Florida man convicted of selling overpriced swampland

A Florida man was convicted yesterday of charges related to a scheme in which he sold swampland to several Miami residents for vastly inflated amounts in the 1980s and 1990s, officials said.

Dudley Cohn, 74, of Hernando, Fla., was convicted of one count of organized scheme to defraud, a first-degree felony, by a Miami-Dade jury after a two-week trial, Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist's office said today.

In the late 1980s, Cohn, 74, sold vacant land to 13 individ  more...

North Carolina men charged in alleged mortgage fraud

A North Carolina mobile home salesman and one of his employees face federal charges accusing them of arranging $11 million worth of fraudulent mortgages for their customers, the Raleigh, N.C., News & Observer reported Tuesday.

Legal documents said Donald W. Gupton, owner of Dynasty Homes of Henderson, Superior House Center, and Creative Real Estate and Manufacturing Housing Sales Center, and a manager, Richard D.  more...

Real estate purchases fall

Overall mortgage applications slid for the second consecutive week, dropping 1.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week before, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported today.

The seasonally adjusted purchase index decreased by 2.4 percent to 425.1 from 435.7 the previous week, while the refinance index increased by 0.2 percent to 1,751 from 1,747.2 one week earlier.

The refinance share of mortgage activity decreased to 42.1 percent of total applications from 43 percent the previous week.  more...

REBNY releases first-ever Brooklyn real estate report

Average apartment prices grew 35 percent last year in Brooklyn, and one- and two-family home prices jumped 20.5 percent in 2005 compared to 2004, according to the Real Estate Board of New York, a real estate trade association that has about 11,000 members.

The first-ever REBNY Brooklyn real estate report, which uses city and brokerage firm data, found that the DUMBO/Fulton Ferry had the highest Brooklyn-area average sales price of apartments in 2005, at $1.26 million, or $717 per square foot.  more...

Ohio bill fights real estate loan fraud

Ohio's bid to crack down on predatory mortgage lending and curb its sky-high foreclosure rate appeared to gain new momentum Tuesday, as Republican state senators unveiled a compromise bill to be introduced today in committee, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.

Republican Sens. Joy Padgett and John Carey announced a bill that would expand Ohio's Consumer Sales Practices Act to cover most mortgage brokers and loan officers, reports said.  more...

Spot Runner to offer real estate ad service to Cendant Corp.

Cendant Corp.'s Real Estate Services Division and Spot Runner, an Internet-based ad agency, today announced an agreement for Spot Runner to provide preferred pricing on its premium television advertising production, planning and media-buying services to Cendant's approximately 260,000 affiliated sales associates and 9,000 U.S.-based affiliated real estate brokerage offices.

The agreement provides affiliates of Cendant's real estate brands – Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Col  more...

Windermere eyes second-home market

Windermere Real Estate has launched a new Web site targeting resort and urban second-home markets across the West.  more...

Overnight real estate rates stagnate

Long-term mortgage interest rates were mostly flat Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield gained to 4.56 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average sank to 5.81 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate held at 5.42 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up to 4.55 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.65 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...