Real Estate News
Mortgage Applications Jump
Mortgage applications rose 4.9 percent last week as more borrowers refinanced at the lowest rates in decades.
The Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday the gain was fueled by a 5.7 percent increase in refinancing applications. The number of loans taken out to purchase homes edged up by less than 1 percent. The numbers are adjusted for seasonal factors.
Refinancing is at its highest level since May 2009 and makes up 82.4 percent of all new loan activity, its highest share since January 2009.
However, low mortgage rates have done little to boost home sales, which have been hurt by high unemployment, slow job growth, and strict credit standards. Purchase activity is 41.5 percent below its level at the end of April, when two federal tax credits for home buyers expired.
Rates have fallen since spring as investors sought the safety of Treasury bonds, lowering their yield. Mortgage rates tend to track those yields.
Interest rates declined for the week:
• 30-year fixed loan fell to 4.55 percent from 4.6 percent.
• 15-year fixed-rate loan fell to 3.91 percent from 3.99 percent.
• 1-year ARMs decreased to 6.84 percent from 6.90 percent.
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s survey covers more than 50 percent of all applications nationwide.
Source: Associated Press, J.W. Elphinstone (8/25/2010)
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Fannie Mae to Prohibit ‘Appraisal Cutting’
Fannie Mae is banning a common practice known as “appraisal cutting,” starting next week.
When lenders selling loans to the firm challenge a valuation, the underwriter will have to contact the appraiser directly; if the lender is unable to settle the dispute, its only option will be to order a second appraisal.
Lenders will be unable to simply cut the value of the appraisal or shop around for the best appraisal.
Source: American Banker, Kate Berry and Marc Hochstein (08/26/10).
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Owner Financing Can Expedite Sales
Owner financing can help sell a property even in this challenging market.
Banks generally are willing to accept rent credits for an option to buy as an acceptable down payment, but both buyers and sellers must follow these guidelines for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to sanction the transaction.
The rental amount must be determined by a property appraisal with the credit for the down payment clearly calculated as the difference between market rent and actual rent paid for 12 months. For instance, if market rent is $1,000 and rent paid is $1,200, $200 could be credited monthly toward the down payment.
The rent/purchase agreement must be for a minimum of 12 months. The contract must clearly specify a rental amount as well as the portion to be credited toward the purchase.
The buyer will need copies of canceled checks or money order receipts for 12 months, proving rental payments to persuade the bank to credit the funds toward the down payment.
Source: Creative Investor, Rodney Williams (08/23 2010)
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Is the Housing Slowdown a Sign of a Double-Dip?
Home construction and property sales led the U.S. out of seven recessions since 1960, but this time around, housing isn’t helping. In fact, some outspoken analysts like Celia Chen, who tracks the industry for Moody’s Analytics Inc., fear housing may drive us back into recession.
“There is an epidemic of thrift,” explains Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at business analysts IHS Inc. “Households and businesses are super-cautious right now.”
Unlike analysts for Moody’s, HIS’ Behravesh is more sanguine. He says, “Sometime in the next six to 12 months, we’ll start to see more movement on home and car purchases and greater willingness on the part of businesses to hire.”
Source: Bloomberg, John Gittelsohn and Bob Willis (08/23/2010
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Government Mortgage-Aid Program Struggling
Nearly two-thirds of the people involved in the federal government’s mortgage-relief program have been unable to complete it.
Only 32 percent of those who started the program have received loan modifications and are making their payments on time. The remainder have dropped out.
“The government program as currently structured is petering out. It is taking in fewer home owners, more are dropping out, and fewer people are ending up in permanent modifications,” says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.
Zandi predicts another 1.5 million foreclosures and short sales in 2011.
Source: Associated Press, Martin Crutsinger (08/20/2010)
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Mortgage Fraud Is on the Rise
Mortgage fraud — which peaked in 2006 — rose 17 percent last year after falling 57 percent in the prior two years, reports CoreLogic.
Analyzing about 7 million home loans made by hundreds of lenders, the research firm found that $14 billion in loans were originated with fraudulent application data in 2009.
Lenders have tightened criteria and look more closely at mortgage applications since the collapse of the real estate market; but fraudsters now are relying more on falsifying documents, recruiting loan officers and other bank insiders to work for them, and stealing identities to get loans.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Robbie Whelan (08/23/10)
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VA Expands Forbearance in the Gulf
Veterans in Gulf Coast states may qualify for delayed payments if the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) already guarantees their mortgages.
The VA is asking all mortgage companies to waive late payments and suspend negative reporting to credit bureaus on borrowers affected by the oil spill who are out of work.
VA has information on its Web site. Veterans in need of mortgage counseling may also contact their nearest VA regional loan center at (877) 827-3702 for help and information, regardless of whether or not they have a VA home loan.
Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (08/20/2010)
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Investors Turn to Flipping for Quick Profits
Private equity firms and other groups of wealthy people are purchasing foreclosures at distressed prices, rehabbing them, and selling them for a quick profit.
This used to be a game for amateurs, but because of the lack of other investment opportunities, the money-management pros have stepped in.
The influx of new players is pushing up auction prices and making it harder to make a profit. The average discount at auctions — the difference between a home’s sale price and its actual value — is 21.6 percent, down from 28 percent in January 2009, according to ForeclosureRadar.
“In crisis there’s opportunity,” says Rick Hudson, president of investment firm Prosperity Group Real Estate in Irvine, Calif. “Right now there’s huge opportunity with flipping houses.”
