Hispanic households dominate new homeowner growth
Hispanic households accounted for more than half of the nation’s new homeowners in the third quarter, evidence of the potential purchasing power of Latinos during the housing recovery. According to Census Bureau data provided by Alejandro Becerra, former senior housing fellow at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, the number of Hispanic owner-occupiers grew by 288,000 […]15 years ago
Tacoma on list of cities with most new construction
Builders mostly have stayed on the sidelines the last few years in many metro areas while construction permits and housing starts have dropped to only a fraction of what they once were during the housing boom days and even prior to that. But in many areas across the country, housing starts and permits are at […]15 years ago
Feds target search engine foreclosure rescue scams
Federal investigators are investigating the Google, Bing, and Yahoo! search engines in a hunt to find con artists who are using the sites to dupe troubled homeowners. The online ads posted by scammers promise to help save homeowners from foreclosure. The ads claim they’ll help home owners through a government-backed program by modifying their mortgage […]15 years ago
Minorities received inferior loan terms, study finds
A new study by the Center for Responsible Lending found that blacks and Hispanics were offered risky loan terms three times more than whites. More specifically, researchers found that blacks and Hispanics with credit scores of 660 or higher were offered subprime and option adjustable-rate mortgages dramatically more than similar white borrowers between 2004 and […]15 years ago
Lawmakers urge lenders to reduce mortgage amounts
More than 20 lawmakers in the House of Representatives this week called on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to reduce the mortgage principal of borrowers who owe more on their home than it is currently worth. The Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates Fannie and Freddie, has been refusing to take such a drastic move, […]15 years ago
Seattle #8 on CB list of nation’s priciest college markets
Seattle ranked number eight in Coldwell Banker Real Estate’s most expensive college real estate markets. The report provides the average home listing prices for three-bedroom, two-bathroom properties that were listed for sale on coldwellbanker.com between August 2010 and August 2011. According to the report, three-bedroom homes cost less than $200,000 on average in nearly two-thirds […]15 years ago
More home deals are falling apart, agents say
More real estate transactions are being canceled at the last minute, real estate professionals are reporting. In fact, about 33 percent of real estate professionals say they had at least one contract fall through in October – up from 18 percent in September, the National Association of Realtors reported. The increase in contract cancelations was […]15 years ago
State homes now eligible for Freddie’s winter promotion
Washington has been added to the list of states eligible for a winter sales promotion of homes offered by HomeSteps, the real estate sales unit of Freddie Mac.
15 years ago
Tom Kelly: Bring back investor purchase-rehab loan
Two years ago, the National Association of Realtors, the largest trade group in the nation with 1.2 million members, floated its idea of a housing solution to attendees at its annual convention. NAR presented Congress with a Four-Point Housing Stimulus Plan to help stabilize the housing and mortgage markets. The crux of the package suggested […]15 years ago
Trend for smaller new homes expected to continue
For the first time in the past 30 years, new homes were smaller than a year ago. Several sources expect the trend to continue. For example, the National Association of Home Builders predicts that U.S. houses will average 2,152 square feet in 2015, which will be down 10 percent compared to last year. Smaller homes […]15 years ago
Lawmakers vote to restore higher FHA loan limits
U.S. lawmakers moved to increase the maximum size of loans that can be guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration, the Wall Street Journal reported. A spending bill passed by Congress increases to $729,750 the maximum size of a mortgage that can be backed by the FHA, which guarantees loans to buyers with down payments as […]15 years ago
BofA on lowest rung of customer ladder – J.D. Power
Quicken Loans received the highest customer satisfaction score in this year’s J.D. Power and Associates 2011 Primary Mortgage Origination Satisfaction Study, while Bank of America – the poster child for consumer missteps – received the lowest, Housing Wire reported. The survey included only consumers who were able to obtain a loan – either for a […]15 years ago
Gingrich reportedly paid $1.6 million by Freddie Mac
Newt Gingrich made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consulting fees from two contracts with mortgage company Freddie Mac, according to a report by Bloomberg News. The total amount is significantly greater than the $300,000 payment from Freddie Mac that Gingrich was asked about during a Republican presidential debate on November 9 sponsored by […]15 years ago
Vacant, foreclosed homes ‘going to pot’
Foreclosed homes left empty are increasingly in need of maintenance. Others have been deluged with intruders and squatters, some cultivating short-term marijuana farms. The problem has particularly surfaced in Las Vegas. For example, at one foreclosed home in Las Vegas, police seized 878 marijuana plants worth about $2.6 million, the Los Angeles Times reports. In […]15 years ago
Repeat homebuyer annual income on the rise
This year’s typical repeat buyer in the U.S. was 53 years old and earned $96,600, notably higher than the $87,000 median reported in 2010 by the National Association of Realtors. Repeat buyers purchased a median 2,100 square foot home costing $219,500, with an estimated median payment of $1,006, an annual survey revealed. Seventy-eight percent of […]15 years ago
Tom Kelly: Have boomers truly changed their ways?
Unlike the Greatest Generation, baby boomers have never been labeled as risk-averse. They take chances, look for adventure and are generally positive about the aspects of aging. They over-borrowed for homes, cars, tuitions and vacations, leading Eric Snider, who holds a doctorate in social psychology and once served as Shea Homes’ marketing director for Trilogy, […]15 years ago
Builder confidence rises for second straight month
Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes rose by three points to 20 according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) for November. The gain builds on a revised three-point increase in October, and brings the confidence gauge to its highest level since May of 2010. “While […]15 years ago
More homeowners trying ‘reluctant landlord’ role
More sellers who are tired of their home lingering on the market – or don’t want to have to take a loss on their home – are opting to become landlords instead. The number of unintentional landlords is growing, according to Eric Belsky with Harvard’s Center for Housing Studies. About 2.3 million single-family homes became […]15 years ago
Freddie claims foreclosures net 94% of market value
Freddie Mac has sold a record number of single-family REO homes in the first nine months of 2011, and the homes are selling for an average of 94 percent of market value, according to Tracey Mooney, Freddie Mac’s vice president of single-family servicing and real estate owned properties. “Because our homes are well maintained and […]15 years ago
Tight credit pushing first-timers away from home market
First-time home buyers fell to a 37 percent market share in the past year from a record high 50 percent a year ago, according to the 2011 National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. Paul Bishop, NAR vice president of research, said the impact of restrictive mortgage credit has taken its toll. […]15 years ago
Bellevue company’s new “app” targets Generation Y
Bellevue-based Imprev, Inc., a provider of personalized marketing materials for more than 200,000 real estate agents worldwide, has introduced an Apple iPad application to help agents corral the next generation of home buyers. “Generation Y buyers expect to be shown listings and information instantly and in person,” said Marni Blanco, vice-president of e-Business for RE/MAX […]15 years ago
NAR economist sees loan rates rising in 2012
Although the housing market struggled to maintain an even footing in 2011, gradual improvement is expected in 2012 and beyond, according to projections by Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors. “Tight mortgage credit conditions have been holding back home buyers all year, and consumer confidence has been shaky recently,” Yun said. […]15 years ago
Great service? New site rates agent performance
More than 700 real estate agents in Washington State have signed up to use a new agent rating service that offers comments only from actual home buyers and sellers.