(If you haven’t received yours yet, most lenders that have online account management services also post the form digitally in your secure account on the web. Just login like you would to make your monthly payment, and look for a notice that says you can now download your 2011 Form 1098.)

2. Property Tax Statements.  In addition to deducting your mortgage interest, if you own a home you are eligible to deduct the property taxes you pay to your local city, county and/or state.  You are not allowed to deduct some of the other miscellaneous expenses that some localities bundle up with the taxes they collect, like waste management and local assessments for things like street lighting, libraries and sidewalk construction.  To get this deduction right, the best practice is to have your property tax statements at hand and make sure you’re only deducting what’s allowed.

If you bought your home this year, it’s highly possible that you might not even have received a property tax statement yet - if that’s the case, look to #3, below.

3. Uniform Settlement Statement (HUD-1).  If you bought or sold a home last year, right after closing you should have received a form called the HUD-1 Settlement Statement (hint: it’s usually on legal-sized paper and contains an accounting of credits and debits for you and your home’s buyer or seller). That form documents a number of line items which might help you out at tax time, including prepaid interest, the prorated property taxes you paid at closing, and closing costs like original fees and discount points. Some states offer tax credits for buying a foreclosure; check with your tax pro to find out if any such credits apply to you. If so, this statement might be your ticket to lower taxes.

And here’s another handy hint - if you can’t find your copy, you might have gotten it on a disk - and you can always email your real estate or escrow agent for a copy, as well.

4. Moving Expense Receipts.  Moving expenses are tax deductible, if your move is closely related, both in time and in place, to the start of work at a new or changed job location and you meet the IRS’ time and distance tests. Long story short, your new home must be at least 50 miles farther from your new workplace than your old home was from your prior place of work, and you must work essentially full-time. So, if you bought or sold a home and moved in 2011, you’ll need to include receipts from expenses you incurred making the move (meals not included) in your tax prep paperwork.

5. Cancellation of Debt Statement - IRS Form 1099. Homeowners who lost a home to foreclosure, or divested of one by negotiating a short sale or deed in lieu of foreclosure with their lender might receive some version of Form 1099 from their lenders, charging them with income in the amount of the mortgage debt that has been cancelled. You see, if you borrow money from someone, then they cancel the debt, that money you originally borrowed becomes income in the eyes of the IRS - and income is, as you know, taxable.

6. Utility statements for home office.  For the average everyday homeowner who works at their employer’s place of business, utilities are not deductible (sorry!). But if there is a part of your home that is “regularly and exclusively” used for business, you might be able to claim that portion of your home as a home office, and deduct some portion of your home utilities and costs of painting and repairs, as a result.Talk with your tax provider about what expenses are allowable to be claimed under your home office deduction, and whether or not you should take it.

7. Income and Expense statements from rental properties.  Some of you have elevated the art of home ownership to a business!  If you are a landlord, your tax situation is more complicated than that of the average bear; you’ll need to have complete income and expense statements when you put your tax returns together. It might actually behoove you to consult with a tax professional to make sure you are appropriately depreciating the property over time and not taking deductions that will expose you to the risk of audits, as well as to begin cultivating a long-term tax strategy for your real estate portfolio.

8. Contractor receipts from energy efficient home improvements.  Under the Nonbusiness Energy Tax Credit, homeowners who have made improvements to their homes that fall within a list of energy efficient upgrades might be eligible to claim tax credits. If, during 2011, you installed energy efficient improvements such as insulation, new dual-paned windows and furnaces, you might be eligible for a tax credit of 10 percent of the cost of these upgrades, up to  $500 - only $200 of which may be used to offset the cost of windows.

9. Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC).  If you own a home you bought in the last few years using a Mortgage Credit Certificate issued by a local housing authority, that Certificate may entitle you to a pretty hefty tax credit, based on a percentage of the mortgage interest you paid - on top of your mortgage interest deduction. MCCs apply as long as you live in the home and have a mortgage on it, but they only apply to defray taxes you actually owe - you can’t use them to get a refund.  In any event, your mortgage credit certificate, if you have one, is a must-have document as you start putting your tax prep plan in play.

No matter what your tax situation is, if you own a home, it absolutely cannot hurt to get some professional help and advice to make sure you maximize your deductions, while minimizing your exposure to audit. And you should always consult with a tax attorney or certified public accountant regarding your tax liabilities and implications when you buy, sell, short sell or lose a home to foreclosure.

