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Sep

14
2007

Resets are not the issue

By Matt Carter, Friday, September 14, 2007.
National Mortgage News will run an interview Monday with Countrywide CEO Angelo Mozilo. In the interview, conducted Thursday, Mozilo tries to "clarify misconceptions in the media about why consumers are going delinquent on their mortgages. He blames a majority of...  more...

Global economy, global credit crunch

By Matt Carter, Friday, September 14, 2007.
Reminding us that problems of mortgage lenders -- and the financial markets that back them -- are global, the Bank of England has been forced to bail out one of Britain's biggest lenders, Northern Rock, to stop a bank run....  more...

WaMu to offset 1,000 layoffs in home loans with retail hires

By Matt Carter, Friday, September 14, 2007.

Washington Mutual will lay off about 1,000 employees in its Home Loans Group around the country as it closes its Mortgage Banker Finance business and restricts WaMu Capital Corp. to securitizing only WaMu loans.

A WaMu Home Loans spokeswoman said the layoffs are a response to changing mortgage market conditions, but are taking place in conjunction with hiring that's intended to accelerate growth in the company's core businesses -- retail, consumer direct and wholesale lending.  more...

$10M Phoenix apartment sale

By Inman News, Friday, September 14, 2007.

Honolulu-based Hirano Enterprises has paid $10 million for an apartment complex in Phoenix, Ariz.

The seller, Gilbert, Ariz.-based Jackson Properties, unloaded the 96-unit Sun Terrace community at a price that represents $104,167 per unit.

Located at 16802 North 31st St., Sun Terrace Apartments consists of 12 two-story buildings situated on a 4.6-acre lot. Built in 2000, the apartment community features all two-bedroom/two-bathroom floor plans averaging 1,040 square feet.  more...

KBS REIT grows Dallas portfolio

By Inman News, Friday, September 14, 2007.

KBS Real Estate Investment Trust has purchased Plano Corporate Center I & II, a two-building, 308,038-square-foot office complex in Plano, Texas, for an undisclosed price.

Lincoln Property Co. sold the buildings, which are located at 2201 and 2301 West Plano Parkway just north of Dallas.  more...

Xerox moves into paperless mortgages with Advectis acquisition

By Inman News, Friday, September 14, 2007.

Xerox Corp. says it has agreed to pay $32 million to acquire Advectis Inc., the Atlanta-based provider of the BlitzDocs suite for mortgage lenders, brokers and investors.  more...

Portellus closing mortgage technology unit

By Inman News, Friday, September 14, 2007.

Citing declining market conditions, Portellus Inc.  more...

A little too computer-dependent

By Alison Rogers, Friday, September 14, 2007.

I admit, I am fairly new at this game, but it seems to me that we're all getting a little bit too computer-dependent.

In Ye Olden Days, my sponsoring broker tells me, when a listing came in you put it on an index card. When a client walked in who needed to be housed and you didn't have an appropriate listing, you called the other brokers in the neighborhood and jawed with them until you found the thing that was just right.

Apparently, they got used to talking on the phone with you, and didn't try to bite your head off.  more...

Fed rate cut likely next week

By Lou Barnes, Friday, September 14, 2007.

The credit panic appeared to stabilize on Wednesday, interest rates rising a bit, but the crunch found new legs today on news of sinking retail sales. At week's end conforming mortgages are a hair under 6.5 percent, the gap to vanilla jumbos closing to roughly a 0.5 percent premium, half of the worst in August.  more...

Overnight real estate rates up again

By Inman News, Friday, September 14, 2007.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were up Thursday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield rose to 4.47 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average edged up to 5.98 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.64 percent. The 1-year adjustable, however, dipped to 5.63 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was up at 4.73 percent.

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

Opportunity knocks online for Realtors Premium Content

By Bernice Ross, Friday, September 14, 2007.

(This is Part 1 of a two-part series. Read Part 2, "VFlyer lets agents track return on marketing dollar.")

Consolidation is one of the key trends occurring in the real estate industry today. Are you ready to capitalize on this trend in your business?

Will there be a single multiple listing service for the entire country?  more...

Today's wood more prone to decay

By Arrol Gellner, Friday, September 14, 2007.

Wood is a remarkable material -- infinitely varied, easily workable, biodegradable and renewable to boot. But it does have an Achilles heel: Compared to many other building materials, wood is quite perishable. Hence, using wood in architectural details subject to weather is really asking for trouble down the road.  more...

Safety first when it comes to I-joists

By Paul Bianchina, Friday, September 14, 2007.

I-joists, an engineered lumber product for use as floor joists, ceiling joists, rafters and in other applications, have proven to be one of the most significant developments in the construction field in the last several decades. Strong, light, consistent and reasonably priced, I-joists have all but replaced solid-sawn lumber in most joist applications in today's homes.  more...

When home won't sell, consider 'rent-to-own'

By Robert Bruss, Friday, September 14, 2007.

You've been looking for months for your first home, or you want to upgrade to a nicer home in a better community. It's a great time to buy a home, everybody tells you.

Finally, you find the ideal home for sale, which has most of what you want (there is no such thing as the "perfect home.")

Purchase Bob Bruss reports online.  more...