Monthly Archives: May 2007

No way out

Posted on May 2, 2007 by grim

From the Examiner: Devalued real estate appraisals harmful to subprime borrowers You face foreclosure. You quickly move to refinance but qualify only for a double-digit subprime rate. You take it, pay for an appraisal and learn your house is worth … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 12 Comments

Waiting for the recovery..

Posted on May 2, 2007 by grim

From Bloomberg: Rents Peak in U.S. Housing Glut; New York Landlords Escape Drop The glut of U.S. properties for sale is about to hit the rental market. A record number of homeowners who can’t sell condominiums and houses are competing … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 11 Comments

Pending home sales hit 3 4 year low

Posted on May 1, 2007 by grim

From Bloomberg: Pending Sales of Existing Homes in U.S. Fell 4.9% in March An index of pending sales of existing homes in the U.S. unexpectedly fell to the lowest level in four years in March, signaling the real-estate slump may … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, National Real Estate | 140 Comments

Speculators leaving the real estate market

Posted on May 1, 2007 by grim

From the AP: Sales of Second Homes Plunge Sales of second homes purchased as investment properties plunged in 2006, but demand for vacation homes remained strong, a real estate trade group reported Monday. The National Association of Realtors said sales … Continue reading →

Posted in National Real Estate | 21 Comments

Paramus Alt-A lender shutters business units

Posted on May 1, 2007 by grim

From the Record: Paramus lender shuts subsidiaries, cuts jobs The Paramus-based lending and loan payment collecting arm of a real estate investment trust is trying to shake off a serious bout of the subprime contagion. Within the past two weeks, … Continue reading →

Posted in Risky Lending | 2 Comments

Agressive accounting or just plain fraud?

Posted on May 1, 2007 by grim

From the NY Times: Accounting Said to Hide Lender Losses In the spring of 1998, the chief financial officer of New Century Financial, a lender to home buyers with blemished credit, wrote an unusual paper describing a then little-known accounting … Continue reading →

Posted in Risky Lending | Comments Off on Agressive accounting or just plain fraud?

Pumping or puffery

Posted on May 1, 2007 by grim

From Salon: Pumping real estate just isn’t any fun anymore Did the housing bust just claim another victim? David Lereah, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, a man who has been mocked many times in How the … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Bubble, National Real Estate | 4 Comments

Whose choice should it be?

Posted on May 1, 2007 by grim

From the AP via the Courier Post: Decision aids farmland preservation A unanimous appellate court ruling bolsters the state’s farmland preservation program by allowing the state to buy land from a farmer so long as the sale price is similar … Continue reading →

Posted in New Development, New Jersey Real Estate | Comments Off on Whose choice should it be?