By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. 2004 was another year of record success in real estate. But perhaps more importantly, online real estate made a big comeback. The public debut of ZipRealty and HouseValues, along with real estate heavyweight Cendant entering the online lead business, and a major lawsuit victory for online real estate advertiser ForSaleByOwner.com were among the highlights for this sector in 2004. more...
By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. Editor's note: The real estate industry is heading for big change in 2005. Experts once again are predicting slower home sales and easing price appreciation due to an anticipated rise in interest rates. In this Inman News forecast series, we attempt to get a clear picture of the industry next year, including what we can expect from housing numbers, who the industry should be watching and what the best and worst-case scenarios might be for housing in 2005. more...
By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. Court Lorenzini co-founded Seattle-based DocuSign in 2003 so that business documents could be signed without ever needing to be converted to paper. Lorenzini now serves as CEO. An experienced senior executive, Court has been the founder, president and CEO of several other venture-backed companies, including Point.com, Flatrock and Acora Growth Solutions. He has a 20-year track record of managing periods of rapid change in start-up and corporate environments. Lorenzini earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Duke University. more...
By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. California's home builders continued to post strong gains in housing starts in November, the California Building Industry Association announced today. more...
By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. Long-term mortgage rates rose for the second consecutive week, according to Freddie Mac's weekly mortgage survey. Freddie Mac reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.81 percent for the week ended today, up from last week when it averaged 5.75 percent. The average for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage this week is 5.23 percent, up from last week when it averaged 5.18 percent. Points on both the 30- and 15-year averaged 0.6. more...
By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index, which had been on the decline since August, rebounded in December, as consumers grew more upbeat about job prospects and the economy. The index now stands at 102.3 (1985=100), up from 92.6 in November. The expectations index rose to 99.9 from 90.2. The present situation index increased to 105.9 from 96.3. more...
By Bill and Kevin Burnett, Wednesday, December 29, 2004.
Q: We have a mid-1950s Eichler-style ranch home with radiant heat. The radiant pipes are copper, not galvanized steel. They do not leak, and the heating works beautifully. Our kitchen floor is ceramic tile that was installed way before we purchased the home six years ago. Several years ago we had a contractor pull up and replace about 10 of the tiles that had cracked. He told us that the tiles would not settle properly because the concrete pad was inherently uneven. Sure enough, we have new cracks in both the old and new tiles. more...
By Robert Bruss, Wednesday, December 29, 2004.
In 1989 Fareed and Rashida Cassim bought their home and insured it with Allstate Insurance Co. But in December 1990, a fire resulted in at least $40,000 damage to the home, plus about $43,000 damage to their furnishings. When Fareed and Rashida filed their claim with Allstate, they were promptly paid a $10,000 advance toward living expenses because the house was uninhabitable. But after Allstate investigated the fire, Allstate's adjuster concluded the fire was caused by arson. more...
By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, December 29, 2004.
Let's get beyond the slippery accounting practices of Fannie Mae in 2004 – or that matter of Freddie Mac in 2003. Both mortgage giants are shareholder-owned yet chartered by the U.S. Congress to maintain a constant flow of loan funds for the nation's housing market. You would expect a higher standard of performance. more...
By Robert Bruss, Wednesday, December 29, 2004.
DEAR BOB: Recently you had a fascinating letter about a person who inherited a house. You said the heir received a new "stepped-up basis" to the market value on the date of the decedent's death (or valuation date used by the deceased's estate). Then you commented if the heir sells the inherited property immediately there would be no capital gains tax to pay. As I am in a similar situation, expecting to inherit several pieces of property after my terminally ill mother passes on, how soon must I sell that inherited property to avoid paying capital gains tax? – Fred R. more...
By Inman News, Wednesday, December 29, 2004. Sales of existing homes reached record levels in November, increasing 2.7 percent since October. Existing-home sales were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.94 million units in November, up from 6.76 million units in October, the National Association of Realtors announced today. The seasonally adjusted annual rate projects a monthly sales total over a 12-month period. more...
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