RealEstateRama

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- On June 22, 2010, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) issued the Administration’s federal strategic plan to end homelessness

NORFOLK, VA - June 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- For Rent Media Solutions™, a leading resource for apartment searches nationwide and operator of ForRent.com®, a division of Dominion Enterprises, has seen success through the exclusive partnership with VaultWare, an online marketing and leasing solution provider for the multifamily housing industry. This collaboration’s recently introduced version of the VaultWare Places product will now be rolled out to a nationwide audience.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A diverse coalition of 44 consumer organizations, civil rights groups, lenders, real estate professionals and insurers joined with Members of Congress today urging regulators to make important changes to proposed mortgage lending regulations.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Characterized by its innovative environmental and sustainable features, The Station at Othello Park development in Southeast Seattle now represents the first mixed-use project on Seattle’s Central Link light rail to earn prestigious LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

LOS ANGELES, CA - June 22, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System (GLA) posted the Master Plan for the West Los Angeles (WLA) campus, which includes plans to expand the homeless program by renovating buildings on the historic campus.

June 21, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- USAA Real Estate Company announced the sale of 5th Street Crossing, a mixed-use, transit-oriented development located on 3 acres at 351 North 5th Street in Garland’s Old Town Station. The property was sold to Minneapolis-based, Oaks Properties LLC for an undisclosed sum. Mark Stymiest with CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. represented the seller in the transaction.

WASHINGTON, DC - June 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A former senior vice president and head of Colonial Bank’s Mortgage Warehouse Lending Division was sentenced today to eight years in prison for her role in a more than $2.9 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of Colonial Bank and Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW). Colonial Bank was one of the 25 largest banks in the United States and TBW was one of the largest privately-held mortgage lending companies in the United States in 2009.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- While a report released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development earlier this week indicated a 20 percent increase in family homelessness, the Administration and members of Congress are considering eliminating a federal program that provides services to more than 2 million homeless people annually.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 20, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Quicken Loans Inc., the nation’s largest online retail mortgage lender, today announced it has placed in the top-10 of Computerworld Magazine’s “100 Best Places to Work in Technology” study. This is the seventh consecutive year Quicken Loans has been listed in the magazine’s annual survey, ranking among the top-15 each year.

Reston, VA - June 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A pair of decisions from the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Michigan Southern Division declined to reconsider MERS-related foreclosures.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Homelessness in the United States did not increase significantly during the height of the recession, according to the Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress (AHAR) released by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) yesterday. The flat numbers, in spite of an idling economy, are a testament to improved homeless assistance systems and the adoption of housing-based strategies to end homelessness. However, budget cuts at the federal, state, and local levels threaten to destabilize the efforts made to avert increases in homelessness.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Rising energy prices, government incentives and enhanced public image are driving energy efficiency in buildings to new heights as a growing number of building owners race to reduce energy consumption, according to the results of the fifth annual, global Energy Efficiency Indicator survey

June 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Harry Norman, Realtors® East Cobb Office sales associate Karen Hughes, was a featured speaker at the recent Agent Reboot Conference held at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Atlanta. Agent Reboot is a 24-city tour offering local agents one day to learn the latest technologies and training from some of the industry’s leading speakers.

June 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Harry Norman, Realtors® is pleased to announce that Lane Jones has been named Vice President and Managing Broker of the Cobb Marietta office. Lane comes to Harry Norman, Realtors® from Prudential Georgia Realty, where she served as managing broker for both the Sandy Springs and East Cobb Regional offices.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - June 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mortgage rates increased this week, following a nine-week streak of declines. The benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate is now 4.71 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.41 discount and origination points.

June 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) of 2008 made statutory changes to how income limits are calculated for LIHTC and bond-financed properties. HERA protected owners from rent decreases in 2009, and established a new system for owners to hold their income limits and rents harmless beginning in 2010.

Austin, TX - June 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today BuildFax unveiled its BuildFax Remodeling Index (BFRI) for April 2011 and it shows that the beginning of spring had many across the country remodeling and renovating their homes. Today’s report reveals continued year-over-year gains, with data demonstrating that consumers are continuing to invest in remodeling, even while the economy continues to struggle and the real-estate market continues to experience sales decreases coast to coast. In addition, the Index reveals that there were 10 percent more remodels in April 2011 compared to April 2004, the first month tracked by the Index.

CHICAGO, IL - June 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- John J. Hentschel, CRE®, president, Hentschel Real Estate Services, an Abingdon, Maryland-based real estate advisory and consulting firm, has been honored with the 2011 James Felt Creative Counseling Award for his work as a special advisor to the Urban Institute as part of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Municipal Economic Growth Activity, a program designed to promote economic development in the Republic of Serbia through commercialization of strategically located surplus military properties. The award was presented May 3 by The Counselors of Real Estate® at the organization’s Midyear Meetings in San Diego.

WASHINGTON, DC - June 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- As part of the Obama Administration's efforts to improve commercial building efficiency 20 percent by 2020, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced a partnership with The Appraisal Foundation that will help expand access to energy efficiency and building performance information for commercial buildings and help American businesses to reduce energy waste. Under the new partnership, the Department of Energy and The Appraisal Foundation will work to ensure that appraisers nationwide have the information, practical guidelines, and professional resources they need to evaluate energy performance when conducting commercial building appraisals. This will help enable investors, building owners and operators, and others to accurately assess the value of energy efficiency as part of the building's overall appraisal.

WASHINGTON, DC - June 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) announced the expansion of incentives to encourage sales of HomePath REO properties to owner occupants. Now through October 31, qualified buyers and selling agents can receive financial incentives on sales of HomePath properties, which can be found at www.homepath.com. The incentives are part of Fannie Mae's commitment to neighborhood stabilization, and are available on sales to buyers who will reside in the home as their primary residence.