Trial against former Homestore execs set for January

Evidence gathering continues in the pre-trial stages of the criminal case filed by the federal government against former Homestore executives Stuart H. Wolff and Peter B. Tafeen. The jury selection process is scheduled to begin Jan. 17, though lawyers say the start date could be postponed.  more...

Toronto real estate flourishes

A record number of homes sold in the Greater Toronto area in September as the market jumped 11 percent from a year ago, the Toronto Real Estate Board announced today.

Realtors said 7,326 sales transacted through the TorontoMLS system last month, up from 6,588 in September 2004.  more...

East Coast man imprisoned for $3M real estate fraud

A New York man was sentenced to 2 to 6 years in prison Monday for stealing more than $3 million in a mortgage fraud scheme, officials said.

Sam Hilany of West Hempstead, N.Y. was sentenced Oct. 3 by Nassau County Court Judge Jerald Carter. Hilany pled guilty in July to attempted grand larceny in the first degree, a felony and a scheme to defraud in the first degree, according to Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon.

Hilany has waived his right to appeal and is required to make full restitution in the amount of $3,136,800, Dillon said Tuesday.  more...

Alleged new accounting problems won't shake Fannie's core business

Fannie Mae's alleged new accounting problems won't shake its core business, a top Federal Reserve official said Tuesday, according to media accounts.  more...

Pending real estate sales hit record

Pending home sales have risen to a record level, the National Association of Realtors reported today.  more...

New technology identifies mortgage fraud

A Carlsbad, Calif.-based company is offering a new fraud detection product for mortgage lenders, investment banks and due diligence firms.

BasePoint Analytics, a provider of fraud analytics and fraud consulting services, today released FraudMark, combining two approaches for finding fraud. The model is based on behavioral trends for applicants, brokers and appraisers as well as historical patterns of both fraudulent and non-fraudulent loan applications.  more...

Real estate purchases slide

Overall mortgage applications dropped 1.1 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week before, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly survey.

The seasonally adjusted purchase index decreased by 1.9 percent to 473.8 from 483.1 the previous week, while the refinance index increased by 0.1 percent to 2,107.4 from 2,106.6 one week earlier.  more...

Study: The coast is still the most

The nation's strongest residential real estate conditions remain concentrated in the West, the Northeast and areas of the South such as Florida and Virginia, said a study by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. issued Tuesday.

In contrast, the Midwest continues to lag the rest of the nation in terms of economic performance, said the FDIC's State Profiles and a new companion publication, FDIC Regional Profile, issued Tuesday. The reports provide quarterly state-by-state and regional snapshots of economic and banking trends.  more...

Freddie Mac gives preliminary hurricane loss estimate

Mortgage giant Freddie Mac said Tuesday that its after-tax losses from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita to be recorded in the third quarter of 2005 are expected to be in a range of $150 million to $300 million.

"Our primary concern continues to be ensuring that affected borrowers and lenders are obtaining the relief needed to rebuild their lives and get back on their feet financially," said Richard F. Syron, Freddie Mac chairman and chief executive officer, in a statement.  more...

Overnight real estate rates post increase

Long-term mortgage interest rates continued higher Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield fell to 4.37 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average edged up to 5.52 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate grew to 5.09 percent. The 1-year adjustable was unchanged at 4.14 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield decreased to 4.6 percent.

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