Capital Economics expects the housing crisis to end this year, according to a report released Tuesday. One of the reasons: loosening credit.

The analytics firm notes the average credit score required to attain a mortgage loan is 700. While this is higher than scores required prior to the crisis, it is constant with requirements one year ago.

Additionally, a Fed Senior Loan Officer Survey found credit requirements in the fourth quarter were consistent with the past three quarters.

However, other market indicators point not just to a stabilization of mortgage lending standards, but also a loosening of credit availability.

Banks are now lending amounts up to 3.5 times borrower earnings. This is up from a low during the crisis of 3.2 times borrower earnings.

Banks are also loosening loan-to-value ratios (LTV), which Capital Economics denotes “the clearest sign yet of an improvement in mortgage credit conditions.”

In contrast to a low of 74 percent reached in mid-2010, banks are now lending at 82 percent LTV.

While credit conditions may have loosened slightly, some potential homebuyers are still struggling with credit requirements. In fact, Capital Economics points out that in November 8 percent of contract cancellations were the result of a potential buyer not qualifying for a loan.

Additionally, Capital Economics says “any improvement in credit conditions won’t be significant enough to generation actual house price gains,” and potential ramifications from the euro-zone pose a threat to future credit availability.

It’s a tool used by house flippers all across the nation. Stagers know its power. Real estate agents push its importance. What is this not-so-well-kept secret of real estate? A kitchen can sell a house.  

Kitchens are integral to entertaining and in today’s age of open floor plans, they’re a focal piece of many family rooms. This means buyers want homes with up-to-date kitchens. Because they are one of the most expensive and labor intensive rooms to renovate, buyers aren’t willing to tackle this problem themselves and expect a kitchen ready to use the day they move in.

The main thing to remember as a seller is to not price yourself out of your market. If homes in your neighborhood are selling for $100,000 with tidy, but not luxury kitchens, then this is no time to upgrade to granite, travertine, and marble at the price tag of $40,000+. You simply won’t find a buyer.  

Scope out the competition. Use open houses in your area or MLS listings to find out what your competitions’ kitchens look like.  

Do area homes have new solid wood cabinets and granite counters in today’s designer colors? Do they have compactors and wine coolers? You’ll be wise to consider making the same move.

Are you in a higher-end neighborhood? It’s time to think high-end. Your older home may have a highly functional kitchen, but a buyer will take one look at your formica counters and white appliances and become lost in the stress of how much money and time it would take to remodel. If you don’t want to put in the time yourself to make upgrades then you’ll have to make concessions in the price.  

The bottom line is a kitchen can sell a home. Do a little research and find out what your kitchen needs to make it competitive with area listings.

 1. Thin Is In: One of the biggest buzzes of this year’s show was the introduction of “ultrabooks”–a new crop of laptop computers that are paper-thin and take up less space than a composition notebook.
The Acer Aspire S5 was touted as the “world’s thinnest ultrabook” and by using Acer’s Always Connect software, users will also be able to access the ultrabook from their smartphone or another device to view documents or other files remotely.

Smartphones are also getting slimmer and packing a lot more punch. The Huawei Ascend P1 S debuted at CES as the “world’s thinnest smartphone” at just 6.68-mm thin. It runs Android’s new Ice Cream Sandwich operating system and features a 4.3-inch touchscreen display. It can shoot high-definition video and comes with an 8-megapixel camera.

 2. On-the go charging: A battery drain on your smartphone, laptop, or any other device while on-the-go can be devastating. Here are two of the coolest tools to make sure battery drain never holds you back again.

The RFA Brand’s Powerbag is a lightweight backpack that features everything you need to charge your cell phone, camera, video camera, and tablet. To power the backpack, you just plug it into an electrical outlet, and once it’s fully charged, it’s ready to take with you to charge your other devices while you’re on the road. Price: $139 and up

The pocket-sized PowerTrekk uses fuel cell technology to power up mobile phones, cameras, GPS devices, and other electronics. The pocket-size charger provides instant power to your devices by converting hydrogen into electricity. It can produce the power of up to four AA batteries–suitable for powering up your phone for 10 hours. You just insert the fuel pack and add water to start recharging your portable devices. Price: $200

                                3. Wi-Fi-enabled cameras: Eliminate the need to attach your camera to a computer to upload photos or video footage with built-in Wi-Fi to allow seamless and instant sharing.

The Kodak Easy Share M750 allows you to send photos and videos instantly to your computer, social networking sites, or e-mail with just a press of a button. Even when you don’t have access to a Wi-Fi hotspot, you still can send your photos wirelessly. Release Date: April 2012   Price: $169

Sony’s Bloggie Live high-definition, pocket camcorder also offers built-in Wi-Fi capabilities, enabling you to stream live over a Wi-Fi connection and share estate videos instantly.. You can also upload your video instantly by sending them to a compatible smartphone or tablet that has the Sony PlayMemories Mobile application installed.  Price: $250

                                      4. Convertible gadgets: In 2012, we’ll keep benefitting from tech whizzes determined to develop the most intuitive combination devices we’ve ever seen. Some will be unusual like Swiss Army maker Victorinix’s Pocket Knife which doubles as a 1TB a USB thumb drive. Others will be less lethal and more practical.

The flexible Lenovo IdeaPad YOGA is the epitome of new-age versatility. The convertible Windows 8 ultrabook features a 360-degree hinge that allows you to swing around its keyboard to use the device as a touchscreen tablet. In addition to the cool hinge, it features a 13.3-inch screen and comes with 256 GB of SSD and 8GB of RAM Release Date: Third or fourth quarter 2012   Price: Starting around $1,199

Like 2011, this year may bring significant challenges here and   around the world. 

While home loan rates finished the year at historic lows,  the housing market did not see a major improvement in the second half of the year as expected. Although, the labor market made some modest improvements, it is still persistently weak and will significantly impact our long-term economic outlook.

Also effecting consumer confidence was the first downgrade of US Debt in history. Finally, the worsening and spreading debt crisis in Europe capped a year filled with financial and political uncertainty.

The situation in Europe is definitely a wild card headed into 2012. As long as the uncertainty continues, the US Dollar and US Bonds should benefit. This could keep our home loan rates relatively low in 2012.
One other factor that we can’t ignore when it comes to home loan rates is inflation. Inflation is the arch enemy of both Bonds and home loan rates. So, inflation rises, so will interest rates.  

What’s ahead for inflation in 2012?  The Fed stated that inflation is moderating…which would be good news for mortgage rates. However, it’s important to note that core consumer level inflation actually inched higher in 2011.

So, only time will tell whether inflation or the events in Europe have a bigger impact on the markets and mortgage rates. But right now, it’s a good time to either re-finance with historically low interest rates or to be a Buyer.