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2007

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By , Monday, December 31, 2007.
Inman News writer and Coldwell Banker top producer Dian Hymer is a friend of the industry who needs our help. Suffering from cancer, she needs a bone marrow transplant. An initial run of the National Marrow Donor Program registry showed...  more...

Housing Market Decline Puts Brake Pedal on the Metal

By Glenn Roberts, Jr., Monday, December 31, 2007.
Problems in the U.S. mortgage market are meddling with the metals market, another example of the far-reaching impacts of the housing downturn, subprime mortgage meltdown and credit crunch. Bloomberg reports: "A slowdown in North America and the trouble in the...  more...

Shareholders propose settlement in MLSNI-MAP merger dispute

By Glenn Roberts, Jr., Monday, December 31, 2007.
The 10 shareholder Realtor groups that own Chicago-area Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois have worked out their differences in a settlement agreement that would allow a merger between MLSNI and another Chicago-area MLS (see Inman News). The settlement proposal,...  more...

$27M SoCal portfolio sale

By Inman News, Monday, December 31, 2007.

A portfolio of four San Diego, Calif., business parks totaling 162,182 square feet have sold for a total $27.2 million.

Colony Realty Partners bought the assets from McGrath Family Trust, which has owned the buildings for nearly 15 years.  more...

New apartments sold near San Francisco

By Inman News, Monday, December 31, 2007.

GID Investment Advisers LLC recently acquired on behalf of an affiliate, Windsor Realty Fund-V LLC, the 284-unit Metropolitan Apartments in Emeryville, Calif.

An unidentified entity sold the property for an undisclosed price.

WRF-V is an equity co-investment joint venture between GID and the California State Teachers' Retirement System.  more...

Sellers list right to avoid price reductions

By Dian Hymer, Monday, December 31, 2007.

In most areas of the country, 2007 marked a change in the residential home-sale market. Buyers gained clout for the first time in over a decade. Inventories of homes for sale grew to record levels in some places. Price reductions, which carried a negative stigma when listings were easy to sell, came to be seen as a necessary part of the home-sale process.

That is not to say that price reductions are a good thing. They are not. The initial marketing effort is a prime opportunity to attract attention to a new listing.  more...

Where are mortgage rates headed?

By Lou Barnes, Monday, December 31, 2007.

An inflation-inspired popup in rates is reversing on news of a weakening economy. Mortgages are still above 6 percent (they touched 6.25 percent at Christmas Eve worst), and markets will now hold until the release of all-powerful payroll numbers on Friday, Jan. 4.  more...

2007 real estate forecaster report card

By , Monday, December 31, 2007.

It's an Inman News tradition to report on the predictions made by economists at major trade groups for real estate in the coming year, and to look back to see whether what they said last year panned out.

Here's a look at what the National Association of Realtors, Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Home Builders, and the California Association of Realtors see in store for 2008, and how close their 2007 projections came to the mark.

Many experts didn't foresee the massive disruption of credit and financial markets that took hold in 2007, and now threatens to e  more...

Investors sink money into Louisiana residences

By Inman News, Monday, December 31, 2007.

Tenant-in-common investors recently closed on the purchase of a large apartment complex in Lafayette, La.

Purchased from Goodman Real Estate for an undisclosed price, Emberwood Apartments comprises 296 units in 24 two-story buildings. The property, built in 1985 on more than 14 acres, features approximately 267,000 square feet of residential space and includes a separate building that houses the community's leasing center.  more...

Extra payment to principal may not dent monthly payments

By Jack Guttentag, Monday, December 31, 2007.

Many borrowers would like a mortgage on which the monthly payment would drop following a large payment to principal. They may have highly irregular income, or they may anticipate coming into a large sum of money from a bonus, bequest or insurance settlement.

Mortgages fall into four categories with regard to how responsive they are to this need. Standard fixed-rate mortgages (FRMs) are the least responsive.  more...

10 people to watch in 2008

By Inman News, Monday, December 31, 2007.

The Inman News editorial team is keeping an eye on 10 people we expect to shake up the real estate industry next year. Here are our picks for who to watch in 2008:

1. Errol Samuelson, president, Realtor.com. Samuelson was appointed president of Realtor.com in February and also continues to lead Top Producer Systems, a separate Move company specializing in contact management software.  more...

New-home sales rate hits 12-year low

By Inman News, Monday, December 31, 2007.

The rate of new-home sales in November sunk to its lowest level since April 1995, while the sales rate for previously owned homes dropped 20 percent in November compared to the same month last year, according to government and National Association of Realtors reports.  more...

Update wills when moving cross-country

By Benny Kass, Monday, December 31, 2007.

DEAR BENNY: My elderly parents (dad is 90, mom is 86) had been living in Florida for the past 20 years, but due to bad health, I moved them to California. Do they need to change their wills or do the provisions still apply "as is"? I have power of attorney but would like to leave things as they are, if possible. --Beverly

DEAR BEVERLY: Wills should be updated periodically, even if you live in the same state.  more...

MLSNI shareholders sign settlement agreement

By , Monday, December 31, 2007.

Ten Chicago-area Realtor groups that are shareholders of the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois have signed off on a settlement agreement that would resolve a legal battle and pave the way for a merger with another MLS if it is accepted by both MLS boards.  more...

Congress reluctant to act on mortgage lending issues

By , Friday, December 28, 2007.

As 2007 came to a close, Congress had done a lot of talking about cracking down on unfair and deceptive mortgage lending practices, but didn't deliver on any major legislation.

Although there's some consensus that tighter regulations or new laws governing lenders are needed, some lawmakers have been reluctant to impose restrictions that might worsen the credit crunch and the housing downturn.  more...

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