News

The latest economic forecast from Fannie Mae shows that the underwhelming performance of the economy in the first three months of the year and a shrinking GDP have significantly dulled the optimism economists once had for the overall 2014 economy.

Freddie Mac's weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey, released Thursday, shows the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) falling to 4.14 percent (0.5 point) for the week ending June 26, a continued slide from 4.17 percent last week. A year ago, the 30-year fixed average was 4.46 percent, an increase of more than half a percentage point over the week prior.

As the United States economy continues to improve, the challenges facing the banking industry gradually shift from recovery to risk management in an effort to avoid the pitfalls that contributed to the financial crisis. In that spirit, the Office of the Comptroller of Currency released its Semiannual Risk Perspective of Spring 2014, offering an overview on the current health of the market and highlighting the significant risk related challenges that currently that face the banking industry.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) set out to answer a very simple question—how much are realtors spending on new technology for their businesses? NAR conducted the 2013-2014 Realtor Technology Survey, which found that realtors continued to invest in technology for their business in 2013 and spent more than they had in previous years.

While persistent price gains continue to dominate headlines, homes in a majority of major markets across the country remain slightly undervalued, quashing any concerns of a rising housing bubble, according to the latest data from Trulia. Nationally, homes remain undervalued by 3 percent compared with long-term fundamentals, according to Trulia's Bubble Watch.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it has settled with Utah-based Mountain America Credit Union allegations of discrimination against prospective borrowers on maternity leave. Mountain American Credit Union is the second largest credit union in Utah and the 35th largest credit union in the United States.

McAlister Real Estate announced the addition of Brock Hudson as a Senior Associate. In his new role, Hudson will be responsible for finding opportunities in the firm’s markets of Austin, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Houston, and San Antonio.

Millennials are so hot right now. Advertisers spend sleepless nights wondering how to associate this “cool” generation with their products and services. In their annual “State of the Nation’s Housing” report, the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University suggested that participation in the housing market from the segment of the population age 18 to 34 is also the key to a robust housing recovery.

Zombie properties serve as a lingering reminder of a housing market still in the midst of self-correction. They serve as a legacy of the recent housing crisis, a byproduct of lengthy foreclosure timelines and mercurial state foreclosure statutes. RealtyTrac recently released a nationwide analysis of zombie properties, examining both states and institutions that have the most zombie properties.

Higher home values have continued to fuel more equity home sales, making up more than 80 percent of all home sales for the past 11 consecutive months, according to the California Association of Realtors (CAR). The group noted that pending home sales receded slightly in May, as investors pulled out of the market due to higher home prices.