Tom Kelly

"Not only do remodelers have projects booked for the next few months, but they also have more work coming in the door," said Bill Shaw, NAHB remodelers' chairman.

Current homeowners-whether move-up, move-down, or move-over buyers-accounted for nearly 45 percent of the market share in home sales in June, up from 43.8 percent in May, reports the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse.

A short-sale "hassle" stigma in markets with high foreclosure rates is prompting brokers to state that the non-distressed home they're selling is "not a short sale."

While many families don't charge a fee for letting friends use their home or getaway retreat for a special gathering (hoping they'll return the favor when YOUR daughter gets married) you can pocket any fair-market rent as long as the term is 14 days or fewer and you don't claim any of the tax deductions typically allowed on rental property, such as for depreciation or maintenance.

Monthly rents on Seattle-area homes and apartments continue to climb, taking a bigger chunk out of household incomes, according to market-research firm MPF Research.

Home values are expected to rise another 8.6 percent in the Seattle Metro area over the next 12 months, according to the latest Zillow Home Value Forecast.

ARM rates have stayed relatively steady in recent weeks between 2.7 percent and 3.1 percent, according to Bankrate.

"Since builders are under-supplying the market, inventories are likely to get leaner in the months ahead, and prices are likely to accelerate," Patrick Newport, an economist at IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Mass., told Reuters. "This will bring more builders into the market."

Mortgage rates are on the rise, prompting fewer homeowners to refinance their mortgages, but the increase doesn't appear to be deterring homebuyers yet.

As job growth remains steady, conditions are ripening for household formations to grow stronger, according to a recent report from Sterne Agee, a privately owned investment bank, on housing demand.

According to the Internal Revenue Service, all "second homes" must be used as security of the loan and must have basic sleeping, cooking and toilet accommodations. Virtually all RV types - motorhomes, van campers, travel trailers, truck campers and even some folding camping trailers - are equipped with these facilities.

The mortgage delinquency rate among prime borrowers is 3.1 percent compared to 3.9 percent a year ago. Among subprime borrowers the rate is 28.7 percent-down only slightly from 28.8 percent a year ago.

When looking at the work ethic in the U.S., the country's structure and other factors, Jamie Dimon believes "America is going to come back; and it's going to blow people's socks off when it does."

Inventories of homes for sale remain far below last year's level in markets such as Seattle (down 23.2 percent), Boston (down 35.1 percent), Denver (down 30.1 percent), Detroit (down 25.7 percent), and San Francisco (down 21.7 percent).

Owners who owe more on their mortgage than their home is currently worth are more willing to move away if a job opportunity arises than even homeowners with equity, according to researchers with the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.

The Federal Trade Commission filed suit in federal court to halt a mortgage relief scheme that allegedly deceived and preyed on distressed homeowners by charging them $2,000 to $4,000 based on bogus foreclosure rescue claims.

"Who owns my loan?" the single woman asked. "Why is it such a big secret when you try to find out?"

"When you see home prices starting to grow again, when you see the job market slowly recovering, all those things have come into play to add more stability" in the retail sector, said Jim Schutter, a retail expert with the brokerage Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, the company that acquired Grubb & Ellis last year.

Buyers may want to purchase big-ticket items on credit - like furniture or wall coverings - to outfit their new home prior to closing. But if they're not careful, they could cause delays in closing or even lose their home loan.

According to figures provided by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, whose membership includes more than 21,000 real estate brokers in 21 counties, the median price for a closed sale in June was $279,950, about 9.8 percent higher than the year-ago figure of $255,000.