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The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 11/30/11

Wednesday, November 30th, 2011

Today’s News Synopsis:

According to the Los Angeles Times, the Federal Reserve and five major central banks are hoping to help solve the debt crisis by joining together to help European lenders obtain money more easily.  In other news, Bloomberg reported a 10.4% increase in pending home sales.   According to the latest MBA Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey, mortgage applications decreased over 11% from last week.

In The News:

Housing Wire - “Private sector adds 206,000 jobs” (11-30-11)

“Employment in the U.S. nonfarm, private business sector grew by 206,000 jobs from October to November on a seasonally adjusted basis, the ADP National Employment Report said Wednesday.”

Bloomberg - “Pending Sales of Existing U.S. Homes Exceed Forecasts With 10.4% Increase” (11-30-11)

“The number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes rose more than forecast in October as buyers took advantage of falling prices and low borrowing costs.”

Los Angeles Times - “Central banks join forces to ease debt crisis” (11-30-11)

“Reacting to the deepening Eurozone debt crisis, the Federal Reserve and five other major central banks joined forces Wednesday to offer European lenders easier access to dollars in an attempt to quell growing fears of a global funding crunch.”

Mortgage Bankers Association - “Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey” (11-30-11)

“Mortgage applications decreased 11.7 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 25, 2011.  This week’s results include an adjustment to account for the Thanksgiving holiday.”

CNN Money - “S&P downgrades 15 banks” (11-30-11)

“Standard and Poor’s downgraded the credit ratings of 15 banks Tuesday, after applying new criteria to the world’s 37 largest banks.”

Housing Wire - “Fed appoints director of banking supervision” (11-30-11)

“The Federal Reserve Board named Michael Gibson director of the Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation, replacing Patrick Parkinson. In his new role, Gibson will play a key role in dealing with Basel III capital-adequacy issues and the oversight of major banks. ”

San Francisco Chronicle - “Stable Housing Seen in Home Depot-Lowe’s Leading Market: Retail” (11-30-11)

“Shares of Home Depot Inc. and Lowe’s Cos. — the two largest U.S.  home-improvement retailers — are outperforming other consumer discretionary  stocks as the worst of the declines in the housing market may be over.”

Inman - “ZipRealty settles labor suit for $586,000″ (11-30-11)

“ZipRealty Inc. has agreed to pay $586,000 to settle claims by the California Labor Commissioner that the company failed to pay minimum and overtime wages to four of its agents in Kern County.”

Looking Back:

According to Case-Schiller index, property values increased 0.6% year over year from 2009-2010. On the other hand, Freddie Mac reported that home prices decreased 3.1% from the 3rd quarter of 2009. Zillow claimed interest rates increased to 4.3% the previous week.

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.

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The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 4/13/11

Wednesday, April 13th, 2011

Today’s News Synopsis:

MDA DataQuick reports 19,412 houses and condos sold in Southern California last month. Freddie Mac believes home sales will rise 5% in 2011. President Barack Obama revealed the White House’s deficit reduction plan, which aims to reduce the nation’s deficit by $4 trillion in 12 years. Home Depot sales show Americans are doing more home improvement.

In The News:

MDA DataQuick – “Southland Home Sales Still Slow, Prices Edge Down” (4-13-11)

“A total of 19,412 new and resale houses and condos sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties in March. That was up 35.1 percent from 14,369 in February, and down 5.2 percent from 20,476 in March 2010, according to DataQuick of San Diego.”

NAR - “Realtors® Applaud Bill to Speed Lender Response to Short Sales” (4-13-11)

“A new bill to improve the process for approving short sales may soon bring relief to distressed home owners who are unable to keep their homes and hope to avoid foreclosure. The bill, introduced in the U.S. House yesterday and strongly supported by the National Association of Realtors®, would impose a deadline of 45 days on lenders to respond to short sale requests.”

Los Angeles Times – “Americans doing more home improvement projects” (4-13-11)

“Home Depot Inc., the largest home improvement retailer, in February reported its first annual sales increase since 2006, before the housing market crashed. The home improvement business is stabilizing despite the continued weakness of the housing market, Home Depot Chief Executive Frank Blake said at the time.”

