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California Real Estate Headline Roundup

Posts Tagged ‘debt’

By Bruce Norris .

Peter Schiff, CEO of Euro Pacific Capital, Joins Bruce Norris on the Real Estate Radio Show #327

Friday, April 26th, 2013


Founder of Foreclosure Forum


(Full Bio)


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Bruce Norris is joined again this week by Peter Schiff. Peter is the CEO of Euro Pacific Capital and bestselling author of The Real Crash: America’s Coming Bankruptcy – How to Save Yourself and Your Country. He is also the host of the nationally syndicated Peter Schiff show, heard daily from 1-3 Pacific Time at schiffradio.com.

Bruce asked a question very near and dear to most of his clients’ hearts. Bruce asked about Riverside where the prices are so low that a builder could not possibly create a building lot or build a house for a profit. He wondered if this makes it underpriced or if it is still over-priced. Peter said that California is certainly not one market, but there are many local markets within the state. To the extent that property prices are below the construction cost, it is an indication that the market in that area may not be as overvalued as it is in other areas. In many cases, this depends on what the land is being valued. The land may actually be worthless in that respect, and the only value is the improvement. The improved property does depreciate over time, so if it is there to be used then it is also wearing out. If you cannot really sell it, then you have to factor in the depreciation until there is a point where you can factor it.

A lot of people who were in California during the Bubble were getting priced out of the market and started to stretch into distant Inland Empire type markets. Here they had about an hour commute, but they thought it was worth it because it was the only way they could get into the real estate game. They wanted to get rich, so they figured they would endure the long commute. Now that the bubble is burst, there is really no reason to live so far away from where you work, especially with the higher cost of gasoline now making it so expensive to get to work. This is assuming you still have a job. Peter said he thinks more people would rather rent something closer to work than buy something an hour away, even if it is a bargain based on what it may cost to build it. There could be no reason to build it. You could build a house in the desert and say it is selling for a lot less than it cost you to build it. However, there was no reason to have that house out in the middle of the desert.

In some respects you cannot say a property is selling below construction cost because it maybe should not have been constructed in the first place. It may have to go down a lot more before it makes sense for people to buy it. Usually when you think about California you think about the San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles, and Orange County. Even here prices are still way out of whack with people’s ability to pay. The only reason that people are still able to afford these high prices is because of massive government subsidies. Right now we have the lowest mortgage interest rates ever in the history of the country. This is what it is taking to pop up real estate markets. In addition, interest rates should not only be at record lows, but the Federal Reserve is buying $45 billion worth of mortgages a month.

Without the Fed buying up the market, mortgage rates would be rising. The only reason they are not rising is because the Fed is buying them all. The government is directly loaning money to people to buy houses at the lowest mortgage rates in history. This is the only thing holding onto the market. Eventually, the Fed has to take away the punch bowl; interest rates have to go up. This means mortgage rates have to go up and real estate prices have to plunge. Once interest rates go up, people cannot afford to buy these houses at these inflated prices. The other problem with California is the fact that the jobs are going to go. No entrepreneur in his right mind is going to move a business to California since plenty of entrepreneurs are planning to escape from California. Peter talks to people all the time who are planning to move to Nevada or someplace else and get out of California. You have governors, such as Rick Perry from Texas, who almost lives in California now recruiting California businesses to move from California to Texas. With a 13% income tax versus 0% along with work the California Labor Board is doing, the tax base will most likely be eroded. It is very expensive and risky to hire people in the state of California. People will most likely be leaving the state, not coming into the state. This means more houses will be up for sale and not as many people up to buy them. It is a disaster in the making for California real estate.

Peter is not opposed to signing up for a thirty-year payment at this level. If you own a house, you have to take advantage of the money. The worst way to own real estate right now is to own it free and clear and own it all-cash. The only way that you make money as a homeowner is by being a debtor. You are not really making money on the value of your house going up, but rather on the value of the debt being wiped clean. If you can buy a property with a 3 ½% down payment, which you can with an FHA loan, then you get a lot of leverage and can take advantage of the chief financing. When inflation wipes out all the savers and debtors, they also wipe out your mortgage debt. Therefore, Peter definitely thinks if you are going to own a house, then it should be done this way. However, if you are looking at an investing in property, he would not be buying in California.

There might be places where the economies are likely to be better, such as Texas, but the national economy is still going to suffer. This is because of the policies that come out of Washington and the Federal Reserve that affect everybody, even if you are living in a state that is getting it right. You are still living in a country that is getting it very wrong. In general, real estate is not a preferred asset almost anywhere. Peter said if he is right about the US economy headed for a major collapse, the financial crisis, the sovereign debt crisis, the dollar crisis, then it is not a good market for real estate. People are losing their jobs and will be spending more money on food and energy. They will not have as much money left over for rent or mortgage payments. Peter said he also thinks that households will be destroyed.

In the late 1990s, people were graduating from college, were getting good jobs, and they immediately bought a house. This is not going to happen anymore. People are graduating from college, cannot get jobs, and are drowning in student loans. There is no way they can afford a house, so there would be no reason for them to want one. There is no compelling reason to buy since the reason to buy before was that you could get rich since the prices were increasing. Now, people start to appreciate the cost of owning a house. There is a money pit, and you have to pay taxes, insurance, maintenance, and everything that costs money. People forgot about the cost of owning a house when prices were rising since it cost them nothing. The appreciation offset all those costs and caused money to be left over. Houses are not appreciating if they are just keeping pace with inflation. It costs you a lot of money to own them, so a lot of people cannot afford it.

You also have older people now who are retiring, but they do not have any income since they are getting 0% interest on their savings. They cannot afford to stay in their homes, so they are putting their homes on the market for sale. They have to downsize because they do not have the income to sustain themselves. You have a lot of people leaving the workforce now, so you have people who want to downsize, young people who cannot afford to buy, and the old people who have to sell. The supply and demand imbalance is going to be enormous, and you have all the backup in foreclosures. The whole process has been dumbed up for years, and there is a huge shadow inventory of property that is not on the market right now because people don’t think they can sell. The minute people see some kind of uptick in prices, you are going to see a lot of properties come right back on the market. Most of it will not be able to sell since there are not enough buyers. It is not going to be good if you are really worried about inflation and want to buy gold, commodities, or foreign stocks. If you want to buy real estate, buy it in Asia, Australia, or anywhere the economy is going to improve.

