NAR Congressional blitzkrieg on banks

The National Association of Realtors has launched a massive grassroots political push to persuade the U.S. Congress to permanently bar big banks from entering real estate brokerage, leasing and property management. NAR has sent out its largest "Call for Action" e-mail alert to 900,000 of its members asking them to get in touch with their Congressional representatives.

The Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sen.  more...

Real estate prices up, sales down in California

The median price of an existing home in California in August increased 16.8 percent while sales declined 8.5 percent compared to the same period a year ago, the California Association of Realtors reported today.

Closed escrow sales of existing, single-family detached homes in California totaled 591,150 in August at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate, according to information collected by C.A.R. from more than 90 local Realtor associations statewide. Statewide home resale activity decreased 8.5 percent from the 645,720 sales pace recorded in August 2003.  more...

Ten arrested in $15 million mortgage fraud scheme

Ten people were arrested Thursday on federal charges in connection with a mortgage fraud land-flipping scheme that involved about 200 properties and $15 million in fraudulently obtained loan proceeds.

U.S. Attorney Michael J. Sullivan announced that a federal grand jury returned an indictment against the 10, charging them with 62 counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to launder money.  more...

Real estate discounter expands again

Help-U-Sell Real Estate announced Thursday that it has broken the 600-franchise mark, expanding its reach to more than 46 states nationwide.

Opening a new office, on average, every 48 hours, Help-U-Sell has boasted a 30 percent growth rate over the past five years, according to a company statement.

Help-U-Sell Real Estate's fee-for-service model allows sellers to select and pay for only the services they want, making it the middle ground between the "For Sale By Owner Model" where sellers do all of the work and pay nothing  more...

Eastern U.S. real estate markets post mixed sales

Housing markets east of the Mississippi River showed mixed results in August, as Realtor associations reported cooling home sales in Illinois and Massachusetts and soaring sales in Ohio and Virginia.

Ohio's August sales results bested the month's previous record results posted in 2003, with sales this year reaching 14,293, a 2.6 percent increase from the 13,932 sales last year, the Ohio Association of Realtors reported.  more...

Existing-home sales drop in August

Existing-home sales dropped 2.7 percent from July to August, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.54 million units. August sales activity was 2.3 percent above the 6.39 million unit pace in August 2003, the National Association of Realtors reported today.  more...

Real estate: The week ahead

• The National Housing Conference will sponsor a brown bag luncheon titled "Housing and Health: The Vital Link" on Oct. 1, from noon to 2 p.m., in Washington, D.C. The event will explore the relationship between housing and health, and how both issues impact each other and the well being of families and communities.  more...

Overnight mortgage rates continue downward trend

Long-term mortgage interest rates dropped further Thursday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield climbed to 4.02 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 5.27 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate sank to 4.69 percent. The 1-year adjustable was unchanged at 3.2 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.79 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states.  more...