Data

Housing starts plunged 8.5 percent in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 890,000, the Census Bureau and HUD reported jointly.

Orion Financial Group, Inc., a provider of mortgage assignment, lien release, and document retrieval services, announced it is now providing streamlined settlement services to investors. The new offering provides small- to medium-size investors a one-stop, efficient solution for their needs.

There are nearly 400 mandatory inclusionary housing policies designed to low-priced housing within market-rate developments.

LoanSifter, Inc., a Wisconsin-based provider of product eligibility and pricing solutions for the mortgage banking industry, announced the hiring of Sue Stewart as VP of client services. Stewart has a 30-year tracked record of successfully leading mortgage companies, serving most recently as SVP at Move, Inc.

Capital Square Management announced last week the introduction of a new venture, Capital Square Real Estate Advisors, LLC, a new investment firm for high net worth investors.

Gibraltar Capital and Asset Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Horsham, Pennsylvania-based Toll Brothers, Inc., recently acquired four new loan portfolios totaling more than $33 million.

According to a report from SaveUp.com, the average total debt load for an average member of Generation X or Y (those under the age of 47) is close to $37,000, slightly higher than the national average debt load of $36,157. Of the two groups, Gen X appears at first to be worse off, with the average person harboring a debt load of $46,972 compared to the Gen Y average of $28,930. However, SaveUp.com finds that more than 60 percent of Gen Xers' debt comes from mortgage and student loans--considered "good debt" that helps build assets.

Led by a sharp drop in the South, builder confidence slipped in February to 46--the lowest level since November--the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported Tuesday. Economists had expected the Housing Market Index (HMI), a measure of confidence, would improve to 48 from January's reading of 47. Nationally, two of the three index components--current single-family sales and buyer traffic--declined, while the assessment of sales for the next six months edged up.

Capital Economics recently explored concerns that particular states are seeing "unsustainable, investor-fueled" increases.

While the revised Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), commonly referred to as HARP 2.0, has allowed far more homeowners to refinance than the original version, there remains a large group of eligible homeowners who have yet to take advantage of the program.