Peter lives in and owns a home in Connecticut. His home is way underwater even though he just bought it a couple years ago. He did not buy it as an investment, but rather because he was tired of moving. He rented it before he bought it. However, he bought the property for about 60% below what the guy who sold it to him paid, and he is still losing in it. It is still down because he spent money fixing it up, and he probably lost about 70% of the money he improved. Whatever he spent improving the house, he got back on the appraisal about 30%. The house went down anyway even though he bought it in December 2009. He bought it for half of what the price was in 2002. The person who sold it to him spent a lot of money on it and fixed it up. He really took a hit since he owned it for several years. Peter did not buy it because he thought he was picking out of the bottom. He bought it because he had enough money that he did not care how much money he lost on the house.

Peter owns a boat, which he said is not a smart financial decision since he only uses it about three or four times a year. At what it cost him to maintain the boat, he could rent a much better boat and save a lot of money. However, he does not own the boat as an investment. It is a lifestyle and something that he wanted to have, just like his cars. He buy cars he knows will go down in value every year, but he buys them anyway. This is the same attitude he has about a house. This is why you should not buy a house if you are not prepared to lose money. Otherwise it is rent. For most people, renting is cheaper. Brokers always try to con you into thinking you are throwing away money when you are renting. You’re not because you are getting a place to live out of it. For years he was renting houses and paying his landlord such a low rate of rent that they were in negative cash flow.

Peter was getting a great deal renting because he was avoiding all the headaches of owning a home. Now he owns a home, which he enjoys. However, it costs him a fortune. Things are breaking in his house all the time. Even though the house was built in 2002, things are still going wrong in it. There are workers at the house fixing something every week. Part of the problem is a lot of hot money has moved into the real estate market. There are a lot of private equity people who have borrowed a lot of cheap money and bought all these single-family homes. A lot of the home sales that have taken place recently are not legitimate buyers. They are flippers and speculators who have bought these houses up, are putting them up for rent, but they are hoping to sell them when the market comes up. It’s like a war because when interest rates go up, the prices are going to come down and they are going to start losing money on these houses.

With interest rates going up, if they take just the money they borrowed to buy them, they are not going to collect enough in rents to cover the interest on the borrowed money. As the economy worsens, some of the tenants may lose their jobs. Peter thinks you will see a lot of these speck homes coming down in the market. These guys are levered up, but when the investors want their money, they are just going to sell. They are just going to hit the bids, so you can see a big drop in prices because of all the speck money that is trapped in residential housing right now. Single families, for example, did not just buy an apartment, but rather huge blocks of single-family homes in Nevada, Arizona, Florida, and even Riverside, California. They think they are going to make money and are trying to catch a falling knife. However, they are going to end up catching it right in their stomach.

Peter has a son named Spencer who is ten years old and another on the way. Right now Spencer is too young to have an opinion on what he will have to deal with, but it probably starts early in the Schiff household. Peter does have one book he wrote that young people can really read, understand, and enjoy. It is called How an Economy Grows and Why it Crashes, which a lot of ten and eleven year olds have read. Peter recommended if you have a young child to buy the book for them, and when they are done to read it yourself.

Peter uses the term decoupling to describe a situation where, using the analogy of the global economy as a train, all the trains are attached to one another. If one moves, they all move. In that analogy, most people think of the U.S. as the engine with all the other trains. However, the idea of decoupling is that a train can decouple from that engine and keep on going. This means the U.S. might can stumble, but emerging markets can still do well. Peter’s idea about decoupling is that the U.S. is not the engine, but rather the caboose. Decoupling will actually benefit all the other cars because America is not pulling the train, but rather the train is dragging America’s dead weight. The reason Peter says America represents a dead weight is because we are net importers. We consume more than we produce, which means we are living off the global economy. If America just disappeared, then the world would have more, be able to work less, and enjoy more consumption from the work they are currently doing. They would have more. This kind of decoupling is going to be very positive.

A lot of people think if the US economy crashes, we will take the whole world down with it. Peter thinks it is the opposite and that it is actually popping the US economy up that is holding the whole world back. If the world lets the dollar collapse and stops subsidizing our economy, then their economies will take off.

One of the questions Peter asks in his book is if we will default in order to avoid a crisis, or will we react to one. Peter said he does not think we are going to avert a crisis. The only hope we have of eventually doing the right thing is doing it in the aftermath of a crisis. This goes to the nature of politics. Politicians follow their own self-interests, their own need for preservation, and their need to be re-elected. They are never going to deliberately do something to bring on short-term pain, even if it is exactly what is needed. They are never going to ask them to swallow medicine that is bitter, even if it will cure us. They would rather give us some sugar or something that tastes good just so they can get re-elected, even if in the process the disease gets worse since we are not treating it. Once it comes to the point where it is so bad they cannot do it anymore, then they may finally be forced to do the right thing. However, they will try everything else first.

Bruce said it seems like the one suggestion of just giving a one-time tax of the wealthy certainly seems like the sentiment is leaning toward people who have done well and have savings. They want to tap that spigot and tax it as hard as they can. Bruce said this feels like a pretty dangerous trend to him. Simply confiscating wealth through a confiscatory tax plan is not going to solve any of our problems. First of all, whatever money the government confiscates is just going to spend it. It is not like it is going to help the economy. However, you also create a very dangerous precedence that what you own is not yours and the government can steal it. People will not be trying to accumulate more wealth, but rather trying to hide whatever wealth they have out of the county. Once you start this, you are pretty much finished. What we need to do is restructure the debt by simply not paying back what we borrowed. This is not confiscating anything; this is simply defaulting.

