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The first article, Experts weigh in on market in Phoenix, from the Arizona Republic, reports that a number of local and national real estate gurus are tracking the Valley;s housing market and here is what they have to say. There were 53,509 listings on the market on Nov. 1. That's 12 homes to every home buyer in the market now, according to Jay Haugen of Re/Max Anasazi Realty. More than 4,500 new homes, complete or nearly finished, sit unsold in Valley subdivisions, according to Belfiore Real Estate Consulting. Metro Phoenix has a 35 percent chance of falling prices, according to PMI's U.S. Market Risk Index, but 24 other areas, including Las Vegas and San Diego, have a greater chance that prices will drop. Well-known Arizona housing analyst RL Brown still has a "red code" on his monthly newsletter and says "The end (of the housing market's slowdown) is not yet in sight, and the market is still seeking the bottom."

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/1105biz-catherine1105.html

The second article, Credit score changes could spark housing boom, from MSNBC.com, reports that the slumping housing market could get a $200 billion boost from new immigration home buyers as mainstream lenders start using methods to score credit, a national group of Hispanic real estate agents said Friday. A handful of new credit reporting systems-- already used by 200 real estate brokers, community groups and mortgage counselors nationwide-- allows lenders to calculate risk by evaluating a prospective client's utility bills, rent checks and other payments. Currently, recent immigrants who lack Social Security numbers or legal status in the U.S. are rejected by the three major credit bureaus.  Should the new method gain wider acceptance on Wall Street and among secondary mortgage lenders like Freddie Mac, housing markets in states like California, Texas and Arizona could gain the most. "Gateway states like California and Texas will disproportionately benefit from the housing boom because so many of their residents are immigrants," said Gary Ocasta of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. A study at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University shows that Latinos will account for nearly one-third of the home buying pool by 2010. That same year, the disposable income of Hispanics will exceed $1.08 trillion, or 9.2 percent of total purchasing power nationwide, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15551056/