New rules raise the bar for condo mortgages in Florida
MIAMI – Jan. 26, 2009 – Lending giant Fannie Mae is slapping tough new requirements on mortgages for Florida condos, moves that analysts believe will make it even more difficult to sell units in buildings already starved for residents and struggling financially.
The standards, which took effect last week and apply only to Florida, include requiring that no more than 15 percent of a building’s unit owners be delinquent on association fees as a condition of funding home loans to new buyers.
Fannie Mae buys the majority of home loans from lenders, so it wields significant power in the making of mortgages. Fannie-backed loans generally offer the best rates and lowest down payments for borrowers.
Florida’s existing home, condo sales rise in December 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. – Jan. 26, 2009 – Florida’s existing home sales rose in December, making it the fourth consecutive month that sales activity demonstrated gains in the year-to-year comparison, according to the latest housing data released by the Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR). December’s statewide sales also increased over November’s figures in both the existing home and existing condo markets.
Existing home sales rose 27 percent last month with a total of 11,053 homes sold statewide compared to 8,712 homes sold in December 2007, according to FAR. December’s statewide existing home sales were 28.9 percent higher than November’s statewide sales.
Florida’s existing housing market reflects mortgage, economic issues at year-end 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. – Jan. 26, 2009 – Florida’s housing market mirrored the national trend in 2008, as mortgage industry troubles, unsettled financial markets, tightened credit and other economic issues impacted sales and prices. By year’s end, a total of 124,215 existing homes sold statewide, a decrease of 4 percent compared to 129,855 homes sold statewide in 2007, according to the latest housing data released by the Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR).
Florida’s median sales price for existing homes was $187,800 at year-end 2008; a year previously, it was $234,300 for a 20 percent decrease. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.
Rate hike being recommended for Florida insurer
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) – Jan. 23, 2009 – A task force is recommending that Citizens Property Insurance be allowed to end a three-year rate freeze and start aggressively hiking homeowner rates.
The task force voted earlier this month to recommend that the Legislature caps Citizens’ annual rate increase to 10 percent on average statewide. It was meeting again Thursday in Jacksonville to finalize its report. It also suggests an annual cap of 15 percent for any given territory and 20 percent for any single policy.
Task force members are urging the state for Citizens to begin raising rates in January 2010.
Citizens is the state’s largest insurer with 1.1 million policies and $412 billion in exposure.
The task force must submit a report to the Legislature by Jan. 31.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Economists see deeper housing woes in ‘09
LAS VEGAS – Jan. 21, 2009 – A panel of housing experts on Tuesday projected that builders’ woes will deepen this year, pushing the prospect of a recovery into 2010 at the earliest.
“We do expect ‘09 to be the down year, to be the bottom,” David Crowe, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders, said during a news conference at the International Builders’ Show, which runs through Friday.
The outlook reflects grim forecasts that call for home prices, new construction and home sales to decline this year, while mortgage defaults, foreclosures and unemployment continue to rise.
That dynamic has kept the housing market mired in a slump and homebuilders large and small in the red. The U.S. economic downturn, meanwhile, has crippled any hopes for a near-term housing recovery.
Box of tips on whether you should refinance
ORLANDO, Fla. – Jan. 21, 2009 – When mortgage rates fell below 5 percent last month, broker Jeff Perdue’s phone lines lighted up as dozens of people tried to join the latest refinance boom. When the ringing stopped, only five were approved.
The rest had good credit, good income and “decent equity” in their homes, but that wasn’t enough, said Perdue, owner of Orlando Home Mortgage.
“The value of their homes killed the deal,” he said. “I had to call them and tell them, ‘I’m sorry. If your house had been worth what it was when you bought it, this would have been a piece of cake. Now the numbers don’t make sense for you.’”
Real estate appraisers face big changes
WASHINGTON – Jan. 19, 2009 – The appraisal industry has justifiably come under fire for its role in the great housing bust. Property appraisals, required by lenders before a loan is made, are supposed to provide an independent assessment of the home’s value. But during the boom, some appraisers routinely signed off on a doubling or tripling of home values, sometimes racked up in just a matter of months. Investment properties were appraised at prices that made no investment sense. And homeowners were charged a pretty penny for what often amounted to rubber-stamp service.
Now the industry is about to undergo a shakeup. On Jan. 9, Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE) announced revisions to their Home Valuation Code of Conduct. Starting on May 1, lenders that want to sell their loans to the two industry behemoths must follow the new guidelines. Mortgage brokers and Realtors are no longer able to choose appraisers. They will be selected by lenders, which are not allowed to influence appraisers by withholding payments or promising future work. If lenders have in-house appraisers, the bank’s loan-origination department is not allowed to influence their valuation decisions or supervise their work.
Government not expected to help more companies
NEW YORK – The U.S. government is signaling it won’t throw a lifeline to struggling financial companies — except for mortgage linchpins Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — marking a shift to a new and potentially more volatile phase of the credit crisis.
US spells out Fannie-Freddie backstop plan
As an owner of Freddie Mac (FRE) in my personal portfolio. I can only hope they survive!
Sunday July 13, 8:59 pm ET
By Jeannine Aversa, AP Economics Writer
Fed offers to lend to mortgage companies, Treasury plans possible equity investment
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve and the Treasury announced steps Sunday to shore up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose shares have plunged as losses from their mortgage holdings threatened their financial survival.
Government shuts down mortgage lender IndyMac
Who is next?
Saturday July 12, 7:21 am ET
By Alex Veiga, AP Business Writer
Office of Thrift Supervision steps in and closes IndyMac Bank; FDIC takes over operations
LOS ANGELES (AP) — IndyMac Bank’s assets were seized by federal regulators on Friday after the mortgage lender succumbed to the pressures of tighter credit, tumbling home prices and rising foreclosures.
