Are things getting better? The news certainly is not good, but the question is whether there is lemonade amongst the lemons …
 U.S. foreclosure activity in July 2008 increased 8 percent from the previous month and 55 percent from a year earlier, July 2007, according to the RealtyTrac Foreclosure Market Report released today.

Bank Repossessions (REOs) […]

When it comes to 1031 Exchanges, beware. Do you know who has been entrusted with your money? A recent report in the Wall Street Journal article highlighted a rash of 1031 exchanges companys that have stolen investors’ funds and used them to fund an expensive lifestyle.
1031s Loosely Defined: Thousands of real estate investors have used […]

The omnibus housing bill, otherwise officially know as Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008, passed  in a 72-13 vote Saturday (July 26, 2008), the Senate concurred with previous House amendments to HR 3221.
In effect, the passing of this bill, grants the Bush administration’s request to give the Treasury Department the temporary authority to buy an unlimited amount of the […]

When searching for answers regarding the workings of financial markets – past, present and into the future – it is often wise to turn to The Wharton School, one of the most well respected academic institutions, for insights.

In a thoughtful piece entitled, Collateralized Damage: Commercial Mortgage Securities Are at a Standstill, the on-line journal, […]

As we have said on many occassions, commercial real estate is a lagging economic indicator. We have seen the strain in other areas like residential property (sub-prime crisis), rising food and gas prices, and a tightening of consumer finance options (Home Equity Lines Of Credit (HELOC), Credit Card Defaults, etc.).
Now the tail is finally starting to wag the […]

Here’s the potential $2.8 trillion dollar question. In a revealing article in the New York Times, they investigate the question of how bad could things get? Since World War II, there have been 18 banking crises in industrial countries. The worst five were caused by changing lending standards or real estate bubbles (often both) and […]

As just reported in InmanNews, shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac hit 17-year lows today (July 10, 2008) as investors’ fears about the companies’ ability to raise additional capital fueled speculation of the possibility of a government bailout.
Along these lines, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) has issued a statement on the […]

John Caulfield in BuilderOnline, attempts to predict the trending in the Non-Residential market (and read the tea leaves), as it is suggested that the economic downturn seems to be taking its toll on the non-residential sector, which despite a strong year in 2007 and gains as recently as last month, could be faltering a bit. 
Last week, McGraw-Hill […]

As reported by Inman News, the current housing slump is far from over and is shaping up to be the worst in 50 years, according to an annual report on the state of the nation’s housing markets from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

Drastic production cuts and deep price discounts in 2005-2007 helped […]

The point is often is often raised that there is some value in eliminating title insurance. Kimberly Palmer, in her article in U.S. New and World Report today, makes clear that the answer to whether to opt out of title insurance is: DO NOT!
When attorney Mark Rutzick sold his home in Fairfax, Va., and bought a new […]