News

Washington, DC - September 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Improving access to affordable mortgage financing for qualified home buyers and investors and committing additional resources to loan modifications and short sales will help reduce current and future inventories of real estate owned (REO) properties held by government agencies, according to the National Association of Realtors®.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - September 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today released updated remediation guidance for homeowners with problem drywall. The guidance calls for the replacement of all: problem drywall; smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms; electrical distribution components, including receptacles, switches and circuit breakers, but not necessarily wiring; and fusible-type fire sprinkler heads.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 16, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The National Foreclosure Prevention and Neighborhood Stabilization Task Force has released a seven-point response to a request for information from the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development on how to dispose of the inventory of more than 92,000 homes the Federal Housing Administration, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac now own in the wake of the darkest days of the foreclosure crisis. The sign-on letter outlines seven principles designed to help ensure that as taxpayer-backed lenders determine the best course to reduce their real estate owned (REO) inventory, policies that promote stable neighborhoods and a strong housing finance system are implemented.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development today awarded $93 million in grants to 39 local projects to conduct a wide range of activities intended to protect children and families from potentially dangerous lead-based paint and other home health and safety hazards.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Ad Council, in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), have joined together to launch a new phase of their Foreclosure Prevention Assistance Public Service Advertising (PSA) Campaign. The campaign aims to increase awareness of the Making Home Affordable® Program’s free resources and assistance for homeowners who are struggling with their mortgage payments.

IRVINE, CA - September 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- RealtyTrac® (www.realtytrac.com), the leading online marketplace for foreclosure properties, today released its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report™ for August 2011, which shows foreclosure filings — default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — were reported on 228,098 U.S. properties in August, a 7 percent increase from the previous month, but still down nearly 33 percent from August 2010. The report also shows one in every 570 U.S. housing units with a foreclosure filing during the month.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced HUD will speed federal disaster assistance to the State Of New York and provide support to homeowners and low-income renters forced from their homes following Tropical Storm Lee.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - September 15, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- David H. Stevens, President and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), testified today before the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development at a hearing titled, “New Ideas for Refinancing and Restructuring Mortgage Loans.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The amount contractors pay for a range of key construction materials declined in August, but contractors continue to be squeezed as materials cost increases have outstripped the price of finished buildings over the past year, according to an analysis of producer price index figures released today by the Associated General Contractors of America.

Washington, DC - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Congressman John Tierney joined Congressman Elijah E. Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Congressman Dennis Cardoza, Co-Chair of the Housi...

WASHINGTON, DC - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-SD) held a hearing to discuss housing finance focusing on the role of a government guarantee, as well as the benefits and risks to taxpayers. This is the tenth in a series of hearings the Committee has been holding related to housing finance reform

WASHINGTON, DC - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Ad Council, in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), have joined together to launch a new phase of their Foreclosure Prevention Assistance Public Service Advertising (PSA) Campaign. The campaign aims to increase awareness of the Making Home Affordable® Program’s free resources and assistance for homeowners who are struggling with their mortgage payments.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mortgage applications increased 6.3 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending September 9, 2011. This week’s results include an adjustment to account for the Labor Day holiday

WASHINGTON, DC - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced HUD will speed federal disaster assistance to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and provide support to homeowners and ...

Washington, DC - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) --Today NeighborWorks America, the administrator of the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling (NFMC) Program, announced that more than 1.1 million homeowners across the nation have received foreclosure counseling through the NFMC Program, according to the Program’s sixth Congressional report.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan announced that homelessness for 1 million Americans was prevented or ended, thanks to HUD's Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program (HPRP), funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Boston, MA - September 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mayor Thomas M. Menino today joined Evelyn Friedman, Director of the Department of Neighborhood Development (DND), and 12 first-time homebuyers of formerly foreclosed properties for a housewarming celebration on Rockwell Street in Dorchester.

Boise, ID - September 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Idaho Department of Finance announced the issuance of a cease-and-desist order today against Minnesota-based Freedom Companies Lending, Inc., for allegedly engaging in mortgage modification activ...

Boston, MA - September 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The City of Boston and Dorchester Bay Economic Development Corporation have been awarded $20.5M by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as part of the first-ever Implementation Grants awarded under HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods Initiative.

WASHINGTON, DC - September 13, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) and the National Apartment Association (NAA) reiterate their calls to protect rental housing as lawmakers work toward enactment of a jobs bill.