Bloomberg - “Banks Must Pay Victims of Botched Foreclosures, Regulators Say” (4-13-11)

“The 14 largest U.S. mortgage servicers must pay back homeowners for losses from foreclosures or loans that were mishandled in the wake of the housing collapse, the first of a set of sanctions regulators are seeking against the companies. ”

Bloomberg - “JPMorgan Says Foreclosure Accord With Federal Reserve, OCC May Come Today” (4-13-11)

“The bank took a $1.1 billion charge and may add as many as 3,000 employees to comply with the consent agreement, Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon and Chief Financial Officer Doug Braunstein told reporters on a conference call today after the bank reported a 67 percent increase in net income. The accord involves the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve, the bankers said.”

Housing Wire – “Freddie Mac expects strong spring home buying” (4-13-11)

“Freddie Mac said home sales will increase 5% in 2011 compared to 2010 — a projected 4.9 million home sales. The agency estimates that number will rise 12.2% to 5.5 million homes sales in 2012.”

Housing Wire – “Obama deficit reduction plan would impact tax itemization of home purchases” (4-13-11)

“President Barack Obama revealed the White House’s deficit reduction plan Wednesday, saying his administration aims to reduce the nation’s deficit by $4 trillion over the next 12 years by using a mix of higher taxes on the wealthiest Americans, reductions in defense spending, tax code changes and health care savings.”

Housing Wire – “Fitch: Increasing interest rates bad for investors, home affordability” (4-13-11)

“Elevated rates would expose trading-oriented investors to heightened price volatility, particularly those that are highly leveraged, funded through repo markets or mark-to-market their holdings, according to the report. In a rising rate scenario, U.S. banks’ current MBS holdings of roughly $1.3 trillion would face either mark-to-market losses or, if held on a long-term basis, lower net interest income.”

Orange County Register – “Forecast: Irvine rents to rise in ’11″ (4-13-11)

“Irvine experienced positive net absorption in 2010 of 2,930 units, more than doubling the total net absorption from 2009. This increase in demand helped boost occupancy 2.9 percentage points to 95.5 percent, the third-highest among Orange County submarkets. Average monthly rental rates increased 1.8 percent to $1,699 per month. Same-store rents, however, declined 0.1 percent.”

Orange County Register – “Most volatile U.S. home market? Not O.C.!” (4-13-11)

“Orange County’s best appreciation rate was 21.2 percent in Jan. 2005. CoreLogic’s national index best year-over-year mark? Plus 17.6 percent in March 2005. Biggest loss among the 45 towns since ’05? Miami, off 34.9 percent year-over-year in Feb. 2009.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, MDA DataQuick reported 20,476 new and resale homes sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties sold in March. Schwarzenegger signed a bill allowing taxpayers to be exempt from paying for forgiven mortgage debt. In 2008 and 2009, the income needed to buy a median-priced home decreased in 93 percent of U.S. markets. According to IAS, national house prices fell 0.6% in February 2010.

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.

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The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 8/17/10

Tuesday, August 17th, 2010

Today’s News Synopsis:

Statistics from MDA DataQuick show 18,946 new and resale homes were sold in Southern California in July. Frank Nothaft of Freddie Mac announced that refinancing activity has accounted for over 80% of conventional loan activity. National housing starts increased by 7.1 percent last month, according to the NAHB. The MBA expressed concerns that recent policy changes restricting seller concessions went too far and may damage the industry.

In The News:

DQNews - “Southern California Home Sales and Median Price Dip in July” (8-17-10)

“A total of 18,946 new and resale homes were sold in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties in July. That was down 20.6 percent from 23,871 in June, and down 21.4 percent from 24,104 for July 2009, according to MDA DataQuick of San Diego.”

NAHB - “Housing Starts Rise 1.7 Percent in July” (8-17-10)

“Nationwide housing starts inched up 1.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 546,000 units in July from a downwardly revised figure in the previous month, according to U.S. Commerce Department figures released today. The gain occurred entirely on the multifamily side, with single-family housing production falling 4.2 percent to 432,000 units.”

