Archive for June 2008

Jamie Woodwell Named VP of MBA’s Commercial/Multifamily Research Washington, D.C.–The Mortgage Bankers Association has promoted Jamie Woodwell (pictured) to vice president of commercial/multifamily research. In this role, he will continue to lead the research on commercial finance and multifamily finance issues, and will be responsible for providing economic and policy analysis of legislative and regulatory proposals.…

Chicago–After declining for two months, sales of previously owned homes grew 2 percent in May, the Chicago-based National Association of Realtors said Thursday.Single-family home sales increased 1.6 percent; sales of apartments and condominiums rose by 5.5 percent, according to the New York Times. In the Midwest, sales increased 5.5 percent; in the Northeast, sales grew…

San Francisco–Two years ago, the annual Pacific Coast Builders Conference and trade show in San Francisco drew 35,000 building professionals; this year, housing market woes cut attendance to just 18,000 to 20,000, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.Sinking home values, foreclosures, hesitant buyers and credit issues have slowed home sales–and demand for new homes, which has…

Miami–Lennar Corp.–the second-largest U.S. homebuilder–announced its fifth consecutive quarterly loss Thursday, Bloomberg said.The Miami-based company was forced to reduce prices to attract buyers. Its fiscal second quarter net loss was $121 million, compared to $244 million a year earlier. Revenue declined 61 percent to $1.1 billion. Deliveries fell 60 percent to 3,830 homes; new orders…

Washington, D.C.–U.S. gross domestic product rose in the first quarter, indicating that the U.S. did not enter into a recession in the beginning of 2008, according to revised government figures released Thursday.The Commerce Department said that gross domestic product increased 1 percent at an annual rate, The Wall Street Journal said. The previous GDP estimate…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News Editor San Francisco–The Pacific Coast Builders Show 2008 (PCBC) opened here on June 25 with developers, contractors and architects coming together to find solutions to the problems currently facing the real estate industry.Whether it was former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina’s keynote speech, which emphasized the need for seeking out new opportunities,…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorIndianapolis–Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services has acquired the exclusive listing for the Premier EPM Portfolio for $242.95 million.The portfolio is comprised of 10 properties and 2,704 units in the neighboring areas of Indianapolis; Fort Wayne, Ind.; Omaha, Neb. and Gainesville, Ga. They are being offered either separately or as…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorBrookfield, Wis.–In a preemptive move to help borrowers at risk of defaulting on their mortgage payments, Fiserv Inc. has released two tools to allow financial institutions to identify and contact borrowers with repayment solutions.The tools systematically identify borrowers who are at risk of becoming delinquent, explains Jim Smith, executive vice president…

By Erika Schnitzer, Associate EditorEatontown, N.J.–The first phase of Mill Pond at Eatontown, a 118–unit, seven-building condominium community developed by Iselin, N.J.-based American Properties Reality, is now 70 percent sold.All units are two-bedroom, two-bathrooms and are priced from $252,990 to $268,990. “The price in today’s market is most important as it correlates to value,” says…