Individuals declare bankruptcy all the time, but it does not mean we are no longer a nation of laws and that we no longer have a market. The market allows for bankruptcy. Stockton, California just declared bankruptcy. Cities can declare bankruptcy if they are broke. The US government is broke, and there is no way to pay its bills. All we can do now is keep interest rates at 0 so that we do not have to pay our bills. $1 trillion is being printed a year so we don’t have to pay our bills. This is damaging the economy much more than if we just defaulted. What we are doing now is far more dangerous to the economy than a legitimate restructuring of our debt where we tell our creditors we cannot pay them back. If we were to immediately default on our debt, nobody would want to loan us anymore money. This is a good thing. The best thing that can happen to America is that nobody wants to loan the US government any money because then the government has to stop spending. If they cannot borrow, they cannot spend.

In addition, we have to tie the Fed’s hands and make sure they cannot print. Right now the Fed is monetizing all this debt. They have to stop doing this. They have to stop giving the government an easy way out. We need a better Fed sharing with some backbone to let interest rates increase and to refuse to monetize any of this debt. This would force the government to cut spending. However, because the Fed gives them an easy way out they do not have to cut spending because there is no immediate negative consequence to the budget deficit because the Federal Reserve modifies them. However, this is creating grave long-term consequences. Peter said he is not talking about 10-20 years from now, but rather we are going to face these long-term consequences in the next few years.

Peter mentioned Stockton, California earlier. This is a real test cast for a lot of people who have debt who are in line, Calipers being one of them. There was another event with Cypress recently that probably makes people feel uncomfortable with large deposits. This could even be true with small deposits since initially they talked about giving everybody a haircut, including the accounts that were insured. If you have a bank account in the United States, you are going to lose. One way or another, you are going to lose. Your bank is going to fail, the government is not going to bail you out, and you are going to lose some of your deposits even if your account is insured. We have $8-$10 trillion of insured deposits, and the FDIC has about $20 billion worth of treasuries to back them up.
One scenario is that your bank fails, there is no bailout, and you lose and don’t get back your money. The other scenario is the bank does not fail because the government bailed them out and you get back all your money, but your money is not worth anything because the government had to print trillions in order to bail everybody out. Either you lose to inflation, or you lose to default. The lesson is don’t maintain a large bank account. You just need to keep enough money to clear your rent check or your mortgage check, and don’t keep any significant amount of money in the bank. You have to do something else with it, whether it is to invest it, buy gold, silver, stocks. Even buying real estate is better than leaving your money in the bank. Peter said he likes buying foreign stock or dividend-paying stock. Do something with your money. You have to buy something that the Federal Reserve cannot print.

One of the hardest things about investing now is because of the manipulation and interference, it is hard to say how it is going to play out in the short term since it is so volatile due to the interference. There is a lot of noise and a lot of things happening to manipulate the market. We also have foreign central banks, including the Bank of Japan, the Bank of China, the European Central Bank. We have banks all around the world and emerging markets in Latin America and Southeast Asia that are all interfering to prop up the dollar. All of this is delaying the day of reckoning, and it is impossible to know when this day will arrive. The only thing we know for sure is that it will arrive. The longer we have to wait, the worse it is going to be.

If you are interested in learning about how to build a globally diversified portfolio of foreign stocks and bonds, you can talk to one of the brokers at Euro Pacific Capital. The website is www.europac.net. If you want to buy physical precious metals, he also has his own metal company. You can visit him here at schiffgold.com. If you also want to listen to more of what Peter has to say, he also has his daily radio show he does on weekdays 7 am to 9 am California time Monday through Friday at schiffradio.com. He repeats the show every two hours in case you missed it the first time.

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 3/17/11

Thursday, March 17th, 2011

Today’s News Synopsis:

Statistics from the MBA show outstanding commercial/multifamily mortgage debt  fell by 0.5% in the 4th quarter of 2010. FHA mortgage delinquencies decreased about 7% year over year. According to MDA DataQuick, 4,991 new and resale houses and condos sold in the Bay Area during February. Also, 27,320 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month.

In The News:

MBA - “Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Debt Outstanding Fell by $67 billion, 2.7 Percent in 2010, Driven by CMBS Declines” (3-17-11)

“The level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding decreased by 0.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010, to $2.4 trillion, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) analysis of the Federal Reserve Board Flow of Funds data. On a year-over-year basis, the amount of mortgage debt outstanding at the end of 2010 was $67 billion lower than at the end of 2009, a decline of 2.7 percent.”

Housing Wire“Senate committee delays foreclosure mediation bill again” (3-17-11)

“The Senate Judiciary Committee delayed voting on a bill that would authorize bankruptcy courts to establish a mediation program in foreclosure cases nationwide. It is the second delay in as many months.”

Housing Wire“FHA delinquencies drop due to higher quality mortgage origination” (3-17-11)

“The serious delinquency rate for mortgages in the Federal Housing Administration portfolio declined about 7% in the first quarter of 2011 from one year ago. The 8.29% rate dropped from 8.9% a year earlier, according to a quarterly update from the FHA. In the fourth quarter of 2010, the delinquency rate was 8.84%.”

MDA DataQuick“Bay Area Housing Market Stuck In Neutral; Investors, Cash Buyers Active” (3-17-11)

“A total of 4,991 new and resale houses and condos sold in the nine-county Bay Area last month. That was up 0.5 percent from 4,966 in January but down 0.9 percent from 5,035 in February 2010, according to San Diego-based DataQuick Information Systems.”

MDA DataQuick“California February Home Sales” (3-17-11)

“An estimated 27,320 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month. That was down 1.4 percent from 27,706 in January, and down 2.8 percent from 28,111 for February 2010. California sales for the month of February have varied from a low of 20,153 in 2008 to a high of 48,409 in 2004, while the average is 32,117. DataQuick’s statistics go back to 1988.”

