Freddie Mac on track for quarterly reporting next year

Mortgage giant Freddie Mac announced on Monday that it is on track to report full-year financial results by the end of March 2005 and will return to quarterly reporting for the second quarter of next year.

The company has not been current in its financial reporting since a 2003 accounting scandal resulted in a $5 billion earnings restatement, a $125 million civil penalty and the removal of five executives.  more...

New housing goals finalized for Fannie, Freddie

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has finalized a rule that will require the nation's two largest housing finance companies to increase their purchase of mortgages for low- and moderate-income families and underserved communities.

The new final rule will be published in the Federal Register on Nov. 2 and become effective on Jan. 1, 2005. It will set annual housing goals and new subgoals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for the next four years.  more...

HomeBanc completes public offering

HomeBanc Corp. today announced the completion of a public offering through HomeBanc Mortgage Trust of about $894.7 million of notes backed by adjustable-rate, residential first mortgage loans.  more...

U.S. real estate affordability drops

General housing affordability conditions fell during the third quarter, a result of higher home prices, but remained favorable, according to the National Association of Realtors.

NAR's composite Housing Affordability Index was 128.6 during the third quarter of 2004, down 3.7 percentage points from 132.3 in the second quarter; it was 7.6 points below the same period a year earlier when it stood at 136.2.

David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, said current market conditions are keeping the door to home ownership open.  more...

Real estate loan closings get eNotarized

Stewart Title Co., Silanis Technology and the National Notary Association today announced a partnership to implement eNotarization capabilities into paperless mortgage closings.

The three organizations are working together to incorporate the NNA Enjoa signing tablet into Stewart's eClosingRoom, a key part of its SureClose platform.  more...

Real estate broker, homeowner face fair-housing charges

In its eighth action since September, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced it has charged Lillie Arnett, a Realtor and real estate broker, and her son, Teddy Arnett, with violating the Fair Housing Act for allegedly refusing to sell a home to Marvin and Stephanie Benton, an African American couple, based on their race and color.

On Jan. 24, 2004, the Bentons looked at a house Teddy Arnett was selling in Scott, Ark.  more...

Real estate construction spending up 9.4%

Private residential construction spending was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $551.6 billion in September, which is 0.2 percent (plus or minus 1.8 percent) below the revised August estimate of $553 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today.

That represents a gain of 13.1 percent over the September 2003 seasonally adjusted rate of $487.6 billion. The seasonally adjusted rate projects a monthly construction spending total over a 12-month period.  more...

IndyMac unveils Spanish-language B2B Web site

IndyMac Bank has launched a new Spanish business-to-business Web site designed to provide bilingual broker, mortgage bank and financial institutions customers with a resource for mortgage product and marketing information in Spanish.

The site, Zona Hipotecaria (Mortgage Zone), is a link from IndyMac's primary B2B Web site and uses many of the same marketing materials available on that site. Other targeted content on the Spanish "microsite" includes product information, online tools and a glossary of mortgage terms.  more...

Overnight real estate rates dip

Long-term mortgage interest rates were lower Friday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield slipped to 4.02 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average sank to 5.27 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate fell to 4.67 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up at 3.24 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield dropped to 4.79 percent.

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