By Kevin Chiu A Twin-Cities man thinks he’s found a way to buck the tough real estate market and attract attention to sell his condominium, despite the sluggish marketplace, and William Panzarella is doing it all in the name of charity. The Minneapolis condo owner has teamed up with a real estate agent to raffle… Continue reading Win a Condo Raffle for Charity
Category: Foreclosure
Mortgage Qualifying Standards Tighten
By Kevin Chiu Qualifying for a conventional home mortgage has gotten tougher in the fallout of the financial crisis, but Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae requirements show that obtaining a conventional mortgage has gotten much tougher even before Congress implements changes as part of the Dodd-Frank Financial Reform Act. The average credit score approved for… Continue reading Mortgage Qualifying Standards Tighten
Interest Rates Fall Slightly
By Mike Colpitts Mortgage interest rates fell slightly on 30-year fixed rate loans to 4.78% from the previous week, according to Freddie Mac following bond yields as weak economic conditions and declining home prices drove rates lower. The fall in interest rates was only 0.02 from last week, but kept the bellwether rate well below… Continue reading Interest Rates Fall Slightly
Record $1 Billion Real Estate Auction
By Mike Colpitts A leading real estate auction company will put $1-billion in commercial property and notes up for auction, marking a new record for the largest real estate auction in U.S. history. The Las Vegas event illustrates the enormity of the real estate auction business selling-off assets for banks and mortgage service companies handling… Continue reading Record $1 Billion Real Estate Auction
Feds Spend More on Housing
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
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
Hard Money Lending at Record Clip
By Mike Colpitts Despite home prices continuing to decline in much of the U.S., hard money lenders are funding home mortgages at the highest rate on record as nervous homeowners attempt to hold on to their homes. Banks and conventional mortgage lenders are rejecting refinances and new home purchases at alarming rates. Source Capital Funding,… Continue reading Hard Money Lending at Record Clip
Feds Slam 14 Banks in Robo Signing
By Kevin Chiu The federal government has announced formal enforcement sanctions against 14 banking organizations addressing a serious “pattern of misconduct and negligence” in the robo signing scandal. The deficiencies, announced jointly by the Federal Reserve, Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift Supervision requires banks and mortgage servicing companies to make corrections… Continue reading Feds Slam 14 Banks in Robo Signing
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
State Foreclosure Settlements Seem Doubtful
By Mike Colpitts A settlement between bankers, mortgage servicing companies and the 50 state Attorney Generals investigating robo signing foreclosures seems more doubtful of achieving by the day as bankers delay talks to stem off billions of dollars in settlements they would have to pay to reach such an agreement, estimated as high as $25-billion.… Continue reading State Foreclosure Settlements Seem Doubtful