| Buyers snatched up houses as investment properties and second homes at an especially fast clip last year. The number of homes purchased for investment purposes rose a whopping 65% in 2011, from 749,000 to 1.23 million properties—which was more than one-fourth of all homes sold last year.
For the most part, the real estate market isn’t pretty, and hasn’t been in quite some time. Housing prices have fallen to 2003 levels, and recent signs indicate it’s unlikely that a full recovery will arrive before 2015...............................................Full Article: Source |