Source: Los Angeles Times, Walter Hamilton and Alejandro Lazo (08/20/2010)
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Three Reasons to Buy a Home Now
Stocks are up 50 percent from the March 2009 bottom. Some commodities have risen dramatically. The only asset class left in the cellar is real estate, says Michael Murphy, editor of the New World Investor stock newsletter.
As a result, Murphy is advising investors to buy now for these three reasons:
• Desperate sellers: Both home owners and lenders are eager to unload a flood of foreclosed and underwater properties. Buyers with the patience to push through these complex deals can save a bundle.
• Little competition. Because most people don’t have what it takes to negotiate their way through short sales and REOs, patient investors are winners.
• Low rates. Mortgage rates are at their lowest level in 40 years. If you believe inflation is inevitable, lock in now.
Source: MarketWatch, Michael Murphy (08/19/2010)
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Americans Still Want to Own a Home
More than 72 percent of American adults say that home ownership is a part of their personal American dream, down from 77 percent six months ago, according to a survey for Trulia.com.
About 23 percent said their attitude toward homeownership has grown more positive in the last six months, while 19 percent say they feel more negatively.
Among those adults who are renting a home, 27 percent say they never intend to buy. Of the renters who do plan to purchase eventually, 68 percent said it would be more than two years before they do.
The factors that would encourage them to buy now are:
• Able to save a down payment, 47 percent
• Land a new job, 28 percent
• Interest rates stay low or fall lower, 27 percent
• Some other factor that persuades them that buying makes financial sense, 24 percent
• Get a raise, 23 percent
• Local real estate market stabilizes, 9 percent
Source: Trulia.com (08/18/2010)
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Home Owners Becoming More Realistic
Home owner confidence about the value of their home has declined in the second quarter, compared to the previous three quarters of this year and last, reports Zillow.com in its second quarter real estate market report.
About 30 percent of home owners predict that values will increase in the next six months, down from 42 percent who believed that in the first quarter. More than 28 percent believe market values will fall in the next six months.
About 34 percent of homes actually increased in value in the second quarter, according to Zillow, but only 24 percent of home owners say their own homes’ values increased.
If they see signs of a recovering market, 5 percent of home owners say they are likely to put their homes up for sale.
“Home owners have become much more responsive to current market conditions than they were just two years ago, when a more typical reaction was denial,” said Stan Humphries, chief economist at Zillow.com.
“Our forecast remains largely unchanged: We’re in for an L-shaped recovery that will likely keep annualized home value appreciation very low for the next three to five years.”
Source: Zillow
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Fed: Give Borrowers Time to Change Their Minds
The Federal Reserve released a proposal Monday to give mortgage applicants three days to change their minds.
The proposal was part of a 930-page document that clarifies and finalizes the new financial reform law.
The Fed’s document says that for closed-end loans secured by real property or a dwelling, a creditor must:
• “Refund any appraisal or other fees paid by the consumer (other than a credit report fee), if the consumer decides not to proceed with a closed-end mortgage transaction within three business days of receiving the early disclosures (fees imposed after this three-day period would not be refundable); and
• “Disclose the right to a refund of fees to consumers before they apply for a closed-end mortgage loan.”
The Fed says this proposal will make it easier and cheaper for consumers to comparison shop. It also acknowledged that borrowers who want to close a transaction in a hurry would be handicapped because most lenders will delay sending out an appraiser for a few days.
Other proposals affecting home buyers included:
• A ban on yield-spread premiums, which encourage mortgage brokers to push buyers toward more profitable mortgages.
• A requirement for lenders to tell borrowers when their mortgage is sold or transferred.
• An explanation of the effects of balloon payments, adjustable loan payment fluctuations, and minimum payments on loan balances.
Source: Bankrate.com, Holden Lewis (08/17/2010)
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Some Guarantee Will Survive Fannie, Freddie
The dominant thread at the conference earlier this week on the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, hosted by Treasury and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, was about retaining FHA to ensure finance availability for lower- and moderate-income households and re-shaping Fannie and Freddie into something that backstops losses after private insurers take their lumps.
At least for the near term, most of the academics and business leaders participating seem to agree, some form of government backstopping of the mortgage market is necessary, but it won’t be under the terms that we’ve grown familiar with. Rather, the guarantee would be absolutely explicit, not implicit like we saw with Fannie and Freddie, and, in the view of some, would take the form of a limited, maybe even catastrophic-type, backstopping in which the private sector takes first-risk position.
The government-backed secondary market companies would adjust underwriting and terms to provide counter-cyclical restraints (tightening standards as appreciation rises too far from historical norms) and ensure without question that they would have the reserves to meet their commitments to investors should loans go bad. In a pure market, that would mean costs would rise far too high for most borrowers to afford financing, but with the government’s support, costs would be brought down to a level
appropriate for the great middle of the market. FHA would be retained to play its role making safe, affordable financing available to lower- and moderate-income borrowers.
Would the secondary mortgage market companies be pure government entities like FHA or pure private companies? Not clear, except that Geithner said in his opening remarks that the days of private gains subsidized by public losses — the Fannie and Freddie
models — are over. Perhaps, as Alex Pollack of the American Enterprise Institute said, the GSEs should be divided into three entities: purely private companies for packaging mortgage-backed securities for Wall Street investors, pure government agencies for meeting public policy goals of homeownership, and third entities for liquidating the existing GSEs’ bad debt.
All agree that lack of transparency was one of the great culprits of the mortgage crisis. Borrowers didn’t know what they were borrowing, investors didn’t know what they were investing in, and no one knew whether the federal government would actually step in should a crisis occur. To correct these shortcomings, transparency would have to be a hallmark of any reform. “We need transparency, standardization, and disclosure,” said
Susan Wachter of the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.
