According to Freddie Mac's quarterly earnings report, Q2 2013 net income totaled $5.0 billion, up about $407 million over the first quarter.
Read More »Obama Fields Housing Questions in Web Chat
Following a speech Tuesday night in Phoenix, in which President Barack Obama discussed his ideas for housing finance reform, the president today took questions from American citizens during a live discussion hosted by Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff. During the question and answer session Wednesday, Obama reiterated his stated goals to bring a gradual end to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, to bring private capital into the housing market, and to offer affordable housing options--both rental options and 30-year mortgages.
Read More »First Financial Network Announces $200M Loan Portfolio Offering
First Financial Network, Inc. (FFN), announced the offering of a $200 million performing and non-performing loan portfolio on behalf of a community bank.
Read More »Allstate Appraisal Hires National Chief Residential Appraiser
Allstate Appraisal, L.P., announced the hiring of new national chief residential appraiser Scott Sparks to oversee business development, client relationship management, and the company's Residential Quality Control Divisions.
Read More »30-Year Mortgage Veteran to Lead ASI as President
In Florida, Scott French has joined Auction Services International (ASI) as president.
Read More »Housing Market Slows Pace as Inventory Gains Continue
The real estate market continued to slow its pace in June as inventory growth eased pressure for buyers to act fast, Redfin revealed in its Fastest Real Estate Markets Report. According to Redfin's data, the percentage of homes under contract within 14 days fell to 30.5 percent nationwide in June, down from 31.9 percent in May. However, things are still moving faster than they were last June, when only 23.2 percent of homes went under contract that quickly.
Read More »Home Prices Up 11.9% in June, More Double-Digit Gains Expected
CoreLogic's Home Price Index (HPI) jumped 11.9 percent year-over-year in June, the company reported Tuesday. June's data falls short of the 13.2 percent growth projected in CoreLogic's Pending HPI for June. Month-over-month, June's index was up 1.9 percent from May, a full percentage point short of predictions (partially explained by a revision in May data). Looking ahead, the Pending HPI for July indicates home prices (including distressed sales) are expected to rise 12.5 percent yearly.
Read More »Mortgage Credit Availability Increases in July
Mortgage credit availability opened up some more in July, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Mortgage Credit Availability Index (MCAI).
Read More »Job Openings Hit Five-Year High in June
The number of job openings rose 29,000 in June to the highest level in five years, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Tuesday in its monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). At the same time, the number of unemployed individuals per job opening dipped below 3 (to 2.99) for the first time since October 2008. The number of unemployed per job opening fell sharply in the construction industry to 6.2 in June--the lowest level since July 2008--from a revised 8.7 in May.
Read More »Loan Officers Report Rising Demand for Non-Traditional Loans
According to the Federal Reserve's latest quarterly Senior Loan Officers Opinion Survey, a net 3.1 percent of lenders responding said demand for "non-traditional" residential loans increased from the survey released three months ago and a net 25 percent of respondents said demand for loans from sub-prime borrowers was higher than it was in May. At the same time, a net 6.3 percent of lenders said they had eased lending terms and standards for non-traditional mortgage loans.
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