Headlines

According to Mark Fleming, chief economist at First American, the biggest takeaway is that the housing market, particularly the existing homes sector, is drastically underperforming. The impetus for this underperformance, he said, is an overall lack of buyer equity throughout the nation.

California-based firms The Life Planning Companies and National Real Estate Solutions (NRES) have teamed with Henderson, Nevada-based RIO Genesis to take advantage of RIO's breakthrough technology platform, national real estate broker organization (the NRBA), and numerous RIO Genesis users, real estate brokers, and agents, according to an announcement from RIO Genesis CEO Michael Krein.

Tuesday’s passage of proposed amendments to the Dodd-Frank Act in the House has reheated the debate over whether the changes really serve lower-income Americans who purchase manufactured homes or opens them up to predatory lenders on a large scale.

Though the gains in starts and permits are modest‒‒not to mention multi-faceted‒‒the upturn is certainly more welcome news to industry pundits than the numbers that came from February. That month, the U.S. Census Bureau and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reported that privately-owned housing starts had hit their lowest rate in years. Housing starts were down 17 percent from January and 3.3 percent below the February prior.

But improved builder confidence isn’t the only thing the HMI survey found. The report also shows jumps in other measurables as well. Builders’ expected buyer traffic increased four points, current sales conditions rose three points, and future sales expectations saw an increase, too, jumping from 59 to 64 points in the last month. According to NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe, these sales expectations numbers are at the highest level they’ve been all year–a good omen for the months to come.

Compared to a year ago, the overall pace of sales nationally has sped up. Last spring, about 62 percent of all homes Trulia track nationwide were still on the market at the 60-day mark. Wednesday’s report showed that number is now down to 60 percent.

Auction.com today released its latest look at the top 49 markets for single-family homes and found that Denver, San Antonio, Nashville, Fort Lauderdale, and Dallas lead the pack in terms of rising home prices, affordability, demand, and economic and demographic conditions that pave the way for future demand.

Despite the recent turmoil, Ocwen’s president and CEO, Ron Faris, said he expects his company to have a profitable 2015. "I am encouraged by the progress Ocwen has made so far,” Faris said. “We currently expect to … meet all of our ongoing financial and servicing obligations.”

San Francisco-based national wholesale and correspondent lender Parkside Lending has added industry veterans to the positions of general counsel, chief compliance officer, and closing manager to its team in order to manage the rapidly growing business.

By 2013, the FHA‒‒the nation’s largest insurer of reverse mortgages‒‒received it’s first-ever bailout of $1.7 billion. At the same time, HECM defaults started to rise. By the middle of 2013, more than a half-million HECMs remained outstanding and the default rate hovered around 10 percent.