Vince Malta, NAR vice president and liaison to government affairs, was present on behalf of REALTORS® on the second day of the conference.
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Purchase Applications Decline, Refis Rise
Mortgage applications to purchase homes declined 3.4 percent last week compared to the previous week on an unadjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association weekly survey.
On an unadjusted basis, purchases declined 4.6 percent compared with the previous week and were down 38.6 percent from the same week a year ago.
The decline occurred despite unusually low interest rates that drove the refinance index up 17.1 percent to the highest level since May 15, 2009.
Average interest rates rose slightly from the week before:
• 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.60 percent from 4.57 percent.
• 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 3.99 percent from 3.95 percent.
• 1-year ARMs decreased to 6.90 percent from 7 percent.
Source: Mortgage Bankers Association (08/18/2010)
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Geithner Calls for Cooperation to Modify GSEs
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner told attendees at a housing summit on Tuesday that the U.S. government will continue to guarantee mortgages, but its role will be revised to avoid making it a primary backer if Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac face another meltdown.
Geithner urged Democrats and Republicans to work together to rebuild Fannie and Freddie to avoid another crisis. He called remaking the mortgage market one of the most important and complicated economic policy problems the U.S. faces today.
“There is nothing we can do to decrease the significant losses Fannie and Freddie incurred ahead of this crisis. All we can do is to minimize the risk that they get worse,” Geithner said.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Nick Timiraos (08/17/2010)
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Low Rates Finally Spark Refinancings
Mortgage lenders have seen refinancing demand rise as the 30-year fixed rate tumbled to 4.4 percent — the lowest level in the nearly 40 years that Freddie Mac has tracked the statistic.
However, experts say borrowers who would benefit most from a refi likely will not qualify for new loans due to income cuts, unemployment, low credit scores, or insufficient equity. Borrowers who already refinanced in the last 18 months, along with borrowers whose adjustable-rate loans are ready to reset, will account for most of the refi activity; and many will move into shorter-term mortgages to more quickly repay their debt.
Source: Wall Street Journal, Nick Timiraos (08/13/10)
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Vacant-Home Owners Should Assess Insurance
Clients whose homes sit vacant and on the market for many months should contact their insurance agents and arrange for a policy that will protect an unoccupied property.
Sticking with a standard home owners policy could leave them vulnerable to liability lawsuits. Some policies also exclude coverage for fire damage if the property has been unoccupied for a specified number of days.
The home owner can expect to pay a higher premium.
Source: USA Today (08/10/2010)
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Banks Keep an Eye Out for Short-Sales Fraud
Short-sale fraud totals $310 million annually and the average amount of fraud is $41,000 per transaction, according to real estate research firm CoreLogic’s 2010 short-sale research study.
“The best way to mitigate fraud risk and unnecessary loss is through a collaborative effort where lenders collectively share pre-closing and post-closing information,” says Craig Forcardi, senior research director, consumer lending at The Tower Group.
CoreLogic concluded:
* The number of short sales in the market has more than tripled since 2008, with the estimated annual volume at 400,000.
* Over half (55.8 percent) of all short sales occur in just four states (California, Florida, Texas, and Arizona).
* Approximately 4 percent of short sales have a subsequent resale within 18 months.
* Investor-driven short sales are not inherently bad. Investors provide the industry with necessary liquidity.
* Short sale transactions may be deemed risky to the lender when either the second sale amount is vastly higher than the short sale amount, and/or the two sale transactions are executed within a very short window of time.
* Approximately one in every 53 (1.9 percent) short-sale transactions was part of an egregious flip and therefore deemed risky.
Source: CoreLogic (08/10/10)
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Mortgage Volume Is Nearly Flat
Mortgage applications to purchase homes rose 0.3 percent on an adjusted basis last week, virtually unchanged from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association weekly survey.
On an unadjusted basis, purchases decreased 0.3 percent compared with the previous week and were 34.1 percent lower than they were the same week a year ago.
This trough in purchases comes despite the fact that 30-year fixed rate mortgages are at the lowest level they’ve been since the MBA began keeping track:
* 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.57 percent from 4.60 percent.
* 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 3.95 percent from 4.03 percent.
* 1-year ARMs decreased to 7 percent from 7.10 percent.
Source: Mortgage Bankers Association (08/11/2010)
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The Worst Is Over, Some Experts Conclude
With housing recovering slowly, most economists predicted in a recent survey that it will take at least five years for average home prices to climb back to the levels they commanded in 2006.
This year, some hard-hit areas may see another dip, but properties values will most likely rise.
“Softness in the summer months will be followed by firming conditions and momentum as the year unfolds and the economy strengthens,” says Robert Denk, an economist for the National Association of Home Builders.
Source: Reuters News (08/12/2010)
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Decision on Fannie and Freddie May Come Soon
Government and banking experts meet next week to decide the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The likeliest solution is a complex one. The Mortgage Bankers Association is proposing a system where risk-based fees on a class of mortgage-backed securities would be charged in exchange for a government guarantee against losses.
Whatever the outcome, it is unlikely that Fannie and Freddie will be able to pay back the nearly $150 billion in taxpayer bailout money that they have received since 2007.
Source: Reuters News (08/12/2010)
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Home Builder Confidence Slips
Home builder confidence fell to 13 in August, the third straight month that builders have felt that conditions were declining — and the worst measurement since March 2009.
“Buyers just aren’t stepping up to the plate,” writes Mike Larson, real estate analyst with Weiss Research. “Unless and until the job market improves, we are simply not going to get any traction in the housing market.”
Sentiments lower than 50 indicate negativity. The last time the index climbed above 50 was in April 2006.
