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Commercial, multifamily mortgage debt outstanding climbs

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

The level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding grew by 2.9 percent in the third quarter, reaching $2.85 trillion, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association analysis of the Federal Reserve Board Flow of Funds data. This increase is $79.9 billion higher than the second quarter.

Multifamily mortgage debt outstanding, by itself, grew to $714 billion at the end of the third quarter -- an increase of $10.8 billion, or 1.5 percent, from the second quarter.  more...

KBS REIT makes purchase near Boston

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

KBS Real Estate Investment Trust added a fifth asset to its portfolio with the acquisition of a 166,574-square-foot office and research/development building in Norwood, Mass., for $28.8 million.

A joint venture between Boston-based Cabot, Cabot & Forbes and Wilton, Conn.-based Commonfund Realty Inc. sold the class A property, which is located at 825 University Ave. The two-story property, situated on 18.8 acres, was originally constructed in 1980, and later renovated in 2004-2005, with an addition of approximately 22,000 square feet constructed as part of the upgrade.  more...

Wells REIT adds Gallagher Centre

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Wells Real Estate Investment Trust Inc. acquired the Gallagher Centre, a 27-story office tower in Itasca, Ill., for an undisclosed price.

The 487,000-square-foot, class A building is the corporate headquarters of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., one of the world's largest insurance brokers.

A joint venture between Gallagher and Hamilton Partners sold the property, which was built in 1991. It is located in the North DuPage submarket, near Interstate 290 and convenient to the regional Woodfield Mall and O'Hare International Airport.  more...

Fed holds key interest rate at 5.25%

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

The Federal Reserve left the federal funds rate at 5.25 percent Tuesday, saying that inflation pressures seem likely to moderate over time in part because of a "substantial cooling of the housing market."

It was the first time the Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee used the word "substantial" to describe the current housing slowdown.  more...

Countrywide's home loan production dwindles

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Countrywide Financial Corp. funded $37.8 billion in mortgage loans in November, an 11 percent decline from the same month last year and 8 percent less than last month.

Although funding of all types of mortgage loans declined, the greatest difference between this year and last was in pay-option loans. At $3.2 billion, Countrywide's pay-option loan production was down nearly 60 percent for the month, and year-to-date pay-option fundings are down 29 percent to $62 billion.  more...

Poverty grows in suburbs Premium Content

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Poverty is a growing problem in the United States, and six of 10 cities with the largest poverty-rate increases from 1999-2005 were in the Midwest, according to a report by The Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy Program.

The 2005 poverty rate in large cities was 18.8 percent, compared with a rate of 9.4 percent for suburbs, and the overall percentage of people in poverty increased in both cities and suburbs from 1999-2005.

"These trends are in large part the function of the 2001-02 recession and slow wage growth thereafter for lower-skilled workers," according to th  more...

Nashville home sales down, prices up

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Fewer sales and higher prices defined the Nashville, Tenn., housing market in November compared to the same month last year, the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors reported.

According to statistics, there were 2,867 home closings reported last month, down 3.9 percent from the record 2,985 closings reported in November 2005.  more...

Massachusetts foreclosures soar in October

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Foreclosures in Massachusetts were up 111 percent in October compared to the same month last year, for the highest monthly total in over 10 years, according to ForeclosuresMass.com, a company that gathers and reports foreclosure data for the state.

The company reported that 2,188 foreclosures were initiated throughout the state in October, up 219 percent from October 2004 levels.  more...

Overnight real estate rates head higher

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Long-term mortgage interest rates continued to climb Monday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dipped to 4.52 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average inched up to 5.63 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.39 percent. The 1-year adjustable was down at 5.29 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield decreased to 4.63 percent.

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

Easy credit, price cuts will keep homes selling in 2007 Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Most housing markets experiencing slowdowns aren't facing fundamental economic problems like job losses and out migration and will see prices correct, rather than collapse, in 2007.

That was the outlook of housing experts who participated in a conference call discussion Monday, "Housing Forecast 2007: Inside the Crystal Ball," moderated by Inman News publisher Bradley Inman.  more...

Get inspection before buying repossessed house

By Barry Stone, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Dear Barry,

We recently purchased a bank-repossessed house. When we made our offer, our agent advised us not to get a home inspection since it was just an additional cost to us and the bank would not fix anything anyway. In hindsight, we realize that we should have had an inspection because the roof leaks and we get standing water around the foundation during wet weather. Do we have recourse or did we just make a huge mistake in not getting an inspection? --Barbara

Dear Barbara,  more...

Smart ways to boost home's curb appeal

By Robert Bruss, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

Although "Home Makeovers That Sell" by longtime Realtor Sid Davis is intended primarily for home sellers, the smartest real estate sales agents will also study it to advise their home sellers how to earn top dollar. Throughout the book, the author shares many examples of how simple fix up, painting and clean up resulted in fast sales of homes that had previously languished unsold for many months.  more...

Best refinance strategy for mortgage with small balance

By Robert Bruss, Tuesday, December 12, 2006.

DEAR BOB: Is it a good idea to refinance my residence with a home equity loan? --Miriam G.

DEAR MIRIAM: You raise a fascinating question. If you have a high-interest-rate mortgage with a small balance, you might be smart to obtain a home equity line of credit (HELOC) for a larger amount and use part of that money to pay off the old mortgage.

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.  more...