Some expect the average monthly rent to rise to as much as $1,101 this year, which Paul Bishop of the National Association of REALTORS® says should prompt more potential home buyers to "think twice before renting."

Source: "High Apartment Rents Seen Pushing People to Buy Homes," Investor's Business Daily (Jan. 27, 2012)

One of the key adjustments to the program centers around principal reductions. HAMP currently includes an option for servicers to provide underwater homeowners who are struggling with their payments with a modification that includes a principal writedown.

To encourage investors to agree to principal reduction modifications, Treasury is tripling the incentives for such restructurings, paying from 18 to 63 cents on the dollar, depending on the degree of change in the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has prohibited Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from employing HAMP’s principal reducing option for their borrowers. Treasury has notified FHFA that it will pay these same principal reduction incentives to Fannie and Freddie if they allow servicers to forgive principal in conjunction with a HAMP modification.

FHFA issued a statement in response noting that it recently released analysis concluding principal forgiveness does not offer any greater benefits than principal forbearance as a loss mitigation tool.

Attend open houses in the neighborhood to see how kitchens compare. If all the other homes have new appliances, your sellers will want to do the same or accept a lower price.

But a kitchen retrofit does not have to be extensive. A recent Realty Times article offers tips on attracting buyers with lower-cost kitchen upgrades.

• Repaint in a neutral color
• Eliminating clutter
• Clean, clean, clean
• Change light fixtures and hardware
• Opt for less expensive granite

Source: "Kitchens Sell a House," Realty Times (01/24/12)

Obama said that he intends to submit a plan to Congress that will help more underwater home owners -- those who owe more than their home’s current value -- to refinance.

“No more red tape,” Obama said during the speech. “No more runaround from the banks.” 

Obama said he will propose expanding the Home Affordable Refinance Program so more home owners can take advantage of low mortgage rates, which could save home owners about $3,000 a year on their mortgage. 

Obama also said he will start a new fraud task force aimed at cracking down on mortgage fraud. He called for more investigations into mortgage fraud and other abusive practices that led to the housing crisis. 

"This new unit will hold accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to home owners, and help turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt so many Americans," Obama said in his speech.

NAR: Housing Needs to Be Top Priority

Meanwhile, the National Association of REALTORS^® in a statement commended Obama for his remarks during the State of the Union in support of home owners and those who are struggling in the housing market. 

NAR’s 2012 President Moe Veissi urged the White House to host a national housing summit to further discussions about how to advance policies that could move the housing market toward recovery. 

“We must make housing a national public policy priority,” Veissi said in a statement. “REALTORS^® believe that more must be done to stem the rising inventory of foreclosed homes and address the lack of available and affordable mortgage financing, which is inhibiting a meaningful housing market recovery.”

Veissi said more needs to be done to help struggling home owners who are at risk of losing their homes, such as by modifying loans and helping home owners significantly reduce their monthly mortgage payments. Veissi also called for changes to the short sale process, which is often “time-consuming” and “inefficient” when it comes to lenders approving “reasonable offers when families can no longer keep their homes.” 

“Keeping people in their homes and reducing foreclosures will help minimize the negative impact of distressed properties on home values and neighborhoods,” Veissi said in the statement. “Expanding financing opportunities could also help reduce excess inventories of distressed properties. Increased fees and higher down payments are making it harder for many creditworthy home buyers and investors to obtain financing, thwarting the sale of distressed properties and prolonging the impact those homes have on local markets.”  

Source: “Obama Proposes New Mortgage Refinance Program, Fraud Task Force,” HousingWire (Jan. 24, 2012) and the National Association of REALTORS®

The setting of this federal funds rate – the rate at which banks lend to one another – is one of the most fundamental and principal tools in the central bank’s chest of economic influence.

The Fed has kept the target range for the rate at 0 to 0.25 percent for three years now. The decision by its policy committee members to maintain this range for another three years is testament to just how slow the U.S. economy’s crawl back from the brink of financial ruin is likely to be.

Up until Wednesday, the Fed’s policy statement had indicated the federal funds rate would remain at its current level until mid-2013.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke acknowledged that the 2014 projection for keeping the rate so low is not set in stone. The decision to raise the rate before that time would be determined by the pace of economic growth.

