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A grim 2008 in real estate Premium Content

By Inman News, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.

The Federal Reserve and federal government worked to lessen the impact of a financial disaster in 2008 through a series of unprecedented actions that included pumping hundreds of billions of dollars into banks and other financial companies and the takeover of secondary mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Following is a list of 10 top news stories in 2008:  more...

Big-name lenders come tumbling down

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.

What is the top real estate story of 2008? Fannie Mae? Lehman Brothers? Washington Mutual?

A year ago, we discussed how the excessive extension of credit that led to defaults, foreclosures, home prices and more expensive mortgage money was the most talked-about story of 2007.

Everyone in the home buying and refinancing process was complicit, including brokers, bankers, securitizers on Wall Street, wide-eyed consumers and real estate agents.  more...

Use your network as a support net

By Teresa Boardman, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/valeriebb/749066382/in/set-72157600703447280/">Valerie Everett</a>.

Business slows down a bit over the holidays but it usually picks up fairly quickly at the beginning of the year. I am already getting calls from people who want to put their homes on the market after the holidays and will be very busy this January.

During the holidays I have had a little extra time to network and to connect with people. I have rediscovered the value of networking. Most of my networking starts on the Internet, but it doesn't end there.  more...

Surge in refis levels off

By Inman News, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.

Interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate loans continue to drop into uncharted territory, but a surge in refinancings appears to be levelling off, two surveys of lenders suggest.

Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) loans averaged 5.10 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending Dec. 31, down from 5.14 percent last week, Freddie Mac said today in releasing results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey.  more...

More regulation ahead? Premium Content

By Inman News, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/doctorow/2349429860/">gruntzooki</a>.

Tougher rules for those employed in real estate -- especially lenders -- is practically a given, Inman News readers say, but many hope that trade associations like the National Association of Realtors and the Mortgage Bankers Association will have the biggest say in drafting and implementing them.

In a survey of more than 700 Inman News readers, most saw lenders as the likeliest target of new regulations, followed by title insurers, real estate brokers and real estate agents.  more...

Price index drops record 18%

By Inman News, Wednesday, December 31, 2008.

A monthly home-price index that tracks price changes in 20 U.S. metro areas dropped 18 percent in October compared to the same month last year, with the largest declines in Phoenix (32.7 percent), Las Vegas (31.7 percent) and San Francisco (31 percent).  more...

Builders sue HUD over incentives

By Matt Carter, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.

The National Association of Home Builders has become the second industry group to file suit to block changes to the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, or RESPA, seeking a court injunction that would allow builders to continue offering consumers incentives for using their affiliated mortgage and title insurance companies.  more...

Survey: Realtor ranks to thin Premium Content

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.

The number of Realtors in America is almost certain to drop by 20 percent or more by 2010, a poll of Inman News readers suggests, with part-time agents among those most threatened by the market shakeout.

Virtual real estate companies, fee-for-service and premium full-service business models may be in the best position to thrive in the years to come, according to 702 readers who completed the 21-question online survey through Dec. 29.  more...

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A few ways you can connect with Connect. . .

By Daniel Rothamel, the Real Estate Zebra, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.

The nature of Inman Connect events is that not only are they great learning opportunities, but they are very social events.  There is a lot of meeting, greeting, networking, and discussing that goes on.  One of the great things about the emergence of new media is that it allows just about anyone to participate in all of this social activity.  Whether you are there meeting people and shaking hands, or back at the home or office, there is no reason to feel left out.  Here are some of the great ways you can use the power of new media to &q  more...

Settlement cracks concealed by sellers

By Barry Stone, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.

DEAR BARRY: Since purchasing our home, numerous cracks have appeared in the walls. Some are as wide as half an inch. We've also noticed that patching has been done at many of these cracks, indicating that the sellers of the home were aware of the problem but had attempted to hide it. None of this was reported by our home inspector when we were in escrow. How serious do you think this problem is, and what should we do about it? --Thomas  more...

Pollyanna and the rosemary plant

By Alison Rogers, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/chichacha/2473930145/">chichacha</a>.

Last year I was full of optimism. My New Year’s resolution for 2008 was to relax more and work less, and yet I was sure I would have a good year.

My prediction came true, and I worked smarter, and some deep relationships paid off, and I had my best year in the business ever.  more...

FHASecure refi program to sunset

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.

The Bush administration will not continue the FHASecure mortgage refinance program for delinquent borrowers beyond 2008, but home owners who are behind on their mortgage payments may still be eligible to refinance through the recently expanded FHA HOPE for Homeowners program.

In a letter to lenders, Federal Housing Commissioner Brian Montgomery said continuing FHASecure beyond the planned Dec. 31 termination date would have led to losses for the FHA mortgage insurance fund.  more...

WaMu paid agents referral fees

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.

A Washington Mutual retail mortgage office in Southern California turned real estate agents into "a pipeline for loan applications" by paying them referral fees, according to a New York Times story detailing the lender's rapid expansion during the housing boom.  more...

Creativity key in real estate today

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.
<a href="http://www.inman.com/events/real-estate-connect-nyc-2009">Click here</a> for more info.

Celeste Starchild, vice president of sales and marketing for ListHub, a part of real estate tech company Threewide Corp., will speak at the upcoming Real Estate Connect conference in New York City. The conference will run from Jan. 7-9, 2009.

Starchild responded to a set of questions posed by Inman News:

What do you see happening in the real estate market in 2009?

Competition will be fierce for everyone involved in real estate, and we will see continued rapid consolidation in the industry.  more...

Don't scrimp on marketing during downturn Premium Content

By Inman News, Tuesday, December 30, 2008.
<a href="http://www.inman.com/roadmap">Click here</a> for details about the Roadmap to Recovery.

Q: What skills will the real estate agent of the future require?

A: There are two skills in particular that agents will have to acquire in order to be successful in the future: one being marketing and the other being the strategic use of the Internet -- and social media in particular -- to build business.

Any agent who wants to survive must have a deep understanding of fundamental marketing principles and understand how to apply them in today's market. Innovative marketing is the key to success in tough times.  more...

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