Housing Wire – “MBA Prefers FHA Seller Concessions Lowered to 4%” (8-17-10)

“In a letter to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the MBA said its members urge the federal agency ‘to ensure policies do not reach too far and needlessly discourage home buying at a time when the housing market is still fragile.’ Last month, HUD announced possible policy changes within the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) aimed at boosting capital reserves. The changes include reducing the limit on seller concessions to 3% from 6%; using a FICO credit score of 500 as a minimum for consideration in FHA programs; and lowering the maximum loan-to-value to 90% for all borrowers with credit scores less than 580.”

Housing Wire – “Fannie Mae Sees Housing Activity Flat in 2H” (8-17-10)

“The GSE also said continued uncertainty and a slower-than-normal recovery points to overall GDP growth of 2.5% for the rest of the year. In July, analysts at Fannie Mae’s economics and mortgage market analysis group projected growth of 2.8%, which was down from a June estimate of 3.2%. The agency expects the low, 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages to boost refinance activity but not result in any sort of refinance boom. The current average rate of 4.5% is expected to remain throughout 2010.”

Housing Wire – “John Burns: GSE Renting Options Will Increase Demand and Limit Supply” (8-17-10)

“The government should create an apartment real estate investment trust (REIT) to rent out foreclosed properties — a method that would avoid flooding the housing market with foreclosed properties, a real estate consultant said as President Obama’s ‘Future of Housing Finance Conference’ kicked off Tuesday. John Burns, CEO of John Burns Real Estate Consulting, said the government-created REIT would be self-sustaining via rental fees. The government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, would hire outside property-management firms to manage the rental properties, Burns said.”

Housing Wire – “Refinancing Accounts for 80% of Loan Activity over Last 2 Months: Nothaft” (8-17-10)

“Over the last two months, refinancing activity has accounted for more than 80% of all conventional loan activity, said Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac. In a Featured Perspectives report out Monday, Nothaft said Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have purchased 1.4m refinance loans, including nearly 200,000 loans that have gone through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP).”

Housing Wire – “Bank of America Merrill Lynch: Bearish Sentiment Eases” (8-17-10)

“BofAML, a unit of Bank of America, said the bearish sentiment for the global economic outlook and corporate earnings has eased. The most recent data show 5% of survey respondents expect the global economy will improve in the next year. In July, 12% percent of respondents predicted the world economy would deteriorate, BofAML said. But recession fears seem to have subsided, as 78% of fund managers surveyed last week don’t expect a double-dip recession. Still, 73% continue to see ‘below-trend growth and inflation.’”

Housing Wire – “TransUnion: Housing Begins to Stabilize as Delinquent Loans Fall in Q210″ (8-17-10)

“National mortgage loan delinquency rates for loans delinquent 60 days or more fell for the second quarter in a row to 6.67%, according to TransUnion’s quarterly trend analysis released Tuesday; a sign the housing sector is beginning to stabilize. The 1.48% drop in Q210 follows an 18.52% drop in Q110 for loans delinquent 60 days or more. Delinquent loans accounted for 6.77% of the all loans in Q110. The current delinquency rate is still up 14.8% from the same quarter last year when the rate was 5.81%.”

Housing Wire – “Private Sector Modifications Increase 10% in June” (8-17-10)

“The housing industry conducted 123,000 permanent modifications through private programs in June, a 10% increase from the 112,000 done in May, according to Hope Now, a private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, insurers and nonprofit counselors.”

Housing Wire – “Bankrate: Loan Closing Costs Jump 36.6% Year-Over-Year” (8-17-10)

“The average origination and third-party fees on a $200,000 mortgage increased 36.6% to $3,741 from last year’s average of $2,739, according to Bankrate’s annual mortgage fee survey. Lender origination fees increased to $1,463, or 22.8%, in 2010 from $1,192 in 2009, while the average total third-party fees rose 47.2%, to $2,277 from the year-ago average of $1,547.”

Housing Wire – “Homebuyer Demand All But a ‘Standstill’: Altos Research” (8-17-10)

“The average national house price was $474,946 in July, according to the Altos 10-city composite price index. The index fell ‘significantly’ from its high in the summer of last year, when buyers were taking advantage of the homebuyer tax credit. It has declined for the past 11 months. The tax credit expired in April.”