“We have to make a best guess,” Bernanke told reporters at a press conference following the Fed’s two-day policy meeting. “Unless there is a substantial strengthening of the economy in the near term, I would think that it’s a pretty good guess that we will be keeping rates low for some time from now.”

Nationwide, median list prices have inched up 5.03 percent from December 2010 to December 2011, according to Realtor.com data. 

The following cities are where median list prices have increased the most in the last year, based on December 2011 data of 146 metro areas from Realtor.com:

1. Miami, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 32.50%
Median list price: $265,000

2. Naples, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 21.67%
Median list price: $365,000

3. Fort Myers-Cape Coral, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 21.47%
Median list price: $229,375

4. Punta Gorda, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 19.42%
Median list price: $179,000

5. Boise City, Idaho
Year-over-year increase: 19.25%
Median list price: $154,900

6. West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 18.38%
Median list price: $219,000

7. Sarasota-Bradenton, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 17.62%
Median list price: $241,000

8. Daytona Beach, Fla.
Year-over-year increase: 16.06%
Median list price: $179,900

9. Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz.
Year-over-year increase: 13.79%
Median list price: $165,000

10. Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland, Mich.
Year-over-year increase: 13.32%
Median list price: $137,000

Lending standards increased sharply after the financial crisis in 2008, and even after the recession ended in 2009. Lenders have yet to ease their stricter standards, according to a report by Goldman Sachs economists Hui Shan and Jari Stehn. 

Why? The researchers say it’s mostly because there’s less money available to lend. 

“During the housing boom, as brokers produced a flood of new mortgages, Wall Street bankers churned out a torrent of mortgage-backed bonds for investors waiting to snap them up,” an article at MSNBC.com notes, in describing the study’s findings. “That market has all but vanished; 90 percent of new mortgages written today are backed by the government.”

Also, researchers found that lenders are swamped with more paperwork, which is also causing delays in processing. Many lenders have issued stricter documentation requirements before they’ll approve a loan. Nowadays, nearly 90 percent of mortgage applications require “full documentation” before getting approved. From 2000 to 2006, less than 60 percent of applications required “full documentation,” researchers found. 

Source: “Tight-Fisted Mortgage Lenders Pressure Home Sales,” MSNBC.com (Jan. 27, 2012)

Editor's Note: Another reason banks have tightened up their lending is because Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are requiring banks to repurchase some of the loans they've made. As reported by Bloomberg News, banks don’t want to get hit with more mandatory repurchases, so they have added “overlays” (such as minimum downpayment, debt ratio, etc.) to FHA, Fannie, and Freddie standards, and are only making the most conservative loans.

More parents are taking on the role as mortgage lenders to help their kids take advantage of low home prices and record-low mortgage rates. In fact, one in three first-time home buyers either received a gift or loan from their families for a home purchase made in 2011, according to National Association of REALTORS®’ research.

But parents who enter into a gift-giver or mortgage lender role need to make sure they follow some tax guidelines. 

For one, the federal government has rules on how much you’re allowed to gift. For 2012, individuals can give up to $13,000 tax free in one year without having to pay gift taxes. Married couples can give up to $26,000 a year. 

Some parents, instead of providing a gift, are acting more as a mortgage lender. They can set up an arrangement where they charge interest on the money they lend, but the interest charged must be based on the IRS’s “applicable federal rate” minimum for various loan maturities. Still, those rates are even far below today’s record-low mortgage rates (anywhere from 0.19 percent or even less for three-year loan terms to 2.63 percent for nine-year loan terms).  

Parents will need to pay income taxes on any interest earned on the loans. Still, the return may be better than what they can get for a low-interest CD or money market fund nowadays. As for the children, they’ll still be able to deduct the interest on their taxes for the mortgage interest deduction if these agreements are formally structured. 

Source: “Become Your Kid’s Mortgage Lender,” Fortune (February 2012)

Some signs are already there: Housing inventories are declining, housing affordability is at record highs, mortgage rates are at all-time lows, and the job market is improving. 

Existing-home sales have been edging up in recent months, and for-sale housing inventories were at nearly 2.4 million units in December, reaching its lowest point since 2005, according to National Association of REALTORS® data. 

NAR’s Chief Economist Lawrence Yun says home prices are beginning to stabilize in many markets. 

Also, NAR’s Housing Affordability Index is at its highest level since the 1970s, which indicates that for the average family housing is very affordable. 

