Archive for December, 2009
So much for RE recovery in 2010 !
We estimate that roughly 3.2m foreclosures must be prevented in 2010 for home prices to stabilize or potentially tick up,” researchers said. “This is an uphill challenge, but a combination of current government programs and their future iterations offer a narrow path for success.”
This projection comes as Deutsche Bank researchers say these predictions will likely become a reality, with the total peak-to-trough decline of US home prices hitting nearly 40%. In the current outlook, they say home prices will drop a further 10 to 12% from current levels
HUD Limits FHA Mortgages after Short Sales
Effective immediately, borrowers are not eligible for a new FHA mortgage if they pursued a short sale agreement “to take advantage of declining market conditions” or to purchase another property at a reduced price.
Borrowers are cleared for a new FHA-insured mortgage if they were current on their previous mortgage and other debts at the time of the short sale and if the proceeds from the short sale serve as payment in full.
If a borrower executes a short sale while in default on their mortgage would not be eligible for a FHA-insured mortgage for three years from the date of the pre-foreclosure sale. Some lenders can make exceptions if the default was due to circumstances beyond the borrower’s control such as the death of the primary wage earner.
But, it means that anyone eligible for the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives program (HAFA) would not be eligible for a new FHA-insured mortgage for three years. Under HAFA, the US Treasury Department provides incentives to servicers, banks and investors to pursue a short sale for seriously delinquent borrowers.
BofA, Chase Halt Foreclosure Evictions Until Jan. 3
From Dec. 21, 2009 through Jan. 3, 2009, Chase and BofA will postpone foreclosure evictions, joing Citi Group. Decisions to suspend foreclosure are common this time of year.
House Flipping Makes a Comeback
Four years after the collapse of the U.S. housing bubble, flipping homes is back in fashion.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126022588878780861.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLETopStories
MBA Report Shows Third Quarter 2009 Commercial and Multifamily Mortgage Performance
Delinquency rates continued to increase in the third quarter for most commercial/multifamily mortgage investor groups, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Commercial/Multifamily Delinquency Report.
“Commercial and multifamily mortgages continued to feel stress in the face of the weakened economy,” said Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research. “The deterioration in commercial and multifamily loan performance is generally in line with what is being seen in other parts of the economy, with loans backed by commercial properties continuing to perform far better than construction and development loans.”
Banks Start to Embrace Short Sales
Three years into the housing meltdown, short sales have tripled to 40,000 in the first six months of 2009, compared to the same time period a year ago, according to data from the Office of Thrift Supervision and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Wells Fargo, Bank of America Corp., and JPMorgan Chase & Co. this year have hired and trained more staff to handle short sales and also developed software for expediting them.
“It’s really finally dawning on banks that they’re better off with a short sale,” said Richard Green, director of the Lusk Center for Real Estate at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. “I think banks were in denial.”
Source: Bloomberg, John Gittelsohn and Margaret Col
New IRS mileage allowances announced
The Internal Revenue Service has issued the 2010 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.
Beginning on Jan. 1, 2010, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:
• 50 cents per mile for business miles driven
• 16.5 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes
• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations
Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to new low
Freddie Mac said Thursday that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage average hit a new low. The 30-year average declined to 4.71% with an average 0.7 point for the week ending Dec. 3 from 4.78% last week. The new 30-year average is the lowest since Freddie Mac began its weekly survey in 1971.