Bloomberg - “Home Depot Profit Tops Analysts’ Estimates as Sales Increase” (8-17-10)

“Net income increased 6.8 percent to $1.19 billion, or 72 cents a share, in the quarter ended Aug. 1, from $1.12 billion, or 66 cents, a year earlier, Atlanta-based Home Depot said today in a statement. Analysts projected 71 cents, the average of 23 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.”

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.

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The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 2/23/10

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

Today’s News Synopsis:

The NAR predicts that the commercial real estate market will not recover until after 2011. In California, single family home sales decreased by 3 percent during January. The Standard & Poor’s index shows that national home prices increased slightly during December. 702 banks made the ‘Problem List’ for the FDIC in 2009.

In The News:

NAR - “No Meaningful Recovery in Commercial Real Estate Before 2011″ (2-23-10)

“Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said commercial real estate almost always lags the economy. ‘Because of the lingering impact from the deep recession over the past two years, vacancy rates will trend higher and many commercial property owners will need to make rent concessions,’ he said.”

CAR - “January sales and price report” (2-23-10)

“Existing, single-family home sales decreased 3 percent in January to a seasonally adjusted rate of 539,040 units on an annualized basis compared with December 2009. The statewide median price of an existing single-family home decreased 6.3 percent in January to $287,440, compared with December 2009. C.A.R.’s Unsold Inventory Index fell to 5.8 months in January, compared with 7.3 months in January 2009.

Los Angeles Times – “Home prices show small gain in December” (2-23-10)

“The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 metropolitan areas increased 0.3% from November on a seasonally adjusted basis, with 14 cities posting gains. Compared with a year earlier, the index was down 3.1% in December, but the year-to-year rate of decline moderated in all 20 cities.”

Housing Wire – “FDIC ‘Problem’ Banks Increased 27% in Q409″ (2-23-10)

“By the end of 2009, 702 banks made the ‘Problem List’ for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), a marked increase of 27% from 552 at the end of Q309. Additionally, the total amount of assets of insured institutions increased $137.2bn to $13.7trn in Q409. Bank investments in mortgage-backed securities (MBS) also increased by $44.8bn, overall, to $1.4trn.”

Housing Wire – “Lowe’s Profits Top $200m for Q409″ (2-23-10)

“Lowe’s Companies (LOW: 22.81 -1.13%), the world’s second largest home improvement retailer, reported profits of $205m, or $0.14 per share, for its fiscal fourth quarter ending January 29. The Q409 results are up 26.5% from one year ago, when Q408 net earnings were $162m, or $0.11 per share. For the fiscal year ending January 29, 2010, net earnings were $1.78bn, or $1.21 per share, down 18.8% from one year ago, when North Carolina-based Lowe’s earned $2.195bn. In Q309, Lowe’s reported net earnings of $344m.”

Housing Wire – “11.3m Homeowners Now Underwater: First American” (2-23-10)

“11.3m homeowners now owe more on their mortgages than the value of their home at the end of Q409, with the Sand States taking four of the top five negative equity, or underwater, markets according to research released by First American CoreLogic.”

MGIC - “MGIC to Lower Mortgage Insurance Rates for Good Credit Borrowers” (2-23-10)

“The new rates will be lower for borrowers with a credit score of 720 or greater and higher for borrowers with credit scores between 620 and 679. No change is expected for those with a score between 680 and 719, according to a form 8-K filed today with the Securities Exchange Commission.”

Housing Wire – “Home Depot Posts $342m Q4 Profit” (2-23-10)

“Home improvement retailer Home Depot (HD: 30.75 +1.42%) reported a profit of $342m, or $0.20 per share, for its fiscal year fourth quarter ending January 31. That’s an improvement from last year’s fiscal fourth quarter, when Home Depot lost $54m, or $0.03 per share. But it’s lower than Home Depot’s Q309 net earnings of $689m, or $0.41 per share. Home Depot said its sales performance was driven by gains in kitchen and bath, paint, flooring and plumbing as well as its international businesses.”

