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Home prices fall hard in Phoenix, S.F.

By Inman News, Friday, January 30, 2009.

An index measuring the price per square foot of homes in 25 U.S. metro areas declined in every location except Milwaukee in November 2008 compared to November 2007.

Several other price and sales reports reveal a pattern of record-low activity in some market metrics as the housing market crawls through one of the slowest periods since the Great Depression.  more...

FBI: Fannie target of malicious code

By Matt Carter, Friday, January 30, 2009.

A software engineer fired from his job as a contractor for Fannie Mae is accused of planting a malicious script that would have wiped out the data on all 4,000 of the company's servers and halted the processing of mortgages for at least a week had it not been discovered, authorities said.

Rajendrasinh Babubhai Makwana, who was employed by OmniTech as a contractor at Fannie Mae's Urbana, Md. facility for three years, is accused of planting the script on Oct. 24.  more...

Stimulus bill throws bones to housing

By Inman News, Thursday, January 29, 2009.

Debate over the wisdom of the spending and tax breaks included in an $819 billion stimulus bill passed by the House Wednesday is expected to intensify as the legislation moves to the Senate.

But Realtors are welcoming the House's treatment of tax breaks for first-time home-buyers and a proposal to restore the higher loan limits in place for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA last year.  more...

Mortgage rates holding steady

By Inman News, Thursday, January 29, 2009.

Interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages were essentially flat this week, falling two-hundredths of a percent from a week ago to 5.10 percent with an average 0.7 percent, Freddie Mac said today.  more...

AOL case complicates Stuart Wolff retrial Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Thursday, January 29, 2009.

The government's plans to retry former Homestore CEO Stuart Wolff for his alleged involvement in circular advertising deals that led the company to restate millions in revenue could be complicated by charges that AOL executives who testified in Wolff's first trial were involved in other, much bigger schemes.  more...

Broker: MLS training goes too far

By Glenn Roberts Jr., Thursday, January 29, 2009.

A real estate broker whose company operates in 23 states has complained to federal officials about a North Carolina multiple listing service that requires participants to physically attend a training session to learn about a new MLS technology platform.

Participants who do not complete the training will not be allowed to access the system.  more...

Mortgage apps down on higher rates

By Inman News, Thursday, January 29, 2009.

Mortgage applications fell 38.8 percent last week as interest rates on most loans remained elevated above recent lows, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Applications for refinance loans fell 48 percent from the previous week during the week ending Jan. 23, while applications for purchase loans were off a more modest 2.9 percent, the MBA said.  more...

72 hours to sell a home

By Joel Burslem, Thursday, January 29, 2009.

It must be something in the water. Or maybe its just the fact they’re working in one of the most competitive real estate markets in North America.

Whatever it is, it seems like Vancouver-based Realtors are really pushing the envelope when it comes to new media marketing (see Video isn't just about listings).

Kye Grace is one of those Realtors. He recently completed a marathon open house; 3 days non-stop, embedding himself in a downtown luxury condo he was trying to sell.  more...

Fed not budging on short-term rates

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 28, 2009.

A Federal Reserve committee that determines monetary policy is keeping its target for a key short-term interest rate at zero to 0.25 percent, saying economic conditions will likely warrant keeping it at "exceptionally low levels ... for some time."

The Fed last month completed a series of 10 consecutive reductions to the federal funds rate, the rate banks charge each other for overnight loans. Before the cuts began in September 2007, the federal funds rate stood at 5.25 percent.  more...

Sales pace of California resales rises 85%

By Inman News, Wednesday, January 28, 2009.

The sales pace of single-family, detached resale homes soared 84.9 percent in December 2008 compared to the same month in 2007, with the median sales price diving 41.5 percent, the California Association of Realtors reported this week.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of home sales in the state was 544,580 in December -- this rate is a projection of a monthly sales total over a 12-month period, adjusted to account for typical seasonal fluctuations in sales activity. That compares to a pace of 294,520 sales in December 2007.  more...

Economist: $825B plan may avert 'depression' Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Wednesday, January 28, 2009.

The House of Representatives is expected to vote today on an $825 billion stimulus bill that could save millions of jobs and prevent foreclosures, but which might also make the recession worse if the government's growing debt sends interest rates up and the dollar plummeting.

President Obama urged fast passage of the bill, saying new statistics being released every day "underscore the urgency of the economic situation."  more...

Real estate searches surge in California, Florida

By Inman News, Tuesday, January 27, 2009.

The Los Angeles metro area topped the list of most-searched areas in the U.S. at Realtor.com in December, parent company Move Inc. announced this week.

Chicago was second on the list, followed by the Riverside, Calif.; Phoenix, Detroit; Dallas; Tampa, Fla.; Philadelphia; San Diego, Calif.; and Boston metro areas.  more...

Obstacles delay REO sales Premium Content

By Matt Carter, Tuesday, January 27, 2009.
Flickr photo by <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/thetruthabout/2668750897/" target=blank>TheTruthAbout...</a>

While the government's efforts to keep lenders solvent may have allowed them to hold off on selling some properties at fire-sale prices in 2008 (see part one), real estate brokers and auctioneers expect REOs to be big business in many markets this year.

FDIC-insured banks had $23 billion of REO inventory on their books at the end of September -- a 134 percent increase from a year ago. That includes $11.5 billion in one- to four-family homes and $1.5 billion in property purchased with FHA-backed loans securitized by Ginnie Mae.  more...

CALMLS moving forward on acquisition plans

By Inman News, Monday, January 26, 2009.

CALMLS, a statewide multiple listing service initiative in California, got the green light -- in the form of a $3 million line of credit -- from the California Association of Realtors to pursue the acquisition of one or more MLSs.

Mike Silvas, CALMLS chairman and a broker in Napa, Calif., said Monday that CALMLS officials will continue in discussions with two MLSs, and a meeting is planned this week between a group representing one MLS and a subgroup of CALMLS.  more...

Median U.S. home price falls 15.3%

By Inman News, Monday, January 26, 2009.

The pace of existing-home sales rose 6.5 percent in December compared to the previous month but was down 3.5 percent compared to December 2007, the National Association of Realtors reported today, and the median price of resale homes dipped for the sixth straight month.  more...

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