REO

To learn more about the NeighborWorks America Neighborhood Marketing Program, DS News asked Ascala Sisk, Senior Manager for Community Stabilization at NeighborWorks, a few questions about the effort. The new program is one of many initiatives from the nonprofit to rebuild communities.

FHFA issued a notice Wednesday to warn of the controversial use of eminent domain proposed in San Bernardino County. In the notice, which was sent to the Federal Register, FHFA stated it had 'significant concerns"" about the use of eminent domain to revise existing contracts and alter the value of GSE or Federal Home Loan Bank securities holdings. FHFA said that in relation to the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the use of an eminent domain program could result in a cost to taxpayers.

When including distressed sales, CoreLogic reported a 2.5 percent yearly increase in home prices in June, and a 1.3 percent increase month-over-month from May. The rise in home prices is the fourth consecutive increase on a yearly and monthly basis, and CoreLogic's Pending HPI is forecasting at least a 0.4 percent monthly increase in July. In response to CoreLogic's report, Capital Economics said that while the gain in June is strong, ""the latest rise was marginally weaker than we would expect in a typical June, meaning that seasonally-adjusted house prices actually eased a touch.""

National home prices seem to be picking up steam, while all four regions posted price gains, Clear Capital reported Tuesday. On a quarterly basis, home prices increased 2 percent in July, and year-over-year, the increase was even greater at 2.2 percent. The yearly increase is the strongest in nearly two years and 0.5 percentage points higher than June's yearly gain.

The nation added a surprising 163,000 jobs in July but the unemployment rate ticked up to 8.3 percent as the number of people working actually declined, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. At the same time, June's paltry job gains originally reported at 80,000 were reduced to 64,000 while May's job numbers edged up to 87,000 from 77,000.

The National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) announced Wednesday that it is ready to launch the next phase of its foreclosure mitigation initiative, the Homeowner's Assurance Program (HAP).

A new asset management firm announced plans to invest over $1 billion into distressed properties and convert them into rental homes. Sylvan Road Capital, LLC, which launched Wednesday, was co-founded by a former head of U.S. housing strategy at Morgan Stanley, Oliver Chang. According to a company release, the $1 billion will be invested over the next two years, and Sylvan Road will acquire over $300 million in distressed single-family homes through initial capital from an unnamed private equity firm.

While the month-month Case Shiller Home Price Index shot up in May a record high increase (2.2 percent) in the 20-city index and a near-record (2.2 percent increase) in the narrower 10-city index it also suggested employment has less to do with the change in home prices than might otherwise have been thought.

In June, 60,000 homes turned into completed foreclosures compared to 80,000 foreclosures a year ago, CoreLogic reported Tuesday. The analytics company stated the yearly drop puts completed foreclosures at 2007 levels. Month-over-month, there was no reported change in completed foreclosures for June. The number of homes in national foreclosure inventory in June stood at 1.4 million, or 3.4 percent of all homes with a mortgage.

Home prices rose sharply in May cutting the year-year drop in prices to 0.7 percent from 1.8 percent in April, Standard & Poor's reported Tuesday in its Case-Shiller Home Price Index. Prices in the 20 cities surveyed rose 2.2 percent month-month. The 10-city index also improved 2.2 percent in May, shaving the year-year decline in prices to 1.0 percent in May from 2.2 percent in April. The month-month increase fell short of the 2.3 percent gain registered in June 2004. Economists had expected the 20-city index to grow 1.2 percent in May.