Source: Associated Press, Alan Zibel (08/16/2010)
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Second-Quarter Mortgage Delinquencies Slide
Credit reporting agency TransUnion reports that the rate of home mortgage delinquencies – payments 60 days or more late – during the second-quarter was 6.67 percent, up from 5.81 percent in the second quarter of 2009, but down from 6.89 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009. It was also marginally better than the 6.77 percent first-quarter 2010 rate.
“We’re seeing signs of recovering in terms of delinquency,” says FJ Guarrera, vice president in TransUnion’s financial services unit.
TransUnion expects the delinquency rate to fall further for the next two quarters, reaching 6.4 percent by the end of 2010.
Source: Associated Press, Eileen AJ Connelly (08/17/2010)
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Housing Starts Rise in July
U.S. housing starts in July rose 1.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 546,000 units, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
This is lower than analysts had predicted and down 7 percent compared to July of last year. Starts of new single-family homes declined by 4.2 percent to 432,000, while starts of large apartment units rose 32.6 percent to 114,000.
New building permits fell 3.1 percent to an annual rate of 565,000 units, the lowest level since May 2009.
Source: Reuters News, Lucia Mutikani (08/17/2010)
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How to Price a Rental Right
How much to charge for a rental property?
The Wall Street Journal’s real estate columnist June Fletcher suggests 1.1 percent of the home’s value up to about $100,000 or about $1,100 a month. After that demand and what the market will bear will affect values.
She points to rental sites as a good clue for someone setting prices, particularly VRBO.com, Flipkey.com and Craigslist. She also recommends Rentometer.com, which compares proposed rent with comparable rentals nearby.
For help calculating return on investment, try Rentalsonline.com.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, June Fletcher (07/29/2010)
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Fed Considers Ways to Perk Up Slow Economy
Following a disappointing July jobs report, the Federal Reserve is under pressure to stimulate economic growth. At their Aug. 10 meeting, officials likely will debate whether to hold down short-term interest rates for the long term or use proceeds from mortgage-backed securities investments to buy a small amount of government debt to lower long-term interest rates; but analysts say the impact of such moves would be minimal.
While the Fed could restart programs to purchase MBS and government debt on a large scale to boost growth, there is concern that a Wall Street sell-off could occur if investors panic.
Source: Associated Press, Jeannine Aversa (08/10/10)
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Mortgage Rate Falls Under 4.5 %
Freddie Mac reports that long-term mortgage rates moved south again this week.
Interest on 30-year fixed loans hit a new low of 4.49 percent, compared to 4.54 percent last week and 5.22 percent a year ago; and the 15-year mortgage landed at 3.95 percent, down from 4 percent last week and 4.63 percent a year ago.
Five-year adjustable-rate mortgages reached a new low of 3.63 percent, down from 3.76 percent last week and 4.73 percent a year ago; while one-year ARMs fell to 3.55 percent from 3.64 percent last week and 4.78 percent a year ago.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Amy Hoak and Nick Timiraos (08/06/10)
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Four Proposals for Reforming Fannie and Freddie
The government is wrestling with what to do about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which have needed a combined $148 billion since the government bailed them out two years ago.
There are many ways to restructure the system. Here are four that have the most support:
1. Fully private system. Eliminate Fannie and Freddie and let private lenders take over. The problem is that the market for mortgage securities issued without government backing is small – perhaps, nonexistent.
2. Semi-private system. Dissolve Fannie and Freddie and turn their function over to private companies that would pay for the right to issue government-backed mortgage securities. Small banks don’t like this plan because it would inevitably increase the role of the largest banks.
3. Hybrid system. Fannie and Freddie would compete against other companies that would also issue government-backed mortgage securities.
4. Government-run system. Fannie and Freddie would become part of the government. This is unpopular because it would expand the ballooning federal debt.
Source: Associated Press, Alan Zibel (08/09/2010)
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Fannie, Freddie Will Not Forgive Underwater Debt
Despite rumors to the contrary sweeping Wall Street and Washington, D.C., the White House says it is not planning to order Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to forgive a portion of the mortgage debt of millions of people who owe more than their homes are worth.
“The administration is not considering a change in policy in this area,” said Treasury spokesman Andrew Williams.
Mortgage bond prices stabilized after that rumor was quashed.
Source: Reuters News (08/05/2010)
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Home Builder’s Tactic: Hold the Line on Prices
Ian McCarthy, CEO of Beazer Homes, surprised analysts during his company’s quarterly call with his straightforward but counter-intuitive opinions about home sales and incentives.
When asked how hard his company is pushing for sales in this tough market, McCarthy said:
“Our view has been, hold back somewhat, preserve the margins within our communities. . .We don’t want to undercut our communities now and not take full advantage of what looks like an uptick as we go into 2011 and 2012.”
Source: The Associated Press (08/05/2010)
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Senate Approves Increase in FHA Fees
The Senate on Wednesday gave the Federal Housing Administration the go-ahead to raise monthly fees that borrowers pay the agency.
The annual fee is expected to raise from the current rate of 0.55 percent to 0.9 percent of the total loan. The bill gives the FHA the authority to raise the annual fee as high as 1.55 percent.
Simultaneously, the agency plans to lower the loan initiation fee that was raised from 1.75 percent to 2.25 percent earlier this year. Officials would like to drop the up-front fee down to 1 percent of the total mortgage amount.
The net effect of lowering the up-front fee and raising the monthly fee would mean that someone who borrowed $170,000 at 5 percent would pay an extra $38 per month. Current mortgage holders won’t be affected.
The fee changes are projected to bring in an extra $3.6 billion per year to help stabilize the agency’s finances.
