Yearly Archives: 2013

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- With sea levels anticipated to rise at accelerated rates and catastrophic flood events occurring at great frequency, the Center for American Progress released an analysis of the value of a coastal buyout program both to communities and the environment

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, has named Jean Kane, CEO, Welsh and Colliers International, Minnetonka, Minn., as its 2014 Chairman of the Board. Kane becomes the third woman to hold NAIOP’s highest elected position and will lead its executive committee and staff in the planning and execution of industry and association-wide initiatives in 2014. Her term begins January 1, 2014.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released its final rule which defines a ‘Qualified Mortgage (QM)’ that is insured, guaranteed or administered by HUD. The final rule will be effective on January 10, 2014 and will apply to mortgages with a case number assignment on or after that date.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) published revised guidelines for lenders when they manually underwrite mortgage loan applications of borrowers applying for FHA-insured mortgages. This change will improve a lender’s ability to objectively consider a borrower’s risk and reduce additional credit requirements or ‘overlays’ that exceed FHA’s own lending standards.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Earl Gross, 74, of Las Vegas, the former President and Chief Executive Officer of U.S. Mortgage, a loan servicing company, was sentenced to serve 18 months in prison for his role in an $8 million scheme to defraud Wells Fargo Bank.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 12, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- GSA’s Green Proving Ground program is exploring new ways to mitigate the impact of our built environment on the natural environment. The Green Proving Ground tests promising sustainable building technologies in the real-world setting of federal facilities to evaluate their potential to reduce resource consumption and improve building performance. Additionally, the Green Proving Ground seeks to provide data and insights that will accelerate the broader commercialization and deployment of sustainable building technologies

SAN FRANCISCO - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the ConsensusDocs Coalition is announcing a new tool to effectively address alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in the design and construction industry. Guided Choice is a new approach to mediation for a more active and holistic approach role for a mediator to actively guide parties towards resolution. ConsensusDocs is now including information on how to implement Guided Choice in the ConsensusDocs Guidebook, and is educating users on the process at its 2nd annual Construction SuperConference Workshop being conducted today in San Francisco, Calif. The American Arbitration Association (AAA) will honor requests from the parties to use the Guided Choice process in AAA administer mediation through arbitration

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congressman Melvin Watt was confirmed as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) by the United States Senate in a 57-41 vote yesterday. The FHFA is a powerful federal government agency responsible for regulating government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which invest in more than three-fourths of the nation’s new mortgages

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Statement by National Low Income Housing Coalition President and CEO Sheila Crowley on the Confirmation of Mel Watt as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Today, the U.S. Senate confirmed Representative Mel Watt (D-NC) as the new director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, marking a great day for the millions of low income Americans in need of decent, affordable homes.

WASHINGTON - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today’s confirmation of Rep. Mel Watt (D-N.C.) as Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is a hopeful sign for the progress of housing finance reform in the United States.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- USAA Real Estate Co. has partnered with Touchstone to develop the Troy Block property on Fairview Avenue in South Lake Union, Seattle. USAA Real Estate Company will be the equity partner in the 820,000 square foot, 2-building office project, located at 307 Fairview Ave North. The project, which was entitled under the 2013 South Lake Union rezone, was acquired by Touchstone from The Seattle Times in June 2011. The office space is being marketed by David Abbott and Tom Abbott of Colliers International

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX) made the following statement after Rep. Mel Watt was confirmed today by the United States Senate as the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-SD) held a hearing titled “Housing Finance Reform: Fundamentals of Transferring Credit Risk in a Future Housing Finance System.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the U.S. Senate confirmed Representative Mel Watt (D-NC) as the new director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, marking a great day for the millions of low income Americans in need of decent, affordable homes

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Rick Judson, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder and developer from Charlotte, N.C., issued the following statement on a new report on rental housing released today from the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies.

Washington, D.C. - December 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has released the third and final installment of its LEED in Motion report series: "Impacts and Innovation The report details key impact areas and results of the thousands of projects that are utilizing the LEED® green building rating system, as well as innovation highlights related to LEED and green building technologies

Washington, D.C. - December 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) - Tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. ET, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) will join leaders from the BlueGreen Alliance, the Institute for America’s Future, and the Center for American Progress on a press call to release a new report that offers a bold strategy to lead a 21st-century green industrial transformation.

WASHINGTON, - December 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) - U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a series of sweeping changes to a popular loan program for rural homebuyers. The changes are part of an extensive overhaul that will strengthen rural housing markets, increase the availability of rural home loans and spur the construction of new homes in rural areas

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today took additional steps toward fulfilling the Strategic Plan for Enterprise Conservatorships that FHFA published in February 2012. That Plan established a conservator goal of gradually contracting Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae’s dominant presence in the marketplace while simplifying and shrinking their operations. The basic premise behind the “contract” goal is that with an uncertain future and a general desire for private capital to re-enter the market, the companies’ market presence should be reduced gradually over time.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 10, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Rick Judson, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder and developer from Charlotte, N.C., issued the following statement on a new report on rental housing released today from the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies: