RealEstateRama

San Francisco, CA. - March 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- International law firm Nixon Peabody LLP has expanded its Affordable Housing practice on the West Coast with the arrival of new partner Tuan Pham. Mr. Pham joins Nixon Peabody’s San Francisco office from Goodwin Procter, where he also served as the hiring partner for the San Francisco office and a co-chair of the West Coast Diversity Committee.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - March 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- "The Secret Millionaire" features nonprofit organizations working in poor communities all around the country. It films what the organizations do and the people they impact. In this week’s episode, a "volunteer" comes to help YouthBuild Detroit, which is sponsored by Young Detroit Builders. Tune in for the wonderful surprise ending for YouthBuild Detroit and Young Detroit Builders.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - March 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Responding to widespread evidence of improper accounting, unwarranted fees, false documentation, and arbitrary foreclosure decisions, the 50 state Attorneys General are crafting a long-overdue plan to hold the mortgage servicing industry accountable. The plan would address accusations that banks and servicers have engaged in illegal and negligent servicing practices that have been a continued drag on the U.S. housing market and economy.

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - March 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- While the buzz over 3D, tablets, and other hot technologies has been a global phenomenon, upon a closer look, the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association (CEDIA) has found that homeowners have different expectations for their technology depending on where in the world they call home.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- HOPE NOW, the voluntary, private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, mortgage insurers and non-profit counselors, released its January 2011 loan modification data, which shows that an estimated 101,000 homeowners received permanent, affordable loan modifications from mortgage servicers in the first month of the year.

ASTORIA, NY - March 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D?NY), New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Former NYC Council Speaker Peter Vallone, Sr., Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, HPD Commissioner Rafael E. Cestero, Enterprise Community Partners, Citi, among others, joined HANAC, Inc., a nonprofit, multi?funded, citywide organization that serves local community residents, in opening today the HANAC George T. Douris Tower, a new green, mixed?use building providing affordable housing for seniors and community space for services that support them.

NEW YORK, N.Y. - March 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mortgage rates showed little change this week, with the benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate now 5.04 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.42 discount and origination points.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-SD) held a hearing on the state of the nation’s housing market. The Committee heard from industry leaders and experts, and discussed the current condition and challenges facing the housing market.

CHICAGO, IL - March 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- At a time when the world is searching for facts about the stability of property markets, The Counselors of Real Estate professional association will offer an unbiased and realistic view of the U.S. property markets this week at MIPIM. MIPIM, held in Cannes, France, is the world's largest global real estate conference

WASHINGTON, DC - March 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service today announced the availability of $600,000 in "Stand Down" grants that will provide an estimated 10,000 homeless veterans with opportunities to reintegrate into society. The grants are being awarded under the department's Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program

Washington, DC - March 8, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- A new Consumer Federation of America (CFA) survey has found that the public overwhelmingly believes that improving the energy efficiency of home appliances is critically important and strongly supports appliance efficiency standards. In a report released today, CFA reveals that home energy costs now take an equal bite out of consumers’ pocketbooks as gasoline expenditures. And similar to their support for fuel economy standards, Americans want energy efficiency standards for home appliances. With oil prices skyrocketing, reducing home energy costs has become critically important to American consumers.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Life -changing stories of working families benefiting from a range of federal housing programs will be at the forefront of this week’s annual Legislative Conference of the National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA).

SHELTON, CT - March 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The New Homes Division of William Raveis Real Estate, Mortgage & Insurance has been selected as marketing and sales agent for Cranberry Hill Estates, Shelton’s newest family community

WASHINGTON, D.C. - March 7, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- As part of the Federal Trade Commission’s continuing crackdown on scams that target homeowners behind in their mortgage payments or facing foreclosure, the FTC has charged a national operation with marketing bogus loan modification services. The FTC seeks to stop the illegal practices and make the defendants pay refunds to consumers

Alexandria, VA - March 4, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- An analysis in the March issue of the ABI Journal found that several bankruptcy courts are dealing with the foreclosure crisis through the adoption of loss-mitigation programs (LMPs). As Congress examines a possible repeal of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) due to ineffectiveness in modifying mortgages, John Rao of the National Consumer Law Center Inc. in Boston writes that several bankruptcy courts have provided a useful solution through the adoption of LMPs.

WASHINGTON, DC - March 4, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In conjunction with National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW), March 6-12, NeighborWorks America, The Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, HOPE Now, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and a coalition of national government agencies, nonprofit organizations and financial institutions are empowering homeowners to combat loan modification scams.

NEW YORK, NY - March 4, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Department of Labor has taken legal action to seek debarment of Lettire Construction Corp., a New York City general contractor, and Nicholas Lettire, president of the company, from working on future federally funded contracts for a period of three years.

Ladera Ranch, CA - March 3, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- More than 300 homeowners attended a Foreclosure Prevention Workshop hosted by the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLBank San Francisco) and the Orange County Home Ownership Preservation Collaborative. Rep. Ken Calvert (CA-44) was a special guest at the event, which was held Saturday, February 26, 2011.

March 2, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Even as 50,000 new foreclosures start every week, the House Financial Services Committee votes tomorrow on four bills to dismantle programs aimed at helping homeowners. Industry figures show that more households than ever are in some stage of foreclosure, with over five million mortgage holders now at risk of losing their homes. Avoiding unnecessary foreclosures and encouraging loan modifications will be key to economic recovery, as the nation is sorely missing the jobs and growth provided by a healthy housing market.

AUSTIN, TX - March 1, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- HomeAway ®, Inc. – the world’s leading network of online vacation rentals – today introduced Community from HomeAway, a site for vacation rental owners and managers to share expertise and opinions, and access blogs and resources to optimize their vacation rental businesses