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Survey: Apartment demand nears record high

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Apartment markets continue their upward trajectory, as fully 75 percent of the respondents to an industry survey reported tighter market conditions in the second quarter, measured by lower vacancy rates, higher rents or both.  more...

East Coast law firm buys space

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

An entity controlled by partners of the law firm of Bifferato, Gentilotti, Biden and Balick LLC recently purchased the building at 800 King St. in Wilmington, Del.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

King Street Associates LLC sold the 102,000-square-foot building, formerly known as the "Conectiv Building," which was built in 1971. It will undergo extensive upgrades, including a high-end, class A fit-out, refurbishing of offices and the lobby, elevator upgrades, and power-washing of the exterior.  more...

Phillips Edison grows in Arkansas

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Phillips Edison & Co. recently announced the acquisition of Geyer Springs, a 147,112-square-foot retail center in Little Rock, Ark.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

At the time of sale, the shopping center was anchored by Harvest Foods.

"Geyer Springs presents Phillips Edison with an opportunity to focus our leasing efforts in upgrading and stabilizing a grocery anchored shopping center located at a strong retail corner," said Mark Addy, chief operating officer for Phillips Edison.  more...

Manhattan real estate prices stabilize

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Median sales prices for Manhattan apartments remained steady in the second quarter of 2006, with some areas seeing moderate increases, although not as robust as in previous quarters, the Real Estate Board of New York reported Tuesday.  more...

Man, 21, accused of slaying family

By Dave Myers, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

The son of a real estate broker in L.A.'s bucolic San Fernando Valley was charged Tuesday in the slaying of his Realtor father, licensee mother and teenage sister.

Prosecutors charge that Brandon Christopher Menard, 21, stabbed real estate broker David Michael Menard to death in their family home on a quiet cul-de-sac in Northridge late Thursday night or perhaps early Friday morning.  more...

Fannie Mae not ready to resume quarterly reporting

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Fannie Mae Wednesday informed the Securities and Exchange Commission it would not file a second-quarter financial report on time.

The news was expected, as Fannie Mae hasn't filed a quarterly report since the second quarter of 2004, when the government-sponsored mortgage repurchaser became embroiled in an accounting scandal.

Fannie Mae has capped its lending portfolio and suspended regular financial reporting as the company goes back  more...

Countrywide's real estate loan production falls 19%

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Countrywide Financial Corp. reported Wednesday that mortgage loan funding in July totaled $36 billion, a 19 percent decline from the same month last year.

The number of adjustable-rate loans funded in July plummeted 27 percent to $16.9 billion.  more...

Real estate foreclosures in Q2 drop in most metros

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Indianapolis, Atlanta and Dallas posted the nation's three highest metropolitan foreclosure rates in the second quarter, and four Texas cities are on the top-10 list, foreclosure information company RealtyTrac reported today.

The latest U.S.  more...

Real estate purchases pull out of 3-week slump

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Overall mortgage applications increased 4.9 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week before, fueled by a significant drop in interest rates, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported today.

The seasonally adjusted purchase index increased by 3.4 percent to 388.9 from 376.2 the previous week, and the refinance index increased by 7.1 percent to 1,518.1 from 1,417.2 one week earlier.

The refinance share of mortgage activity increased to 38 percent of total applications from 37 percent the previous week.  more...

Overnight real estate rates inch up

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were up Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield remained at 4.92 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 6.09 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate gained to 5.8 percent. The 1-year adjustable held at 5.4 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 5.02 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...

Real estate mapping gets more real Premium Content

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Editor's note: In this three-part series, Inman News looks at what industry insiders and participants expect will drive change and technology development in the next few years. We'll drill down on two of the hottest Web trends that are expected to get hotter for real estate: mapping and Web applications that drive consumers to broker and agent Web sites.  more...

ZipRealty reports net loss in Q2

By Inman News, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

ZipRealty Inc. today announced a net loss of $200,000, or 1 cent per share, for the second quarter.  more...

Basement water heater raises flood concern

By Bill and Kevin Burnett, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Q: In my 1938 home, I have a square well or sub-basement about 10 feet by 7 feet by 4 feet deep (a box). I step down two steps into this small area. My problem is, my water heater is here, strapped and on a 2-foot-high platform. The furnace is right next to the heater.

There is no drain and putting one in is not practical, although I have not talked to a plumber or contractor about this. If my water heater, which is 6 years old, breaks down and I have a flood, I would lose my furnace.  more...

Restaurant patron sues Denny's for serious injury

By Robert Bruss, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

Some time around 1:30 a.m. Andre Taylor and several of his friends left a social gathering to visit a nearby Denny's restaurant to get something to eat. After they ordered, Taylor realized he left his wallet in the car.

He was not in a hurry, running or intoxicated as he pushed open the restaurant's exterior door. Although he put his hand on the door's narrow brass plate, it slipped onto the door glass.  more...

Big drawbacks of buying home on leased land

By Robert Bruss, Tuesday, August 8, 2006.

DEAR BOB: We are considering buying a retirement home in a very nice new golf course development near where we frequently vacation. However, we learned the houses are on 99-year land leases. Although we don't plan to be around when the lease expires, won't that hurt the value of the homes as they become older? Are there any advantages or disadvantages? --Connie S.

DEAR CONNIE: That 99-year land lease is a great deal for the developer, but not so good for the home buyers. The reason is at the end of the 99 years, title to the houses reverts to the landowner.  more...