News

While many price indicators have pointed to slowdowns over the last few months, the latest trend could be the start of something worse, says Dr. Alex Villacorta, VP of research and analytics at Clear Capital. The company’s Home Data Index (HDI) Market Report, recorded only a 1 percent gain in home prices over the quarter ending last month.

In a joint release on Wednesday, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued final guidance describing supervisory expectations for stress tests. The tests will be conducted by medium-sized financial companies, "with total consolidated assets between $10 billion and $50 billion," according to the release.

Beverly M. Weber of Martin, Leigh, Laws & Fritzlen, P.C. was recognized as a Rising Star by the 2014 Women's Justice Awards (WJA), a Missouri Lawyers Weekly honor and event. Weber was nominated by the Association for Women Lawyers of Greater Kansas City, and was chosen as a Rising Star by the WJA's selection committee.

Radian Guaranty released data for primary mortgage insurance delinquencies for the month of February on Wednesday, reporting fewer loans are delinquent as of the end of the month. New insurance written for the month came in at $1.9 billion, with a beginning primary delinquent inventory of 58,782.

The Wells Fargo Economics Group released its California Economic Outlook for February, 2014. The report noted that while recovery has been slow in the past, "[T]he state has methodically made progress working through a number of major impediments, most notably the overhang of foreclosures and distressed homes left over from the housing bust."

The Beige Book released Wednesday revealed economic conditions are expected to expand at a "modest to moderate" rate in most areas of the country. Released by the Federal Reserve, the report summarized economic conditions across its 12 districts from January through February.

TransUnion released its Credit Risk Index, which measures aggregate credit risk in the nation. The report released Wednesday concluded that credit risk dropped at the end of 2013 to the lowest level since 2005. The index dropped to 110.10 in the fourth quarter of 2013, down nearly 9 percent from the 120.64 reading from Q4 2012.

Bruce Berkowitz, managing member and chief investment officer of Fairholme Capital Management, sent a letter to both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Monday, urging the directors to "act in the best interests of each company and in accordance with accepted best practices for corporate governance."

DataQuick revealed its monthly Property Intelligence Report (PIR), showing that foreclosures have decreased in 31 of the 42 reporting markets over the last month, quarter, and year. Along with a general decrease in foreclosures across the measured markets, DataQuick reports that January home price growth has leveled off in nearly all markets, even turning negative in others.

U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan revealed HUD's fiscal year 2015 budget proposal on Tuesday in a conference call. "HUD's FY2015 budget request helps to create opportunity for all Americans by providing housing, capital investments, and critical services for millions of families," Donovan said.