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Keystone buys in Florida

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Keystone Property Trust acquired a 545,000-square-foot distribution center in Miramar, Fla.

The value of the transaction was approximately $26 million.

The property is located at 3701 Flamingo Road, which fronts the Florida Turnpike in Broward County.

At the time of sale, the building was 67 percent leased to two tenants under long-term lease agreements.

West Conshohocken, Pa.-based Keystone Property Trust is a fully integrated real estate investment trust operating in the eastern United States.

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Commercial space a bargain in New York City

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

New York is a bargain for office space when compared to its international competitors, according to the latest survey of occupancy costs (rents, taxes, and utility costs) around the globe from Cushman & Wakefield, one of the largest privately held commercial real estate firm in the world.

New York ranked fourth on the list in "Business Space Across The World," which is published by Cushman & Wakefield. London ($164.70 per square foot), Paris ($105.78) and Tokyo ($91.33) were the three most expensive.  more...

S.F. Bay Area multifamily complex changes ownership

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Marcus & Millichap brokered the sale of the 89,193-square-foot Pavilions at Tyson Lane apartments in Fremont, Calif. 

The value of the transaction was $16.2 million.

The Pavilions at Tyson Lane is located at 38740 Tyson Lane. The property was constructed in 1992 and includes approximately three acres. The unit mix is composed of 27 one-bedroom and 57 two-bedroom apartments, ranging in size from 864 to 1,221 square feet.

A Northern California investment partnership sold the property to a Yuba City, Calif.-based investor.  more...

NRT, HomeServices ranked biggest real estate companies

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, April 1, 2004.

NRT and HomeServices of America topped an annual ranking of 500 residential real estate companies. The 2004 REAL Trends 500 survey, released Thursday, separately ranks companies based on 2003 data for sales volume and closed transaction sides.  more...

Fannie Mae's CEO to leave Time Warner board

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Fannie Mae's chairman and CEO Franklin Raines is expected to step down this year from his position as a Time Warner board member, The Wall Street Journal is reporting today.

Raines has served on the Time Warner board since the company's merger with America Online in 2001. He had previously been a director of America Online.

The Journal reports that people familiar with the situation say Raines is stepping down to focus more attention on Fannie Mae and other boards he serves on. Raines declined to comment for the article.

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Real estate agents fight for paid search spots

By Jessica Swesey, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.–Type "Miami homes" in Yahoo!'s search box and a mix of national aggregators, regional real estate companies and individual broker and agent Web sites appears in the sponsored results. The reality that smaller, individual brokerages are competing with companies with larger advertising budgets for the same keywords has some observers wondering what happens to local advertisers as more large companies enter paid search.  more...

Fix flood insurance now

By Marcie Geffner, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

A federal program that insures homeowners against the risks of flood has paid multiple claims on tens of thousands of particularly flood-prone homes. The insurance program is sound, but improvements should be implemented to stop these so-called "repetitive loss" properties from continuing to drain the program's resources.  more...

Regulators may get power to liquidate Freddie, Fannie Premium Content

By Samantha Peterson, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

The U.S. Senate banking committee today is set to mark up a draft bill that could give federal regulators the power to shut down Fannie Mac or Freddie Mac if either of them was in danger of insolvency.

The Republican-sponsored "Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2004" would combine supervision of all so-called government-sponsored entities under one roof and make additional reforms in how Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are regulated.  more...

Mortgage rates climb

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Mortgage rates jumped for the second consecutive week in anticipation of a healthier jobs report tomorrow, according to surveys conducted by mortgage buyer Freddie Mac and Bankrate.com.

In Freddie Mac's weekly survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.52 percent, with an average 0.6 point, for the week ended today, up from last week when it averaged 5.4 percent.

The average for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage this week is 4.84 percent, up from last week when it averaged 4.7 percent. Points on both the 30- and 15-year averaged 0.6.  more...

Cendant raises earnings projections

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Real estate giant Cendant Corp. has raised its projected first-quarter and full-year earnings per share from continuing operations. The first-quarter earnings are projected at 41 cents per share, up from 37-38 cents, and the full-year earnings per share are projected to be $1.68-$1.74, up from a former projection of $1.65-$1.72.  more...

Countrywide expands into commercial real estate

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Leading residential mortgage banker Countrywide Financial Corporation is expanding into the commercial mortgage market, the company announced today.

Countrywide has hired a team of principals from Coastal Capital Lenders in Sausalito, Calif. to lead Countrywide Commercial Real Estate Finance, effective today.  more...

Real estate construction spending slips

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Construction spending on housing put in place during February was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $921.1 billion, approximately 0.1 percent below the revised January estimate of $922.2 billion, according to the U.S. Commerce Department's Census Bureau.

The February figure is approximately 5.1 percent above the February 2003 estimate of $876.5 billion.

During the first two months of this year, construction spending amounted to $126.3 billion, approximately 5.4 percent above the $119.8 billion for the same period in 2003.  more...

Reality TV hits real estate

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Real estate will get a taste of reality television this summer when American Real Estate Idol debuts at Real Estate Connect in San Francisco.

Real Estate Connect, slated for July 28-30 at the Palace Hotel, brings together industry leaders to discuss the latest innovations, ideas and controversies in real estate. Register online today.  more...

Overnight mortgage rates stand pat

By Inman News, Thursday, April 1, 2004.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were flat again Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield sank to 3.84 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average remained at 5.21 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate stayed at 4.5 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up slightly at 2.97 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield dropped to 4.77 percent.

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