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Apartment Groups Encouraged by Administration’s GSE Plan; Call for Continued Federal Guarantee for Rental...

WASHINGTON, DC - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- National Multi Housing Council (NMHC) President Doug Bibby issued the following statement concerning today's release of the Obama Administration's proposal for reforming Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. His statement is on behalf of NMHC and its joint legislative partner, the National Apartment Association.

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION PLAN PROVIDES PATH FORWARD FOR REFORMING AMERICA’S HOUSING FINANCE MARKET, WINDING DOWN...

WASHINGTON, DC - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the Obama Administration delivered a report to Congress that provides a path forward for reforming America's housing finance market. The Administration's plan will wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and shrink the government's current footprint in housing finance on a responsible timeline. The plan also lays out reforms to continue fixing the fundamental flaws in the mortgage market through stronger consumer protection, increased transparency for investors, improved underwriting standards, and other critical measures. Additionally, it will help provide targeted and transparent support to creditworthy but underserved families that want to own their own home, as well as affordable rental options.

Obama Administration Plan Provides Path Forward for Reforming America’s Housing Finance Market, Winding down...

WASHINGTON, DC - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Today, the Obama Administration delivered a report to Congress that provides a path forward for reforming America’s housing finance market. The Administration’s plan will wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and shrink the government's current footprint in housing finance on a responsible timeline. The plan also lays out reforms to continue fixing the fundamental flaws in the mortgage market through stronger consumer protection, increased transparency for investors, improved underwriting standards, and other critical measures. Additionally, it will help provide targeted and transparent support to creditworthy but underserved families that want to own their own home, as well as affordable rental options.

ADMINISTRATION PROPOSALS COULD THREATEN CONSUMER ACCESS TO SAFE, AFFORDABLE HOMEOWNERSHIP

Washington, D.C. - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) — The Administration’s options for mortgage finance reform released today include choices that could threaten consumers’ access to affordable mortgage credit to buy homes by severely constricting the government’s historic role in supporting affordable, long term credit, and on shifting control of the mortgage market to Wall Street banks and investors whose previous missteps have already caused massive foreclosures and losses for consumers and communities

JOHNSON STATEMENT ON HOUSING FINANCE REPORT

WASHINGTON, DC - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) — Today, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-SD) issued the following statement on the housing finance report released by the Treasury Department and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

ICBA: Housing Finance Reform Must Allow Community Banks to Continue Serving Main Street

Washington, D.C. - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) — The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) today said that the nation’s housing finance system must continue to provide a variety of finance options to meet the needs of different consumers, housing types and locations. Following the release of the Obama administration’s plan on housing finance, ICBA reminded policymakers that a stable secondary market for residential mortgages is essential to community banks and Main Street America, while also stressing completely privatizing the secondary mortgage market would have ruinous effects both on community banks and the customers they serve.

National Housing Trust Fund Campaign Applauds Administration’s Report on Federal Housing Finance Reform

February 14, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Obama Administration’s report to Congress on “Reforming America’s Housing Finance Market” proposes important measures to address the long-neglected shortage of rental housing that is affordable for the lowest income Americans

MBA Calls for Extension and Improvements for HARP Program

February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- On Thursday, February 10, 2011, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) submitted the attached comment letter to Edward DeMarco, Acting Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) calling for an extension of the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) that allows underwater borrowers who loans are owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and who are current on their mortgages, to take advantage of the current low interest rates to refinance their loans. MBA recommends that the program, currently slated to expire at the end of June, be extended to the end of December, 2012 to coincide with the expiration of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP)

MBA’s Comment on Administration’s White Paper on Government Role in the Secondary Mortgage Market

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Michael D. Berman, CMB, Chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), today issued the following statement in response to the Obama Administration’s release of a white paper outlining potential approaches to reforming the government’s role in the secondary mortgage market.

VA & HUD Issue First-Ever Report on Homeless Veterans

WASHINGTON, DC - February 11, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- For the first time, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development today published the most authoritative analysis of the extent and nature of homelessness among Veterans. According to HUD and VA’s assessment, nearly 76,000 Veterans were homeless on a given night in 2009 while roughly 136,000 Veterans spent at least one night in a shelter during that year.

Foreclosure-Response.org Team Releases Latest Data on Serious Delinquency and Foreclosure Rates for All 366...

