Monthly Archives: February 2011

Los Angeles, CA - February 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc (CBRE) was the No. 1 firm in U.S. investment sales activity for commercial property, according to Real Capital Analytics (RCA) data. CB Richard Ellis led the RCA list for the 10th consecutive year with a 14.8% market share in 2010.

San Antonio, TX - February 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- US Industrial REIT III, an affiliate of USAA Real Estate Company, announces the acquisition of a 1.1 million-square-foot, Class A bulk distribution facility located in Charleston, South Carolina. The property was acquired from sellers The Rockefeller Group and MeadWestvaco Corporation, joint venture partners. Andrew Merin and Stewart Calhoun of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller in the transaction with local assistance from Colliers Keenan. The purchase price was not disclosed.

Needham, MA - February 18, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- HubConnected LLC is proud to announce that MDM Realty has launched a new hyper-local real estate blog, metrowesthomesandlife.com. The site is dedicated to life in the Metrowest towns of Massachusetts.

BISMARCK, ND - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The North Dakota Housing Finance Agency (NDHFA) recognized three lenders and two housing advocates as Champions of Affordable Housing at the 2011 Statewide Housing Conference.

February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Chris Beutler will present the Mayor's medallion tomorrow to Karen Jordan-Anderson and Criz Sanchez who helped residents of an apartment complex escape a December fire. The presentation will take place a...

DOVER, DE - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Collin O’Mara and the Clean Water Advisory Council have announced the next $16 million in water infrastructure projects through the Delaware Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF), bringing the number of ongoing projects to 41, totaling nearly $100 million. The loans will finance 16 new projects that will protect public health and the environment and are vital to the economic vitality of Delaware communities.

Wilmington, DE - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, in a securities fraud case prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Securities Unit, Thomas Dolby was sentenced to 15 years in prison for defrauding investors out of more than $400,000 in a real estate investment scam

Bloomfield Hills, MI - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- PulteGroup, Inc., America’s premier homebuilding company, and the Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET), the leading national independent authority on home energy performance, are teaming to expand the use of home energy efficiency labels already available in a number of PulteGroup communities including Centex, Pulte Homes and Del Webb. Homeowners are saying that having energy efficiency data while shopping helps them to better compare energy savings across multiple homes as well as giving them a better idea about utility costs after purchase.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties decreased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 8.22 percent of all loans outstanding as of the end of the fourth quarter of 2010, a decrease of 91 basis points from the third quarter of 2010, and a decrease of 125 basis points from one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) National Delinquency Survey. The non-seasonally adjusted delinquency rate decreased 46 basis points to 8.93 percent this quarter from 9.39 percent last quarter.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Nationwide housing affordability during the fourth quarter of 2010 rose to its highest level in the 20 years since it has been measured, according to National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) data released today.The HOI indicated that 73.9 percent of all new and existing homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2010 were affordable to families earning the national median income of $64,400. The record-setting index for the fourth quarter surpassed the previous high of 72.5 percent set during the first quarter of 2009 and marked the eighth consecutive quarter that the index has been above 70 percent. Until 2009, the HOI rarely topped 65 percent and never reached 70 percent.

DALLAS/FT. WORTH - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Pulte Homes purchased land for the development of 200 homes in the sought-after Waterford Parks community in the city of Allen. The homebuilder purchased the land from Wynn Jackson Development in late 2010 and plans to begin sales in early spring.

McLean, VA - February 17, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which shows a drop in long-term fixed rates this week

CHICAGO, IL - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Four real estate visionaries took top honors for creativity and thinking outside the box in the recent Creative Thinkers Awards ceremony, presented by The Counselors of Real Estate’s North/South Carolina Chapter in Charlotte

Washington, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- ICBA Mortgage, the mortgage-lending subsidiary of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), today announced the renewal of its alliance agreement with Fannie Mae, which allows ICBA-member community banks to access a package of special benefits that helps them better serve their customers' housing-finance needs

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Chairwoman Biggert, Ranking Member Gutierrez and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I appreciate the opportunity to share insights resulting from the Administration’s efforts to mitigate the effects of the most serious housing crisis since the Great Depression.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Nationwide housing starts rose 14.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 596,000 units in January, according to figures released by the U.S. Commerce Department today. The gain was entirely due to a 77.7 percent increase in the multifamily sector, where significant month-to-month swings in activity are not unusual and where new building has been below expectations for the past several months. Meanwhile, single-family housing starts remained virtually flat for the month, with a 1.0 percent decline.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 11, 2011. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 9.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 7.9 percent compared with the previous week.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Yesterday President Barack Obama released his FY12 budget, which would freeze non-defense discretionary spending for five years in an effort to reduce the budget deficit. While some housing and community development programs are spared the knife, critical HUD programs that provide housing stability, promote economic mobility and job creation, and stabilize communities would be significantly reduced

McLean, VA - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In the fourth quarter of 2010, fixed-rate loans accounted for more than 95 percent of refinance loans, based on the Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) quarterly Product Transition Report released today. Refinancing borrowers overwhelmingly chose fixed-rate loans, regardless of whether their original loan was an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) or a fixed-rate.

WASHINGTON, DC - February 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- In an effort to promote a new generation of data-driven and evidence-based policymaking, U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today unveiled a new quarterly publication intended to inform housing and community development advocates, state and local policymakers, Congress and researchers on new approaches to issues related to housing and community development. Evidence Matters is an objective, unbiased publication intended to inform the broad housing and community development field on future policy directions based on research and data – in short, the evidence