Source: The Associated Press, Alan Zibel (08/05/2010)
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Mortgage Pros See ‘All Paperless’ System Coming
About 50 percent of mortgage professionals believe the industry will go paperless in the next three to four years, up from 28 percent in a similar 2008 survey by the National Mortgage News.
Xerox Mortgage Services Vice President Greg Smith said that the current high level of demand for compliance is slowing the transition. But as the market gains momentum, he believes, so will electronic processing.
About 69 percent of respondents said they were already seeing increasing use of electronic disclosures. Some 79 percent believe that pushing the envelop on this transition is important because it decreases turnaround and processing costs.
Source: National Mortgage News, Bonnie Sinnock (08/09/2010)
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Countrywide to Pay $600 Million in Settlements
Countrywide Financial has agreed to pay $600 million to settle shareholder lawsuits that claim it misled investors.
The U.S. District judge in Los Angeles has give preliminary approval. Countrywide’s accounting firm, KPMG also agreed to pay $24 million.
Neither defendant admitted any wrongdoing. “Countrywide denies all allegations of wrongdoing and any liability under the federal securities laws. We agreed to the settlement to avoid the additional expense and uncertainty associated with continued litigation,” Bank of America said in a statement.
Source: USA Today, Stephanie Armour (08/03/2010)
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10 Steps to Win Over Sellers
Helping eager buyers get the home of their dreams isn’t so easy in this unsettled market. Here are 10 tips for making sure sellers won’t turn up their nose at an offer:
1. Make sure the buyers are pre-approved for a mortgage (not to be confused with being pre-qualified) so they can close in about 10 days.
2. Study the buyer. Have they made an offer on another home or are they working against any other kind of deadline?
3. Make a clean offer – no requests for help with closing costs or other contingencies.
4. Include an automatic escalation clause – say $500 over the highest competing bid. (Insist that seller show the offers in writing.)
5. Sweeten the offer with a bonus if the deal gets done quickly.
6. Offer 10 percent of the purchase price in earnest money.
7. Waive the appraisal. The buyer will have to be willing to pay any difference between the selling price and what the bank is willing to lend.
8. Consider waiving the inspection.
9. Offer the full list price, preferably in cash.
10. Write a love letter to sellers, telling them all the things your client loves about their home.
Source: MSN Real Estate, Marilyn Lewis (08/03/2010)
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NAR: Home Prices Are Firming
The trend in firming home prices solidified in the second quarter with more metropolitan areas showing increases from a year ago, aided by a surge in home sales driven by the home buyer tax credit, according to the latest survey by the National Association of REALTORS®.
In the second quarter, 100 out of 155 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) had higher median existing single-family home prices in comparison with the second quarter of 2009, including 14 with double-digit increases; two were unchanged and 53 metros showed price declines. In the first quarter of this year 91 areas had higher prices, while only 26 MSAs experienced annual price gains in second quarter of 2009.
The national median existing single-family price was $176,900 in the second quarter, up 1.5 percent from $174,200 in the same period of 2009. The median is where half sold for more and half sold for less. Distressed homes accounted for 32 percent of second quarter sales, down from 36 percent a year ago.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, says the correction in home prices appears to have ended in 2009. “All year we’ve been seeing relatively flat national home prices, which appear to be supported by market fundamentals,” he said. “Prices in some areas remain below replacement construction costs, so even with an elevated supply of existing homes on the market we don’t expect any consequential movement in home prices for the foreseeable future. Very low inventory of newly built homes also will help to support home values.”
Yun urged caution on interpreting price data. “The median price is influenced by the mix of homes that were sold and do not reflect pure appreciation or depreciation,” he says. “The recorded home prices in many markets were significantly depressed last year because of a large percentage of distressed homes sold at discount. Now as more normal, non-distressed home sales are occurring, the median price in many areas is showing higher values.”
Total state existing-home sales, including single-family and condo, rose 9.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.61 million in the second quarter from 5.14 million in the first quarter, and were 17.3 percent above the 4.78 million-unit pace in the second quarter of 2009.
Sales increased from the first quarter in 44 states and the District of Columbia; 47 states and D.C. had increases over year-ago sales levels.
NAR President Vicki Cox Golder says record low mortgage interest rates will help cushion a summer slowdown. “As expected, sales are slowing down now that the home buyer tax credit has expired, but record-low mortgage interest rates, along with stable and affordable home prices in most areas, provide opportunities for buyers who weren’t able to take advantage of the credit,” she said.
According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate on a 30-year conventional fixed-rate mortgage was a record low 4.91 percent in the second quarter, down from 5.00 percent in the first quarter; it was 5.03 percent in the second quarter of 2009.
“Job creation will give home buyers more confidence, but the market over the next few months is likely to be below what we would expect for the size of our growing population,” Golder says. “With improving bank balance sheets, credit restrictions should gradually improve .”
In the condo sector, metro area condominium and cooperative prices – covering changes in 55 metro areas – showed the national median existing-condo price was relatively flat at $175,700 in the second quarter, down 0.5 percent from the second quarter of 2009. Twenty-six metros showed increases in the median condo price from a year ago and 29 areas had declines; the first quarter of 2010 showed 24 metros up, while only four metros saw annual price gains in second quarter of 2009.
* Northeast: Regionally, the median existing single-family home price in the Northeast declined 3.2 percent to $238,000 in the second quarter from a year earlier. Existing-home sales in the Northeast jumped 14.9 percent in the second quarter to a level of 980,000 and are 23.6 percent above the second quarter of 2009.