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The Norris Group Real Estate News Roundup 11/17/09

Tuesday, November 17th, 2009

Today’s News Synopsis:

Home sales increased by 2.8 percent from September to October in six Southern California counties. The MBA reports that 6.7 million households with mortgages are behind on their payments, or are in the foreclosure process. TransUnion conducted a study of 27 million credit files and found that 6.25 percent are delinquent.

In The News:

Office of Thrift Supervision - “Federal Regulators Issue Final Model Privacy Notice Form” (11-17-09)

“Eight federal regulatory agencies today released a final model privacy notice form that will make it easier for consumers to understand how financial institutions collect and share information about consumers. Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB Act), institutions must notify consumers of their information-sharing practices and inform consumers of their right to opt out of certain sharing practices. The model form issued today can be used by financial institutions to comply with these requirements.”

DQNews - “Southland home sales up again, drop in median price smallest in 2 years” (11-17-09)

“Last month 22,132 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, Ventura, San Bernardino and Orange counties. That was up 2.8 percent from 21,539 in September and also up 2.8 percent from 21,532 a year earlier, according to MDA DataQuick of San Diego.”

Wall Street Journal – “Ten Questions on the Volatile Housing Market” (11-17-09)

“But more than 6.7 million U.S. households with mortgages, or about 13%, are behind on their payments or are in the foreclosure process, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Eventually, many of them will lose those homes, sending more supply onto the market. Unemployment has continued to rise, and the housing market is unlikely to show a sustained recovery until job growth resumes.”

Housing Wire – “TransUnion Sees Delinquency Rise for 11 Quarters” (11-17-09)

“Overall mortgage delinquency of 60 or more days reached a record 6.25% in TransUnion’s ongoing study of a random selection of 27m credit files from its national consumer database. The rate is up from 5.81% in Q209 and is expected by the credit bureau to come in just under 7% by year-end 2009.”

Housing Wire – “Home Improvement Stores See Sales Declines” (11-17-09)

“Earnings were down in Q309 at the country’s two largest home improvement chains, The Home Depot (HD: 26.99 -2.39%) and Lowe’s (LOW: 21.48 -1.20%) as homeowners and renters alike show reluctance to begin improvement projects amid continued financial stress and increasing joblessness.”

Housing Wire – “CIT Posts 10th Straight Quarterly Loss” (11-17-09)

“CIT Group, a lender to small- and mid-sized businesses, posted a Q309 loss of $1.03bn, or $2.47 per share, as the company attempts to emerge from bankruptcy protection by the end of the year.”

Bloomberg - “Insurers Face $23 Billion Loss on Commercial Property” (11-17-09)

“U.S. life insurers, a group led by MetLife Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc., may lose as much as $22.6 billion on investments in commercial real estate through 2011, Fitch Ratings said.”

Bloomberg - “FDIC Sells Most Real Estate Since 1994 on U.S. Banking Debacle” (11-17-09)

“The FDIC raised $727 million from building and land sales in the first nine months of 2009 compared with $1.16 billion in the whole of 1994, according to FDIC data. The Washington-based agency sold 1,706 properties, according to its Web site, the highest number since 2,045 in 1996.”

Bloomberg - “Homebuilder Confidence in U.S. Lower Than Forecast” (11-17-09)

“The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo index of builder confidence held at 17 for a second month, the Washington-based association said today. A reading below 50 means most respondents view conditions as poor. The median forecast of economists in a Bloomberg News survey was for a reading of 19.”

NAHB - “2009-2010 Home Buyer Federal Tax Credit Fact Sheet” (11-17-09)

“Existing home owners who have been residing in their principal residence for five consecutive years out of the last eight and are purchasing a home to be their principal residence (“repeat buyer”), may be eligible for a tax credit of 10% of the home purchase price, up to a maximum of $6,500.”

Looking Back:

One year ago, the NAHB claimed that 56.1 percent of all new and existing homes that were sold were affordable to families who earned the national median income of $61,500 per year. Citigroup announced its plans to cut over 50,000 jobs. The FDIC hinted at a possible revisation of the $1.4 trillion debt-insurance program.

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