Housing Wire“Jobless claims drop 4%” (3-17-11)

“The number of initial jobless claims filed by unemployed Americans fell 4% last week to 385,000 initial claims filed on an seasonally adjusted basis, according to the most recent Labor Department survey.”

Housing Wire“Small investors play big role in healing housing market” (3-17-11)

“Small, local investors who earn less than $100,000 a year are playing a major role in the housing recovery by acquiring distressed REO properties, fixing them up and renting them out to future buyers.”

NAHB - “Young Home Buyers Will Lead Housing Market Recovery, Says NAHB” (3-17-11)

“Generation X –young families and adults ages 31 to 45 – are likely to lead the home buying recovery as it gets underway, according to real estate experts who spoke at an educational webinar produced by the National Association of Home Builders”

Housing Wire“RE/MAX: February home sales down 3%” (3-17-11)

“February home sales dropped 3% from one year ago, but increased from January, according to the RE/MAX national housing report.”

Looking Backing:

One year ago, the CBIA reported that new home sales decreased by 12 percent from January of 2009. Mortgage loan applications decreased by 1.9 percent from the previous week. HOPE NOW made over 99,000 modifications in January 2010, and HAMP made over 50,000.

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 2/3/11

Thursday, February 3rd, 2011

Today’s News Synopsis:

Freddie Mac reports the average rate for 30-year mortgages increased to 4.81%. The Labor Department said jobless claims declined last week. Freddie Mac funded $15 billion worth of multifamily transactions through its multifamily whole loan and bond guarantee business in 2010. The Treasury Department expects the government to hit the $14.29 trillion debt limit before June.

In The News:

Smart Money“Home Equity Lending Is Back” (2-3-11)

“some lenders are cautiously re-entering the second mortgage market. The effect hasn’t registered in the national statistics yet, but regional banks are reporting significant increases. In the Midwest, Associated Bank issued nearly three times more home equity loans in the second half of 2010 compared to the same period the year before. SunTrust Bank, which operates mostly in the south and Mid-Atlantic, has issued 25% more home equity lines of credit in the past six months compared to the first half of 2010.”

Mercury News“Mortgage rates: Average on 30-year fixed loans rises to 4.81 percent” (2-3-11)

“Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate rose to 4.81 percent this week from 4.80 percent the previous week. It hit a 40-year low of 4.17 percent in November.”

Housing Wire“Investment in CRE expected to grow 25% worldwide in 2011: Jones Lang LaSalle” (2-2-11)

“Global investment volume will jump 20% to 25% in 2011 to more than $380 billion, according to a report by Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL: 97.95 +0.56%) released Wednesday. In 2010, volume increased 50% from the year prior, up to $319 billion.”

Housing Wire“Jobless claims swing back to a decline” (2-3-11)

“The Labor Department said the seasonally adjusted figure of actual initial claims for the week ended Jan. 29 decreased by 42,000 to 415,000, which was a little lower than most analysts’ estimates. Initial claims for the prior week were 457,000, which was revised upward a few thousand by the Labor Department.”

Housing Wire“Freddie Mac multifamily funding surged in second half of 2010″ (2-3-11)

“Freddie funded $15 billion worth of multifamily transactions through its multifamily whole loan and bond guarantee business in 2010. Funding volume, which encompasses the agency’s targeted affordable housing products, is down from $17 billion in 2009.”

Housing Wire“Yahoo! and Zillow go live with largest online real estate network” (2-3-11)

“Last July, the two firms announced that the initiative to have Zillow power all for-sale listings on Yahoo! would be live by the end of 2010. Starting Thursday, any for-sale listing that appears on Zillow, even for-sale-by-owner listings, will automatically appear on Yahoo! Real Estate. At any given time, there are an average of 4 million listings available.”

Housing Wire“Philly Fed scholar pushes for increased quality, not quantity, of homeownership” (2-3-11)

“Alan Mallach, a visiting scholar for the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, made the case for a future U.S. housing policy that still supports homeownership for low- to middle-income families but also focuses on quality over quantity.”

Bloomberg - “Failure to Raise U.S. Debt Ceiling Would Be Dangerous, Top Obama Aide Says” (2-3-11)

“The government will hit the $14.29 trillion debt limit by the end of May, a little later than initially projected because tax revenues have been more robust than expected, the Treasury Department said in a statement yesterday.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, mortgage application volume increased by 21 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the previous week. Lender Processing Services reported that home delinquency rates increased to 10 percent from November. Inman and GMAC expected that job losses would increase in the real estate industry.

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 1/28/11

Friday, January 28th, 2011

Resources:

JPMorgan: Annual homes sales must average 5.5 million to absorb liquidations

It’s Official: 2010 is Second-lowest Year on Record for Homebuilding in California 

Ten indicted in California mortgage fraud scheme 

New-home sales increase in December 

Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

Mortgage rates inch higher, Freddie Mac says

GOP introduces bill to eliminate HAMP

Today’s News Synopsis:

The Commerce Department said GDP growth increased 3.2% in the 4th quarter of 2010. Freddie Mac reports 30-year mortgage  rates averaged 4.8% this week. A representative of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York expects the foreclosure process to continue to weaken the economy for the rest of the year.

In The News:

NAHB - “Remodelers Expect Market Gains During 2011″ (1-28-11)

“The latest National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI) edged up to 41.5 in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to 40.8 in the third quarter. An RMI below 50 indicates that more remodelers say market activity is lower compared to the prior quarter than report it is higher. The RMI has been running below 50 since the final quarter of 2005.”

Housing Wire“NY Fed official sees foreclosure procees weighing down home prices, construction” (1-28-11)

“While many economists are forecasting continued recovery in 2011, one official at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York expects the foreclosure process to remain a drag on the overall economy.”

Housing Wire“GDP growth accelerates in 4Q” (1-28-11)

“The Commerce Department said GDP growth rose an inflation-adjusted 3.2% in the final three months of 2010, up from 2.6% growth for the third quarter. Analysts surveyed by Econoday projected fourth-quarter GDP growth of 3.5% with a range of estimates between 2.9% and 5.4%. Economists polled by MarketWatch were also expecting GDP growth of 3.5% for the quarter.”

