Your next new home may be firmly plugged into electronic advancements.

This year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas has surprised many within the real estate industry for the quantity of innovations that are based around the home, it was reported by Real Trends.

The popular new trend is for homeowners to be completely connected to their homes from anywhere via a smartphone. A few devices showcased at the conference include the following:

—WeMo devices by Belkin, which allow for remote monitoring and the ability to control electricity remotely.

—Goji, a smart lock that allows you to control your door's lock from anywhere in the world and to unlock automatically when you are at close enough proximity. A new feature Goji has recently added is a small video camera on the exterior of the lock that allows users to see who is at their front doors.

—Crock-Pot even entered the mix with a WeMo-controlled slow cooker that can be controlled while you are out.

Another trend was the emergence of high-tech, connected appliances. A few appliances had Internet capabilities incorporated into them that allowed for an easy recipe display and access to other tools available online.

This is a glance at a new technology trend that is just starting to gain ground, the report noted.

Q: Is home flipping still popular?

A: Apparently, it is. RealtyTrac, a source for housing data, released its Year-End Home Flipping Report, which shows 156,862 single-family home flips — where a home is purchased and subsequently sold again within six months — in 2013, up 16 percent from 2012 and up 114 percent from 2011.

Q: Are mortgage applications for new homes still rising?

A: At this writing, the number of applications is dropping. Mortgage applications for purchasing newly built homes fell for the second consecutive month in December, according to a Mortgage Bankers Association survey of homebuilders.

The MBA reported that purchase mortgage applications fell 11 percent in December following an 18 percent decline in the prior month.

Based on this non-seasonally adjusted index, MBA economists estimate sales of new single-family homes were running at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402,000 in December. The latest report by the Census Bureau showed that new homes were being sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 464,000 in November.

Q: Will the lower limit on Federal Housing Administration loans hurt the housing recovery?

A: Local real estate observers say they're concerned about a Jan. 1 rule that dramatically lowered the size of mortgage the federal government will back. The lower loan limit could hurt buyers with small down payments and derail a nascent revival in the homebuilding sector, it was reported by Real Trends.

"The timing is not good. We're trying to get the market re-established, especially in Las Vegas, and to drop the limit now doesn't make any sense," says Dennis Smith, president and CEO of local analysis firm Home Builders Research. "We need to get as many housing sales and starts as we can to boost the economy."

Q: Is the weak job report impacting the housing market?

A: Yes, as it always does, December's discouraging jobs report caused mortgage rates to pull back once again.

Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage falling 10 basis points to an average rate of 4.41 percent. Similarly, the 15-year rate fell nine basis points.

Bankrate also reported declines, with both the 30-year and 15-year average fixed-rates down seven basis points to 4.57 percent and 3.62 percent, respectively.

Q: Will home prices continue to rise in 2014 at about the same rate as they did last year?

A: Following a year of fast-paced appreciation, Fitch Ratings expects home price gains to slow to a more moderate pace in 2014 in the United States, according to its Global Housing and Mortgage Outlook.

The ratings agency also predicts mortgage volume will decline, and delinquencies and shadow inventory will decrease, albeit slowly, while liquidation timelines continue to rise.

To find out more about Jim Woodard and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.