* Midwest: In the Midwest, the median existing single-family home price increased 1.4 percent to $148,500 in the second quarter from the second quarter of last year. Existing-home sales in the Midwest rose 14.5 percent in the second quarter to a pace of 1.30 million and are 20.9 percent above the same period in 2009.
* South: In the South, the median existing single-family home price slipped 2.0 percent to $155,500 in the second quarter from the second quarter of 2009. Existing-home sales in the South increased 10.9 percent in the second quarter to an annual rate of 2.10 million and are 18.8 percent above a year ago.
* West: The median existing single-family home price in the West rose 2.6 percent to $219,700 in the second quarter from a year ago. Existing-home sales in the West fell 2.6 percent in the second quarter to an annual rate of 1.23 million but are 7.6 percent higher than the second quarter of 2009.
— NAR
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Home Purchase Applications Rise
Applications to purchase homes rose 1.5 percent last week compared to the previous week on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The unadjusted purchase index also rose 1.5 percent, and it was up 7.1 percent compared to four weeks ago. Compared to the same week a year ago, it was down 33.7 percent. For the third straight week, government-backed loans, especially Federal Housing Administration loans, drove the increase, with government loan volume rising 3.4 percent compared to last week.
Mortgage rates were remarkably low:
* 30-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.60 percent from 4.69 percent.
* 15-year fixed-rate mortgages decreased to 4.03 percent from 4.12 percent.
* 1-year ARMs decreased to 7.10 percent from 7.15 percent.
Source: Mortgage Bankers Association (08/04/2010)
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REIT Funds Are Flying High
Analysts report that the surprising outperformance of exchange-traded funds that track real estate stocks since the first of the year suggests improvement in the economy and the battered commercial-property sector.
In their second-quarter earnings outlook, analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods write that REITs have outperformed the broader market “in anticipation of upcoming growth opportunities, internally, through improving fundamentals, and externally via acquisitions.” The hottest REIT stocks so far in 2010 have been apartment sector ones, specifically Apartment Investment and Management Co. and Equity Residential Properties Trust.
Both companies posted quarterly earnings a week ago and the stocks have gained more than 30 percent since Jan. 1. A solid quarterly report from Equity Residential coupled with improving market conditions “should have a positive impact on the overall apartment sector,” reports Stifel Nicolaus analyst Rod Petrik. “The company appears well positioned to take advantage of positive market trends in the apartment industry.”
Source: MarketWatch, John Spence (08/01/10)
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Home Builders Yearn for Normalcy
Some home builders are reporting a second quarter surge in income, but business has slowed since buyers rushed to meet the April 30 tax credit deadline.
With unemployment high and foreclosures flooding the market, Ken Campbell, CEO of Standard Pacific Corp., said during an earnings call last week. “I think it will recover, but it sure as heck is not clear when it’s going to recover at this point.”
Reaching a point where the industry can make a profit selling a predictable number of homes is the goal for some builders.
DR Horton CEO Donald Tomnitz said no more tax credits, please. “We want to get back to a normalized market. It is a lot easier to run a business based upon designing your business with the current demand as opposed to having any kind of stimulus or incentives to create abnormal demand.”
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Dawn Wotapka (08/04/2010)
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Demand Strong for Well-Prices Homes
Yes, houses will sell as long as they are priced right. In many — but not all places — that means they’re priced low.
“People who price their homes to the market are selling them in a reasonable amount of time, but people who cling to 2004 or 2005 prices aren’t,” says Richard Smith, president and CEO of Realogy, the parent company of Century 21, ERA, Coldwell Banker and Sotheby’s International Realty.
In some areas, pent-up demand has exploded. “It’s crazy,” says Brendon DeSimone, an associate with Paragon Real Estate in the Noe Valley near San Francisco. “I had one house with five offers, and it went from $1.4 million to $1.7 million. The valley has just popped. It’s not uncommon for one open house to have 200 people come through.”
Source: USA Today, Stephanie Armour (07/28/2010)
Record Lows Continue for Mortgage Rates
The 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to a new low of 4.54 percent this week from 4.56 percent last week and an average of 5.25 percent a year ago.
The 15-year fixed loan rate also hit a record low of 4 percent, down from 4.03 percent a week ago and 4.69 percent last year. The five-year adjustable-rate mortgage averaged 3.76 percent, compared to 3.79 percent last week and 4.75 percent a year earlier; and one-year ARMs averaged 3.64 percent, down from 3.7 percent and 4.80 percent, respectively.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Nathan Becker (07/30/10)
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Homeownership Falls to Lowest Level Since 1999
The homeownership rate fell to 66.9 percent in the second quarter, down from 67.1 percent in the first quarter, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This was the lowest level since 1999.
The homeownership rate reached a record high of 69.2 percent in the second and fourth quarters of 2004.
Rising foreclosures are driving the decline. A record 4.6 percent of U.S. mortgages were in foreclosure in the first three months of 2010, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported in May.
Source: Bloomberg, Kathleen M. Howley (07/27/2010)
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NAR: More Credit Needed for Commercial Market
Testifying before a House panel yesterday, Jim Helsel, treasurer of the National Association of REALTORS® and commercial real estate specialist, told members that a strong commercial real estate sector is vital to millions of U.S. jobs and helps keep the national economy afloat.
“As the leading advocate for private property rights, NAR believes it is critical for Congress to act soon and to get capital flowing to small businesses and to the commercial real estate market,” Helsel told the House Committee on Financial Services.
“Lack of available credit remains a significant challenge for our industry right now,” he said. Helsel commended the panel for passage in June of H.R. 5297, “The Small Business Lending Fund Act of 2010,” which ensures community banks have both the incentive and capacity to increase total loans to small businesses. Raising the SBA loan limits and allowing SBA 504 loans to be used to refinance performing property can help ease the liquidity crisis in the commercial sector, he said.