The National Association of Home Builders is also predicting an improvement this spring among the new-home sector. NAHB is predicting that home sales will increase 18 percent this year, that’s after facing their lowest on record in 2011. 

However, threats to a housing recovery still loom this spring. Strict mortgage lending is keeping some buyers on the sidelines, and foreclosures continue to put downward pressure on overall home prices in many markets.

"The signals are a little hard to extrapolate, but ultimately by the end of this year we should see the housing market on more solid footing," says Celia Chen, senior housing economist with Moody’s Analytics. "So an improvement but off of very, very weak activity." 

Source: “Real Estate: A Buy or Bust This Spring Selling Season?” Investor’s Business Daily (Feb. 2, 2012)

So how can your buyers beat the competition to get a foreclosure? 

Get the first look: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s First Look program offers first-time home buyers and others who need financing and are looking for a primary residence the first opportunity to see bank-owned homes before investors. Buyers have a 15-day window to submit offers before investors have the opportunity to start bidding. 

Submit a competitive offer: Homes priced at heavy discounts can be in high demand and attract multiple bids. Lowball offers won’t likely get far. Some housing experts suggest starting with your best offer. "My advice is to offer the most you feel you would ever pay for the property," said one recent buyer of a foreclosure. 

Make a large deposit: If a buyer wants to get the banks attention, they could offer a larger than typical good-faith deposit. But if the buyer has to back out of the deal for some reason, he or she may be at risk of losing the deposit. 

Even if your buyers really want the property, don’t let them cave in to unreasonable demands, like waiving a home inspection. Otherwise, it may be a decision they quickly regret if the home is later found to be ripe with problems. 

Source: “How to Beat the Competition and Buy a Foreclosure,” Sun Sentinel (Fla.) (Feb. 5, 2012)

Speaking at a community center in Falls Church, Virginia, the president issued a call to Congress to pass legislation to establish a streamlined refinancing program through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) that would be open to all non-GSE borrowers with non-jumbo loans who have been keeping up with their mortgage payments.

The administration estimates the program could provide as many as 3.5 million borrowers with the opportunity to reduce their mortgage debt and would cost between $5 and $10 billion.

The cost of the new refi program would not add a dime to the national deficit, Obama said, as it would be paid for by imposing fees on financial institutions with more than $50 billion in assets.

This Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee has not yet been approved by lawmakers on Capitol Hill. The president has tried to push this same big-bank-tax through the channels twice before, in early 2011 and early 2010, but was unsuccessful.

The idea met with strong opposition from lawmakers and industry trade groups, who threatened to take legal action had the Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee passed.

Under the president’s proposal, any borrower with a mortgage that is not currently guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac can qualify for a refinancing through FHA if they:

• have been current on their payments for the past six months and have not missed more than one payment in the six months prior
• have a FICO score of at least 580
• have a loan that meets FHA conforming loan limits for their area
• are refinancing the mortgage on their principal residence

Borrowers will apply through a streamlined process which Obama says is designed to make it simpler and less expensive for both borrowers and lenders to refinance.

Borrowers will not be required to submit a new appraisal or tax return. To determine a borrower’s eligibility, a lender need only confirm that the borrower is employed.

Those who are not employed may still be eligible if they meet the other requirements and present limited credit risk. However, lenders will need to perform a full underwriting of these borrowers to determine whether they are a good fit for the program.

The president outlined additional steps to reduce program costs, including establishing loan-to-value (LTV) limits for qualifying loans. Obama says his administration will work with Congress to establish risk-mitigation measures which could include requiring lenders interested in refinancing deeply underwater loans (e.g. greater than 140 LTV) to write down the balance of these loans before they qualify.

Obama also proposed creating a separate FHA insurance fund designated for the new streamlined refinancing program. He says this will help FHA better track and manage the risk involved and ensure the program has no

Foreclosures are usually sold as-is, and homes that are left vacant standing too long can have a lot of maintenance problems. 

Real estate experts suggest buyers consider the following questions:

1. How long has the home been vacant? Be cautious of a foreclosed home that has stood vacant for more than a few weeks or had its utilities shut off a long time. Marvin Goldstein, a home inspector for many foreclosed properties, says a home can deteriorate quickly when heating, cooling, electricity, and running water have been turned off for awhile. 

