Marketing & Statistics

December 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- NYU’s Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy released, for the first time, a quarterly update on six key indicators of housing market performance, based on a variety of administrative data sources.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- ” The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 26, 2010. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 16.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. This week's results include an adjustment to account for the Thanksgiving holiday. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 34.2 percent compared with the previous week

WASHINGTON, D.C. - December 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Representative Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today led a letter, cosigned by 62 of his colleagues in the House of Representatives, calling for funding the Low-Income Home Heating Assistance Program (LIHEAP) through September 30, 2011 at least at the FY2010 levels of $5.1 billion – the highest funding level in the history of the program.

McLean, VA - December 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) announced today that it priced its new 0.625% $4 billion two-year USD Reference Notes® security due on December 28, 2012. The issue, CUSIP number 3137EACQ0, was priced at 99.866 to yield 0.69%, or 17 basis points more than two-year U.S. Treasury Notes. The issue will settle on Thursday, December 2, 2010.

Washington, DC - December 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The three co-creators of Foreclosure-Response.org – Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), the Urban Institute, and the Center for Housing Policy – have compiled and released new data on seriously delinquent mortgages for all 366 U.S. metro areas. “Seriously delinquent” mortgages are those that are delinquent 90 days or more or are in the foreclosure process. Homeowners experiencing serious delinquency are at substantial risk of losing their homes.

Washington, DC - December 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The following is a statement by National Association of Realtors® President Ron Phipps. “As the leading advocate for housing and home ownership issues, NAR firmly believes that the mortgage interest deduction (MID) is vital to the stability of the American housing market and economy.

McLean, VA - November 30, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC:FMCC) announced today the results of its third quarter Conventional Mortgage Home Price Index (CMHPI).

New York, N.Y. - November 29, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Turner Construction Company announced that the Fourth Quarter 2010 Turner Building Cost Index has slightly increased over the Third Quarter of 2010. The Turner Building Cost Index measures costs in the non-residential building construction market in the United States. The Turner Building Cost Index of 801 reflects a 0.38% increase over the Third Quarter 2010. However, overall construction costs have decreased by 0.25% when measured in comparison to the Fourth Quarter of 2009.

Washington, DC - November 29, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Commercial real estate markets are flattening out, with modestly improving fundamentals expected in 2011, according to the National Association of Realtors

Saint Paul, MN - November 26, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Property tax levies will increase an average of 2.6 percent statewide if proposed local tax levies are adopted later this year, the Minnesota Department of Revenue announced today. This compares to last year’s 3.1 percent increase and an average change of 5.3 percent over the past three years

McLean, VA - November 24, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which found that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) and the 15-year (FRM) edged up slightly this week. The 5-year ARM also rose, while the 1-year ARM fell a bit from the previous week.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 24, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 19, 2010. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 2.1 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index increased 1.1 percent compared with the previous week.

SPRINGFIELD, IL - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- October continued the trend of median price growth in the majority of Illinois counties, sales were lower due to seasonal and residual tax credit factors; year-to-date sales remain positive even as the economy and foreclosures slow the recovery. According to the Illinois Association of REALTORS® latest report, year-to-date total home sales (which include single-family and condominiums) statewide are up 0.1 percent January through October 2010 with 89,050 home sales compared to 88,989 home sales for the same period in 2009; year-to-date sales are up 4.6 percent in the Chicagoland Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area (PMSA). For the month of October, statewide home sales totaled 7,325, down 34.2 percent from 11,129 home sales in October 2009.

ORLANDO, FL - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Statewide year-to-date existing home sales in Florida showed positive momentum in October: 143,398 single-family existing homes sold for a 7 percent increase over the same period a year ago, though uncertainty over job growth, restrictive credit and foreclosure issues had a dampening effect on housing activity last month, according to industry analysts. The latest housing data released by Florida Realtors® also reported a 33 percent rise in statewide year-to-date condominium sales compared to a year ago, with a total of 59,966 units sold

SACRAMENTO, CA - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Having fallen in September after four straight months of gains, total housing production in California continued to decrease in October, the California Building Industry Association announced today.

LOS ANGELES, CA - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- California home sales declined in October, from both the previous month and previous year, according to data from the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.)

Washington, D.C. - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- As the days grow colder and consumers gear up for another winter, many are looking for ways to beat the season’s high monthly energy costs. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, the average U.S. household spends about $1,900 per year on home utility bills. With so much of a consumer’s monthly income spent on energy this winter, NeighborWorks America urges consumers to reduce their utility costs by weatherizing their homes this winter.

