Changes announced to risk-based pricing rule
The Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Reserve Board have announced final changes to the Risk-Based Pricing Rule that requires creditors to disclose credit score information to consumers when a credit score is used in setting or adjusting credit terms. Changes in the rule includes language that clarifies the circumstances under which a creditor using […]15 years ago
Zillow launches new construction home search
Seattle-based Zillow has teamed up with several home builders to make new home shopping easier for consumers. Zillow’s maps have shown a single-home icon to indicate a new-home community. This feature has been updated to show the entire outline of planned communities and pinpoint more for-sale properties within a given area. Visitors can visit individual […]15 years ago
HUD sets July 22 deadline for mortgage assistance
Washington state homeowners who have suffered a job loss or job cutback have until July 22 to apply for federal loans that will cover a portion of their mortgage payments for up to 24 months. These Emergency Homeowners Loan Program assistance loans (EHLP) also pay off all “eligible” arrearages on the existing mortgage, according to […]15 years ago
Banks face foreclosure practices deadline
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has given all banks until September 30 to conduct a self-assessment of its foreclosure practices. The “self-assessment” request first came in consent orders given to 14 of the nation’s largest banks in April over a settlement into questionable foreclosure practices that had surfaced last fall. The consent […]15 years ago
Mastermind of $2.9 billion scam gets 30 years
Lee B. Farkas, who federal prosecutors have considered the “mastermind” behind one of the largest bank fraud schemes in history, has been was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Farkas, the former chairman of the mortgage firm Taylor, Bean & Whitaker, is the single largest prosecution from the financial crisis, the New York Times reports. […]15 years ago
Investors admit to bid-rigging at Bay Area foreclosures
Eight California real estate investors will plead guilty to a bid-rigging scam in which they purchased foreclosed properties at auctions, federal officials say. The auctions occurred in two San Francisco Bay area counties. Officials say that from 2008 to 2011, the eight investors conspired – or made payoffs – to not bid against each other […]15 years ago
Former Sonic’s Mercer Island home finally getting activity
Kevin Durant, arguably the brightest young star in the National Basketball Association, left town after a short stay when the Seattle Supersonics relocated to Oklahoma City. His Mercer Island home, however, has just begun to move. Durant, the second player selected in the June, 2007 NBA draft, spent $2,850,000 on a five-bedroom, five-bathroom, five-fireplace residence […]15 years ago
CoreLogic’s index shows home prices rise again
CoreLogic’s May Home Price Index (HPI) revealed that home prices in the U.S. increased on a month-over-month basis for the second consecutive month. According CoreLogic, a provider of information, analytics and business services, national home prices (including distressed sales) increased by 0.8 percent in May 2011 compared to April 2011. “Two consecutive months of month-over-month […]15 years ago
50 to 1: Delinquent loans outnumber foreclosure sales
The May Mortgage Monitor report released by Lender Processing Services, Inc. shows that the number of mortgages that are 90 or more days delinquent, combined with the foreclosure inventory at the end of May, totaled 4,084,557. With foreclosure sales at 78,676 at month end, the volume of serious delinquencies and foreclosures over-shadowed the number of […]15 years ago
Study predicts decline in loan limits to stymie recovery
A drop in some mortgage loan limits for the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration scheduled to occur on October 1 will reduce housing demand and place downward pressure on home prices in major housing markets, according to a new study from the Economics and Housing Policy Group […]15 years ago
‘Shadow inventory’ of homes beginning to slow
The current residential shadow inventory as of April declined to 1.7 million units, representing a five months’ supply. This is down from 1.9 million units, according to CoreLogic, a provider of information, analytics and business services. The decline was due to fewer new delinquencies and the high level of distressed sales, which helped reduce the […]15 years ago
Pressure on to define minimum down payment loans
Housing industry officials have begun extra efforts to lobby how regulators will define low-risk loans that will be exempt from the five percent risk retention requirement – so-called “qualified residential mortgages,” or QRMs. The Dodd-Frank bill made no specific reference to down payments, instructing federal regulators to draw up a QRM definition using criteria such […]15 years ago
Reverse mortgages: Expensive, compared to what?
Jeff Taylor, the former longtime leader of Wells Fargo’s reverse mortgage division, had a stock answer when applicants declined a reverse because they felt the rates and fees were simply too high. Taylor had done the research for his own mother and decided the reverse was the best strategy to keep his mother comfortable in […]15 years ago
Agent loses court fight against negative online comments
Bad reviews and rumors from former customers or critics can spread quickly on websites, leaving real estate professionals unsure of how to end the harmful gossip that can ultimately damage their business. Christakis Shiamili, the founder of Ardor New York Real Estate, decided to fight back against one New York Web site that claimed to […]15 years ago
Study reveals fastest growing real estate clients
Minorities and immigrants will drive growth in housing demand in coming years, a new study reveals. Within the next 15 years, researchers say they expect this population segment to drive demand for condominiums, smaller starter homes, and first trade-up homes. Also, this growing demographic is expected to represent a rapidly growing segment of the middle […]15 years ago
FTC stops bogus mortgage ‘loan mod’ business
A federal court banned three men and their company from the mortgage modification business and ordered them to pay nearly $19 million for consumer refunds. The Federal Trade Commission sued First Universal Lending and its owners – Sean Zausner, David Zausner, and David J. Feingold – as part of a federal-state crackdown on mortgage foreclosure […]15 years ago
New tool helps protect military families in default
CoreLogic today introduced the Verification of Military Status (VOMS), a compliance and loan tool that allows mortgage servicers to quickly and accurately identify military borrowers. The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003 (SCRA) bans such actions as foreclosures and also caps interest rate increases for those on active duty and up to 90 days following […]15 years ago
Shoreline plan updates could use a little logic
An older couple in Kitsap County had finally decided to move. Their landmark lakefront home, the headquarters for family reunions, community events and Sunday religious services, would soon be offered for sale. They’d retired there, after decades in their Pierce County residence where they raised their children, and now it was time to move closer […]15 years ago
