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MERSCORP Holdings, Inc. today announced that the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee Nashville Division granted MERS’ motion and dismissed a borrower lawsuit challenging MERS’ role in a Tennessee deed of trust.

At a public hearing on increasing national fuel-efficiency standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, the Consumer Federation of America’s director of public affairs and vehicle expert Jack Gillis presented the results of two national surveys demonstrating that consumers understand that the cost of fuel inefficient trucks is passed on to them and that they would like to see standards requiring increased fuel efficiency.

Boosted by its exploding popularity on Facebook, the Solar Energy Industries Association’s (SEIA) social media efforts have been recognized as some of the best in the nation, according to the 2015 Social Media Report published by Association TRENDS

Led by a strong jump in single-family production, nationwide housing starts inched up 0.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.206 million units in July, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Commerce Department. This is the highest level since October 2007.

Though U.S. architecture firms are still recovering from the Great Recession, overall business conditions are improving allowing an increase in compensation for architecture positions. Compensation across the profession increased an average of 1.8 percent per year over the 2013–2014 period, with growth occurring in every architectural staff category, according to the American Institute of Architects (AIA)

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes in August rose one point to a level of 61 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). This is the highest reading since November 2005.

The President of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB), Donnell Spivey, commended recent action taken by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to expand homeownership for more Americans. Under the leadership of FHFA Director Mel Watt, on October 21, 2014, the agency announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with lenders, have reached an agreement to ease the representation and warranty requirements for lenders that sell mortgage loans to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

County leaders and other supporters join MidPen in celebrating the groundbreaking of Fetters Apartments, 60 affordable apartments for families in Fetters Hot Springs, Sonoma. On Friday August 14th, Sonoma County Supervisor Susan Gorin joined other county leaders to celebrate the groundbreaking of Fetters Apartments – an affordable, workforce rental apartment community being developed by MidPen Housing in the heart of Sonoma Springs

The National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) and ASTM International (ASTM) will explore the state of building science education in North America and collaborate to examine ways to improve educational training and curriculum development at the second Workshop on Building Science Education in North America: Building Bridges and Bridging the Gap.

Government should not be permitted to tell property owners, in essence, “the more land you own, the less you’ll be allowed to use.”  So argue Pacific Legal Foundation attorneys in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the constitutional takings case of Donna Murr and her siblings Joseph Murr, Michael Murr, and Peggy Heaver.  They have been barred from developing a vacant lot they own along the St. Croix River, in St. Croix County, Wisconsin — and a state appellate court said they weren’t entitled to Fifth Amendment takings compensation because they also own a neighboring lot with a recreational cabin on it

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) recently released an infographic to help veterans determine whether or not they are protected under the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (VEVRAA).  Recent changes to VEVRAA regulations require contractors to invite applicants to voluntarily self-identify as protected veterans at both the pre-offer and post-offer phases of the application process

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) recently made available on its website a Checklist for Compliance (link is external) with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a law requiring that federal contractors take affirmative action and do not discriminate against individuals with disabilities. The new tool was created to help contractors assess their compliance with the regulations that govern the law.

The National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals® (NAHREP®) has announced Julissa Acre, former Goldman Sachs star and current public affairs director at Define American, will keynote the Latina Brunch session at its 2015 National Convention & Latin Music Festival.

Household debt balances were largely flat in the second quarter of this year, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Household Debt and Credit Report. Total indebtedness increased just $2 billion from Q1 2015. Foreclosures hit their lowest point in the 16-year history of the New York Fed’s Consumer Credit Panel, a nationally representative sample drawn from anonymized Equifax credit data.

Affordable, quality healthcare is essential to sustaining a vibrant society. Yet, the American healthcare industry is facing overwhelming uncertainty in almost every segment. In 2015, the National Institute of Building Sciences Academy for Healthcare Infrastructure (AHI) began working on five critical issues currently facing the healthcare facilities industry and established a Collaborative Research Team to focus on each issue.

NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, has selected 15 young professionals to receive its prestigious 2015 Developing Leaders Award. The annual award honors up-and-coming professionals under the age of 35 for their exemplary professional accomplishments, strong leadership and community involvement. The award will be presented at NAIOP’s Commercial Real Estate Conference 2015, October 13-15 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Firming home prices in many housing markets resulted in a modest drop in nationwide housing affordability in the second quarter of 2015, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) released today.

The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties decreased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 5.30 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the second quarter of 2015. This was the lowest level since the second quarter of 2007. The delinquency rate decreased 24 basis points from the previous quarter, and 74 basis points from one year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) National Delinquency Survey.

Mortgage applications increased 0.1 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association's (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 7, 2015

The Association of Mortgage Professionals, has announced that it will work to support H.R. 3393, the Mortgage Fairness Act of 2015. The legislation introduced by Congressmen Bill Posey and Dennis Ross in the U.S. House of Representatives would provide a long overdue technical correction to the Dodd Frank Act. This technical correction would allow lower and moderate income consumers and homebuyers some flexibility in the loan they choose to buy a home in order to have better cash flow at the time of closing.