Tag Archives: Service Providers

Zillow released on Tuesday its Real Estate Market Reports for July, revealing that the company├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Home Value Index hit $151,600 for the month, a 0.5 percent gain from June and a 1.2 percent increase year-over-year. Of the metro areas covered in the reports, 62 percent saw home values climb during July, with only 49 of the 167 areas posting declines. Of the 30 largest areas covered, the Phoenix metro experienced the largest monthly increase (2.2 percent), followed by San Francisco (1.2 percent) and Denver (1.0 percent).

Existing homes sale rose to an annual rate 4.47 million in July, the National Association of Realtors reported Wednesday. Economists had expected the sale pace to be 4.51 million. Economists had expected the sale pace to be 4.51 million. The median price of an existing home though fell in July for the first time since January. The median price of an existing home fell $1,500, 0.8 percent, from June to $187,300. The median price was up year-over-year for the fifth straight month in July.

While some signs suggest the housing recovery may finally be under way, others signal that banks will likely continue to see repurchase claims from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Analysts with Fitch Ratings found in a report on Monday that repurchase risk remains high for several financial institutions, including Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, and Ally Financial. According to Fitch, repurchase risk climbed to 41 percent for Bank of America. Roughly 60 percent of the claims stemmed from private-label requests.

As the housing market and the overall economy crawl languidly toward an elusive recovery many believe will still take years to achieve, President Barack Obama suggests the key to progress is a broad housing refinance plan. Obama endorses a bill that would allow underwater homeowners to refinance at current interest rates, which continue to wallow near historic lows. A few senators have proposed bills recently to allow more homeowners to refinance their mortgages.

July├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós positive economic news did little to change Fannie Mae├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós forecast for 2012, the GSE revealed Tuesday. Fannie Mae├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Economic & Strategic Research Group issued its latest economic outlook, maintaining its expectations for modest growth in 2012. This news comes in spite of reports of strengthening retail sales and job growth in July. Fannie Mae├â┬ó├óÔÇÜ┬¼├óÔÇ×┬ós Economic & Strategic Research Group issued its latest economic outlook, maintaining its expectations for modest growth in 2012.

FICO and Savvis are teaming up to provide a new could-based technology service for lenders. The companies have joined forces to launch FICO Debt Manager, a platform that will give users game-changing adaptive control capabilities for collection and recovery processes related to mortgages, secured and unsecured loans, and many different types of accounts.

Massachusetts-based radius financial group inc. has been honored with a national accolade. Inc. Magazine named the mortgage bank among the country's fastest growing companies for the fourth consecutive year, ranking radius at 1,222 on the publication's annual roster of 5,000 thriving organizations to watch.

Want to live like a kingpin? You're in luck, because according to Zillow, the Florida estate once belonging to Al Capone is on the market for $9.95 million. The legendary gangster moved into the stunning and storied house on Miami Beach's Palm Island in 1928, and he called the seaside property home before and after his imprisonment for tax evasion, living in the luxurious pad until his death in 1947.

Churchill Mortgage announced Monday that it hired Kevin Stafford to serve as its new branch manager for the Memphis, Tennessee, branch location.

After surveying more than 1,800 active home sellers, Redfin found that some of its customers are holding back from selling now because they believe patience will pay off in the form of higher offers for their home. The survey revealed that 38 percent of respondents plan to wait more than a year before selling their home, while 25 percent said they plan on selling now. About 36 percent of homeowners plan on waiting somewhere between 3 months and 12 months. More than a quarter (27 percent) of respondents said now is a bad time to sell as opposed to only 13 percent who said now is a good time to sell.