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UrbanAmerica sells portfolio

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

UrbanAmerica L.P. has sold its portfolio of office/retail properties in the Washington, D.C., area for $48.5 million.

The seven revitalized properties, purchased in 2000, were fortified through an asset management campaign that included leasing to anchor retailers such as CVS, Footlocker, Giant Foods and Subway, along with stabilizing the office tenancy of D.C. government agencies. The properties are located in Landover Hills, Md., at 3907 Benning Road; 322 40th St.; 4528 Benning Road; 1500 Franklin St.; 4001-35 South Capitol; 3839 Alabama Ave.; and 6505 Annapolis Road.  more...

Food giant to lease Midwest space

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

ProLogis recently leased an 800,000-square-foot industrial warehouse in suburban Chicago to Kraft Foods Global Inc. for an undisclosed price.

Located at ProLogis Park 80, a master-planned industrial park under development in Morris, Ill., the new facility will serve as a primary distribution center for Kraft's Nabisco-brand crackers and cookies, serving food retail outlets throughout the United States. Kraft currently leases more than 2.3 million square feet from ProLogis at locations throughout North America.  more...

Sandy Marketplace sells

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Phillips Edison & Co. this week announced the purchase of Sandy Marketplace in Sandy, Ore.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

Sandy Marketplace is a 101,438-square-foot center anchored by Hi-School Pharmacy and 15 other tenants at the time of purchase. The city of Sandy has a population of approximately 20,000 and is located east of Portland.

Phillips Edison & Co. specializes in the acquisition and redevelopment of underperforming grocery-anchored shopping centers nationwide.

Bank to pay $100K settlement for 'no row house' policy

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

An Indiana bank has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle allegations that it discriminated against minorities by refusing to make loans on row houses in Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.

First Indiana Bank NA denied the allegations, outlined in a complaint filed by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), but agreed to institute a second review procedure for all denied loan applications and inform loan brokers that it has discontinued its no-row-home and minimum-property-value policies.  more...

Earth to real estate

By Marc Davison, Monday, June 4, 2007.

The "Redpin" spoof that ignited real estate's blogosphere last week hit my inbox a couple days before Inman posted it. It was sent from someone heavily invested in protecting full-service real estate. She referred to it as a "great" commentary and a must-see video.

Maybe I'm jaded, having actually been in show business, but I'm not convinced making fun of consumers is such a "great" idea.

I'm not going to wade into the "traditional" versus "discount" debate here.  more...

Bernanke: Subprime fallout hurts housing demand Premium Content

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Tighter standards in subprime lending -- along with bad publicity that may keep eligible borrowers from applying for loans -- will continue to restrain demand for housing, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told international bankers Tuesday.  more...

Fair Isaac to ignore authorized-user credit card accounts

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

To combat fraudulent manipulation of credit-risk scores, Fair Isaac Corp. plans to end the practice of giving borrowers additional points for being an authorized user on another person's credit card account.

Some companies that promise to boost consumers' FICO scores offer to make prospective borrowers authorized users on an established credit card account in good standing.

Borrowers who pay for this service don't intend to use the credit cards to purchase goods and services.  more...

Zillow, Move.com climb real estate Web rankings Premium Content

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Home valuation and property marketing site Zillow.com passed Yahoo Real Estate to rank sixth among the most visited real estate Web sites in May, Web metrics company Hitwise reported this week, and Move Inc.'s Move.com rose from 11th in April to 10th in May.  more...

Real estate rates up further overnight

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Long-term mortgage interest rates continued higher Monday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dipped to 4.93 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 6.07 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.76 percent. The 1-year adjustable climbed to 5.72 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was down at 5.03 percent.

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

Ranks of Ohio mortgage loan officers thinning

By Inman News, Monday, June 4, 2007.

The number of loan officers licensed to do business in Ohio has fallen by nearly 18 percent since more stringent licensing requirements went into effect on Jan. 1.

Ohio has seen an even steeper 21.9 percent decline in the number of licensed office locations operated by mortgage brokers since the first of the year, with 1,749 main and branch offices remaining as of June 4.

The state's new Homebuyers' Protection Act, which went into effect on Jan.  more...

Critics come down on commissions Premium Content

By Jessica Swesey, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Editor's note: Real estate commissions once again are at the center of debate after a recent "60 Minutes" segment on online discounters and a federal report on industry competition. In this three-part series, Inman News looks at recent research on commissions, the mystery around what agents and brokers can and cannot legally discuss, and how the new discount entrants are collaborating to add pressure to price.  more...

Best way to sell home with unpermitted upgrades

By Barry Stone, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Dear Barry,

We installed a new electric service panel on our home, intending to get a permit after other improvements were done. All work was eventually completed, and we never did get the permit, but everything was done to code by contractors. Now we want to sell the home. Can we simply disclose the improvements and hope that buyers don't talk to the building department about permits? If we get caught, can we continue the sale at a lower price? And could the city fine us for not getting a permit? --John

Dear John,  more...

Helpless against last-minute home-loan fees

By Robert Bruss, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Editor's note: Robert Bruss is temporarily away. The following column from Bruss' "Best of" collection first appeared Sunday, June 11, 2006.  more...

100 best towns to raise a family

By Robert Bruss, Monday, June 4, 2007.

Editor's note: Robert Bruss is temporarily away. The following column from Bruss' "Best of" collection first appeared Sunday, June 11, 2006.

If you can move any place in the United States to raise your family, first read "Best Places to Raise Your Family," by Bert Sperling and Peter Sander. This unique book reveals the top 100 best towns for families, based primarily on standard of living, education, lifestyle, and health and safety considerations.  more...

Jun

4
2007

More from the Hyperlocal Blogging Front

By Joel Burslem, Monday, June 4, 2007.
CityBlogUSA.com is the latest in a string of web services looking to jump on the hyperlocal blogging trend -- that is, blogging or generating content about specific streets, neighborhoods and cities. ActiveRain's Localism.org, YourStreet.com and the very quiet MyHouseKey project...  more...
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