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New Jersey real estate sales climb

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Sales of existing single-family homes, condominiums and co-ops in New Jersey continued at a strong pace in the the fourth quarter, according to the New Jersey Association of Realtors.

New Jersey's seasonally adjusted annual rate of home sales totaled 161,900 in the fourth quarter of 2004, up 3 percent from 157,200 in the fourth quarter of 2003.

The fourth quarter registered the second-highest sales of the year, with sales in the first quarter at 152,600; sales in the second quarter at 163,100; and sales in the third quarter at 154,800.  more...

'Lazy' investor turned tech pioneer

By Janis Mara, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Editor's note: We scoured the industry in search of behind-the-scenes technology innovators driving change for real estate. In this special Inman News series, we share their stories, but the five people and companies we chose are by no means the only pioneers in real estate. There are hordes of innovators out there, and we'd like to hear all their stories. Drop us a tip if you have someone in mind.  more...

California real estate foreclosures fall to record low

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Foreclosures in California dropped to the lowest level in more than 13 years in 2004, thanks to robust home sales and strong appreciation rates, according to DataQuick, a real estate information service.

Lending institutions sent default notices to 56,125 California homeowners last year. That was down 32.9 percent from 83,600 in 2003, DataQuick reported.

Last year's default count was the lowest DataQuick has in its statistics, which go back to 1992. Default activity was the strongest in 1996, when 217,410 homeowners suffered foreclosure.  more...

Overnight real estate rates nudge higher

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Long-term mortgage interest rates continued to climb Thursday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield rose to 4.18 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average increased to 5.17 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate gained to 4.75 percent. The 1-year adjustable was unchanged at 3.66 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.57 percent.

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

Greenspan says real estate bubble won't pop

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Housing prices may decline, but Alan Greenspan doesn't expect "anything resembling a collapsing bubble," the Federal Reserve chairman told the House Financial Services Committee on Thursday, according to the Washington Times.

"I think we're running into certain problems in certain localized areas. We do have characteristics of bubbles in certain areas, but not, as best I can judge, nationwide," Greenspan told the committee, the Times reported.  more...

Texas revisits controversial real estate rule Premium Content

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Friday, February 18, 2005.

The Texas Real Estate Commission on Monday will consider whether to propose minimum-service rules for real estate brokers that could hammer discounters.

Texas was the first state to establish new policies that would require brokers to perform a range of services – a move that would require some discount and limited-service brokers to change their business practices.  more...

Stewart Title lands another real estate title insurer

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Stewart Title Co. today announced it has acquired Effingham Title Co. of Effingham, Ill., which has been serving the area since 1910.

Existing staff will remain with the company, and former manager Kelly Hendricks will now serve as company president.

Effingham Title Co., which serves Effingham County in southern Illinois, is located at 207 North Third St.  more...

Credit card fraud leveling off

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Consumer experiences with credit card fraud in the United States, both online and offline, appear to be leveling off, but Americans still believe credit card fraud is on the increase, according to results from a survey among 935 American adults conducted by Ipsos-Insight, the global market research firm and member of the Ipsos Group.  more...

REIT gains new multifamily development

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Archstone-Smith, a multifamily real estate investment trust, has acquired Oak Creek Apartments, a brand-new 336-unit luxury multifamily community in Agoura Hills, Calif.

The value of the transaction was $99.6 million.

Oak Creek Apartments was completed in October 2004 by the seller, JH Snyder Co. The property features 24 14-unit apartment buildings, comprised of 1- and 2-unit floorplans.  more...

Southern California apartments sold

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Grubb & Ellis Co. brokered the sale of a 151-unit apartment complex in Ontario, Calif.

The transaction was valued at $22.2 million.

The property, The Woodlands, is a 24-building complex located at 1309 Mission Blvd. The site was built in 1988 and was fully leased at the time of sale.

Mission Woods LLC, a Mission Viejo, Calif.-based investment group, purchased the property from Irvine, Calif.-based Aslan Meadows Pines LLC.

Grubb & Ellis is a global provider of integrated real estate services.

***  more...

Spanish Oaks sells in the desert

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Marcus & Millichap arranged the sale of the 216-unit Spanish Oaks Apartments in Las Vegas, Nev.

The value of the transaction was approximately $13.2 million.

Spanish Oaks Apartments is located at 2301 S. Valley View near the Strip in Las Vegas. The property was constructed in 1976 with 154,800 rentable square feet on approximately 8.5 acres.

The buyer plans to reposition the property with substantial exterior renovations and has contracted with Stout Management to manage day-to-day operations of the community.  more...

Greenspan wants leaner, meaner GSEs

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve, on Thursday told the House Financial Services Committee he sees "no reasonable basis" for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to hold enormous mortgage portfolios, according to Forbes.  more...

Real estate: The week ahead

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

  • The Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Servicing Conference & Expo is slated for Feb. 20-23, in Orlando, Fla. The event focuses on the real estate finance servicing sector, trends in emerging markets, offshoring, economic updates, increasing profitability, and more.  more...

Industry favors trimming class-action lawsuits

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

National home builder and Realtor groups this week expressed continuing support for federal legislation that would push large class-action lawsuits into federal court and also welcomed a separate bill that would allow professional associations to offer health insurance plans to members.  more...

Former CEO accused of real estate loan fraud

By Inman News, Friday, February 18, 2005.

The former chief executive officer of a California mortgage company was arrested Thursday on wire fraud and other charges after he was accused of defrauding lenders out of more than $9 million.

Kenneth Ketner, 57, of Newport Beach, Calif., was named in a 14-count indictment by a federal grand jury alleging that he funneled money meant for borrowers to his now-defunct company, Mortgage Capital Resources, Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Stolper said.  more...

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