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Feb

6
2008

LIBOR to the rescue?

By Matt Carter, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Good news about the economy and housing markets is scarce these days, but peer into the mouth of this gift horse offered up by the Associated Press on the improving outlook for ARM borrowers and you may spot a couple...  more...

The Battle to Bring Back Buyers

By Glenn Roberts, Jr., Wednesday, February 6, 2008.
Real estate brokerage and franchise company Realogy has launched an ad campaign that promotes low mortgage interest rates, improving affordability, and the availaibilty of home loans. "Think you can't get a home loan?" the ad states. "Well, think again. You...  more...

Buying second home offers tax break, but at a price

By Tom Kelly, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

A friend of mine thought he would take advantage of the rotten winter weather -- and the perception that real estate is about the same -- and make a low-ball offer on a piece of recreational property that one day could become his second home.

His theory was that owners of summer lake cottages felt removed from their sunny getaways at this time of year and those older owners, reluctant to tackle another stretch of off-season maintenance and security, would especially be more likely to consider a cash proposal during the dark days of winter.  more...

SunGard lease announced in Midtown Manhattan

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Broadway Partners today announced it has signed Fortune 500 technology company SunGard to an 11-year lease at its Midtown Manhattan building at 340 Madison Ave.

The value of the 120,000-square-foot lease deal was not disclosed.

SunGard, which provides software and processing solutions for financial services, higher education and the public sector, will occupy three full floors.  more...

Massachusetts apartment complexes purchased

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Brokerage NAI Hunneman today announced the sale of two apartment communities in Clinton, Mass., for a price of $16.5 million.

Clinton Management Corp. and Camelot Management Corp. sold both facilities -- Town Lynne Village and Camelot Apartments -- to Micozzi Management. The combined sale totaled 193 units.

Town Lynne Village is located at 290 Berlin St., and Camelot Apartments is located at 1021 Main St.  more...

KeyCorp secures space in Higbee Building

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Financial services company KeyCorp today announced it has signed a 15-year lease agreement for approximately 221,000 square feet of office space in downtown Cleveland, Ohio.

KeyCorp, based in Cleveland, will begin its lease at the renovated Higbee Building in January 2010. Approximately 1,000 Key employees engaged in a variety of functions such as software development, technology and real estate operations will relocate from the May Company building beginning at the end of 2009.  more...

Builders deliver more bad news in earnings reports Premium Content

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Luxury home builder Toll Brothers, in a preliminary earnings report today, announced that home-building revenues dropped 22 percent in the first quarter compared to the same quarter last year, while builder Standard Pacific Corp. this week reported a $440.9 million net loss in fourth-quarter 2007.  more...

IAC: LendingTree losses justify spin-off Premium Content

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.
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Big write-downs at LendingTree helped drive a $369.9 million fourth-quarter loss at parent company IAC/InterActiveCorp, which said the mix of good news and bad news among the dozens of businesses under its umbrella justifies a plan to reorganize IAC into five independent companies.

Meanwhile, Bankrate Inc. said that although fourth-quarter results were hurt by a slow December, the company remained profitable, and acquisitions and a refinancing boom could help make 2008 the company's best year ever.  more...

Home loan apps increase in latest survey

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Despite a drop in refinance activity, consumers looking to purchase homes boosted overall mortgage application volume last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported today.

The group's market composite index, a measure of home loan application volume, rose 3 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the previous week. The index that tracks purchase loans jumped 12 percent (seasonally adjusted) during the period, but that growth was offset by a 1 percent decrease in the refinance index.  more...

Nightly real estate rates come down

By Inman News, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Long-term mortgage interest rates dipped Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield held fell to 3.57 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average sank to 5.47 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate slipped to 4.95 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate, however, rose to 5.07 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was down at 4.33 percent.

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

High ceiling's got homeowner itching to remodel

By Bill and Kevin Burnett, Wednesday, February 6, 2008.

Q: Some of the rooms in my house have 9-foot ceilings. Isn't the standard height 8 feet? That is what the more "modern" rooms in the house are. I'm curious as to why they made some of the rooms 9 feet tall. The kitchen, which has a 9-foot ceiling, was built with cabinets that go all the way to the top and can be reached only by hauling a ladder in from the garage. Was there some logic in 1916 to building kitchen storage that is so inaccessible?  more...