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Real estate price gains can't keep up Premium Content

By Jessica Swesey, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

It takes a mother to tell her twin sons apart and it takes an economist to tell the difference between this year's housing market and the last. Most are predicting more of the same hot pace of home sales with a little cooling from record highs due to rising interest rates.

But a few differences will mark 2005.  more...

Bank account 'hijacking' threatens e-commerce Premium Content

By Jessica Swesey, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

While conducting a study on identity theft and bank account hijacking schemes, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., better known as FDIC, was being targeted by an Internet phishing attack last fall. The FDIC said it has been the subject of six separate phishing attacks, which use sham Web sites and e-mail to steal financial account information, in the past year.  more...

Federal court slaps realty investment training biz with injunction

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

A U.S. District Court judge this month issued a preliminary injunction against the sellers of a real estate investment training program that prohibits them from making false and unsubstantiated earnings claims about their program and from making false claims that their program coaches have substantial experience in the mortgage-note business and are readily available to assist consumers.  more...

California real estate not expected to crash

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Despite California home sales continuing at near-record pace in December and prices setting new highs, the state's housing market will likely slow this year, according to real estate information service, DataQuick Information Systems.

Home sales in the San Francisco Bay Area finished out the year with the second-strongest December on record, with a total of 11,068 new and resale houses and condos sold in the nine-county region in December.  more...

Arden Realty dumps 1.1 million square feet

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

The Shidler Group has purchased a 19-building, 1.1 million-square-foot portfolio of office and R&D buildings in San Diego and Los Angeles for $142 million.

The seller was Arden Realty Inc.

Ten of the buildings are located in three business and technology parks in San Diego:

  • Activity Business Center, five buildings totaling 156,887 square feet at 9235, 9245 and 9265 Activity Rd. and 9520 and 9530 Padgett St.;

  • Morehouse Tech Center I, II & III, three buildings encompassing 182,127 square feet at 5510, 5550 and 5590 Morehouse Drive;  more...

Law firm renews lease at Sears Tower

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

The law firm of Schiff Hardin LLP has signed a new 15-year lease agreement in the 110-story Sears Tower in Chicago.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

Schiff Hardin will occupy just less than 200,000 square feet, making it the fourth largest tenant in the building.

Schiff Hardin has been headquartered at Sears Tower since August 1974, and has 330 attorneys, with other offices located in New York City, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Lake Forest, Ill., and Dublin, Ireland.  more...

REIT sells Florida apartments

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Sizeler Property Investors recenlty sold Lakeview Club Apartments, a 443-unit apartment community located in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

The value of the transaction was $43.8 million.

RAK Group Acquisition Corp., a private investor, purchased the property.

Sizeler had acquired this property in 1994.

Sizeler Property Investors Inc. is an equity real estate investment trust that invests in retail and apartment properties in the southeastern United States.

***  more...

Real estate listings reach cell phones nationwide

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

ClearSky Mobile Media, a wireless marketing company, today announced its iCODE PhoneFlyer service for delivering information on real estate listings to mobile phones has gone national.

After a successful launch in the Orlando, Fla., area, ClearSky has rolled the service out across the country.  more...

Fannie Mae slashes first-quarter dividend

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Fannie Mae on Tuesday cut the dividend on its common stock by half in order to meet a requirement for more cash reserves by regulators.

The company declared first-quarter dividend of 26 cents per share. The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, Fannie Mae's federal supervisor, approved payment of these dividends.  more...

U.S. real estate construction builds momentum

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts in December was up approximately 10.9 percent over the November estimate but approximately down 3 percent from the December 2003 rate, the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate projects a monthly total over a 12-month period.  more...

Home builder's profits rise to $108.7 million

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

The Ryland Group, a large home-building corporation, reported record fourth-quarter consolidated net earnings of $108.7 million, or $2.17 per share, up from $86.1 million the previous year.

Southern California-based Ryland operates in 27 markets across the country. The company reported consolidated revenues of $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter, up 16.1 percent from $1.1 billion during the same quarter in 2003.  more...

Real estate purchases surge

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Overall mortgage applications reversed a two-week decline last week, rising 16.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week before, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly survey.

The MBA seasonally adjusted purchase index increased by 14 percent to 448.1 from 393.1 the previous week. The seasonally adjusted refinance index increased by 19.1 percent to 2,048.6 from 1,720.5 one week earlier.    more...

Overnight real estate rates nudge higher

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were up Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield sank to 4.19 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 5.26 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate increased to 4.75 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up at 3.6 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield fell to 4.68 percent.

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

Foreclosure victim sues lender for selling possessions

By Robert Bruss, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Kandi Kaufman was in default on her home loan secured by her six-bedroom, 5,230-square-foot house. She received a written loan solicitation from Coast Capital Corp. offering to refinance her mortgage "regardless of credit history, income or employment" to prevent foreclosure.

Kaufman's loan application disclosed she was unemployed, had judgments against her, was delinquent on her home mortgage, had previously filed bankruptcy, was involved in a pending lawsuit, and had no other major assets than her home. Nevertheless, Coast agreed to refinance her existing loan.  more...

Soundproofing project runs into safety issue

By Bill and Kevin Burnett, Wednesday, January 19, 2005.

Q: We live in a two-story house that has recessed floodlights in the first-floor ceiling and have been told that we cannot add insulation to the second-story floors because of the floodlights.

We plan to build a two-story house with lots of recessed lighting. How do you use recessed lights and still soundproof the floors?

A: We love recessed lighting and have put a lot of it in over the years. When installed properly, it does its job, it looks good and, at $10 or so a fixture, it's inexpensive.  more...

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