Today’s News Synopsis:
Moody’s estimates that prices will continue to decline until Q3 of 2010. According to Freddie Mac, interest rates on 30-year fixed rate loans have increased to 5.03 percent. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that the number of vacant properties rose to 18.7 million, but the homeownership rate has maintained at 67.6 percent.
In The News:
San Francisco Chronicle – “Economy growing but recovery could be at risk” (10-29-09)
“Federal support for spending on cars and homes drove the economy up 3.5 percent from July through September. But the government aid — from tax credits for home buyers to rebates for auto purchases — is only temporary. Consumer spending, which normally drives recoveries, is likely to weaken without it.”
Housing Wire – “House Price Declines Weigh on Alt-A, Jumbo RMBS Ratings: Moody’s” (10-29-09)
“Moody’s Investors Service on Thursday said it will begin taking ratings actions in Q409 as needed to account for updated assumptions underlying US residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) loss projections. The loss projection revisions come as Moody’s expects house prices to continue to decline to a Q310 trough. Based on recent loan loss severities, the rating agency will increase its projected lifetime loan losses for pools backing US Jumbo, Alt-A, Option ARM and subprime RMBS issued from ‘05 to ‘08.”
Housing Wire – “Sallie Mae To Lose $95M on Mortgage, Real Estate Sale” (10-29-09)
“Student loan giant SLM Corp. (SLM: 10.20 +1.09%) will recognize a loss of as much as $95m on the sale of mortgages and real estate-related assets this quarter, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing.”
Housing Wire – “CIT Gets Second Private Capital Bailout” (10-29-09)
“CIT Group Inc. (CIT: 0.9146 -13.72%), a commercial lender offering financing to small and medium businesses, this week expanded an existing $3bn senior secured credit facility to obtain $4.5bn in new credit.”
Housing Wire – “Freddie Sees Weekly 30-Year Fixed Rate Pass 5%” (10-29-09)
“Freddie Mac’s (FRE: 1.2901 +11.22%) weekly survey put the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) interest rate at 5.03% with an average 0.7 point for the week ending Oct. 29, up from 5% in the previous week. A year ago, the rate was 6.46%.”
Bloomberg - “U.S. Home Vacancies Rise to 18.8 Million on Defaults” (10-29-09)
“The number of vacant properties, including foreclosures, residences for sale and vacation homes, rose from 18.4 million a year earlier and 18.7 million in the second quarter, the U.S. Census Bureau said in a report today. The record high was in the first quarter, when 18.95 million homes were vacant. The homeownership rate, meaning households that own their own residence, stood at 67.6 percent.”
Bloomberg - “BlackRock, T. Rowe Price Seek Fed Loans to Buy Bonds” (10-29-09)
“Mutual funds run by companies including BlackRock Inc. and T. Rowe Price Group Inc. have begun buying bonds through a $1 trillion government lending program after a June regulatory ruling cleared the way.”
Bloomberg - “PHH Targets Realogy for Mortgages, Keeps Merrill, New CEO Says” (10-29-09)
“PHH, the fourth-largest U.S. originator of mortgages directly to consumers, can win a greater share of Realogy customers because more than 130 lenders have failed since 2007 and remaining rivals keep changing underwriting rules, Selitto said in an interview Oct. 27. Merrill Lynch contributed 21 percent of 2008 originations at PHH and was sold in January to Bank of America, which has its own mortgage unit.”
Orange County Register – “UCLA sees 16% home-price gain in 2010″ (10-29-09)
“Double-digit housing appreciation will return to Orange County next year, with the median home price rising somewhere from 15.9% to 16.6%, UCLA economists forecast in a report released today.”
