Washington, D.C.–Existing home sales rose for the first time in seven months, according to data released Monday by the National Association of Realtors.Falling prices helped home sales increase to a 5.03 million annual rate–a 2.9 percent increase from January’s unrevised 4.89 million pace, The Wall Street Journal reports.Year-to-year, sales were down 24 percent, NAR said.Median home prices also dropped from their February 2007 level–$213,000–to $195,000 last month. The 8.2 percent decline was NAR’s largest on record. In January, the median home price was $199,700.Home inventories fell 3 percent at the end of last month to 4.03 million, a 9.6-month supply….

Houston–Uniondale, N.Y.-based Arbor Commercial Funding LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Arbor Commercial Mortgage LLC, recently completed funding of a $50,100,000 loan under the Fannie Mae DUS product line to purchase Broadway Square Apartments, a 2,469-unit complex in Houston.Post Investment Group LLC acquired the 69-acre property from developer Harold Farb. The five-year loan amortizes on a 30-year schedule and carries a rate of 5.65 percent.“Broadway Square will be a great addition to our current Texas holdings and gives us a strong presence in one of the nation’s preeminent real estate markets,” says Jason Post, president of Post Investment Group LLC. “Arbor’s…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorAnnapolis, Md.–The current models that predict demand, supply, cost etc. in the seniors housing industry have failed to account for several factors, making the projections about the industry less reliable, according to the “NIC Compendium Project: A Guide to Long-Term Care Projection and Simulation Models.” This review and analysis of research on long-term care financing for senior citizens was conducted by the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing Care Industry (NIC).The study points out that the models do not address the substitutability of services such as home care and assisted living facilities for nursing…

Aventura, Fla.–Developer Martin Z. Margulies has broken ground on the Bellini Williams Island, a luxury condominium project on Williams Island in Aventura, Fla.The 24-story boutique-style condominium tower features 70 three-bedroom corner units with 2,235 to 2,608 sq. ft. of living space and four 4,636-sq.-ft penthouses. Pre-construction prices range from $1.3 million to $3.2 million. The project is expected to be complete in 2010.“This is the last piece of residential property on Williams Island, so there’s a tremendous demand here for a contemporary luxurious residence,” says Margulies.Each Bellini home features private high-speed elevators, formal foyers, water views from wraparound glass balconies,…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorSan Francisco–Architecture and planning firm Hornberger + Worstell will celebrate the opening of the 53-unit Fairmont Heritage Place at Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco in June 2008. The Fairmont Heritage is a landmark adaptive re-use project involving the conversion of the Chocolate, Cocoa, and Mustard Buildings, as well as portions of the Clock Tower and Woolen Buildings, into a fractional ownership hotel. Ghirardelli Square had already been converted for different uses more than once. The most significant conversion took place in the early 1960s when William Wurster, the well-known local architect, adapted the fully operational…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorThe regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, recently eased a major restriction on the companies in an effort to unfreeze credit markets and stabilize housing prices. Starting April. 1, the mortgage limits on loans the two outfits can guarantee will rise from $417,000 to $729,750. The caps on their portfolios have also been lifted.“This is all coming off as positive news for the multifamily market,” Cheryl Patton Malloy,
senior vice president
of Multifamily and Governance at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) tells MHN. “All Fannie and Freddie multifamily loans…

By Erin Brereton, Content ManagerFoster City, Calif.–Declining home sales may mean trouble for real estate agents, but in some areas–such as Southern California, where Foster City, Calif.-based Legacy Partners Residential, Inc. added 6,450 units to its property management portfolio during 2006 and 2007–they’re giving the rental market a big boost. Legacy’s 2007 additions, located in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego county, bring the company’s Southern California and Arizona roster to 56 properties with nearly 11,000 units under management.Because the Los Angeles area consists primarily of renters–60 percent compared to 32 percent nationwide–Legacy expects demand for rental apartments to grow,…

Miami–The mortgage industry is being stricter about issuing home loans to consumers with good credit and is refusing to insure certain loans in almost a quarter of the nation’s ZIP codes–including areas such as Miami, which is experiencing falling home prices and a high foreclosure rate.Mortgage insurers’ backing is required for borrowers who can’t put down a 20 percent down payment; but the industry is no longer interested in backing loans for a variety of properties–including big homes in Scottsdale, Ariz., ranch homes in Flint, Mich. and luxury Miami condos, according to Newsweek. Mortgage insurers have singled out more than…

By Anuradha Kher, Online News EditorLa Quinta, Calif.,–Coachella Valley Housing Coalition (CVHC), a housing development non-profit dedicated to helping low- and very-low income families improve their living conditions, recently broke ground on a $90 million green affordable housing development to be built on nearly 15 acres in the La Quinta community near Palm Springs, Calif. When complete, Wolff Waters Place will provide 218 affordable homes to families earning 35-50 percent of the area’s median income, or approximately $30,000 per year for a family of four.Wolff Waters Place, located on Avenue 48 and Dune Palms Rd., includes 22 buildings designed as…