1. Audit Shows FHA Fund is Healthy, Time to Lower Mortgage Insurance Premiums, Say Realtors®
“WASHINGTON (November 17, 2014) – The following is a statement by National Association of Realtors® President Chris Polychron…”
2. Barely 1 in 5 L.A. homes affordable to middle class, study finds
“The bad news: Los Angeles County is the second-least affordable housing market in the country for a middle-class family.”
3. Short-sellers in limbo waiting for mortgage forgiveness tax relief
“David Foster, who sold his condo in Chicago last month, isn’t plugged in to Capitol Hill’s political games. But he has banked the financial future of his family on Congress accomplishing at least one thing during the post-election session: renewing the expired Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act so that he and his wife and three young children aren’t crushed by taxes next year on the $100,000 his lender agreed to cancel as part of a short sale.’
4. FHA Loan Insurance Fund Is Back in the Black, Report Shows
“The U.S. government’s mortgage insurance fund posted its first positive balance in two years after boosting premiums and cutting losses on loans.”
5. Housing agency won’t need another bailout
“A top government regulator for the housing industry will not need another taxpayer bailout this year.”
6. Federal mortgage insurer FHA swings closer to financial health
“WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — There’s good and bad financial news for the federal mortgage insurer that aims to support homeownership among families who can’t afford a large down payment, according to a report released Monday.”
7. MBA: Independent mortgage bankers most closely regulated of all
“With a few players in the mortgage space having made unfortunate headlines in the last couple of months, some are worried that it may make borrowers gun shy about independent mortgage bankers and nonbank firms.”
8. Court to Consider When Second Mortgage Can Be Void
“The Supreme Court said Monday it will decide whether homeowners who declare bankruptcy can void a second mortgage if the home’s market value has dropped below the amount they owe on the first mortgage.”
9. Homebuilder confidence rises in November
“Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rose four points to a level of 58 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo housing market index.”
10. Freddie Mac: 5 game-changing predictions for 2015
“The housing market is about to turn a corner into the new year, and according to Freddie Mac, the U.S. economy is well poised to sustain about a 3% growth rate for 2015.”
11. PropertyRadar: Spring could bring hope for California homebuyers
“The median price of a California home in October remained unchanged from September, once again coming in at $385,000, reaffirming a continuous trend of flat prices, according to the latest PropertyRadar Real Property Report.”
12. More parents move in with their kids
“Amy Goyer moved from Alexandria, Va., to Arizona about five years ago; her parents moved into a senior living community, and she moved into their home of 30 years.”
13. Julian Castro: Broad Support “For Doing Away With Fannie” Backstop
“HUD Secretary Julian Castro spoke with Bloomberg TV’s Peter Cook about the first positive balance for the Federal Housing Administration’s mortgage-insurance fund in two years and the outlook for an overhaul of federal housing-finance rules.”
14. REAL ESTATE: Sweet smell of housing success
“Decades ago, it was a place where the scent of orange blossoms filled the air, where families in need of a working wage could get their start.”
15. REAL ESTATE: Land sites will roll out in 2015 across Riverside County
“For all the talk of housing shortages, watch for stealth companies that bought distressed property at rock-bottom prices to put their holdings back on the marketplace in 2015.”
16. FHA ISSUES ANNUAL FINANCIAL STATUS REPORT TO CONGRESS
“WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today released its annual report to Congress on the financial condition of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund. The independent actuarial report shows that FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMIF) has improved going from a negative value to a growth of $21 billion within two years. Read a comprehensive summary of the report released today.’
“There is a heavy premium that is placed on purchasing a single family detached property. In the past, condos were seen as a fine entry point into the housing market before trading up to a single family detached home. But with current home and condo prices, people are looking at making their first purchase stick. Since there appears to be a slowdown in the housing market, we are seeing some interesting marketing on how properties are pitched. One of them is the condo alternative pitch on smaller properties. These homes are targeted to those desperately trying to get their foot into the housing market even if the home is smaller than a condo. I’ve seen a good amount of these properties hitting the market in Pasadena. I would imagine that many buying these places are planning on leveraging up in a few years and going with a bigger property, especially if they plan on having a family given buying a home tends to set the stage for kids. Let us take a look at a current property in Pasadena that fits the bill.”
18. Freddie Mac November U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook
“MCLEAN, VA–(Marketwired – Nov 17, 2014) – Freddie Mac (OTCQB: FMCC) released today its U.S. Economic and Housing Market Outlook for November showing that the home purchase market is expected to continue strengthening along with the broader economy during 2015.”
19. 20 Most Affordable Markets with Good Schools
“RealtyTrac analyzed school test scores for nearly 25,000 elementary schools in more than 7,500 U.S. ZIP codes, along with home price affordability in those same zip codes to identify the top zip codes with the ideal combination of good schools and affordable home prices — and also with low unemployment rates below the national average. RealtyTrac also looked at zip codes with good schools and the least affordable home prices.”
20. Are Real Estate Brokers An Endangered Species?
“Some 18,000 people gathered in New Orleans this month to look at the future of real estate brokerage. Inside the massive Ernest N. Morial Convention Center booth after booth at the 2014 Realtors Conference & Expo extolled the joys and efficiencies of the new electronic economy and the technologies which can make brokers and lenders more efficient and profitable.”