By Mike Colpitts As it roars toward the Gulf Coast to make landfall forecast to turn into a hurricane, tropical storm Isaac poses more than $36 billion in financial losses to the Gulf Coast, according to a real estate research firm. An estimated 269,081 homes and other residential properties in just seven major metropolitan areas… Continue reading Isaac Poses $36 Billion in Storm Damage
Category: News
Extra U.S. Tax on Homes Likely
By Mike Colpitts A U.S. tax on the sale of high end homes is likely to go into effect at the beginning of 2013 unless lawmakers do the unlikely and approve new federal tax guidelines. Bush era capital gains tax cuts expire in January, raising the long term rate on profits made from real estate… Continue reading Extra U.S. Tax on Homes Likely
Home Builder Confidence Jumps Four Months
By Ryan Jackson Home builder confidence jumped for the fourth straight month in August, according to the National Association of Home Builders. The two point gain builds on a six point jump in July to bring the index to the highest level since February 2007, close to the peak of the housing market collapse. “Current… Continue reading Home Builder Confidence Jumps Four Months
Mexican Drug Money Fuels Cash Purchases
By Mike Colpitts Mexican drug cartels have slowly moved money out of banks and other hiding places and into U.S. real estate investments. Federal investigators are hunting for people investing billions of dollars of drug money in the U.S. real estate market, including huge sums of cash in Florida, Texas and California. Cash purchases fuel… Continue reading Mexican Drug Money Fuels Cash Purchases
Olympics Trigger Huge Boom, But Little in Home Values
By Ryan Jackson Six cities that hosted the Olympics in the last quarter century have experienced huge construction booms with new projects needed to house the games, but the majority found little appreciation in home values or other property inflation following the games. In fact, three of six Olympic cities, including Los Angeles and Atlanta… Continue reading Olympics Trigger Huge Boom, But Little in Home Values
Household Energy Costs Jump 3% Yearly
By Mike Colpitts Household energy costs are jumping almost 3% a year in the U.S. to average $2,024 annually, according to the U.S. Energy Department. The amount it costs to heat and cool a home has been rising steadily since at least 2005, a new study by the department’s information administration shows. Energy expenses are… Continue reading Household Energy Costs Jump 3% Yearly
Mortgage Rates Hold Steady at Record Lows
By Mike Colpitts Mortgage rates held steady to maintain record low levels, with the 30-year fixed rate mortgage staying at an average of 3.66% for the second week in a row, according to Freddie Mac. The shorter term 15-year fixed loan slipped a single basis point to 2.94%. Many consumers refinancing homes are opting for… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Hold Steady at Record Lows
US Government Moves to Prevent Mortgage Fraud
By Mike Colpitts In an unprecedented move, the agency charged with overseeing the nation’s giant mortgage lenders is taking steps to halt mortgage fraud by the lenders it deals with. The action, by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, is the first of its kind since the financial crisis threw the U.S. economy into chaos. The… Continue reading US Government Moves to Prevent Mortgage Fraud
New Home Sales Jump
By Mike Colpitts Single family new homes sales rose 7.6% in May to a seasonally adjusted rate of 369,000 units, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The data reflects the first jump in actual new home sales in three months after disappointing spring home sales soured home builders. The Northeast and South posted a solid… Continue reading New Home Sales Jump
SEC Halts $100 Million Real Estate Ponzi Scheme
By Ryan Jackson The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a Utah man with operating a real estate Ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of $100 million throughout the U.S. and shut down the private hard money lending company. Wayne L. Palmer, 57, and his company, National Note of Utah in West Jordan have been… Continue reading SEC Halts $100 Million Real Estate Ponzi Scheme