Washington, DC - February 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The three co-creators of Foreclosure-Response.org – the Urban Institute, the Center for Housing Policy, and Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) – have compiled and released the newest data on seriously delinquent mortgages for all 366 U.S. metro areas.

55+ Housing Ends 2010 in Slump

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Home builder sentiment for the mature-market sector retreated in the last quarter of 2010 when compared to the same period a year earlier. The National Association of Home Builders' 55+ Housing Market Index for single-family homes dropped three points to 14 from a year ago following annual declines in the second and third quarters of 2010."The normal course of purchasing a new home in anticipation of or upon entering retirement has been interrupted by the fall in Baby Boomers' house values and reduction in their home equity," said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe.

HUD AND VA ISSUE FIRST-EVER REPORT ON VETERAN HOMELESSNESS IN AMERICA

WASHINGTON, DC - February 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- For the first time ever, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) today published the most authoritative analysis of the extent and nature of homelessness among American veterans. According to HUD and VA’s assessment, nearly 76,000 veterans were homeless on a given night in 2009 while roughly 136,000 veterans spent at least one night in a shelter during that year.

GSE Structures Must Protect Taxpayers and Ensure Mortgage Availability, Says NAR

WASHINGTON, DC - February 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Continued government participation in the secondary mortgage market is essential to ensuring affordable and available home mortgages to qualified consumers when private lenders withdraw from the market, according to the National Association of Realtors®’ recommendations for restructuring the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs)

Home Price Stabilization Seen in Most Metro Areas during Fourth Quarter, Sales Up

Washington, DC - February 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Home sales rebounded in 49 states during the fourth quarter with 78 markets – just over half of the available metropolitan areas – experiencing price gains from a year ago, while most of the rest saw price weakness, according to the latest survey by the National Association of REALTORS®.

Home Builders Call on Congress to Repeal Burdensome and Costly 1099 Reporting Requirements

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 10, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) called on Congress today to repeal all new expanded 1099 reporting requirements imposed in recent laws that will harm job creation and place a major paperwork and cost burden on the nation's small businesses.Testifying on behalf of NAHB before the House Small Business Committee, Mike Kegley, a builder from Union, Ky., and president of the Home Builders Association of Kentucky, told lawmakers that the collection of W-9 forms, monitoring payments over the course of a year, and additional staff time will cost individual small businesses thousands of dollars per year

Joseph A. Smith, Jr. to Address the NMLS User Conference

Orlando, FL - February 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Joseph A. Smith, Jr., North Carolina Commissioner of Banks, will address the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry (NMLS) User Conference & Training today on the future of state mortgage regulation

Justice Department Announces Indictment and Six Lawsuits Targeting False Claims for First-time Homebuyer and...

WASHINGTON, DC - February 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The United States has filed six lawsuits in five states to stop tax return preparers from fraudulently claiming the first-time homebuyer tax credit and the earned-income tax credit, the Justice Department announced today. The filings of those civil injunction complaints coincided with the indictment of a Philadelphia man on criminal charges of fraudulently claiming the first-time homebuyer credit. All of these actions are part of the Justice Department’s continuing efforts to halt tax scams involving false claims for tax credits and to prosecute those who fraudulently file tax returns containing those claims.

Governor Lincoln D. Chafee Announces Plans to Reactivate Interagency Council on Homelessness

Providence, RI - February 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- Governor Lincoln D. Chafee today announced his plans to reactivate the Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH), which establishes a mechanism for Cabinet- and Director-level staff to come together to discuss better coordination of state activities for housing and homelessness. The ICH also develops strategies to address the problems associated with homelessness, makes recommendations aimed at reducing the number of homeless people in Rhode Island, and promotes and supports development of permanent supportive housing

Mortgage Applications Decrease as Rates Jump in Latest MBA Weekly Survey

WASHINGTON, D.C. - February 9, 2011 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 4, 2011. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, decreased 5.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 3.9 percent compared with the previous week.

Business Real Estate Press Releases

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Florida Realtors Launches Sabal Sign Nationwide for Form Simplicity Ultimate Edition

Form Simplicity, one of the real estate industry’s most trusted and widely used transaction management solutions created and owned by the Florida Realtors, today announced the nationwide

Recent Gov & Nonprofit Real Estate Press Releases

NAR

REALTORS® Embrace AI, Digital Tools to Enhance Client Service, NAR Survey...

Agents who are REALTORS® are leaning into artificial intelligence while continuing to rely on digital tools such as eSignature, social media, and drone photography to serve their clients, according to