2. How old is the home? Goldstein says that homes that are more than 50 years old may have a failing plumbing system or inadequate electrical wiring. 

3. How does the home look? Are there broken windows, gutters hanging down, or damaged siding? “Trust your instincts. If the house looks bad from the outside, it's probably worse than you think,” Goldstein told The Oklahoman. 

4. Is there anything missing? Sometimes former owners remove anything of value from the home, such as built-in light fixtures, bathroom tile, water heaters, air-conditioning units, and hardwoods, says Bill Jacques, president-elect of the American Society of Home Inspectors. 

Housing experts encourage buyers to get a home inspector to look at the property, even if it is sold as-is, so that home buyers know any repairs needed and cost estimates before they purchase the home.

“Buying a bank-owned home gives you the opportunity to enter the market at a very low price level,” says Dorcas Helfant, a past president of the National Association of REALTORS®. “You can find terrific values among foreclosures, especially if they're not in too bad shape. But, remember, these houses are discounted for a reason.”

Source: “Foreclosed Homes May Need Extensive Repairs,” The Oklahoman (Jan. 28, 2012)

The Federal Housing Finance Agency plans to offer some of its 180,000 foreclosed homes through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to private operators who will turn them into rental properties, Bloomberg News reports. 

The Federal Housing Administration also plans to participate in a rental program. In a November memo, it has suggested that its program work with public-private partnerships to share the risk and profits, as well as explore offering rent-to-own opportunities to tenants of the homes.

Private equity firms are stepping up to acquire some single-family homes to manage as rentals. GTIS Partners has already earmarked $1 billion by 2016 to acquire single-family homes to manage as rentals. GI Partners also says it will invest $1 billion on rental housing. 

“We’re starting to see this as a billion-dollar opportunity to buy rental housing,” Thomas Shapiro, the founder of the GTIS Partners fund, told Bloomberg News. 

A few months ago, the White House solicited ideas from the public on how to work a foreclosure rental program to get a better grip on the government’s foreclosure inventory. The White house says it hopes that by turning some of the foreclosures that have dogged many markets into rentals, it will be able to ward off any further drops to overall home prices. 

Source: “Foreclosures Draw Private Equity as U.S. Sells Homes,” Bloomberg (Jan. 31, 2012)

But home prices the past year haven’t been rising everywhere. For example, Detroit continues to face a plague of foreclosures that are bringing home values down in the area. The metro area had the biggest drop in median list prices the past year. 

The following are the cities with the biggest drops in median list prices year-over-year, based on December 2011 housing data of 146 metro markets tracked by Realtor.com.

1. Detroit: -11.01%
Median list price: $80,000

2. Chicago: -10%
Median list price: $189,000

3. Las Vegas: -7.62%
Median list price: $120,000

4. Sacramento, Calif.: -6.98%
Median list price: $199,900

5. Los Angeles-Long Beach, Calif.: -6.37%
Median list price: $324,900

6. Atlanta, Ga.: -6.25%
Median list price: $150,000

7. Orange County, Calif.: -5.53%
Median list price: $425,000

8. San Francisco, Calif.: -4.92%
Median list price: $599,000

Rental prices in 20 of the largest metro areas increased 3.75 percent in 2011, and prices are expected to continue to rise in 2012. Meanwhile, home prices fell by 1.83 percent in 2011, according to the report. 

"In a lot of cases it's getting to a point where it makes more sense for people to buy because rent has been going up significantly faster, while home prices have been falling," Paul Gleger, author of the report, told AOL Real Estate. 

According to the report, New York has the highest rental prices, with a two-bedroom apartment’s median rent at $2,653. Other cities posting some of the highest median rents in the country: Boston ($1,929), Miami ($1,748), San Francisco ($1,607), Los Angeles ($1,717) and Chicago ($1,552). 

Source: “U.S. Rental Market Stays Hot in 2011,” Hotpads.com (January 2012) and “Rental Prices Climb, Buying Remains More Affordable,” AOL Real Estate News (Jan. 18, 2012)

“For real estate to do well you want to see two things: that incomes are growing rapidly … and that the growth in jobs attracts other people to that market,” Ingo Winzer, founder and president of Local Market Monitor, told Forbes.