Housing Wire - “Trepp sees correlation in CMBS payoffs, what’s owed investors” (1-28-11)

“Trepp broke down the eventual fate of the $30.2 billion in CMBS loans that were due to pay off in 2010. It found ‘a tight correlation between a loan’s debt yield and the likelihood that a loan would pay off.’ Analysts found that 28% of the loans with yields of 8% or less managed to pay off. That increased to 43% of loans with debt yields between 8% and 10%, and ballooned to 75% of loans with debt yield higher than 14%.”

Bloomberg - “Mozilo Predicted U.S. Housing Collapse as Fed Overlooked Risk” (1-28-11)

“Former Countrywide Financial Corp. Chief Executive Officer Angelo Mozilo warned as early as 2004 of a possible housing-market collapse while the Federal Reserve overlooked the threat a year later, according to documents released by the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission.”

Realty Times“Bond Yields Rise and So Do Mortgage Rates” (1-28-11)

“30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.80 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending January 27, 2011, up from last week when it averaged 4.74 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.98 percent.”

Realty Times - “Property Rights of Unmarried Couples” (1-28-11)

“When a married couple gets divorced, the distribution of their marital property is governed by Domestic Relations law. But, what happens if unmarried property owners call it quits?”

Looking Back:

One year ago, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell by 0.01 percent from the previous week. Research from RealtyTrac showed that California and Florida accounted for 17 of the nation’s 20 worst housing markets. The Federal Reserve declared that the U.S. economywas in recovery.

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 1/6/11

Thursday, January 6th, 2011

Today’s News Synopsis:

According to Freddie Mac, rates on 30-year FRMs fell to 4.77% this week. Altos Research reports home prices fell 1.63% in December. Timothy Geithner requested from Congress to increase the national debt limit. The current debt limit is $14.29 trillion, and the nation’s current debt level is just $335 billion short of the limit.

In The News:

Research Institute for Housing America“A Study of Real Estate Markets in Declining Cities” (1-6-11)

“many places will likely resume growth and fully recover within the next decade or so. This is almost certainly not to be the case for all metropolitan areas. In fact, a number of large metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) experienced severe recessions during the latter half of the 20th century and prior to the Great Recession and never fully recovered or took many years to do so”

USA Today“30-year fixed mortgage rate dips to 4.77% average in latest week” (1-6-11)

“Freddie Mac says the average rate on 30-year mortgages dropped to 4.77% from 4.86% the previous week. It hit a 40-year low of 4.17% in November.”

Realty Times“Consequences of Defaults and Foreclosures” (1-6-11)

“One of the most startling impacts of a foreclosure appears on one’s credit report. Your credit score may plummet by 200 to 300 points. In this economic climate, where credit lending standards are already tightened, you may then find it difficult to do everything from buying a car to renting an apartment. What’s worse is that the notation of foreclosure stays on your report for up to seven years.”

Housing Wire“Altos: Home prices down 1.63% in December, new listings even lower” (1-6-11)

“Home prices fell 1.63% in December, but new listings are hitting the market well below that, according to analytics firm Altos Research. Prices fell in each of the 27 markets studied by Altos. Prices fell 4.77% in San Francisco — the steepest drop of any area, 3.71% in San Diego”

Housing Wire“Commercial mortgage modifications become huge trend in just two years” (1-6-11)

“Of all loan modifications in the commercial mortgage industry over the past decade, 96% occurred in the last years, according to Standard & Poor’s. The rating agency said 354 commercial real estate loans with a principal balance $15.6 billion were modified from January through November, up significantly from 216 loans valued at $7.06 billion for all of 2009.”

Housing Wire“DebtX November CRE loan volume down to 80.3%” (1-6-11)

“The decline in the value of commercial real estate loans in November was due primarily to an increase in Treasury rates”

Housing Wire“Geithner urges Congress to increase national debt limit” (1-6-11)

“Geithner wrote a letter to Congress Thursday requesting an increase in the federal debt limit. According to his numbers, the current debt limit set last February is $14.29 trillion. As of the writing of the letter, the outstanding debt subject to the limit standards is $13.95 trillion — just $335 billion shy of the maximum.”

Housing Wire“Equator’s Vella: Short sales set to swell 25% in 2011″ (1-6-11)

“With one in five borrowers underwater on their home and an estimated 1.5 million foreclosures scheduled for 2011, the opportunity for short sales will be better than ever. Investors usually see a 20% to 30% better execution on a short sale versus an REO sale when it comes to loss severity. With the foreclosure volume, current and pending REO inventories, servicers will be pressed to do more short sales in 2011.”

Housing Wire“New Fannie interactive Web tool provides foreclosure avoidance options” (1-6-11)

“Fannie Mae’s new WaysHome interactive multimedia tool walks homeowners through options if they are struggling to pay the mortgage — even allowing them to select a character and be a part of an interactive video.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, California Governor Schwarzenegger announced a new home buyer tax credit. The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that mortgage applications had increased by .4 percent from Christmas. The FOMC confirmed plans to buy $1.25 trillion in mortgage-backed-securities from Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae and Ginnie Mae. Eugene Ludwig believed that commercial real estate losses would break historical records in 2010.

For m ore information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 1/3/11

Monday, January 3rd, 2011

Today’s News Synopsis:

Tom Wind of J.I. Kislak Mortgage expects refinancing activity to drop by nearly 66% in 2011. Moody’s Investor Service forecasts lower supply and higher demand for rental apartments in 2011. The 50 state attorneys general probing U.S. foreclosure practices will first settle with Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citigroup and Ally Financial. Rick Sharga believes foreclosure activity will improve in Orange County during 2011.

In The News:

Bankrate.com“Zero-down mortgages endure in rural areas” (1-3-11)

“borrowers must demonstrate they can afford the mortgage payments by meeting the USDA debt-to-income ratios of 29 percent for the housing payment and 41 percent for the overall debt to gross monthly income.”

