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Mortgage Interest Rates Fall Again to Yet Another New Record Low

Today Freddie Mac released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey, showing average mortgage rates have dropped to new all-time record lows!

Mortgage Interest Rates Reported:

What are the hot spots in the U.S. attracting home buyers?

Well, I guess my wife and kids aren’t the only people that want to move to Florida!  According to a report released by Trulia, house hunters from all over the country are searching for homes in Florida.  In fact, of the top 10 metro areas where demand among online house hunters is strongest, seven are

Continue reading… What are the hot spots in the U.S. attracting home buyers?

Home prices in U.S. fall in November - Back to mid-2003 levels

This morning, the S&P/Case-Shiller Index report for November was released showing US home prices decreased from the month before as well as the year before. The 10-city and 20-city composites fell by 1.3 percent each and the home price indexes were down 3.6 percent and 3.7 percent respectively from the year before. For a

Continue reading… Home prices in U.S. fall in November – Back to mid-2003 levels

Houses and the human body have a lot of similarities

Have you ever thought about the similarities between houses and the human body? For example as our bodies age, things are not quite as straight, square and firm as they once were in our younger years. At one time I had a 44 inch chest and now with age it seems that chest dimension is

Continue reading… Houses and the human body have a lot of similarities

California Investor Pleads Guilty To Bid Rigging And Fraud At Public Real Estate Foreclosure Auctions

Ninth Guilty Plea in the Investigation to Date

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A real estate investor pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Sacramento to conspiring to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions held in San Joaquin County, Calif., Sharis A. Pozen, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Department of

Continue reading… California Investor Pleads Guilty To Bid Rigging And Fraud At Public Real Estate Foreclosure Auctions

Mortgage Rate Update; Should you Rent or Buy a Home?

Until recently, home ownership was no bargain compared to renting, according to Paul Diggle, a housing economist at Capital Economics.

Recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau and published statistics from Thomson Datastream indicate that rising rents and falling mortgages are tipping the scales towards home ownership. The median monthly mortgage payment has fallen to about

Continue reading… Mortgage Rate Update; Should you Rent or Buy a Home?

New homes sales fall in December and make 2011 worst year on record

Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau released new home sales data for December 2011 showing a decrease of 2.2 percent from the month before, and a decrease of 7.3 percent from a year ago. The seasonally-adjusted new home sales rate for December was 307,000 homes, down from an

Continue reading… New homes sales fall in December and make 2011 worst year on record

One in five home sales is a foreclosure and only two-thirds the cost of a non-foreclosure home

Foreclosure Price 34 Percent Below Average Price of Non-Foreclosures

RealtyTrac, today released its third-quarter 2011 U.S. Foreclosure Sales Report, which shows that sales of homes that were in some stage of foreclosure or bank owned accounted for 20 percent of all U.S. residential sales in the third quarter of 2011, down from 22 percent of all

Continue reading… One in five home sales is a foreclosure and only two-thirds the cost of a non-foreclosure home

Ten cities that receive the most online home searches

Realtor.com, which claims to have more traffic on it’s website than any other real estate website in the world, released their report for December showing how 146 metro areas in the U.S. stack up in terms of popularity for home searches.  Chicago was number 1 on the list again this month, followed by Detroit, MI,

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Florida Loan Officer Sentenced in Connection with $2.5 Million Reverse Mortgage Fraud and Loan Modification Scheme

A loan officer was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Court Judge William P. Dimitrouleas in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., for his participation in a nationwide $2.5 million reverse mortgage fraud scheme, the Justice Department announced.

Louis Gendason, 42, of Delray Beach, Fla., was sentenced to 70 months in prison, five years of supervised release and ordered to

Continue reading… Florida Loan Officer Sentenced in Connection with $2.5 Million Reverse Mortgage Fraud and Loan Modification Scheme

New Home Starts in 2011 Set All-Time Record Low

The last couple of months I have said that, “unless something changes dramatically, 2011 will hit a new record low of new home starts. Unfortunately, nothing dramatic happened, and 2011 has ended with only 428,600 new home starts setting a new record low and significantly below the prior all-time low of 445,200 starts in 2009.

