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Another Walgreens purchased in Ohio

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Grubb & Ellis Realty Investors LLC today announced the acquisition of a Walgreens building in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington, Ohio, on behalf of a private investor participating in the Grubb & Ellis Wealth Management program.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.  more...

Pennsylvania shopping center in the works

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Cedar Shopping Centers Inc. today announced it has entered into a joint venture with Tristate Ventures L.P., an affiliate of the Fameco real state group, for the development of a 137,000-square-foot shopping center in Stroudsburg, Pa.

The property, located at the intersection of Interstate 80 and Routes 611 and 33, is situated on nearly 18 acres and will be anchored by a 76,500-square-foot supermarket.  more...

Y.P. Realty's 1031 exchange completed

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Brokerage Marcus & Millichap today announced it has arranged the sale of a mixed-use asset and the subsequent purchase of three properties as part of a 1031 exchange.

The total value of the transactions was $8.3 million.

Following Y.P. Realty Inc.'s disposition of an apartment asset in North Bergen, N.J., Y.P. purchased a Citgo Gas Station in Richmond, Ga.; a Hardee's Restaurant in Opp, Ala.; and a Marsh Foods grocery store in Kokomo, Ind.  more...

Case-Shiller: Home prices drop in 19 of 20 metros

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

A monthly home-price index that tracks 20 major U.S. metro areas dropped 12.7 percent in February compared to the same month last year.

Nineteen of 20 metro areas in the monthly S&P/Case-Shiller index experienced annual declines in February, with double-digit percentage declines in 10 metro areas.

The index gauges the value of homes over time, based on price pairs for repeat sales of the same homes.  more...

Countrywide's third quarter in the red

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Countrywide Financial Corp. boosted loan production in the first three months of the year but reported an $893 million net loss for the first quarter as charge-offs climbed and the company boosted loss provisions.

The Calabasas, Calif.-based lender earned $434 million in the same quarter a year ago, but has been in the red since posting a $1.2 billion net loss in the third quarter and a $422 million net loss in the fourth quarter of 2007.  more...

Foreclosure activity doubles

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Foreclosure activity more than doubled in the first quarter compared to the same quarter last year, and foreclosure activity has increased for seven consecutive quarters, foreclosure data company RealtyTrac reported today.

Nevada led the nation with a rate of one foreclosure filing for every 54 households -- the rate is more than three times higher than the national rate of one foreclosure filing for every 194 households in the first quarter, RealtyTrac reported.  more...

Consumers lose confidence in economic turnaround

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Consumer confidence deteriorated further in April as weak business and job conditions and rising food and gas prices force Americans to tighten their spending, The Conference Board reported today.

The Consumer Confidence Index fell to 62.3 this month from a reading of 65.9 in March, with the Present Situation Index diving 10 points, from 90.6 to 80.7.  more...

California to cap title insurance inducements at $25 a year

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

California regulators plan to collect more detailed information on title insurers' affiliated businesses, and will prohibit title insurance marketers from spending more than $25 per year on gifts or other inducements for real estate professionals who are in a position to refer business to them.

Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner announced the planned regulatory reforms Monday in San Diego, where he addressed members of the California Land Title Association (CLTA) at their 101st annual convention.  more...

Nightly real estate rates mostly flat

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

Long-term mortgage interest rates barely budged Monday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield decreased to 3.83 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average stayed at 5.87 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate gained to 5.48 percent. Meanwhile, the 1-year adjustable rate dipped to 5.82 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield sank to 4.56 percent.

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

Realtor.com: Freshness counts

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

The drive to freshness is on in the real estate industry. And it doesn't involve a bake sale.

Real estate search site Realtor.com is combating the slow housing market with fresher property information.

About one-third of the 4.4 million property listings at the popular search site, which is operated by Move Inc. through a contract with the National Association of Realtors, are updated every 15 minutes, the company announced on Monday.  more...

BofA plans $40 billion in workouts after Countrywide merger

By Inman News, Tuesday, April 29, 2008.

In another move intended to smooth the way for its planned acquisition of Countrywide Financial Corp., Bank of America has announced that the combined company would work to modify $40 billion in troubled mortgages in the next two years -- about 265,000 loans.

Bank of America also announced Monday that it's committed to make $1.5 trillion in community development loans and investments over the next 10 years, double the existing goal of $750 billion.  more...