Why Thanksgiving is good for real estate biz

It's unusually warm here in Los Angeles for the fourth week in November – some of us call this "earthquake weather." The sun is so strong that it burns our skin, but the leaves are dropping all around us.

It's Thanksgiving in Hollywood. It has a life all its own. There are those folks who can't wait to get out of town. The best excuse for skipping out a few days early is to say that you're going east to have Thanksgiving with your family and then disappear the previous Friday. Then there are those who have the annual ritual of spending Thanksgiving in Hawaii.  more...

Real estate pros give thanks

Thanksgiving was founded with the idea of reflecting on our blessings, and the real estate industry had many such blessings to count this year: interest rates have remained low and home sales stayed high, among other things. With the idea of counting blessings, we asked a group of hardworking real estate movers and shakers what they are thankful for in their professional lives this year.

Carolyn Earley-Hilt
Associate Broker, Coldwell Banker
Columbus, Ga.

"I have been blessed so much. I am thankful to be part of the American dream.  more...

HUD seeks to prevent real estate foreclosures in disaster areas

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson today announced that he is instructing U.S.  more...

Fed banks get new leaders

The Federal Reserve has appointed the chairmen and deputy chairmen of the 12 Federal Reserve banks for 2006, the government agency said today.

Each Reserve bank has a nine-member board of directors. The Board of Governors in Washington appoints three of these directors and each year designates one of its appointees as chairman and a second as deputy chairman.

The chairmen and deputy chairmen appointed by the board for 2006 are as follows:

For Boston: Blenda J.  more...

Oil price relief sinks real estate rates

Mortgage rates fell for the first time in 13 weeks as falling oil prices eased inflation fears, according to Freddie Mac's weekly survey.

In Freddie Mac's survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.28 percent for the week ended today, down from last week's average of 6.37 percent. The average for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 5.81 percent, also down from last week when it averaged 5.9 percent.  more...

Austin real estate boasts record sales

The Austin, Texas-area housing market reached record-setting highs in October, according to the latest Multiple Listing Service report from the Austin Board of Realtors.

Single-family home sales totaled 1,999 last month, up 27 percent from a year ago, and set a sales record for the month.

The median price of a single-family home slipped 0.8 percent in October to $160,650, down from $162,000 in September.

The number of active listings decreased 17 percent last month to 7,654.  more...

First American signs up for Clareity's MLS security system

First American Residential Group and Clareity Security have teamed up to provide protection against unauthorized access to First American's Multiple Listing Services and its MarketLinx Solutions offerings.

The companies yesterday announced a preferred provider and joint marketing agreement for Clareity Security's SAFEMLS solution.  more...

Real estate refinancings plummet

Overall mortgage applications declined 3.4 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week before, as refinancings fell for the fifth consecutive week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported today.

The seasonally adjusted purchase index decreased by 1.2 percent to 472.3 from 477.9 the previous week, whereas the refinance index decreased by 6.9 percent to 1,584.1 from 1,702.4 one week earlier.  more...

Overnight real estate rates trickle lower

Long-term mortgage interest rates continued to fall Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dipped to 4.43 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average sank to 5.79 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate slipped to 5.36 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up at 4.46 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield remained at 4.66 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...