Housing Wire“J.I. Kislak expects higher purchase loan activity in 2011″ (1-3-11)

“Tom Wind, managing director of J.I. Kislak Mortgage, expects the refinancing activity to fall to $350 billion in 2011 from $1 trillion last year.”

Housing Wire“Moody’s sees multifamily REIT credit strengthening in 2011″ (1-3-11)

“Moody’s Investors Service expects lower supply and higher demand to stoke growth in rental apartments and subsequently help the credit of multifamily real estate investment trusts.”

Housing Wire“Ginnie Mae moves up multiple issuer deadline” (1-3-11)

“The cut-off time for issuers submitting multiple loan packages into real estate mortgage investment conduits (REMICs) was three days before the end of the month. Ginnie is now moving that up to six days before the end of the month.”

Bloomberg - “BofA Resolves Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Loan Dispute” (1-3-11)

“Bank of America Corp., the biggest U.S. lender by assets, paid $2.8 billion to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae after the U.S.-owned firms demanded the company buy back mortgages they said were based on faulty data.”

Bloomberg - “Foreclosure Deals to Start With Big Lenders, Iowa Says” (1-3-11)

“The 50 state attorneys general probing U.S. foreclosure practices will first settle with the five largest loan servicers, including Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said. No settlements have been reached yet, Miller said in a telephone interview today. The other three are Citigroup Inc., Wells Fargo & Co. and Ally Financial Inc., said Miller, the leader of the 50-state investigation. The five have 59 percent of the market, Miller said.”

Orange County Register“Dip in O.C. foreclosures for 2011?” (1-3-11)

“Orange County foreclosure activity has been trending downward over the course of 2010, and may continue to improve marginally over the course of 2011. There are a number of reasons for this, including an unemployment rate that is better than elsewhere in the state, and the fact that Orange County doesn’t have as much excess housing inventory as other areas in California.”

Orange County Register“No end to high-end foreclosures eyed for ’11″ (1-3-11)

“A recent study by the State Foreclosure Prevention Working Group found that nearly 3 years into the mortgage crisis, more than 60% of homeowners with seriously delinquent loans are still not involved in any loss mitigation/loan modification activity.”

For m ore information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 12/14/10

Tuesday, December 14th, 2010

In The News:

Mortgage Bankers Association“MBA Study Shows Mortgage Banker Production Profits Improved with Higher Refinancing Activity in Third Quarter 2010″ (12-14-10)

“Independent mortgage banks and subsidiaries made an average profit of $1,423 on each loan they originated in the third quarter of 2010, up from $917 per loan in the second quarter of 2010, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA)’s 3rd Quarter 2010 Mortgage Bankers Performance Report released today.”

Mortgage Bankers Association“Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Debt Outstanding Down 1.3 Percent on Bank and CMBS Balances in 3Q 2010″ (12-14-10)

“The level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding decreased in the third quarter, to $3.2 trillion, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) analysis of the Federal Reserve Board Flow of Funds data.”

Housing Wire“Robo-signing hangover slows foreclosures in Western states” (12-14-10)

“Foreclosure sales in Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington fell 38.7% in October and November, according to ForeclosureRadar.”

Los Angeles Times“Survey: Consumers prefer small banks, credit unions” (12-14-10)

“Americans continue to prefer small banks and credit unions to larger institutions, according to an annual survey of satisfaction with financial services. Small banks held steady in this year’s American Customer Satisfaction Index, with a combined rating of 80 out of 100. Major banks scored mainly in the high 60s, with only Wells Fargo & Co. exceeding 70.”

CNN - “Obama’s mortgage mod plan is still lacking” (12-14-10)

“Last April, the Congressional Oversight Panel found the program to be struggling to get off the ground despite having been in action for a year and a half. The latest evaluation of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) came out Tuesday and the result was — same deal.”

San Francisco Chronicle - “Loss of estate tax leaves hole in state budget” (12-14-10)

“The proposed tax deal in Congress would fail to deliver about $2.7 billion in estate tax revenues California was counting on receiving this fiscal year and next, but some say the state should never have expected those revenues in the first place.”

Housing Wire“Strategic defaulters opt to continue paying on second liens” (12-14-10)

“Borrowers who strategically default on their first mortgage often continue to pay on home equity lines of credit, according to a new white paper from two authors with the Philadelphia Federal Reserve.”

Housing Wire“Mortgage fraud suspicious activity reports up 7% in first half of 2010″ (12-14-10)

“Lenders filed 35,135 suspicious activity reports indicating mortgage fraud in the first half of 2010, up 7% from the same period a year ago, according to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.”

Housing Wire“Ginnie Mae earnings up 6% for fiscal year, issuance down” (12-14-10)

“Ginnie Mae earned $541.5 million in its fiscal year of 2010, up 6.2% from the previous year, but issuance dropped for the first time since 2006.”

Housing Wire“LendingTree survey shows 40% of homeowners took first loan offer” (12-14-10)

“Roughly 40% of current homeowners surveyed by the online lender exchange LendingTree obtained just one mortgage loan quote before purchasing their home. LendingTree and the Harris Interactive surveyed 1,317 homeowners online, and of those 96% said they compare prices when shopping for anything – except mortgages. This, according to LendingTree, explains why only 28% surveyed feel confident they got the best possible deal on their loan.”

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor event calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 200 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 12/10/10

Friday, December 10th, 2010



Resources:

Zillow: Home values crater by $1.7 trillion in 2010
Fitch sees 10% drop in home prices in 2011, negative outlook for MBS
U.S. Home Prices to Fall Up to 11% Before 2012 Bottom, Morgan Stanley Says
Economic recovery to stay muted
US Housing Market To Rebound In 2011 -Freddie Mac Economist
Chicago Fed sees housing sector improvement in 2011
Own-Rent Analysis
U.S. Mortgage Delinquency Rate Could Fall to 5% in ’11
Fannie, Freddie Pressed on Mortgages
Fannie Mae to suspend foreclosure evictions for the holidays
Defending the Mortgage Interest Deduction: The Facts Ad

Today’s News Synopsis:

Contrary to many recent forecasts regarding home price declines, Local Market Monitor believes many housing markets have bottomed, and may even improve over the next 2 years. Fitch Ratings reports delinquency rates on CMBS rose to 7.96% in November. American household net worth rose $1.2 trillion in the 3rd quarter.

