Tag Archives: Attorneys & Title Companies

The nation├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós unemployment rate remained at 7.8 percent in December as payrolls increased 155,000, slightly ahead of consensus forecasts, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Friday. Economists had forecast payrolls would grow by 150,000, slightly higher than the 146,000 increase in payrolls originally reported for November, and that the unemployment rate would remain at November├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós 7.7 percent.

After measuring improvements over the two years, Trulia ranked Las Vegas as the top turnaround market in 2012 based on its recovery in asking prices. Trulia also found nine out of the top 10 turnaround markets were located West and Southwest, and the top six saw double digit increases. In 2011, only 12 out of 100 metros saw price increases compared to 82 in 2012. In addition, none of the 100 largest metros saw price declines greater than 10 percent in 2012 compared to 6 in 2011.

National Real Estate Information Services (NREIS) is shuttering the doors to its Pittsburgh office in February, according to a Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice posted on the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry's website.

The national housing market has hit bottom and is now in full recovery mode, according to Veros Real Estate Solutions, a provider of risk management and valuation services. While there remains--as always--some variance across markets, Veros predicts prices in two-thirds of all markets across the nation will either remain flat or rise over the next 12 months. This is the first time since the recession that Veros has forecast gains (or at least no declines) for such a large proportion of markets.

The results of the Census Bureau's and HUD's American Housing Survey are now available via Census' American FactFinder data access tool.

The American Land Title Association (ALTA), a national trade association for the land title insurance industry, released a set of Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practices created to help members highlight policies and procedures used to "ensure a positive and compliant real estate settlement experience."

Northstar Bank of Texas has announced the closure of a deal that gives the company a controlling interest in Goldome Financial, Inc. Through the acquisition, Northstar, a member of Carlile Bancshares, Inc., is set to expand its treasury management product line and mortgage division.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it has finalized a rule adjusting the asset-size exemption threshold for banks, savings associations, and credit unions under Regulation C, which implements the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Based on the adjustments, institutions with assets of $42 million or less (as of the end of 2012) are exempt from collecting HMDA data in 2013. That exemption does not apply to data institutions are supposed to report for 2012.

After going into free-fall for much of 2012, fixed mortgage rates started off 2013 with very slight declines.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance rose 10,000 to 372,000 for the week ending December 29, the third-lowest level of the year, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected claims to increase to 363,000. The previous week's report was revised upward to 362,000 from the originally reported 350,000, an unusually large revision but reflective of intervening holidays, during which state processing offices were closed.