Subprime loans hurt Countrywide's bottom line

First-quarter revenue from subprime mortgage lending at Countrywide Financial Corp. dropped by $400 million from the previous quarter, the company reported today, while rising delinquencies and increased loss reserves drove up credit costs by $132 million.  more...

VFlyer launches wireless tools

VFlyer, a company that builds marketing tools for real estate professionals to distribute and showcase property listings, today announced that it has entered the mobile realm with the rollout of wireless Internet and text-messaging tools.

With this latest innovation, vFlyer users can send or view property ads on mobile devices, view statistics on the traffic the ads are receiving, and manage their accounts.

The company launched last year as a platform to create property advertisements and automati  more...

'Modest' job growth on the horizon

The Conference Board today reported that job growth could be relatively weak this summer based on recent nationwide declines in help-wanted advertising.

The Help-Wanted Advertising Index, a key measure of job offerings in major U.S. newspapers, fell one point in March to 30, down from 31 in February and well below the 37 reading a year ago.  more...

Redfin expands and rebrands

Online real estate broker Redfin today announced it has expanded its service to Boston, marking the fourth market area for the company. Separately, the company launched a new version of its Web site and a new company logo.

Boston is the first East Coast market for Redfin, which offers to rebate a portion of the sales commission to buyers who do much of the home-search work themselves.  more...

Arizona revives bill impacting Zillow valuations

Legislation proposed in Arizona, which contains an amendment that would clearly exempt Zillow.com and other home-value-estimation Web sites from appraisal licensing requirements in the state, has been revived after a failed vote Tuesday.

Senate Bill 1291, which has already passed the Senate, is appraisal-related legislation that requires a two-thirds majority to pass because language in the bill relates to a change in fees. The bill failed in a 32-22 vote this week, but state Rep.  more...

Mortgage rates slide further this week

Mortgage rates fell for the second consecutive week as disappointing home sales and consumer confidence cast doubt on the strength of the economy, Freddie Mac reported today in its weekly survey.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dipped to an average 6.16 percent from 6.17 percent last week, Freddie Mac reported, and the 15-year fixed rate sank from 5.89 percent to 5.87 percent. Points, which are fees lenders charge for loan processing expressed as a percent of the loan, averaged 0.5 on the 30- and 15-year loans.  more...

Agents get more Web site options

As more real estate agents turn their attention to beefing up their Web presence, two of the industry's most recognized names in online real estate this week launched agent Web site products that incorporate IDX listings feeds of available properties.  more...

Overnight real estate rates barely budge

Long-term mortgage interest rates were mostly unchanged Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield rose to 4.65 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average held at 5.76 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate dipped to 5.48 percent. The 1-year adjustable stayed at 5.6 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.83 percent.

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