In The News:

Washington Post“Housing agencies clash over mortgage-relief program” (12-10-10)

“The Federal Housing Administration says the program could avert foreclosures, but the Federal Housing Finance Agency has concerns that the program, if expanded to include the government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, could be a logistical nightmare that would cost taxpayers too much, the sources said.”

Wall Street Journal“BofA Restarts Some Foreclosures” (12-10-10)

“The bank instructed its foreclosure attorneys this week to prepare new affidavits in 7,800 cases where court approval is required to foreclose on a home, out of a total of 102,000 frozen by the bank amid documentation concerns. In states where no court approval is required, attorneys were asked to lift the hold on 8,000 delayed foreclosure sales out of 30,000.”

Housing Wire“Local Market Monitor finds many local markets hit bottom in 3Q” (12-10-10)

“Local Market Monitor reported a ‘definite bottom’ in Southern California, specifically the San Francisco Bay area, where the average home price stands at $642,159, a 17% drop from the peak in the third quarter of 2006. Analysts forecast that price to hold over the next year and possibly increase 1% over the next two years.”

Housing Wire“Fitch Ratings says CMBS delinquencies rose to 7.96% in November” (12-10-10)

“The number of delinquencies in commercial mortgage-backed securities rose last month with increases across all property types, according to Fitch Ratings. Analysts said the delinquency rate rose to 7.96% in November from 7.78% the prior month led by $1.6 billion of new defaults on office- and retail-backed loans.”

Housing Wire“Households and financial institutions decrease debt in 3Q” (12-10-10)

“American household net worth increased by $1.2 trillion in the third quarter as a result of debt deleveraging. According to the funds flow report, the average household net worth was $54.9 trillion, up from $53.7 trillion in the previous quarter. Net worth is measured as the difference between household assets and liabilities.”

Housing Wire“Altos Research suspects government may eventually take total control of GSEs” (12-10-10)

“Real estate statistics firm Altos Research suggests the United States government may lean toward gaining complete control of government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.”

Realty Times“ARMs Providing Unexpected Relief for Some Home Owners” (12-10-10)

“in recent weeks, for conforming, 30-year mortgages, the interest rate on FRMs have averaged about one percentage point higher than the 5-year Treasury indexed ARM. Fixed rate mortgages for conforming loans averaged 4.40 percent vs. 3.45 percent for the 5-year Treasury indexed ARM, according to Freddie Mac’s Nov. 24 Primary Mortgage Market Survey.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, foreclosure activity decreased  by 8 percent in November. Hanley Wood Market Intelligence reported that Orange County builders had their first positive month in October 09, after 13 months of contract declines. A survey from HomeGain showed that 48 percent of agents and brokers believe that home prices would stay the same, and 24 percent believe that prices would increase.  Data from the U.S. Treasury Department showed that 31,382 of the 1 million three-month modifications had become permanent.

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor event calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 200 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 12/01/10

Wednesday, December 1st, 2010

Today’s News Synopsis:

Freddie Mac announced it will suspend foreclosure evictions from Dec. 20 to Jan. 3, 2011. Automatic Data Processing reports the U.S. economy added 93,000 private-sector jobs during November. The Federal Reserve shared information about more than 21,000 individual transactions which provided $3 trillion in liquidity for market stabilization. According to the MBA, mortgage applications decreased 16.5% last week.

In The News:

NAR - “Realtors® Say Mortgage Interest Deduction Vital to Home Ownership, Economy” (12-1-10)

“The tax deductibility of interest paid on mortgages is a powerful incentive for home ownership and has been one of the simplest provisions in the federal tax code for more than 80 years. In a new survey commissioned by NAR and conducted online in October 2010 by Harris Interactive of nearly 3,000 homeowners and renters, nearly three-fourths of homeowners and two-thirds of renters said the mortgage interest deduction was extremely or very important to them.”

Wall Street Journal“Deficit-Panel Chiefs Urge Tax, Spending Changes” (12-1-10)

“A 59-page proposal from the co-chairmen of the White House’s deficit-reduction commission, which they labeled ‘The Moment of Truth,’ calls for sweeping changes in how the country spends money and collects taxes, the starting point for a long debate about how to tackle the U.S. debt.”

Inman - “Move Inc. launches mortgage site” (12-1-10)

“Like other sites and services that enable consumers to shop for mortgages online, MortgageMatch.com employs an automated pricing engine that allows consumers to see the loan products and rates offered by multiple lenders.”

Mortgage Bankers Association“Refinance Activity Continues to Decline as Rates Rise in Latest MBA Weekly Survey” (12-1-10)

“The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 26, 2010. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 16.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. This week’s results include an adjustment to account for the Thanksgiving holiday. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 34.2 percent compared with the previous week.”

Mortgage Bankers Association“MBA: Commercial and Multifamily Mortgage Delinquency Rates Mixed in Third Quarter” (12-1-10)

“Delinquency rates for different commercial/multifamily mortgage investor groups were mixed in the third quarter, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Commercial/Multifamily Delinquency Report. The delinquency rate for loans held in CMBS is the highest since the series began in 1997. Delinquency rates for other groups remain below levels seen in the early 1990′s, some by large margins.”

Housing Wire“Freddie Mac to suspend foreclosure evictions this holiday season” (12-1-10)

“Freddie Mac will suspend foreclosure evictions from Dec. 20 to Jan. 3, 2011, the company announced Wednesday. Freddie Mac’s mortgage portfolio stands at $39.6 billion as of October, according to its monthly summary report. Its serious delinquency rate stood at 3.82% in October as well.”