Here are the cities topping the list:

1. San Jose, Calif.
Population growth: 5 percent
Job growth: 3.3 percent
Home prices for the past 12 months: 2 percent decrease
New-home construction: 97 percent increase

2. Houston, Texas
Population growth: 7 percent
Job growth: 3 percent
Home prices for the past 12 months: 2 percent decrease
New-home construction: 38 percent increase

3. Boston, Mass.
Population growth: 3 percent
Job growth: 2.1 percent
Home prices for the past 12 months: 1 percent decrease
New-home construction: 1 percent increase

4. Raleigh, N.C.
Population growth: 12 percent
Job growth: 1.4 percent
Home prices for the past 12 months: 2 percent decrease
New-home construction: 14 percent increase

5. Austin, Texas
Population growth: 11 percent
Job growth: 1.5  percent
Home prices for the past 12 months: 2 percent decrease
New-home construction: 20 percent increase

6. Oklahoma City, Okla.
Population growth: 4 percent
Job growth: 2.6%
Home prices for the past 12 months: 3 percent decrease
New-home construction: 1 percent decrease
Find out more about why these cities are poised for a rebound, and see what other cities made the list. 

Source: “Cities Where Real Estate Is Ripe for a Rebound,” Forbes (January 2012)

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has said it is pursuing potential ideas for REO-to-rental pilot programs “with a sense of urgency,” but two California firms don’t plan to wait on the government’s involvement to get a large-scale REO rental venture off the ground.

Carrington Holding Company LLC announced Wednesday that it has entered into an agreement with certain investment funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. that will fund an initial purchase of up to $450 million in distressed single-family homes across the country.

“We believe that re-deploying vacant REO properties into rental homes is a way to help revitalize the housing market,” said Bruce Rose, Carrington’s founder and CEO.

Rose contends that reducing the number of distressed properties for sale will stabilize home prices and help neighborhoods that have been damaged by foreclosures begin the restoration process.

The bank-owned homes purchased through the venture will be managed as rental properties by Carrington. The company notes that there is growing market demand for rental units – demand that can be met through the industry’s effort to remove distressed properties from the sales inventory and stabilize the housing market.

Carrington currently manages over 3,000 single-family rental homes under Fannie Mae’s Tenant-in-Place and Deed-for-Lease programs. The company has developed a national field services network along with a proprietary software system that allows for centralized property monitoring and management.

“Carrington’s REO rental program is an excellent fit for our investment strategy, which includes a broad range of debt and equity investments in real estate-related investments and restructurings,” said John Brady, Oaktree’s head of global real estate.

“We believe that this is not only a unique investment opportunity with few qualified large-scale competitors, but one that also has the potential to have a broader positive effect on the housing market and the overall economy,” Brady added.

Several states continue to see a large amount of foreclosures, which are putting downward pressure on overall home prices. 

The states with the highest foreclosure rates for 2011 are: 

1. Nevada: 6 percent (1 in 16 housing units received at least one foreclosure filing in 2011) 

2. Arizona: 4.14 percent (or 1 in 24)

3. California: 3.19 percent (or 1 in 31)

4. Georgia: 2.71 percent (or 1 in 37)

5. Utah: 2.32 percent (or 1 in 43)

6. Michigan: 2.21 percent

7. Florida: 2.06 percent

8. Illinois: 1.95 percent

9. Colorado: 1.78 percent

10. Idaho: 1.77 percent

Nationwide, 1 in 69 housing units or 1.45 percent of home owners received at least one foreclosure filing during 2011, which is down from 2.23 percent in 2010, RealtyTrac reports.

Mexico is the top country of origin for foreign buyers purchasing U.S. homes, according to a recent study by Credit Sesame, which used National Association of REALTORS® data for its findings.

“In this period of tremendous uncertainly globally, real estate here is a safe haven,” Susan Wachter, professor of real estate and finance at University of Pennsylvania, told MSNBC.com. 

The top destinations of foreign investors for U.S. real estate purchases are: 

1. Florida: Thirty-one percent of all home purchases in that state are made by foreign buyers, with most coming from Cuba, Haiti, and Colombia.

2. California: 12 percent of all home purchases (most coming from Mexico, the Philippines, China, India, and Vietnam)

3. Texas: 9 percent of all home purchases (most coming from Mexico, India, Vietnam, China, and the Philippines)

Source: “Housing More Affordable Than Ever ... for Foreign Investors,” MSNBC.com (Jan. 13, 2012)