Tag Archives: Attorneys & Title Companies

Home construction starts are on the rise in 2012, and updates to a recent survey from the McGraw-Hill Companies indicate a forecasted increase of 2 percent for the year. According to projections from the 2012 Dodge Construction Outlook Midyear Update, total construction starts will hit $445 billion, besting the $434 billion recorded during 2011. Compiled by McGraw-Hill Construction, the outlook report calls the predicted performance "slightly better than" flat in a still-recovering economy dogged by recurring problems.

A new survey from Mortgagebot includes promising findings for community-based lenders hoping to increase their market share. The technology company's recent report shows that upticks in visibility and accessibility via online channels can help level the playing field for smaller lenders competing with the nation's big banks. Mortgagebot's study revealed specific strategies that are enabling the company's clients to capitalize on market share including generating better borrower-facing accessibility online, targeting new customers through an online approach that is tailored to a particular demographic.

Landmark Mortgage Group has added a new advisor to its roster of lending and real estate professionals. The company recently promoted Adina Erridge to mortgage advisor from her previous role as a production assistant.

For baseball fans, it doesn't get any greater than Babe Ruth, and now that a Massachusetts estate once belonging to Ruth is on the market, homebuyers have the chance to live like the Sultan of Swat. The property, which is known as Home Plate Farm, is listed for $1.

Consumer spending fell $4.7 billion, less than 1 percent in May, reversing the 0.15 percent increase in April, the Labor Department reported Friday. Personal income meanwhile grew $25.4 billion or 0.18 percent, down from April's 0.22 percent growth. The numbers suggest GDP growth for the second quarter which ends Saturday could be slip from the first quarter's weak 1.9 percent growth rate. In dollars, income growth in May was less than the $29.4 billion in April, while spending fell from a gain of $16.2 billion in April.

At a House of Representatives hearing titled Appraisal Oversight: The Regulatory Impact on Consumers and Business Thursday, lawmakers reviewed testimony on recent and impending changes in the appraisal industry. One of issue of focus during the hearing was the rise of appraisal management companies and their validity and necessity in the market. According to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office, AMCs have grown from 15 percent market share to between 60 and 80 percent market share.

The US economy grew at an annual rate of 1.9 percent in the first quarter, the Labor Department said Thursday. The BEA report was consistent with market expectations but emphasized a moribund economy. The economy had expanded at a 3.0 percent pace in the fourth quarter of 2011. In economic measurement terms, these data are ancient economic history, since the second quarter ends Saturday. The advance first quarter GDP report will be released on July 27. The data released so far for April, May, and early June suggest second-quarter 2012 economic activity may have grown even less rapidly.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau faces a new legal challenge as a Texas community bank and two conservative groups launch a lawsuit to undo it and the financial reform law that created it two years ago. The Big Spring, Texas-based State National Bank recently paired with the Competitive Enterprise Institute and 60 Plus Association to sue the embattled consumer bureau in federal court. The suit challenges the constitutionality of the CFPB and Dodd-Frank Act, as well as Richard Cordray's appointment.

LenderLive Network Inc. is welcoming a new client for its loan fulfillment program. The company recently announced that Illinois-based Alliant Credit Union has selected LenderLive's end-to-end mortgage servicing platform, eOriginator.

Legendary Hollywood couple Warren Beatty and Annette Bening are selling their Beverly Hills home. The Beatty-Benings put their luxury pad up for for lease last year, but after failing to snag an interested tenant, they've listed the property, which is located on famed Mullholland Drive, for $6.995 million.