Housing Wire“November employment increase largest in three years” (12-1-10)

“The U.S. economy added 93,000 private-sector jobs in November from the previous month, the largest gain in three years and a sign of a ‘brightening’ employment situation, according to the Automatic Data Processing report Wednesday. However, the improvement will not be enough to lower the unemployment rate, which according to ADP will likely remain above 9% for all of 2011.”

Housing Wire“Bair says more regulation needed to restore integrity of mortgage servicing” (12-1-10)

“Bair said the robo-signing scandal spawned from misaligned incentives in the servicing industry, and called on the Financial Stability Oversight Council to fill in the regulatory gaps left by the Dodd-Frank Act. Regulation is needed to track the title of a loan and to properly document the foreclosure process, she said.”

Housing Wire“Secret’s out: Federal Reserve reveals who got help in midst of financial crisis” (12-1-10)

“The Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday posted detailed information about more than 21,000 individual transactions that provided $3 trillion in liquidity to stabilize markets during the nation’s financial crisis.An analysis of the data by The Wall Street Journal showed Goldman Sachs used an emergency overnight loan program from the Fed 84 times for a total of nearly $600 billion. The Primary Dealer Credit Facility, announced in March 2008, was used 212 times by Morgan Stanley”

Bloomberg - “Fannie, Freddie Spar With Regulators on Foreclosures” (12-1-10)

“Acting Comptroller of the Currency John Walsh said in testimony prepared for a congressional hearing today that his agency is directing national bank servicers to suspend foreclosures for borrowers actively seeking to qualify for loan modifications.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, the NAR reported that pending home sales increased during October by 3.7 percent. The California Board of Equalization claimed that most homeowners would see a decline in property tax after a deflation of 0.237 percent.  According to Real Estate Econometrics LLC, the commercial mortgage default rate on loans held by U.S. banks increased to 3.4 percent in the third quarter of 09.

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor event calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 200 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.

The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 11/8/10

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Today’s News Synopsis:

The NAR reports FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac account for over 90% of the mortgage market. New California building codes, known as CALGreen, will be enforced on January 1st. Richard Fisher of the Dallas Federal Reserve believes the low interest rates are doing little to stimulate the economy. Fannie Mae acquired 85,340 REO properties in the 3rd quarter.

In The News:

Los Angeles Times“Shared homeownership could mean paying your neighbors’ bills” (11-7-10)

“The Community Assns. Institute trade group recently reported that more than half of the nation’s 310,000 community associations are struggling with ‘serious’ or ‘severe’ financial woes. Some 59% of association managers reported that more than 3% of homes in their community groups were vacant, the study said, because the owners either had walked away from their mortgages or were unable to rent the homes. Some 65% of associations reported that more than 5% of their homeowners were delinquent on their monthly assessments.”

NAR - “Qualified Buyers Should Have Access to Credit, Say REALTORS®” (11-8-10)

“Currently, FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac account for more than 90 percent of the mortgage market. Lenders refuse to make loans unless FHA will insure them or the GSEs will buy them. Stricter FHA and GSE underwriting rules eliminate many buyers with credit scores as high as 750, and lenders are imposing credit overlays of their own, restricting the availability of credit.”

The Daily Journal“Cities preparing for building standards to get more green” (11-8-10)

“Come Jan. 1, cities throughout California will be required to enforce the new California Green Building Standards Code, or the CALGreen Code. Finalized earlier this year by California’s Building Standards Commission and the Department of Housing and Community Development, the guidelines represent the first statewide mandatory green building code for newly constructed buildings in the nation.”

Housing Wire“QE2 gives green light for yield in MBS” (11-8-10)

“Analysts said the decision by the Federal Reserve to purchase another $600 billion of Treasury securities ‘gives the green light for yield’ in mortgage-backed securities, and the central bank may consider purchasing MBS if spreads widen significantly.”

Housing Wire“Fed adviser worries greater mortgage disclosures put borrower privacy at risk” (11-8-10)

“The Federal Reserve is working on proposals forcing lenders to submit more detailed mortgage loan information to the government, but regulators are juggling the need for more transparency and how that information could cost borrowers their privacy.”

Housing Wire“Dallas Fed president: low interest rates won’t spark demand” (11-8-10)

“The environment of exceedingly low interest rates is great for banks, according to Richard Fisher, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, but is doing little to help the overall economy get back on track.”

Housing Wire“Monday morning cup of coffee” (11-8-10)

“Fannie Mae acquired 85,340 REO properties in the third quarter, up 23.9% from the amount acquired in the previous quarter, according to its quarterly financial statement released Friday.”

Bloomberg - “First-Time Mortgage Defaults in U.S. Rise for 1st Time in Year” (11-8-10)

“First-time defaults rose to 1.1 percent of previously ‘always performing’ mortgages based on payments due in September, up from 1 percent the prior month, according to a report from the Austin, Texas-based securities firm.”

Bloomberg - “Majority of Property Investors Plan Purchases as Prospects Rise” (11-8-10)

“Sixty percent of respondents said they plan to make commercial property purchases in the next year, mainly in their home markets, according to the report released by the Seattle- based adviser. Those looking abroad favor Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney, London, New York, Washington, Chicago and San Francisco, the survey showed.”

Bloomberg - “U.S. Household Debt Shrank 0.9% in Third Quarter, Fed Says” (11-8-10)

“Consumer indebtedness totaled $11.6 trillion at the end of September, down $110 billion, or 0.9 percent from the end of June, according to the New York Fed’s quarterly report on household debt and credit. Households have slashed about $1 trillion from outstanding consumer debts since the peak in the third quarter of 2008, the New York Fed said.”

For more information about The Norris Group’s California hard money loans or our California Trust Deed investments, visit the website or call our office at 951-780-5856 for more information. For upcoming California real estate investor training and events, visit The Norris Group website and our California investor event calendar. You’ll also find our award-winning real estate radio show on KTIE 590am at 6pm on Saturdays or you can listen to over 170 podcasts in our free investor radio archive.