Home

$175M East Coast self-storage sale

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

Acadia Realty Trust recently paid $175 million for a portfolio of 11 self-storage properties located in New York and New Jersey.

Sold by American Storage Properties North LLC, the 933,000-square-foot portfolio includes six newly constructed buildings that were in the lease-up phase; one facility still under construction; and four converted warehouses.

The core-plus portfolio was 72 percent leased at the time of sale, according to a press statement.  more...

Faris Lee completes $23M retail sale

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

A major portion of The Island @ Carlsbad retail center in Carlsbad, Calif., has been acquired in a 1031 exchange for $23.6 million, Faris Lee Investments announced today.

Los Angeles-based Sero Properties bought the property at 5814 Van Allen Way from Island Property Partners LLC et al, an Orange County-based partnership, at a price of nearly $590 a square foot.  more...

Behringer Harvard expands office presence

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

Behringer Harvard on Wednesday announced that it has acquired Northborough Tower, a 14-story office property in the Greenspoint submarket of Houston, Texas.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

Situated on 5.4 acres of land, Northborough Tower is located at 100 & 101 Glenborough Drive, which is west of Interstate 45 and approximately a half-mile north of Beltway 8. The building includes a four-story parking garage and an additional 2.3 acres of surface parking across the street.  more...

U.S. foreclosure starts hit new records

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

Loans entered the foreclosure process at a record rate during the fourth quarter, and things are likely to get worse before they get better, the chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association said today.

Although reductions in short-term interest rates have lessened the shock of interest-rate resets for many borrowers with adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) loans, falling home prices are leaving more homeowners with little or no equity in their homes -- and less incentive to keep up on their mortgage payments, said MBA Chief Economist Doug Duncan.  more...

HUD rolls out new limits for FHA-backed loans

By Matt Carter, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development today implemented temporary increases in FHA loan limits in every housing market that it estimated will allow nearly 240,000 additional families to take advantage of the government-backed mortgage insurance program.  more...

NAR plans national commercial real estate platform

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, March 6, 2008.

A National Association of Realtors tech incubator company has acquired a commercial real estate data exchange company and plans to use its technology to launch a national commercial real estate listing and transaction platform in May.

Second Century Ventures LLC, a private equity fund established by the Realtors trade group supported by a membership dues increase this year, acquired Gig Harbor, Wash.-based ePropertyData.  more...

NAR: Home sales, prices expected to drop this year

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

The National Association of Realtors expects the median price of U.S. resale homes to drop 1.2 percent this year, following a 1.4 percent decline in 2007, with sales of resale homes slipping for the third consecutive year.

The forecast report released today also anticipates a 31.1 percent drop in single-family housing starts, a 6.1 percent decline in new-home prices, a rise in housing affordability and a dip in consumer confidence this year compared to 2007.  more...

When it rains, it pours

By Jessica Swesey, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

While the big news at Inman News this week has been the launch of our new Web site, we've also had some other changes, including moving our headquarters to a new office.

As many readers know, pretty much anything that can go wrong during a move usually does go wrong. Today, we learned that we will not have access to our phone system for a few more days.  more...

Mar

6
2008

When it rains, it pours

By Jessica Swesey, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

While the big news at Inman News this week has been the launch of our new Web site, we've also had some other changes, including moving our headquarters to a new office.

As many readers know, pretty much anything that can go wrong during a move usually does go wrong. Today, we learned that we will not have access to our phone system for a few more days.  more...

IRS debunks common tax myths

By Benny Kass, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

(This is Part 1 of a five-part series.)

"The income tax created more criminals than any other single act of government." --Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Ariz.)

Every year at this time, I write a series of tax-related columns. My purpose is to provide some guidance for homeowners preparing to file their income tax return. Normally, millions of Americans try to file their returns well in advance of the April 15 deadline. They either want an early refund if they have overpaid their tax or just want to get this burden off their back as soon as possible.  more...

The new loan limits are here

By Matt Carter, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

HUD's released the new loan limits for FHA, Fannie and Freddie.

To find the limit for your area, go to this Web page and enter your county or MSA, and select the loan type from the pulldown menu at the bottom.

Note that FHA home equity conversion mortgages -- "HECMs" -- are still subject to the old limits.  more...

Economic news drives mortgage rates down

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

Mortgage rates fell sharply this week on softer economic news, Freddie Mac reported today.

The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages dropped 21 basis points from a week ago, dipping from 6.24 percent to 6.03 percent, and the average 15-year fixed mortgage tumbled from 5.72 percent to 5.47 percent.

Points, or fees that lenders charge for loan processing expressed as a percent of the loan, averaged 0.5 on the 30- and 15-year loans.  more...

Real estate rates end night higher

By Inman News, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

Long-term mortgage interest rates climbed again Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield was up at 3.69 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 6.03 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.42 percent. The 1-year adjustable rate jumped to 4.66 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.6 percent.

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

Corporate tenant's guests rack up complaints

By Janet Portman, Thursday, March 6, 2008.

Q: I recently signed a one-year lease to rent an apartment in a large complex. Early on, I noticed that there was a lot of turnover in the apartment above me; tenants seemed to stay from two days to several weeks, but not longer. I've recently learned that this is a "corporate unit" leased by a large, local company to put up their visitors and guests. Some of these tenants are noisy, playing loud music late at night and having regular parties at mid-week. When I complained to the property manager, I was told there was nothing he could do about it.  more...