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Jan

5
2007

Frank says Fannie, Freddie profits

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.
Frank says Fannie, Freddie profits can fund affordable housing You may or may not agree with everything that comes out of his mouth (does the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina amount to "ethnic cleansing by inaction"?), but you gotta...  more...

Project City Center in Las

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.
Project City Center in Las Vegas: Now that's a model home! Extracted from a larger post at my home base, BloodhoundBlog:MGM-Mirage has opened a 30,000sf model home for its Project City Center development on The Strip in Las Vegas. Project...  more...

Make me an offer I

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.
Make me an offer I can't refuse So your house has been sitting on the market for 18 months, you've knocked $150,000 off the purchase price, but nobody's biting at $699,950. Then somebody comes along and says they'll give you...  more...

Technology, not Globalization, may be

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.
Technology, not Globalization, may be the key reason American wages are stagnant Here's a political hot potato - globalization - good jobs are going overseas while American job growth centers primarily in the low paying service sector. Politicians and industry...  more...

Forget a rate cut any time soon

By Lou Barnes, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Long-term rates have confirmed their over-the-holidays rise, but are taking strong economic news very well, mortgages holding at 6.125 percent.

December payrolls grew by a healthy 167,000 jobs, way above consensus forecast, and wages rose .5 percent in the month, nearly double the forecast. The December purchasing managers' manufacturing index rose above break-even to 51.4, out of its November trough, and the service sector held a strong 57.1.

Christmas sales were on the shaky side, but most of the weakness can be charged off to warm-weather damage to clothing sales.  more...

Inman Blog challenge: Is Realtor irrelevant?

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Is the Realtor becoming irrelevant in the Internet age? That will be Inman News Publisher Bradley Inman's opening question to Allan Dalton, president of Move Inc., and Glenn Kelman, CEO of Redfin, at the opening panel at Real Estate Connect in New York City next Monday afternoon.  more...

Another Kansas City politician indicted on mortgage fraud charges

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

The elected official who ran Jackson County, Mo., for more than a decade and her husband were among 11 people indicted by a federal grand jury Thursday for their roles in an alleged mortgage fraud scheme.

Katheryn J. Shields, 60, and her husband Phillip F. Cardarella, 59, both of Kansas City, deny participating in a scheme to fraudulently inflate the purchase price of a home they were attempting to sell in order to generate additional loan proceeds.  more...

AIG to consolidate NYC space

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Paramount Group has signed insurance company AIG to a long-term, 250,000-square-foot lease at Financial Square in downtown Manhattan.

The firm, which will be relocating several nearby divisions to Financial Square, is taking some space immediately, and following a custom build-out of several floors, will occupy the rest of the office space in March.

The AIG lease, the value of which was not disclosed, brings Financial Square to more than 95 percent occupancy. Other tenants at the property include Goldman Sachs, Daiwa Bank and Bank of New York.  more...

NNN Apartment REIT grows in Texas

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

NNN Apartment REIT Inc. recently added a second property to its holdings with the acquisition of the newly built Hidden Lake Apartment Homes in San Antonio, Texas.

NNN Apartment REIT, which has raised more than $16 million through its initial public offering as of Dec. 31, 2006, purchased the multifamily complex from Thompson Realty for more than $32 million.  more...

Seagis gains 160,000 square feet

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Seagis Property Group boosted its Miami portfolio with the purchase of a four-building, 160,000-square-foot office/warehouse complex for $12 million.

The properties are located in the Miami Lakes Industrial Park at 5800 East Miami Lakes Drive, and were 94 percent leased on a multitenant basis at the time of purchase.

This latest purchase increases Seagis' Miami holdings to 23 buildings comprising 1.8 million square feet, according to a press statement.  more...

Freddie Mac loses $550 million in third quarter

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Mortgage repurchaser Freddie Mac posted $550 million in losses in the third quarter, and expects to remain in the red during the fourth quarter, the company said today.

The losses were attributed to a decline in long-term interest rates, which reversed gains the company made in the first half of the year on derivatives and credit-guarantee assets the company holds to manage risk.

But Freddie Mac officials say the company's mortgage credit risk remains low, and that residential mortgage debt outstanding should continue to grow in 2007.  more...

California builders expect return to 'normal market' in '07

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

The chief economist for the California Building Industry Association trade group expects housing starts for single-family homes, condominiums and apartments to range from 155,000-170,000 units this year, which could be about the same or slightly lower than in 2006, the group announced this week.  more...

A word on self-branding

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Nashville real estate enjoys 'balanced market'

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Home sales in the Nashville, Tenn., area were down in November from their year-earlier level but still posted their second-best sales rate for the month, the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors reported.

Realtors recorded 2,867 home closings in November, down 3.9 percent from the 2,985 closings in November 2005. Total sales figures include single-family, condos, multifamily, farms, land and lots.

Year-to-date sales at 36,947 are 4 percent higher than the same period in 2005, according to GNAR.  more...

Another dip in overnight real estate rates

By Inman News, Friday, January 5, 2007.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were down again Thursday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dropped to 4.6 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average slid to 5.7 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate sank to 5.47 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up slightly at 5.32 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield declined to 4.71 percent.

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

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