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Closer look at latest Fed speak

By Lou Barnes, Friday, December 16, 2005.

The next two weeks are the traditional holiday "dead time" in the markets (bond-market people use such cheery metaphors all year 'round), and so the passage of an extraordinary transition this week has been lost on vacation.

Like your luggage, to be found in January.

The Fed's statement after its last 12 consecutive meetings said that it had acted to "remove excess accommodation." After the 13th, on Tuesday, raising its rate again to 4.25 percent, the Fed removed the phrase itself.  more...

New real estate company offers discounts, sans agents Premium Content

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Friday, December 16, 2005.

Creators of a Web-based real estate venture are pledging to create a "list-to-close" platform for conducting no-fee real estate transactions without agents.

The Web site, MyFutureNet.com, now promotes "no fee, no hidden-cost mortgages" through a joint venture with Allpointe Mortgage, a mortgage broker based in Canonsburg, Penn., that is also licensed in Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Maine, Michigan, Virginia and Wyoming. And coming soon: "no-commission, no-fee home sales. Goodbye, middleman," the site also states.  more...

Google exec. traces roots to Vibe magazine

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

As head of local advertising at Google, Justin McCarthy is responsible for leveraging Google's volume of real estate searches for top real estate companies. To date, Google has enjoyed productive relationships with leading real estate companies.

McCarthy joined Google from DoubleClick, where he was general manager of entertainment and travel networks and responsible for leading the business development and advertising sales effort behind DoubleClick's entertainment and youth network.  more...

L.A. investment group purchases Ladera Center

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

Grubb & Ellis Co. negotiated the sale of Ladera Center, a 186,770-square-foot shopping center in Los Angeles.

The value of the transaction was $53 million.

Grand Ladera LLC, a Los Angeles-based investment group, purchased the property from San Francisco-based McFarlane Partners.

The retail center, which is located at 5233-5399 W. Centinela Ave., was 100 percent leased at the time of sale. The center is anchored by Ralphs, Sav-On and Ross Dress For Less. The property was originally constructed in 1965, and then redeveloped in 1985 and 2002.  more...

EastGroup expands in Florida

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

EastGroup Properties recently acquired a 112,000-square-foot business distribution property in Tampa, Fla.

The value of the transaction was approximately $7.4 million.

Constructed in 2001, the building (renamed Oak Creek IV) was 100 percent leased to a single customer at the time of sale, and the purchase includes land to accommodate a 46,000-square-foot expansion to the building.  more...

Luxury apartments snapped up in San Fernando Valley

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

The Bascom Group, in a joint venture with Rockwood Capital, has purchased Renaissance Apartment Homes at Warner Center, a 477-unit apartment community in Woodland Hills, Calif.

The purchase price was $82.8 million.

The seller of the property was Renaissance Apartments LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.

Renaissance is a luxury apartment home community with unit sizes that range from studio units at 625 square feet to three-bedroom units at 1,125 square feet.  more...

Master direct marketing maze in real estate

By Alison Rogers, Friday, December 16, 2005.

Before I became a real estate agent, I'd never written a piece of direct mail. I started off by thinking about what pieces had worked on me, asking senior members of my firm for help, and trolling the Internet. When I discovered Mal Warwick (who is known primarily as a nonprofit fundraising guru) it was like a revelation. In addition to his tips at www.malwarwick.com, he's written 17 books on direct marketing, including "How to Write Successful Fundraising Letters" (Jossey-Bass).  more...

Loss from real estate loan fraud soars to $1 billion

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an initiative to combat what it describes as "the growing epidemic of mortgage fraud," targeting mortgage fraud groups, the agency said Wednesday.

The FBI identified California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Illinois, Maryland, Georgia and Florida as "hot spots" for mortgage fraud in activity in 2004.  more...

ZipRealty breaks into Tampa real estate scene

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

ZipRealty has extended its Florida footprint with the opening of a hub in Tampa and will begin opening transactions there in the first quarter of 2006, the real estate brokerage company said today.

Ric Carter, a 10-year Florida resident, joins ZipRealty as the company's district director for the market, and will oversee recruiting and training efforts for agents.

Tampa, the second-largest real estate market in the state, follows Miami as the second market for ZipRealty in the state.  more...

Real estate franchiser announces growth expectations

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

Keller Williams Realty Inc., one of the top real estate franchisers in North America, today announced a restructuring in its executive team, and plans to grow its agent pool about 46 percent in 2006.

The company had a net gain of about 1,700 new sales associates each month this year, according to the announcement, and has plans to expand from about 56,000 associates to 82,000 next year.

Mark Willis, Keller Williams president, added the role of CEO on Dec. 1, and former CEO Mo Anderson now serves as the company's vice chairman.  more...

Ellie Mae adds real estate loan servicing ability

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

Mortgage technology provider Ellie Mae has added loan-servicing capability to its Encompass Mortgage Automation System through a new partnership with Multi Financial Services Co., the company said Thursday.

Under the partnership, Multi Financial Services Co.  more...

Weichert grows brand in Connecticut

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

Weichert, Realtors has added three former Beazley Co. affiliate offices in Connecticut to its Weichert Real Estate Affiliates network, the company announced Thursday.  more...

S.F. Bay Area real estate sales slide for eighth month

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

San Francisco Bay Area home sales slowed in November while prices are still climbing compared to November 2004, a real estate information service reported today.

A total of 9,717 new and resale houses and condos were sold in the region last month.  more...

Overnight real estate rates hit flat spot

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were unchanged Thursday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield stayed at 4.46 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average held at 5.76 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate remained at 5.36 percent. The 1-year adjustable was down at 4.51 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.67 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...

Colorado unveils real estate fraud-fighting proposals

By Inman News, Friday, December 16, 2005.

New mortgage fraud-fighting legislation, including mandatory written contracts for foreclosure consultants and equity investors, will be introduced in Colorado based on the findings of its mortgage fraud task force, a state official said Thursday.

"Earlier this year, the FBI identified Colorado as one of the top ten mortgage fraud 'hot spots' in the country," Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said.  more...

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