Finance

Existing-home sales increased in June to their highest pace in over eight years, while the cumulative effect of rising demand and limited supply helped push the national median sales price to an all-time high, according to the National Association of Realtors®. All major regions experienced sales gains in June and have now risen above year-over-year levels for six consecutive months.

During ICBA Community Banking Month, the Independent Community Bankers of America® (ICBA) celebrates the nation’s more than 6,000 community banks, which build stronger communities by helping local customers gain financial stability through quality products and services and access to financial literacy information and tools.

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today applauded Senate passage of energy efficiency legislation from Sen. Portman, R-Ohio, and Sen. Shaheen, D-N.H. The Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2015 would promote increased energy efficiency for grid enabled water heaters and in buildings

Wells Fargo Real Estate Investment Corporation (NYSE: WFE Pr A) announced today that its board of directors has declared a quarterly dividend on its 6.375% cumulative perpetual preferred stock, Series A.

Washington, D.C. – February 18, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — CBA’s President and CEO Richard Hunt issued the following statement after the New York Fed issued...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - April 9, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today released its January 2013 Refinance Report, which shows that refinance volume remained high through the first month of this year. There were nearly 470,000 refinances in January, with roughly 97,600 completed through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). This brings total HARP refinances to more than 2.2 million since the program’s inception in April 2009.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 21, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] today announces that it will receive $31m in significant liquidated damages in Q1 2013 from FelCor Lodging Trust (FelCor)

Chicago, IL - January 17, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® has announced an impressive line-up of speakers for its upcoming Conference Week, February 24-28 at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. More than 1,500 people are expected to attend Conference Week, which includes the network’s Annual Conference for brokers and relocation professionals, Performance SUMMIT and Luxury Portfolio SUMMIT for sales associates, Sales Manager SUMMIT, MarTech for marketing and technology professionals, and the RELO Direct® Corporate Forum for employee mobility professionals.

Washington, DC - January 17, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- NeighborWorks America urges consumers to seek advice from nonprofit organizations that provide free tax preparation services, as W-2 and other income forms arrive in taxpayers’ mailboxes and the start of the 2012 tax season begins. This guidance will empower consumers to avoid scammers or those offering ‘low-cost’ quick refund services which harm taxpayers in the long-term.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 08, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) announced today that Eileen O’Grady Ramage has been named as its new chief financial officer. A certified public accountant, Ramage has 10 years of experience serving as a CFO of a national trade association. Previously, she served in senior management positions in the private sector and as partner at a public accounting firm. She is also a certified association executive.

WASHINGTON, DC - December 7, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today unveiled a new and improved online data tool to help HUD, state and local planning agencies, and others more clearly identify federally recognized Indian tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, and Alaska Natives so they can consult with them on development projects in places that have tribal historic, environmental and cultural significance.

Washington, DC - December 7, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- As the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee meets today for a hearing on the fiscal challenges facing the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), bipartisan legislation approved 402-7 in the House to help the FHA meet those challenges awaits Senate action.

Washington, DC - December 5, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released a white paper today that underscores the importance of multifamily rental housing and examines the role of the Government Sponsored Enterprises (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, or “the GSEs”) in multifamily housing finance going forward. The white paper and its recommendations were developed by MBA’s GSE Multifamily Task Force, a group of industry experts from MBA’s broad commercial/multifamily finance membership convened to focus on the future role of the GSEs in the multifamily housing market, which serves more than 15 million (one in seven) American households. The white paper addresses key questions about the future of the GSEs’ multifamily businesses raised by the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s February 2012 strategic plan.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 29, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Center for Responsible Lending and the Financial Services Roundtable today asked Congress to extend the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act, which is set to expire at year’s end. “This tax law has bi-partisan support and is critical to helping homeowners and communities struggling with the ongoing foreclosure crisis,” the two organizations said in joint letters to House and Senate leaders. “Furthermore, the housing market is beginning to show signs of a recovery, and expiration of this law would threaten the recovery.”

Washington, DC - November 29, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today reported that the National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders, used as an index in some adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) contracts, was 3.44 percent based on loans closed in October. There was a decrease of 0.12 from the previous month. In March of 2012, FHFA began calculating interest rates using un-weighted survey data.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 19, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- FHA has played a critical role during the housing crisis and the economic downturn. It provided credit to families who otherwise would not have been able to buy homes. This has helped new home owners, but also helped stabilize neighborhoods and communities and boost the economic recovery overall. It is essential that FHA continue to fulfill this role, especially as the recovery continues

Washington, DC - November 14, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) is pleased to invite Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) involved in microfinance or small dollar lending to participate in the Capacity Building Initiative training series Scaling Up Microfinance. The training will enhance the exposure of microfinance CDFIs to best practices in the field, explain tools for determining appropriate strategies to scale microfinance operations, and include advanced technical assistance opportunities. The series will be provided by Opportunity Finance Network (OFN).

October 26, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Twenty (20) state Housing Finance Agency (HFA) programs received Annual Awards for Program Excellence during the National Council of State Housing Agencies (NCSHA) 2012 Annual Conference & Showplace in Orlando, FL.

Chicago, IL - October 24, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today announced the election of Brian F. Stoffers, CMB, President, CBRE Capital Markets as the new Chair of its Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Board of Governors (COMBOG) at the association’s 99th Annual Convention & Expo in Chicago. Rodrigo Lopez, CMB, AmeriSphere Multifamily Finance LLC, will serve as Vice Chair.

VIENNA, VA - October 9, 2012 - (RealEstateRama) -- Suspicious activity reports (SARs) regarding foreclosure rescue scams continued to grow in the first half of 2012, even as the total number of SARs indicating mortgage loan fraud (MLF) declined, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced today in its latest Mortgage Loan Fraud Update. This update to FinCEN's prior MLF reports looks at SAR filings from April through June 2012 (2012 Q2).