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41 indicted in Ohio mortgage fraud

By Inman News, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

Ohio authorities announced indictments of 41 people and four companies accused of engaging in fraudulent transactions on the purchase of 453 Cleveland-area homes involving loans totaling $44 million.

In what was described as one of the nation's largest mortgage fraud cases, Uri Gofman and 10 other defendants were indicted on mortgage fraud-related offenses including engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, a first-degree felony. The other 34 individuals and companies were indicted on mortgage fraud-related offenses, prosecutors said.  more...

New-home sales rise in July

By Inman News, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

Sales of newly-built single-family homes rose 9.6 percent from June to July, but were down 13.4 percent decline from a year ago, the Census Bureau reports.

At the regional level, sales picked up 32.4 percent from June to July in the Northeast, 16.2 percent in the South, and 1 percent in the West. New home sales were down 7.6 percent from June in the Midwest.  more...

Low appraisals sabotage more deals

By The Real Deal, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

Edward Milton Cisneros, a real estate agent at New York Living Solutions, was surprised recently to receive a panicked phone call from a family he is representing in the purchase of a Long Island City new construction condo. The buyers said the appraisal for their new home -- a two-bedroom and studio they planned to combine into one unit -- had come in far below the agreed-upon purchase price.

"I got an alarmed phone call from my buyer," Cisneros recalled. "The bank was questioning why they were paying so much."  more...

Sizing up real estate politics Premium Content

By Kris Berg, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmatos/540688952/" target=blank>ThrasherDave</a>.

I managed to carve out a little time for a run yesterday. It's a ritual I used to perform three to four times a week. Now, I seem to look for excuses.

"Wait! Isn't this the day that we honor the union of Eastern Rumelia with the Bulgarian Principality? I'll run tomorrow." So, running for me has become more of a seasonal thing.

And while I was at an intersection hunched over a utility box, praying the signal would stay red just a little bit longer ...  more...

Construction manager fights for payday

By Tara-Nicholle Nelson, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

In the case The Fifth Day LLC v. Bolotin, construction manager The Fifth Day agreed to provide various project and construction management services on property owner James Bolotin's behalf, to facilitate the construction of several commercial buildings on his property. In exchange, Bolotin agreed to pay The Fifth Day a percentage of his profits from the sale of the property, after construction was complete.

After construction was completed, Bolotin paid The Fifth Day a portion of the profits from three of the buildings, but refused to pay any of the profits from the remaining four buildings. The Fifth Day then filed suit.  more...

Demand for refis picks up again

By Inman News, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

Applications for mortgages were up 7.5 percent for the week ending Aug. 21, although the increase was mostly driven by increased demand for refinancings, the Mortgage Bankers Association said in releasing results of its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey.

Requests for refinancings were up 12.7 percent from the week before, and refinancings accounted for 56.5 percent of all applications, up from 53.3 percent, the MBA said.  more...

Warped door put to salvage test

By Bill and Kevin Burnett, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

Q: Our large -- 48 inches by 83 inches -- and very heavy wooden front door no longer closes tightly because it is warped.

The hinge side is even all the way. But, when closed, the side with the lock is flush with the molding at the top but flares along the length to the bottom, where it sticks out by 3/4 inch. It is a challenge to insert the dead bolt.

Is there anything we could do to salvage the door? If not, what replacement options do we have? Ideally, we'd like to keep the large size, but we could be persuaded otherwise. We're not locked in to a particular material.  more...

A social media policy of truth Premium Content

By Robert Hahn, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

"It's too late to change events
It's time to face the consequence
For delivering the proof
In the policy of truth."
--Depeche Mode, "Policy of Truth" (1990).

Writer, blogger and blog coach Frances Flynn Thorsen published a "Real Estate Social Media Policies Manual." It's a 19-page PDF document, apparently, and I say "apparently" because I haven't read it given that it cost $67 and I don't have an advance copy or some such.  more...

Seller financing's dark side

By Bernice Ross, Wednesday, August 26, 2009.

DEAR BERNICE: I hope you might be able to help (or at least point me in the right direction). I am in communication with an investor who is liquidating seven single-family residences. We were about to use seller financing until one of his friends told us how he: 1) sold his property "subject to"; 2) the bank exercised the "due on sale" clause; and 3) called the note due.

Long story short, I would like to buy and hold these properties. They have already been rehabbed; they cash-flow well; and they have Section 8 tenants. I need to find approximately $500,000 of long-term financing. --David C.  more...