Another avenue, credit unions, could increase available credit to small businesses, Helsel said. NAR strongly supports legislation, H.R. 3380 introduced by Reps. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) and Ed Royce (R-Calif.), which would raise the credit union member business lending cap from 12.25 percent to 25 percent of total assets. Currently, small regional and community banks account for almost half of the small business loans issued in the U.S.
“That has put a significant dent in the credit available to the small business community and has reduced cash flow and elevated vacancies in commercial real estate,” he said. The Credit Union National Association estimates that if H.R. 3380 becomes law, credit unions could extend up to $10 billion in additional business loans and help create 108,000 jobs. Helsel said NAR is strongly urging the Senate to include such provisions when it considers H.R. 5297.
Helsel also said that NAR supports the Senate’s efforts to include more generous depreciation allowances for commercial properties in the Senate bill. “Accelerated depreciation would incentivize new equity investment to commercial real estate, reducing debt-to-income ratios and strengthening income-producing properties,” he said.
NAR also applauds the goals of H.R. 5816, the “Commercial Real Estate Stabilization Act,” to clear troubled properties off the market, and is ready to work with the committee when it begins to review the proposal, Helsel said.
Source: NAR
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Recalculation Discovers Deeper Recession
The Great Recession that started in late 2007 was even deeper than government economists said it was in early estimations.
The Commerce Department released a revised report today that said the U.S. economy shrank 4.1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the second quarter of 2009. Previously, the government had said the drop was 3.7 percent.
Household spending fell 1.2 percent in 2009, twice as much as the government estimated. This was the biggest decline since 1942.
The recovery has been slower as well with the economy growing at an average 3.3 percent annually from July 2009 through December 2009. Previously, the government projected a 3.9 percent growth rate.
Residential construction fell at a 22 percent annual pace from 2007 to 2009, one percentage point more than previously reported.
Source: Bloomberg, Shobhana Chandra (07/30/2010)
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Congress Restores Rural Mortgage Help
The restoration of the single-family rural housing program that would guarantee home loans for rural buyers was passed by the Senate today and is on its way to President Obama.
The National Association of REALTORS® has vigorously lobbied to restore funding for the rural program since last March, and hailed this development as a great victory for rural home buyers.
“This is going to be a great lift for thousands of rural home buyers who need to close on their home purchases before Sept. 30 to take advantage of the home buyer tax credit,” said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder. “Many rural families would have been left out in the cold without these guaranteed loans. Increasing the commitment authority will help rural families, support local housing markets, create jobs and generate new tax revenues.”
“The rural housing program is a good example of the kind of program needed for responsible and qualified home buyers who bring common sense to the housing market,” said Golder. The legislation increases the guarantee fee for borrowers, but allows the fee to be financed. “This change will make the program completely self-sufficient,” she said.
Golder thanked Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), and Reps. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) for moving the bill to passage in both houses.
The legislation was part of H.R. 4899, “The Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act” that the Senate passed today. The measure increases the Rural Housing Service commitment authority allowing guaranteed loans; previously, RHS has been providing conditional commitments. The RHS is expected to announce new guidelines shortly after the president signs the bill.
Source: NAR
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Fannie Mae: No More Overly Easy Loans
Fannie Mae CEO Michael Williams said Wednesday that Fannie’s current book of business is its strongest in 10 years.
In a speech to the group Women in Housing and Finance, Williams said Fannie is emphasizing long-term, fixed-rate loans based on more accurate appraisals to borrowers with higher credit ratings who can thoroughly document their income.
Williams called the tougher standards “the new realism” in the housing market that will make owning a home more challenging.
“Step-by-step, we are putting in place a new foundation for our industry,” he said. “It’s a foundation based on the right lending standards and on a broad re-examination of what constitutes sensible risk.”
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Jessica Holzer (07/28/2010)
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Loan Officer Registry Coming in January
Bank loan officers are now required to add their names and fingerprints to a national database so it will be easier to identify unethical lenders.
Federal regulators approved these requirements Wednesday and the registry is expected to begin operating next January. Banks will have 180 days to comply.
A similar registry already exists for mortgage brokers.
Source: Associated Press, Alan Zibel (07/28/2010)
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Renting Unsold Property May Be a Good Move
Home owners who can’t or don’t want to sell their homes in today’s market but must move should consider renting out the property.
Obtaining a professional property manager is a good first step. Professional property managers charge 7 percent to 10 percent of the monthly rent in many areas. Two associations whose members manage small residential properties are National Association of Residential Property Managers and Institute of Real Estate Management.
Current rents may not be high enough to cover carrying charges, including mortgage, taxes, and insurance. Nevertheless, renting out the property may still make sense if property values rise in the next few years.
Offering a 12-month lease that converts to month-to-month is a good idea, if the owners are considering selling eventually. Include language in the lease that allows a real estate professional to show the home to potential buyers with 24 hours’ notice to tenants.
Source: Money Magazine, Amanda Gengler (07/28/2010)
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Celebrate National Farmers Market Week and local market’s anniversary Saturday
The Aiken Farmers Market will celebrate two events in one this Saturday – National Farmers Market Week, and its own anniversary.
National Farmers Market Week runs from Aug. 1-7, and Aiken Mayor Fred Cavanaugh has issued a proclamation in observance of the week which will be presented and posted Saturday.
The Aiken Farmers Market’s anniversary is a little harder to pin down, according to committee member Coleen Reed, but it’s definitely this week.
