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Buyers frustrated with hot, cold bedroom

By Barry Stone, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.

DEAR BARRY: We purchased our home several months ago and no one disclosed the lack of heating and cooling in the master bedroom and bathroom. We even asked the sellers if the HVAC system was OK, and they said there was no problem. But now, we have a freezing master bedroom in winter and sweaty nights in the summer. The attic above the master has plenty of insulation, and there are dual-pane windows. So what could be causing the problem? What can we do about it? And are the sellers liable? --Ann  more...

Real estate media tips to remember Premium Content

By Alison Rogers, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/alex-s/126621473/" target=blank>alex-s</a>.

Braden Keil died last week at the young, young age of 53. The obits mentioned that he was a longtime real estate reporter at The New York Post and -- I love this phrase -- a "prince of the newsroom."

But this didn't even quite get to my friend Jason's summation: that he pretty much single-handedly invented real estate gossip reporting. The whole idea that if Nicole Kidman or Kanye West moved somewhere, that people would want to know what the place looked like -- before that fueled "TMZ" or MTV's "Cribs," it came from Braden's "Gimme Shelter" column.  more...

Builder confidence remains near record low

By Inman News, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.

Builder confidence remained steady in March, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)-Wells Fargo Housing Market Index report released Monday.

A rating below 50 signals builders view sales conditions as poor -- the index stood at 9 for March -- it was the fifth straight month the overall index has held steady. The index hit a record low at 8 in January.  more...

New Jersey bill seeks to lift rebate ban

By Inman News, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.

New Jersey's General Assembly on Monday voted 46-25 to pass a measure that allows real estate brokers in the state to give rebates to homebuyers -- the measure has not yet been passed by the state Senate.

The New Jersey Association of Realtors, a statewide real estate trade group, had earlier expressed opposition to the rebates, which were proposed in legislation introduced last year (see Inman News article).  more...

MARI: Mortgage fraud at 'all-time high'

By Inman News, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.

Reported incidents of mortgage fraud rose 26 percent from 2007 to 2008, according to a new report by the Mortgage Asset Research Institute, or MARI.

Application fraud was the most commonly reported type of fraud, representing 61 percent of all cases. Fraud related to tax returns and financial statements was up 60 percent from 2007, representing about one in four reported cases.  more...

Life after homeownership

By Marcie Geffner, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.

"It wouldn't be the end of the world."

That was how a friend of mine and I summed up our recent conversation about the prospect that either of us might be forced into a home sale by financial circumstances.

Thankfully, the prospect is hypothetical, but it's still one we've both worried about from time to time. We're both baby boomers (she at the older end and I at the younger end), self-employed and unmarried, which are three characteristics that add up to an existence without much of a safety net.  more...

Bank offers home loans below 4% Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Tuesday, March 17, 2009.
Flickr image by <a href="http://www.lumaxart.com" target=blank>www.lumaxart.com</a>.

A small bank in the Pacific Northwest is hoping to boost sales for builders who owe the bank millions by offering mortgages to new homebuyers at less than 4 percent interest.

Banner Bank began offering the low rates through a subsidiary on March 7 in Portland, Ore., and surrounding markets, and plans to expand the program next month to Seattle and Spokane, Wash., and Boise, Idaho.  more...