Category: California

California housing market

Homeowner Associations May Hit Record Lawsuit Volume

By Mike Colpitts Homeowner and condominium associations straddled with high debt in the real estate crash are resulting in at least thousands of member-owners refusing to pay monthly fees, and may reach record lawsuit volume in U.S. courtrooms. The development was determined during a routine Housing Predictor survey of markets monitored across the nation. The… Continue reading Homeowner Associations May Hit Record Lawsuit Volume

Homeowners Move to Fixed Rate Mortgages

By Kevin Chiu Nervous about their financial futures and holding on to their homes, consumers are shedding debt and transitioning to fixed rate mortgages in unprecedented numbers. An over-whelming 95% of refinances were fixed rate mortgages during the first quarter of the year, according to Freddie Mac. Millions of homeowners have been unable to refinance… Continue reading Homeowners Move to Fixed Rate Mortgages

Hawaii Passes U.S. Toughest Foreclosure Law

By Kevin Chiu Hawaii lawmakers followed hard hit Nevada to become only the second state in the nation to approve one of the toughest foreclosure consumer aid laws in the U.S., passing the bill as the legislature closed its latest session. Senate Bill 651 is touted as a windfall for consumers, requiring mortgage lenders to… Continue reading Hawaii Passes U.S. Toughest Foreclosure Law

U.S. May Dump Homeowner Aid

By Mike Colpitts Little government aid is available to homeowners struggling to hold on to their homes caught in the grip of economic hardship, according to a leading attorney who is spearheading legal action against seven of the nation’s largest banks in the foreclosure crisis. Attorney Philip Kramer, whose firm Kramer-Kaslow of Calabasas, California has… Continue reading U.S. May Dump Homeowner Aid

Home Sales Rise as Housing Recovery Gains Momentum

By Mike Colpitts Driven by declining home prices and low mortgage rates, home sales rose for the sixth time in the past eight months in March as the housing market makes inroads toward gaining momentum in its recovery. Sales of existing homes increased 3.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.1-million in March, but… Continue reading Home Sales Rise as Housing Recovery Gains Momentum

Hardest Hit Housing Cities Pain Grows

By Mike Colpitts The gambling capital of the U.S., Las Vegas posted the nation’s highest foreclosure rate among metropolitan areas with populations of more than 200,000 in July, but housing foreclosures are spiking in the majority of other top 20 hardest hit housing cities. The gap is shrinking between the gambling mecca and major cities… Continue reading Hardest Hit Housing Cities Pain Grows

Seven Major U.S. Banks Sued in Homeowners Fraud

By Mike Colpitts A veteran real estate attorney is suing seven major U.S. banks in what may be a precedent setting case for allegedly defrauding hundreds of thousands of homeowners. Calabasas, California attorney Philip Kramer, who has been practicing real estate law more than 25 years, is citing laws and procedures that banks were previously… Continue reading Seven Major U.S. Banks Sued in Homeowners Fraud

Foreclosure Backlog Rises as Federal Aid Fails

By Mike Colpitts The foreclosure inventory of homes has grown to more than 30 times the volume of foreclosed homes that sell each month in the U.S. as federal efforts to stem the crisis fails, indicating that the flood of foreclosures will trouble the housing market for years to come, according to Lender Processing Services,… Continue reading Foreclosure Backlog Rises as Federal Aid Fails

Housing Watch Index Shows Improving Trends

By Kevin Chiu Starting today Housing Predictor debuts a new real estate index. Housing markets that make the new “Watch List” are being monitored closely for changing economic conditions in the near future as a result of at least two improving economic trends. Some of the markets on the list have already been forecast to… Continue reading Housing Watch Index Shows Improving Trends