By Mike Colpitts Condominium and single family home sales are surging in Miami, once the nation’s epicenter of the real estate crash. Condo sales jumped 46% in May and single family home sales rose 20% over a year ago. The surge in sales was led by 1,420 condominiums that changed hands during the month, which… Continue reading Miami Home Sales Go Nuts
Category: 2011 Housing Market
Jumbo Mortgages to Get More Expensive
By Mike Colpitts Mortgages on the nation’s most expensive homes are about to get more costly. In October the government is expected to halt backing jumbo mortgages of more than $625,500 through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, triggering higher interest rates and down payments. The change could also send home values lower in some high-end… Continue reading Jumbo Mortgages to Get More Expensive
Mortgage Company Executives Sentenced to Prison
By Kevin Chiu Two former mortgage company executives have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a fraud scheme involving more than $2.9 billion that contributed to the failures of their company and Colonial Bank. Desiree Brown, the former treasurer of Taylor, Bean and Whitaker was sentenced to six years in prison for… Continue reading Mortgage Company Executives Sentenced to Prison
Black Hills, South Dakota All the Rage
By Mike Colpitts Nestled amid the meadows of open range land and surrounded by a national forest, Canyon Springs Preserve offers the quiet privacy that millions dream of in the back country. It’s a quiet oasis with more than 50% conservation land bordered by national forest in Black Hills, South Dakota. Long before the real… Continue reading Black Hills, South Dakota All the Rage
Foreclosures Drop, Despite Turmoil
By Mike Colpitts Foreclosure filings dropped 2% in May as banks and mortgage servicing companies experienced turmoil as a result of legal problems dealing with foreclosures. Filings fell a third from a year ago. Formal foreclosure auctions, the last step in the painful foreclosure process, however, were scheduled against 89,251 U.S. residential properties during the… Continue reading Foreclosures Drop, Despite Turmoil
Spring Home Sales Decline
By Mike Colpitts Hindered by financing problems and weak consumer confidence, existing home sales declined in May, falling 3.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81 million units, and are more than 15% behind last year’s pace, according to the National Association of Realtors. The slowdown in sales comes at a time when growing… Continue reading Spring Home Sales Decline
Mortgage Interest Rates Suddenly Jump
By Kevin Chiu Pushed by weakening economic data, mortgage interest rates, already near historic lows, jumped slightly for the week to 4.50% on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, according to Freddie Mac. The jump of only 0.01 came after rates dropped for eight straight weeks. But rates declined slightly on other loans for the week.… Continue reading Mortgage Interest Rates Suddenly Jump
Mortgage Rates Drop with Applications
By Ryan Rodriguez Mortgage applications dropped for the second week in a row even as interest rates fell, demonstrating economic turbulence persists in the housing market and the greater U.S. economy, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. However, the drop in application activity was by only a slim margin. The mortgage market composite index dropped 0.4%… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Drop with Applications
Glass-Steagall Should Be Re-Adopted, Survey Overwhelmingly Shows
The Glass-Steagall Act that was enacted at the height of the Great Depression to halt “improper banking activity” should be re-adopted to halt the possibility of another financial crisis, according to a new Housing Predictor survey. Respondents to the online opinion poll overwhelmingly support the act’s re-implementation. During the Great Depression when half of all… Continue reading Glass-Steagall Should Be Re-Adopted, Survey Overwhelmingly Shows
ACLU Says Foreclosure ‘Rocket Docket’ Unconstitutional
By Mike Colpitts The American Civil Liberties Union says that Florida’s ‘rocket docket’ designed to speed up the foreclosure process to benefit bankers’ is unconstitutional, and will challenge the system to the fullest extent of the law in court. The U.S. 20th Judicial Circuit operates the system, which covers foreclosures in five Southern Florida counties,… Continue reading ACLU Says Foreclosure ‘Rocket Docket’ Unconstitutional