Shutdown Hurts Housing

USDA Buyers Stuck in Limbo as Shutdown Hurts Housing

By Prashant Gopal & Kathleen M. Howley - Oct 8, 2013 10:04 AM ET

 

 

Jacob Smith, a 25-year-old Florida firefighter, wasn’t paying much attention to the U.S. government shutdown until it threw his move to a new three-bedroom home near Daytona Beach into limbo.

Smith was ready to complete the purchase Oct. 1, the day the closure began. Now he has to wait until the Department of Agriculture reopens its mortgage business. For now, Smith’s landlord is allowing him to stay in his one-bedroom rental, crammed with boxes and furniture meant for the larger property. His builder, Adams Homes of Gulf Breeze, Florida, said it has about 10 other customers on the east coast of the state with purchases also on hold.

 

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A Sold Sign Sits Outside a Home

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Home prices, which have climbed 21 percent nationally since hitting a post-recession low in March 2012, are still 21 percent below their June 2006 peak, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities.

Home prices, which have climbed 21 percent nationally since hitting a post-recession low in March 2012, are still 21 percent below their June 2006 peak, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

 

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Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Daniel Arbess, a partner at Perella Weinberg Partners LP, talks about Federal Reserve policy and the impact on the U.S. housing market. He speaks with Betty Liu on Bloomberg Television's "In the Loop." (Source: Bloomberg)

“It’s pretty ridiculous,” Smith said. “It seems rare that what you see on the news is directly affecting you. Hopefully it will end soon.”