RISMedia » Finance and Economy

List of Improving Housing Markets Expands to Nearly 100

susanne — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:19:22 +0000

The list of housing markets showing measurable improvement expanded by 29 metros in February to include a total of 98 entries on the National Association of Home Builders/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI), released recently. Thirty-six states are now represented …

CoreLogic® Reports 24 Percent Decrease in Foreclosures

susanne — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:16:08 +0000

CoreLogic® (NYSE: CLGX), a provider of information, analytics and business services, has released its first national Foreclosure Report, which provides monthly data on completed foreclosures, foreclosure inventory and 90+ delinquency rates. Completed foreclosures for all of 2011 totaled 830,000 compared …

Builder Confidence for the 55+ Housing Market Ends Fourth Quarter on an Upswing

susanne — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:01:32 +0000

Builder confidence in the 55+ housing market for single-family homes rose four points to 18 compared to the same period a year ago, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) 55+ Housing Market Index (HMI).

“We are …

Obama Moves Forward with Foreclosure Prevention

susanne — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 22:01:20 +0000

Last Wednesday, February 1, President Obama announced the details of a plan to help homeowners refinance their mortgages in hopes of bolstering the housing market.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, this proposal will allow buyers …

List of Improving Housing Markets Expands to Nearly 100

susanne — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:53:35 +0000

Bulk Sales of GSE Foreclosures Begin

susanne — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 05:02:54 +0000

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently invited investors interested in purchasing pools of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA foreclosures in the nation’s hardest-hit metropolitan areas with the requirement they rent them for a period of years to pre-qualify.…

Average Mortgage Rates Ease Setting New Record Lows

susanne — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 05:01:40 +0000

Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) recently released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average mortgage rates dropping to new all-time record lows as data on economic growth fell short of market projections. All products in the PMMS …

Facebook Files for Initial Public Stock Offering

susanne — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 21:51:53 +0000

(MCT)—Facebook has filed papers for what’s expected to be the largest initial public offering ever to come out of Silicon Valley and one of the largest in U.S. history.

Ending months of breathless speculation, the 8-year-old social networking company has …

Mortgage Applications Down Nearly 3 Percent Last Week

susanne — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 21:49:52 +0000

Mortgage applications decreased 2.9 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending January 27, 2012.

The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, …

FHFA Responds to NPR Freddie Mac Refinance Story

susanne — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:58:08 +0000

A ProPublica–NPR news story recently suggested that a mortgage financing vehicle utilized by Freddie Mac may be preventing homeowners from refinancing. While FHFA does not typically comment on its supervisory activities, the circumstances here require some clarification, according to the …

Consumer Sentiment Picks up in Fourth Quarter

susanne — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 21:52:41 +0000

(MCT)—The lower-than-expected annualized growth rate of 2.8 percent reported Friday for the final three months of 2011 raises doubts about the strength of the U.S. recovery, and concerns that 2012 may be another year of muddling along.

Most mainstream economists …

Mixed Mortgage Messages: Originations Decline but Quality Soars

susanne — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 21:45:36 +0000

Mortgage originations plunged 10.1 percent from November to December, continuing a decline from 2011’s September peak. At the same time, loans originated over the last two years have proved to be some of the best quality originations on record.

New …

Survey Reveals Nation’s Leading Real Estate Firms: RISMedia Annual Power Broker Survey Launches Today

susanne — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 22:04:33 +0000

Despite a challenging real estate market, the industry’s leading residential brokerage firms continue to demonstrate resiliency and growth, and will prove this by participating in RISMedia’s 24th Annual Power Broker Report & Survey. As the industry’s preeminent report ranking the …

Leading Brokerage Increases Sales 49 Percent in 2011: What’s Their Secret?

susanne — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 18:07:19 +0000

In a year when breaking even on year-over-year home sales might be considered a lofty goal for some real estate companies, Blue Ridge, Georgia’s Coldwell Banker High Country Realty, has reported a 49 percent increase in homes sold in 2011 …

New Initiative Will Coordinate Probes of Mortgage Meltdown

susanne — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 18:04:15 +0000

(MCT)—The Obama administration’s new effort to investigate the causes of the nation’s mortgage meltdown will focus on coordinating the often overlapping state and federal investigations and on holding accountable those whose misconduct led to the global financial crisis.

A team …

Remodeling Market Index Rises to Five-Year High

susanne — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 05:02:58 +0000

Remodeling sentiment rose to the highest level in five years, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI) for the fourth quarter of 2011. Released yesterday, the RMI increased to 46.6 in the fourth quarter …

Obama HARP Expansion Builds on New Refi Momentum

susanne — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 05:01:26 +0000

In his recent State of the Union speech, President Obama announced he will push for legislation that will significantly expand the newly revised HARP program that allows underwater homeowners to refinance at today’s historically low rates.

Obama’s expansion would allow …

Homeownership Matters to State of the Union

susanne — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:33:21 +0000

National Association of REALTORS® President Moe Veissi made the following statement, regarding President Obama’s State of the Union address this week.

“The National Association of REALTORS® commends President Obama for his remarks in support of homeowners and the struggling housing …

Foreclosures Account for 20 Percent of Residential Sales in Q3

susanne — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:02:18 +0000

RealtyTrac®, a leading online marketplace for foreclosures, recently released its Q3 2011 U.S. Foreclosure Sales Report™, which shows that sales of homes that were in some stage of foreclosure or bank owned accounted for 20 percent of all U.S. residential …

Look for Continued Housing Market Recovery in 2012

susanne — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:57:51 +0000

The end of 2011 brought good news on the nation’s economic front, with unemployment in December falling to its lowest level in three years and the economy adding 200,000 jobs during the same month.

Dave Liniger, chairman and co-founder of …