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Market Forecasts for Home Prices Continue to Darken

Home prices have hit upon relatively stable ground in recent months -- a welcome reprieve from the freefall days most markets had grown acutely accustomed to after the reverberating bursting of the housing bubble. But that stability may be fleeting fast. If you heed the words of the seers keeping a close watch over industry trends and movements in price lines, you should be bracing for another decline in property values, as the elusive floor drops a little lower.

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Minority-Owned Fund Sees Positive Mortgage Performance

UCM Partners, a private, minority-owned fixed income investment boutique, recently announced the one-year anniversary of its Opportunistic Mortgage Strategy Fund. The fund currently has approximately $60 million in assets under management, and UCM Partners reports that it exceeded its absolute return target of 12-15 percent by more than double in its first year.

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Fannie Mae Updates Policy on Foreclosure Mediation in Florida

Fannie Mae recently issued a new servicing guide regarding pre-foreclosure mediation for mortgage loans in Florida. Last December, the Florida Supreme Court issued an administrative order requiring mediation sessions before a summary judgment or foreclosure sale can be held. In adherence to this mandate, Fannie Mae will now require that servicers assign delinquent mortgage loans secured by properties in Florida to an attorney from Fannie Mae's retained network for mediation prior to the initiation of foreclosure proceedings.

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Mortgage Contracting Services Hosts Code Enforcement Mini-Summits

Mortgage Contracting Services LLC (MCS) recently announced the availability of its code enforcement mini-summits, as an extension of its initiatives to ensure industry-wide education and collaboration. The nationwide provider of property preservation and REO maintenance services calls its program ""an interactive information exchange"" to provide specialized education and encourage collaboration between the code enforcement community and other default industry participants.

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CMBS Delinquencies Moderate, but Rate Still Above 8%: Reports

Special servicers of commercial real estate loans are feverishly pursing workouts and liquidations. Their efforts have helped to moderate increases in past dues, but delinquency rates, nonetheless, continue to rise. Two industry reports released last week served to drive this point home. Fitch Ratings says the delinquency rate on loans held in its rated commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) hit 8.48 percent in August. Moody's reported a similar increase to 8.10 percent.

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Kennedy Wilson to Conduct Auction for $80.9M REO Portfolio

Kennedy Wilson, a California-based real estate investment and services firm, was tapped by a major financial institution to conduct an auction for $80.9 million of bank-owned REO properties. Rhett Winchell, president of Kennedy Wilson Auction Group, described the auction as ""another exclusive offering in a long series of commercial auctions.""

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Florida Lender’s Closing Pushes Failed-Bank Tally to 119

The recent stretch of days with no bank failures has come to an end after a short three-week stint. Horizon Bank in Bradenton, Florida, was closed over the weekend by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation. It pushes the FDIC's failed-bank tally for the year to 119. Florida has been a hot-bed for bank busts in 2010. So far 23 FDIC-insured institutions in the Sunshine State have gone under, more than in any other state.

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Investigation Finds Criminals Making FHA Loans

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has failed to root out several executives with criminal records whose firms continue to do business with the agency, according to the Center for Public Integrity. The Center's investigation found that more than 34,000 home loans have been issued over the past two years by FHA-approved lenders that have employed people who were convicted of felonies, banned from the securities industry, or previously worked for firms barred by FHA. Nine percent of these loans are delinquent.

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HUD Sees Stabilization, but Frailty, in Housing Market Conditions

Housing conditions continued to show signs of stabilizing during the second quarter, following a downward trend that began to reverse itself in mid-2009, HUD says in a new report. The federal agency immediately follows that assessment, though, with ""the housing market's recovery remains fragile."" HUD's quarterly commentary on the state of housing in the U.S. sums up a dichotomy of positives and negatives in market indicators. For example, sales and prices of existing homes rose in Q2, but fell for new homes.

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CalHFA and FHA to Offer Low-Interest Mortgages to First-Time Buyers

The California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) has partnered with the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to offer a fixed rate, 30-year FHA-insured mortgage to low- and moderate- income California families who purchase their first home. Benefits include below-market interest rates and affordable down payments. CalHFA says many first-time homebuyers cannot meet the loan requirements of conventional lenders and its new program will help open the door to homeownership for California families.

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