Yearly Archives: 2011

WASHINGTON, DC - January 31, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Yesterday, Thursday, January 27, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Deputy Secretary Scott Gould, and U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness Director Barbara Poppe joined volunteers around the nation as they participated in a national count of homeless persons and families as part of HUD’s national Let’s Make Everybody Count! campaign.WASHINGTON, DC - January 31, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Yesterday, Thursday, January 27, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Deputy Secretary Scott Gould, and U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness Director Barbara Poppe joined volunteers around the nation as they participated in a national count of homeless persons and families as part of HUD’s national Let’s Make Everybody Count! campaign.

TOPEKA, KS - January 31, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Kansas Development Finance Agency (KDFA) President Tim Shallenburger has named Garden City native Dennis L. Mesa as Executive Director of Kansas Housing Resources Corporation (KHRC). KHRC, a subsidiary corporation of KDFA, is a self-supporting, public corporation which serves as the primary administrator of federal housing programs on behalf of the State of Kansas.

Needham, MA - January 31, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Real estate blog designer HubConnected LLC is proud to announce that the team of Debbie Spencer and Sheen Santos, Real Estate Agents with Higgins Group Realtors., have launched a brand new hyper-local real estate blog http://www.liveinbedfordma.com. The blog is dedicated to life in the Massachusetts town of Bedford, MA. In addition to discussing the real estate market, the blog will feature wide-ranging articles about the towns, events occurring in Massachusetts, family activities, and tips on local shopping, restaurants, schools and neighborhoods.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 31, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Eliminating the deductions for mortgage interest and real estate taxes would raise taxes disproportionately for middle-class households and make the tax system less progressive, according to a new study from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).The study also concludes that the benefits of these deductions are collected primarily by middle-class taxpayers, with incomes between $50,000 and $200,000, and that greater benefits are earned by larger households and families, such as those with children

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 28, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Hundreds of thousands of Americans of all ages and backgrounds joined in volunteer service projects across the country on the 2011 Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama joined cabinet secretaries, governors, mayors, nonprofit and business leaders, students, families, and others in honoring Dr. King's legacy through service projects addressing a multitude of pressing social issues from poverty and illiteracy to hunger to homelessness.Americans made it a “a day on, not a day off” by weatherizing homes, delivering meals, refurbishing schools, collecting food and clothing, reading to children, providing employment counseling, and more. Many will use the day as the beginning of ongoing commitment to serve throughout the year.

DENVER, CO - January 28, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- RE/MAX Commercial® is once again joining the ranks of other high-profile commercial franchises with the second most Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) candidates and designees in the industry, a significant achievement given today’s commercial real estate landscape.

Washington, DC - January 27, 2011 - (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 4.58 percent based on loans closed in November. This is an increase of 0.16 percent from the previous month.

DETROIT, MI - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Madison Theatre Building LLC, a new partnership formed by Dan Gilbert, Founder and Chairman of Detroit-based Quicken Loans Inc., announced it has completed the purchase of the historic Madison Building, located at 1555 Broadway Street in downtown Detroit. The building was originally designed by architect C. Howard Crane and constructed in 1917 as part of the Madison Theater complex.

Sanford, ME - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Reliant Mortgage Company of Sanford, ME has announced that it has been named the #1 Mortgage Company of the Greater Sanford/Springvale area for 2011.

WASHINGTON, DC - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today conducted its annual State of the Real Estate Finance Industry Media Conference Call. The call featured MBA representatives discussing the state of the industry, MBA's legislative and regulatory agenda for 2011 (including Dodd-Frank Act Implementation, GSE/secondary market reform, tax reform and residential loan servicing) and MBA's new three-year macro-economic and mortgage finance/housing forecasts.The speakers included: Michael Berman, Chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association, John Courson, President and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association, Jay Brinkmann, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, Gail Cardwell, Senior Vice President of Commercial and Multifamily, Bill Killmer, Senior Vice President of Legislative and Political Affairs, and Steve O'Connor, Senior Vice President of Public Policy and Industry Relations.

McLean, VA - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®) which shows long- and short-term rates rising this week

NEW YORK, N.Y. - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mortgage rates showed little movement again this week, with the benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate nosing higher to 4.97 percent according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.44 discount and origination points.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- After a bruising fast-paced winter thunderstorm yesterday left more than 10 inches of snow in certain parts of the Washington, DC area, many residents saw damaged trees, dangling wires, and power outages across the region. As most people have realized, snow and ice can prove dangerous, and can cause severe damage to properties and vehicles.

Inland Empire - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Colliers International, the second largest real estate services organization globally, has completed the sale of a 89,248-square-foot multi-family property located at 301 E. Cypress Ave, Redlands, CA to Sequoia Equities, a Walnut Creek-based real estate investment firm. The property sold for $625,000 above list price, at $11.625 million and $141,768 per unit.

Torrance, CA - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Lee & Associates, one of the largest national commercial real estate providers with regional expertise, recently closed the sale of a 27.96-acre land parcel in the Ocean Ranch business park in Oceanside, Calif. The transaction is valued at $8.8 million.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The latest National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI) edged up to 41.5 in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to 40.8 in the third quarter. An RMI below 50 indicates that more remodelers say market activity is lower compared to the prior quarter than report it is higher. The RMI has been running below 50 since the final quarter of 2005.The overall RMI combines ratings of current remodeling activity with indicators of future activity like calls for bids. In the fourth quarter, the RMI component measuring current market conditions stayed flat at 43.3 from 43.4 in the previous quarter. The RMI component measuring future indicators of remodeling business increased, to 39.7 from 38.1 in the previous quarter.

Washington, DC - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Pending home sales improved further in December, marking the fifth gain in the past six months, according to the National Association of Realtor

Torrance, CA - January 27, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Irvine office of Lee & Associates, the fourth largest full-service commercial brokerage company in the nation, has completed the $6.3 million sale of the Teslaco Building, a 35,000-square-foot office building located at 35 Tesla in Irvine, Calif., to Owen Commercial. The building was a foreclosure sale by GE Capital and was never put on the market. Lee & Associates sold it as an off-market investment.

Los Angeles, CA - January 26, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. (CBRE) has announced that Chris Ludeman will join Brian Stoffers as co-president of the firm’s Capital Markets businesses. In his expanded role, Mr. Ludeman will provide client-facing leadership for the company’s office, industrial and retail Investment Properties efforts along with its Institutional Group, Global Property Advisors and Private Client Group activities. Mr. Stoffers will continue to lead CBRE’s Debt and Equity Finance, agency and loan servicing businesses, as well as oversee the multi-housing, hotel/lodging and investment banking practices. Mr. Ludeman will continue as President, Americas Brokerage, overseeing CBRE’s tenant rep and agency leasing business lines

ISSAQUAH, WA - January 26, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Pulte Homes purchased land for the development of 70 townhomes in the sought-after Issaquah Highlands master plan. The homebuilder purchased the land from Port Blakely Communities in late December and plans to begin sales this fall