“The Edisto Grange founded the Aiken Farmers Market in 1951, its first day open for business was in 1952, and the official grand opening for the building was in 1954,” Reed said. “So depending on how you look at it, we’re either 59, 58, or 56 years old.”
Cake and soft drinks will be served and the proclamation presented at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, according to Reed, and there will be balloons for children all day.
The Aiken Farmers Market is open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday or until the produce is gone, whichever comes first.
Crops in season include blueberries, peppers, cantaloupe, okra, onions, plums, cucumbers and zucchini, several varieties of peas, squash, tomatoes, pears and eggplant. Farmers also bring dairy products, herbs and plants, beef, pork and chicken to market.
“The federal government recognizes the importance of locally grown produce to residents,” said Reed. “Our farmers market offers Certified South Carolina Grown products. I believe this is the last week locally grown blueberries will be in season; I know the season is winding down fast because of the excessive heat. The market has such a rich history, and we love having any opportunity to share it with the public.”
The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 642-7761.
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Mortgages for Home Purchases Rise 2%
The number of mortgage applications to purchase homes rose 2 percent last week compared to the previous week on an adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association weekly survey.
On an unadjusted basis, the index rose 2.4 percent, but remained 34.3 percent lower than it was a year ago. The overall mortgage volume, including refinancings, declined 4.4 percent from the prior week.
This was the highest weekly number of purchase applications since the end of June, and the second week the number of applications has risen, even though mortgage rates increased slightly:
* 30-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.69 percent from 4.59 percent.
* 15-year fixed-rate mortgages increased to 4.12 percent 4.05 percent.
* 1-year ARMs decreased to 7.15 percent from 7.17 percent.
Source: Mortgage Bankers Association (07/28/2010)
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HUD to Investigate Discrimination Reports
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has said it will follow up on a report in the media that mortgage lenders are denying credit to borrowers because of pregnancy or maternity leave.
The widely reported story said that some lenders won’t count disability payments received during leaves as income.
“Lenders have every right to ascertain the incomes of families to determine whether they are eligible for a mortgage loan, but they have no right to use a pregnancy or a short-term disability as a cause to deny that family a mortgage they would otherwise qualify for,” HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan said in a statement.
The Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in lending based on race, sex, disability, and familial status including pregnancy or children in the family.
Source: Inman News (07/27/2010)
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New Home Sales Climb in June
The housing slump caused by the end of the tax credits may be over, with sales of new homes rising 24 percent in June compared to May to an annual rate of 330,000, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
Nevertheless, sales were at their second-lowest rate since 1963 – May’s were the lowest.
“The future is going to be dependent on job growth. There’s no demand because confidence is weak and employment is weak,” says Eric Green, chief market economist at TD Securities Inc. in New York.
Source: Bloomberg, Courtney Schlisserman (07/26/2010)
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Recession Erodes Housing Conditions
A newly released Census survey indicates that the recession has eroded housing conditions significantly in just two years.
The Census survey of 60,000 units, 45,000 of them occupied, shows:
• 3.1 million households, or 18 percent, of those who moved in the last year say their new home is in worse condition and/or in a worse neighborhood.
• Households that moved in the past year because they were evicted rose 127 percent to 191,000.
• The number of households that had additional people move in rose 10 percent to 6 million.
Source: USA Today, Haya El Nasser (07/26/2010)
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Foreclosure Hurts Values More Than Bankruptcy
Foreclosure reduces the value of a home by 27 percent on average, according to a new study from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Other kinds of forced sales have less dramatic impacts, the study found.
An estate sale after an owner’s death reduces the price of the home by only 5 percent to 7 percent. A bankruptcy filing cuts the value by an average 3 percent.
Foreclosure discounts are especially large in neighborhoods that are low-priced already, researchers point out, apparently because of concerns over vandalism.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Nick Timiraos (07/26/2010)
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Green Building to Balloon to $173.5 Billion
The most recent issue of EL Insights reports that the U.S. green building market value will jump from $71.1 billion now to $173 billion by 2015.
Commercial green building is expected to grow by 18.1 percent annually during the same time period, from $35.6 billion to $81.8 billion.
In the report, green building is defined as development with resource use and employee productivity in mind. The high project growth is attributed to a growing recognition of green building’s potential cost savings and incentives from the government, like the multi-million dollar Sustainable Communities Challenge Planning Grant program and the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant program.
Green renovation is also expected to be a major part of future green building, largely due to government projects like the Recovery through Retrofit initiative, which offers $80 billion in energy and environmental retrofits for federal buildings.
Green building growth will create many changes in the greater building market, according to EL Insights. For example, construction workers will increasingly pursue green training programs, companies will spend more money on green building technology, and homes with green features will do better on the real estate market. These changes will lead to cost savings for building and home owners, who will benefit from lower energy and heating bills.
Source: Fast Company, Ariel Schwartz (07/10)
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Single-Family Home Starts Edge Down
Tuesday, the Commerce Department reported that single-family home starts fell 0.7 percent in June, following still larger declines in both May and April, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 454,000.
Including multi-family housing, the government projects there will be 549,000 new units built in 2010, a 5 percent decline from last year.
At the height of the boom in 2006, builders started 1.47 million single-family homes. “We’re hovering at post-World War II lows,” says Ivy Zelman, president of Zelman & Associates, a research firm.
Joblessness is dragging down housing, says Patrick Newport, an economist with HIS Global Insight. Without job growth, the housing market won’t improve, he says.
The slowdown is pushing up inventories, with California leading the way. For instance, inventories were up 33 percent in San Diego, according to data compiled by John Burns Real Estate Consulting.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, Nick Timiraos and Robbie Whelan (07/20/2010)
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