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Tampa deal tops $24M

By Inman News, Monday, May 28, 2007.

BPG Properties Ltd. recently purchased a 181,154-square-foot office building in Tampa, Fla., for $24.5 million.

The 16-acre property, sold by GHP Office Realty, is located at 12470 Telecom Drive.  more...

Steel fabricator expands in New Jersey

By Inman News, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Logistics company Katoen Natie Gulf Coast has sold a 186,811-square-foot warehouse and manufacturing facility in Edison, N.J.

SteelFab Realty LLC, a fabricator and erector of steel-framed structures, purchased the property for an undisclosed price as part of its business expansion into the Northeast.

Located at 2960 Woodbridge Ave., the asset is located on 16 acres with amenities including active rail service to and from the facility, a new heating system and 14 loading docks.

'16 Minutes' spoof continues discounter debate Premium Content

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Monday, May 28, 2007.

Just when you thought the heated debate over the "60 Minutes" segment on the real estate industry had subsided, a spoof video has stirred the issue of real estate commissions and discount practices to a boil once again.

The folks at Point2, a Canadian company that offers online marketing tools and services for the real estate industry, said they created the video to poke fun at the May 13 "60 Minutes" news segment, which highlighted Redfin -- a real estate brokerage company that offers deep discounts to consumers -  more...

Appeals court throws out $32.4M damage award to Chicago Title Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Monday, May 28, 2007.

First American Corp. is chipping away at the damages awarded to rival Chicago Title in a lawsuit that claims First American lured a top manager away in violation of a noncompetition agreement.

In January 2005, a jury awarded Chicago Title compensatory and punitive damages totaling more than $43 million, after a district court ruled that the manager breached that agreement and that First American was liable for "tortious interference."  more...

Part 4: Blinded by the light Premium Content

By Marc Davison, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Editor's note: This article is Part 4 of a four-part perspective series looking at the impact of new online social media on real estate.  more...

Consumer confidence improves

By Inman News, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Despite record-high gas prices, consumer confidence brightened in May, The Conference Board reported today.

The Consumer Confidence Index rose to 108 this month from 106.3 in April, mostly because current-day business conditions seem better, but the outlook for the rest of the year is still uncertain.  more...

U.S. home-price index falls into negative territory

By Inman News, Monday, May 28, 2007.

A national home price index fell 1.4 percent in the first quarter compared to the same quarter last year, and a separate 20-city index dropped 1.4 percent for the month of March compared to March 2006.

It was the second time in the history of the index that the annual national growth rate was negative -- the first time was in 1990-91.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller National U.S. Home Price Index, which tracks the value of single-family housing for the nine U.S.  more...

Brokers realize benefits of paperless office Premium Content

By Jessica Swesey, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Editor's note: More big companies, trade groups and entrepreneurs are investing in technology platforms, back-end systems and software to automate the real estate transaction, but most consumers are still closing deals the old-fashioned way. In this three-part series, Inman News eyes progress on the paperless front.  more...

Inman TV: Paperless progress

By Inman News, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Paperless real estate: Some say we've come a long way, but there's still a long way to go.

More big companies, trade groups and entrepreneurs are investing in technology platforms, back-end systems and software to automate the real estate transaction, but most consumers are still closing deals the old-fashioned way.

Inman News managing editor Jessica Swesey and founder and publisher Bradley Inman discuss recent developments and what's to come.

 more...

Lenders weren't prepared for home-price declines

By Jack Guttentag, Monday, May 28, 2007.

(This is Part 2 of a five-part series. See Part 1, Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5.)

In the first article in this series, I pointed to the ending of house-price appreciation as the immediate cause of turmoil in the subprime market.  more...

Realtor's bad advice

By Barry Stone, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Dear Barry,

When I bought my home, the seller disclosed that the sunroom was added without a building permit. At the time, my Realtor assured me that a permit was not required because the room is less than 150 square feet. But now I'm doing some remodeling, and my contractor says the sunroom is not legal without a permit. When I called my Realtor, she said the contractor is wrong. Who do I believe? --Barbara

Dear Barbara,

Your contractor has advised you correctly.  more...

The power of permits

By Dian Hymer, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Dealing with a city's building department can be a nuisance, depending on where you live. The cost of obtaining permits ups the overall cost of a project. However, skipping the permit process can potentially cost you much more.

One homeowner jeopardized a profitable home sale because a significant remodel to the house was done without required building permits. In this case, the renovations added about 1,000 square feet to the building. The buyer's appraiser searched the public record for the recorded square footage of the house.  more...

Selling home is all about 'curb appeal'

By Robert Bruss, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Editor's note: Robert Bruss is temporarily away. The following column from Bruss' "Best of" collection first appeared Sunday, June 18, 2006.

If you are a home seller, real estate agent or a homeowner who cares about how a home looks from the street, "Curb Appeal Idea Book" by Mary Ellen Polson will anticipate your questions and help you show a home at its best.   more...

Not all mortgage fees are justified

By Robert Bruss, Monday, May 28, 2007.

Editor's note: Robert Bruss is temporarily away. The following column from Bruss' "Best of" collection first appeared Sunday, June 18, 2006.

DEAR BOB: Which home mortgage fees are proper for a lender to charge borrowers? I recall you said some fees are unnecessary junk or garbage fees to avoid --Stephen O.  more...