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Painting tips from the pros

By Paul Bianchina, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

If you're an avid do-it-yourselfer, you know the value of a simple can of paint for sprucing up walls and revamping tired rooms. But you've probably also experienced the love/hate relationship that seems to be a part of painting, so here are a handful of tips that should make your next paint project a little easier and more enjoyable.  more...

What happened to the mail-order house?

By Arrol Gellner, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

A century ago, Henry Ford's canny use of mass production put the automobile -- a former plaything of the wealthy -- within reach of the average American. Since then, mass production has made complex products from clocks to computers affordable to pretty much everyone.  more...

Buyers, you'll be wealthier if you quit renting Premium Content

By Bernice Ross, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

(This is Part 2 of a three-part series. Read Part 1, "Top questions to ask sellers at listing appointment.")

Are buyers really liars? Not usually -- the challenge is you just haven't asked them the right questions.

One of the biggest obstacles in converting leads into signed business is the agent's inability to stay in question mode rather than tell mode.  more...

Fed schedules hearings on BofA, Countrywide merger

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

The Federal Reserve will hold public hearings next month in Los Angeles and Chicago before ruling on Bank of America Corp.'s planned acquisition of Countrywide Financial Corp.

The meetings will be held on April 22 in Chicago and April 28 and 29 in Los Angeles (see announcement).  more...

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Outside-the-box thinking

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, March 27, 2008.

The staff directory page at the Pacific West Association of Realtors shows that even typically drab Web pages with dozens of mug shots, names and titles can be fun ... and funny.

See if you can find something out of the ordinary when you peruse the management information systems staff at this site.

RESPA reform alive again

By Jessica Swesey, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

Inman's own Matt Carter just buttoned up a three-part Special Report giving a deep look at HUD's latest RESPA reform proposal, and how it meshes with issues that stopped reform from going through six years ago.

The full PDF is available and downloadable to Inman Premium members at this link.
 more...

Trio of business parks fetch $50M

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

A joint venture between CIP Real Estate and Alex. Brown Realty this week announced its purchase of a portfolio of business parks in the Charlotte, N.C., metro area.

Sold by locally based Beacon Ventures LLC for $50 million, the properties include Coffey Creek International Business Center in Charlotte; Hickory Grove Business Park in Charlotte; and Lake Norman Commerce Center in Cornelius, a community just north of Charlotte.

The buildings feature an aggregate 597,725 square feet of office and warehouse space.  more...

Florida flex portfolio changes hands

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

Brokerage Marcus & Millichap has arranged the sale of the Broward Office Flex Portfolio in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for a price of $22.2 million.

Mizzen LLC purchased the portfolio, which includes three sites totaling 207,737 square feet, from Jamie Danburg.

The portfolio is situated on approximately 17 acres and includes office, showroom and warehouse space.  more...

SoCal office, industrial deals top $10M

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

Grubb & Ellis/BRE Commercial this week announced it brokered more than $10 million in industrial and office deals in San Diego County, Calif.

In the first transaction, Alphatec Spine leased 73,480 square feet of industrial space in Carlsbad for a price of nearly $7.8 million. Alphatec will use the site for manufacturing. The property, owned by H.G. Fenton Co., is located at 5830 El Camino Real. The lease extends for 98 months.  more...

NAR may call Realogy, RE/MAX officials as witnesses in DOJ case

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

The National Association of Realtors has plans to call nine witnesses to testify in court if an antitrust lawsuit filed by the U.S. Justice Department proceeds to trial, and may call upon an additional list of 14 witnesses.

A preliminary live trial witness list, produced by the National Association of Realtors in a Feb. 14 court document, includes a list of "will call" witnesses and a separate category of "may call" witnesses.  more...

Freddie Mac: Mortgage rates little changed this week

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

Long-term mortgage rates this week were mixed, with the 30-year fixed rate falling and the 15-year rate rising, Freddie Mac reported today.

The average rate on 30-year fixed loans dipped from 5.87 percent to 5.85 percent, while the 15-year average rose from 5.27 percent to 5.34 percent. By contrast, a year ago the 30-year averaged 6.16 percent and the 15-year averaged 5.86 percent.  more...

IHouse rolls out real estate pricing game

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

IHOUSE Web Solutions, a real estate technology company, has announced the launch of an online real estate game that allows users to guess at the sale price of for-sale homes. The game features photos and listing descriptions of actual for-sale homes, and awards points based on how a player's guesses stack up against those of other players.  more...

REmapper brings micro focus to real estate forecasting

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, March 27, 2008.
REmapper.com screenshot

A longtime real estate investor is launching a set of subscription-based research tools that offer market statistics and forecasts at the national and micro level -- down to the size of a Census block -- as well as some free real estate tools at the company's Web site.  more...

Nightly real estate rates dip

By Inman News, Thursday, March 27, 2008.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were lower Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield sank to 3.46 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 5.68 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate slipped to 5.2 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate, however, rose to 5.46 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield was up at 4.31 percent.

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