Former Employee and Contractors of Florida Property Management Company Indicted in Illinois for Conspiracy to Commit Bribery and Wire Fraud

Schemes Affected U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Mortgage Guarantee Program

WASHINGTON – A Rockford, Ill., grand jury today indicted a former residential sales manager and two former contractors of a Florida property management company in connection with housing repair contracts for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Department of Justice announced.

St. Louis Mortgage Rate Update; What income is required for a mortgage?

What income is required to qualify for a mortgage? That largely depends on your monthly debt payments and the current interest rate. This calculator collects these important variables and determines your required income to qualify for your desired mortgage amount.(click here)

 

Mortgage interest rates have fallen this year to historical lows

Continue reading… St. Louis Mortgage Rate Update; What income is required for a mortgage?

Mortgage Delinquences Increase in December but are Down over 25 percent from a year ago

Mortgage delinquencies in December increased to 2.24 percent of all mortgages, a slight increase from the month before when delinquencies were at 2.22 percent but a decrease of over 25 percent from a year ago when the rate was 3.01 percent. The mortgage delinquency rate is something I pay close attention to because it is

Continue reading… Mortgage Delinquences Increase in December but are Down over 25 percent from a year ago

Austin, Texas, Man Pleads Guilty to Bankruptcy Fraud and Identity Theft in Connection with Nationwide Foreclosure-rescue Scheme

Defendant Collected $1.6 Million from 1,100 Distressed Homeowners

WASHINGTON – An Austin, Texas, man pleaded guilty today in the Western District of Texas for his role in operating a foreclosure-rescue scam in Southern California and elsewhere that charged distressed homeowners fees in exchange for fraudulently postponing foreclosure sales.

Hawaii homeowners have highest mortgage amounts in U.S.

Ah the beauty and splendor of Hawaii! Living in paradise comes at a price though as Hawaii, by far, leads the nation in average loan amount on a home, coming at $677,299 according to a report just released by LendingTree.com. Coming in a rather distant second is Washington D.C. at $393,453, followed by

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FHA Extends Waiver of Anti-Flipping Regulations Through End of 2012

FHA “anti-flipping” regulations prohibit lenders making an FHA loan on a home that the seller has owned for less than 90 days. However, in 2010 this regulation was waived temporarily through January 31, 2011 by FHA in an effort to help the housing market conditions. Subsequently, that waiver was extended through the

Continue reading… FHA Extends Waiver of Anti-Flipping Regulations Through End of 2012

California Number 1 in Mortgage Fraud Ranking

The Mortgage Fraud Index from MortgageDaily.com has California at the top of the list for mortgage fraud activity during the third quarter of 2011.

The mortgage fraud index for third quarter was at 1173, down almost seven percent from the prior quarter when the index was at 1261, but up over 16

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Poll shows housing market second only to jobs in voter influence in 2012

A recent survey by Houselogic.com, a consumer website from the National Association of REALTORS, shows that jobs will be the most important issue for voters in the 2012 election, followed next by housing. Over half the respondents said jobs would be the top issue as they head to the polls next November and almost

Continue reading… Poll shows housing market second only to jobs in voter influence in 2012

Three Charged with Fraud in Florida Foreclosure Rescue Scheme

WASHINGTON – Lisa Wright, 46, and Cathy Saffer, 52, of Pompano Beach, Fla., were charged today with a conspiracy to defraud homeowners and banks in a foreclosure rescue scheme, announced the Department of Justice. Also charged was Barrington Coombs, 57, a certified public accountant of Weston, Fla., who participated

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Justice Department Settles with Kentucky Apartment Complex Involving Allegations of Disabiilty-based Housing Discrimination

The Justice Department today announced a settlement of its lawsuit against the owners, developers, architect and civil engineers of Park Place Apartments, a 276-unit complex in Louisville, Ky., resolving allegations that those involved in the design and construction of the complex discriminated against people with disabilities. Under the settlement, which must still be approved by a federal district judge in Louisville, the defendants will pay all costs related to making the apartment complex accessible to persons with disabilities and pay $275,000 to compensate 29 individuals who have been harmed by the inaccessible housing.

