By Kevin Chiu Driven by lobbyists, the U.S. government spent more on housing related grants and tax expenditures than energy, transportation and non-profit organizations combined in 2009 despite the collapse of the real estate market, according to a study conducted by the Pew charitable trust research project. The federal government spent about $244 billion on… Continue reading Feds Spend More on Housing
Category: Economic Crisis
Chinese Drywall Second Housing Crisis
By Kevin Chiu A second housing crisis is slowly working its way through 20 states as more victims fall ill from poisonous fumes emitting from their very residences. From the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, where workers are replacing toxic Chinese drywall in new homes built for victims of Hurricane Katrina across the country it’s being… Continue reading Chinese Drywall Second Housing Crisis
Foreclosure Crisis Triggers S&P Credit Downgrade
By Kevin Chiu Standard and Poor’s long term credit downgrade of the U.S. economy is directly impacted by the foreclosure crisis, which has cost tax payers $148-billion to bail-out Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae so far. But S&P analysts expect “extraordinary official assistance to large players in the U.S. financial sector” to be made to… Continue reading Foreclosure Crisis Triggers S&P Credit Downgrade
Federal Investigation Sought Over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae
By Mike Colpitts Life long consumer crusader Ralph Nader is requesting a federal investigation to determine whether U.S. officials made misleading statements related to the financial health of failed Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, the governments two mortgage giants, which have been bailed-out by tax payers at a cost topping $150-billion so far. The political… Continue reading Federal Investigation Sought Over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae
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
Fannie Mae Pays Closing Costs
By Mike Colpitts Hoping to slash the record volume of foreclosures in its inventory, Fannie Mae, one of the nation’s two mortgage giants is offering to pay buyers’ closing costs on foreclosed homes and accepting down payments of as little as 3%. Purchasers will receive up to 3.5% in closing costs assistance. The inventive was… Continue reading Fannie Mae Pays Closing Costs
Mortgage Bond Values Double
By Chris Choi The collapse of the housing market resulted in mass foreclosures, the bailout of banks, companies going bankrupt and the stock market hitting rock bottom. The financial crisis of 2008 was caused by a series of issues, but none more directly than the rise of mortgage bonds traded by investors, who relied on… Continue reading Mortgage Bond Values Double
Housing Recovery Clouded in Oil Prices
By Kevin Chiu The jump in oil prices and the likelihood for further financial belt-tightening suggest less economic momentum developing than previously believed in the U.S. in 2011 delaying a full-fledged housing recovery, according to an economic outlook released by Fannie Mae. Economic growth for the year was lowered to 3.5% — a down grade… Continue reading Housing Recovery Clouded in Oil Prices
California Realtor President Requests Aid in Short Sales
By Kevin Chiu Short sales were hardly ever heard of before the real estate collapse, but these days bank assisted short sales, in which lenders take less than what is owed on a mortgage are failing on at least 40% of those attempted, according to a Realtors organization. In a letter published in seven California… Continue reading California Realtor President Requests Aid in Short Sales