuquerque, N.M.
*Charlotte, N.C.
*San Antonio, Texas
*Portland, Ore.
*Austin, Texas
*Salt Lake City, Utah
*Colorado springs, Co.
*Minneapolis, Mn.
*Atlanta, Ga.
Oklahoma City, Ok.

August 2008 real estate statistics for the Albuquerque metropolitan area show that there were 6,381 homes on the market. 619 homes sold in Aug., with an average selling price of $239,018 compared to an average selling price of $243,411 in Aug 2007. The median selling price was $195,000 compared with a median selling price 0f $208,000 in Aug 2007.

The average number of days on the market was 74, but that figure is misleading for comparative purposes. Here's why: Since Oct 07, the number of days on the market has been determined from date of listing to date of of sale. Prior to that the statistic was determined from date of listing to date of closing. Since closing normally occurs 30 to 45 days after the sale the new calculation effectively cuts off more than a month in calculating days on market. So for comparative purposes one needs to add at least 30 days to the stated days on market to place the time period in proper historical perspective.

The Albuquerque Board of Realtors reports that home prices shrank only 6% between Aug. of 2007 and 2008. Albuquerque has not seen the large declines in home prices like in Las Vegas, Phoenix or Tucson. However, Albuquerque also did not see the large 40% appreciations in price as the other areas during the boom.

New Mexico continues to buck national economic trends by posting stronger employment and income growth than the rest of the country. Employment in New Mexico grew 1.1% in the 12 months that ended June 30/08. Personal income in the 12 months that ended March 31/08 grew 5.5% in New Mexico compared to 4.8% nationally.

New mexico was able to overcome some serious manufacturing job losses and continued flat performance in the residential construction sector to achieve the growth. The health care and social assistance sectors of the economy added 3,800 jobs in the12 months ending June 30/08. Local government jobs grew 1.9% during this time, most of this growth thanks to Indian casino hiring. Indian casinos are tribal government-operated enterprises, so casino jobs are classified as government hirings. Information sector hiring was up 1,300 jobs year over year. Some of the hiring was in call centers, but film production contributed a good share of the jobs. Film production is probably a bigger contributor he economy that hiring numbers show. Many of the production workers hired locally are self employed, so their activity isn't completly captured in payroll data.

1. Pay your bills on time--- Your payment history, including late payments and foreclosures, can count for one third of your credit score. Accounts more than 60 days past due will be indicated on your credit report. As the length of your on-time payments increase so will your score.

2. Check your credit report for errors--- Removing errors, especially those negatively reflecting late payments or unpaid debt, is one of the easiest ways to improve a credit score. look for expired negative records and file a dispute if necessary.

3. Reduce your balances--- One-third of your FICO score depends on the total amount of balances you owe versus your total credit limit. Try to keep your balances less than 80% of your credit limit to maximize your score benifit. Start with those credit cards that are closest to their limits.

4. Keep older credit lines open--- Having a long history of active accounts indicated to lenders that you are a good credit risk. It also accounts for 10% of your credit score. Try to use your oldest cards regularly for small purchases and pay balances each month.

5. Use credit - but use it responsibly--- This includes having credit cards and installment loans with timely payments. Accounting for 15% of your score, a balanced account including a mortage payment can help homeowners boost their score.

6. Avoid new credit--- Opening new credit will lower your average account age. In addition, the number of new applications counts for 10% of your score. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you may limit "prescreened" offers by removing your name from nationwide lists. Apply in moderation and take on new credit only when you need it.

7. Check regularly for identity theft--- Agencies may only provide your information to those with a valid need such as a creditor or insurer. In addition, you must give consent for this information to be seen by an employer

For most credit is a way of life. Installment payments and credit cards can be useful financial tools if they are kept under control, but many let credit control them. A good credit score is a consumers calling card, and it is important that they do everything they can to boost their score and put themselves on the best financial fooing possible.

Home prices continue to slip in the Albuquerque metro area, falling farther in July compared to last July than in seven years, according to statistics from the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors. The median price of an existing, detached home last month was $196,000, an 8.96% drop from the median of $214,900 in July if 2007. The average, or mean, price declined 7.92% in the same time period, from $261,699 last year to $240,986 this past July. The median, the price at which half the homes sold above and below, is a better indicator of the market than the average price because it is not swayed by unusual extremes at the high or low end.

While the local market continues to hold its value better than many cities, sales are sluggish. Homes in the Albuquerque metro market sit on the market an average of 68 days, according to July statistics. That wait is about a month longer than last year, in part because buyers have so much choice. There were 6,402 existing, detached single-family homes on the market in July, an increase of 8% over last year, statistics show. It would take about nine months to sell off the current housing supply, the association says. An inventory that could be absorbed in six months is considered to be healthy.

If you're planning on putting your home on the market, consider fixing it up first. Simple cosmetic changes don't cost very much and they can make a real difference to a buyer.

TAKE OUT THE STUFF. You should throw out, or at least hide, the clutter. Pick up old newspapers and magazines from the coffee table and put the shoes away in the closet. Don't let potential buyers be distracted by all your stuff. Homes look better without clutter. They also look more appealing with furniture, so fill any empty rooms you may have.

POLISH AND CLEAN. You don't want to show a dirty house. Mop the floors and scrub the counter tops. Clean kitchen appliances as well. If it's an older model, a little shine will make it seem newer. If a room needs a fresh coat of paint , then paint it. Try to stay away from bright colors, which might not appeal to every buyer.

ARRANGE YOUR FURNITURE. A good furniture layout can change the way a room looks. Try setting up chairs and couches around a focalpoint such as a fireplacee

BRING IN A PROFESSIONAL. Professionals in this area are called stagers. Stagers can also provide any furniture and accessories that may be needed. A good resourse to find a stager is the International Association of Home Staging professionals, at www.iahsp.com.

Here are the income limits to qualify for the first time homeowners tax credit. The buyer,(and if married, the spouse) cannot have owned a principal residence during the three year period prior to the purchase date. In general, the credit is available only if the homebuyers adjusted gross income does not exceed $75,000($150,000 if a joint return is filed).

If one claims the $7,500 credit it will have to be paid back as an extra amount on the federal tax returns at the rate of $500 per year, beginning with the tax return for the second year after the new home is purchased.

For more details and examples of how the new law works, visit the Web site of Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation at www.jct.gov and look for publication JCX-63-08 on the home page. For additional informationon tax breaks from the Internal Revenue Service, see Publication 530 at irs.gov