Alabama Real Estate Investor Agrees to Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Rig Bids for the Purchase of Real Estate at Public Foreclosure Auctions

WASHINGTON – A Mobile, Ala., real estate investor has agreed to plead guilty today for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in southern Alabama, the Department of Justice announced.

Former Coral Mortgage Operator Pleads Guilty to Multi-Million Dollar Securities Fraud

ST. LOUIS, MO—The United States Attorney’s Office announced the guilty plea of Matthew Kent, vice president and co-operator of Coral Mortgage Bankers Corporation’s University City office.

According to court documents, between May 2007 and December 31, 2010, Kent, his partner in Coral Mortgage David Rubin, and Joshua Gould, formerly of Woodbury

Continue reading… Former Coral Mortgage Operator Pleads Guilty to Multi-Million Dollar Securities Fraud

Justice Department Settles Housing Discrimination Lawsuit in Rolla, Missouri

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced that Roger Harris, Hediger Enterprises Inc., Carroll Management Group, Forum Manor Associates L.P. and Forum Manor LLC have agreed to pay $295,000 in monetary damages and civil penalties to resolve a Fair Housing Act lawsuit alleging sexual harassment, race and sex discrimination, retaliation

Continue reading… Justice Department Settles Housing Discrimination Lawsuit in Rolla, Missouri

Seventy-Eight Percent of Recent Homebuyers Said Their Home Is A Good Investment

Seventy-eight percent of recent home buyers said their home is a good investment,according to the 2011 Survey of Home Buyers and Sellers conducted by the National Association of REALTORS.

Mortgage delinquency rate increases for first time since 2009

This morning, Trans Union released a report showing the national mortgage delinquency rate (the rate of borrowers 60 or more days past due) increased to 5.88 percent (from 5.82 percent in the 2nd quarter) during the third quarter of 2011, after falling in the previous quarter by the largest rate in two years.

Continue reading… Mortgage delinquency rate increases for first time since 2009

Housing market has performed pretty well during past decade relative to other investments

Despite massive loss of value over the last few years, the U.S. housing market has outperformed the stock market since 2000.

A report released recently by RadarLogic showed that, over the past decade, the housing market, in spite of all of it’s recent troubles, has still performed better in terms of an

Continue reading… Housing market has performed pretty well during past decade relative to other investments

Almost half of prospective home buyers unrealistic about home value appreciation

You would think after what we have seen happen in the housing market during the past 5 years, especially in the area of falling home prices, that home buyers today would not have lofty expectations about a home they buy appreciating, but apparently many do. According to a recent survey Zillow, 42 percent of

Continue reading… Almost half of prospective home buyers unrealistic about home value appreciation

Eight Northern California Real Estate Investors Agree to Plead Guilty to Bid Rigging at Public Foreclosure Auctions

WASHINGTON – Eight Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty this week for their roles in two separate conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California, the Department of Justice announced.

Justice Department Resolves Lawsuit Alleging Disability Discrimination in Sioux Falls, South Dakota

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced this week a settlement of its lawsuit alleging that Equity Homes Inc, PBR LLC, BBR LLC and Shane Hartung violated the Fair Housing Act (FHA) by failing to provide features that would make their multi-family housing developments in Sioux Falls accessible to people with disabilities

Continue reading… Justice Department Resolves Lawsuit Alleging Disability Discrimination in Sioux Falls, South Dakota