Washington, DC - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Housing Finance Agency 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 ARM contracts, was 4.49 percent based on loans closed in October. This is a decrease of 0.06 percent from the previous month.

Washington, DC - November 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Existing-home sales retreated in October on the heels of two strong monthly gains, according to the National Association of REALTORS

BEDFORD, N.H. - November 22, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- At a recent meeting, New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority’s Board of Directors approved the commitment of more than $6.9 million in federal HOME Investment Partnership and other funds for two development projects that will add 24 units of new affordable rental units to the state’s housing supply and preserve 162 existing affordable rental units. In addition, these projects will retain or create approximately 185 construction-related jobs during these challenging economic times

Chicago, IL - November 22, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The affordability of a classic single-family home has improved by 66 percent in the seven-county metropolitan Chicago real estate market over the last five years, according to a review by RE/MAX employing the traditional measure of home affordability developed by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

SAN ANTONIO, TX - November 22, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) and Jefferson Bank are pleased to announce they have awarded a $176,445 Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grant to St. Peter-St. Joseph Children’s Home to assist with the construction costs of a 32-bed emergency center for adolescents between the age of 12 and 18 years old.

Washington, D.C. - November 19, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Following the first positive reading since January 2008, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) dropped nearly two points in October. As a leading economic indicator of construction activity, the ABI reflects the approximate nine to twelve month lag time between architecture billings and construction spending. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported the October ABI score was 48.7, down from a reading of 50.4 the previous month. This score reflects a decrease in demand for design services (any score above 50 indicates an increase in billings). The new projects inquiry index was 61.7, down slightly from a nearly three-year high mark of 62.3 in September

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 18, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties decreased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 9.13 percent of all loans outstanding as of the end of the third quarter of 2010, a decrease of 72 basis points from the second quarter of 2010, and a decrease of 51 basis points from one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) National Delinquency Survey. The non-seasonally adjusted delinquency rate decreased one basis point to 9.39 percent this quarter from 9.40 percent last quarter. The delinquency rate includes loans that are at least one payment past due but does not include loans in the process of foreclosure.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 18, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties decreased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 9.13 percent of all loans outstanding as of the end of the third quarter of 2010, a decrease of 72 basis points from the second quarter of 2010, and a decrease of 51 basis points from one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) National Delinquency Survey. The non-seasonally adjusted delinquency rate decreased one basis point to 9.39 percent this quarter from 9.40 percent last quarter. The delinquency rate includes loans that are at least one payment past due but does not include loans in the process of foreclosure.

McLean, VA - November 18, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), which found that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) and the 15-year (FRM) rose dramatically this week, as did the 5-year ARM. The 1-year ARM remained unchanged from the previous week.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 18, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Housing affordability remained near its highest level nationwide for the seventh consecutive quarter as interest rates dipped below 5 percent for the first time since the series was first compiled nearly two decades ago, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) released today.The HOI indicated that 72.1 percent of all new and existing homes sold in the third quarter of 2010 were affordable to families earning the national median income of $64,400. The index for the third quarter almost equaled the record-high 72.5 percent set during the first quarter of 2009 and marked the seventh consecutive quarter that the index rose above 70 percent. Until 2009, the HOI rarely topped 65 percent and never reached 70 percent.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 17, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 12, 2010. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 14.4 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. The results do not include an adjustment for Veterans Day. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 15.0 percent compared with the previous week.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 17, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Nationwide housing starts declined 11.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 519,000 units in October, according to figures released by the U.S. Commerce Department today. The decline was primarily registered in the more volatile multifamily sector, where starts retreated 43.5 percent to an 83,000-unit rate, while single-family starts posted a more modest 1.1 percent decline to 436,000 units."Home builders continue to be very cautious about starting new projects at this time," said Bob Jones, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Bloomfield Hills, Mich. "That said, in markets where consumer demand for new homes is reviving, builders are finding it almost impossible to obtain construction financing, and this frustrating situation is producing an unnecessary drag on both new home production and economic growth."

Washington, DC - November 17, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The latest independent audit of the Federal Housing Administration shows the agency’s financial condition has improved from last year, when it announced its capital reserve fund had fallen below the 2 percent level mandated by Congress. The annual audit shows that the capital ratio for the single-family portfolio rose from 0.42 percent to 0.79 percent over the past year.