Tag Archives: HUD

Builders broke ground on new homes at the rate of 954,000 in December, a 12.1 percent jump over November and the most since July 2008, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Thursday. Applications for residential permits rose a modest 0.3 percent, and residential completions rose 1.6 percent. Rebuilding in the wake of superstorm Sandy contributed to the increase in total starts as activity in the Northeast jumped to a pace of 85,000 from 70,000 in November.

According to the latest monthly housing scorecard from the Obama administration, the housing market has officially bottomed out, although ""recovery remains fragile."" With prices rising for 12 consecutive months as of October and sales on the rise as well, HUD's senior advisor on housing finance, Michael Berman said, ""[O]ur housing market is continuing to show important signs of recovery."" The government's Making Home Affordable Program has achieved more than 1.5 million loss mitigations and early delinquency interventions, according to the December report.

DebtX--a large marketplace for commercial, residential, and consumer loans--announced it has signed onto a new five-year agreement with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The agreement allows DebtX to continue selling assets held in the agency's receiverships.

Sperlonga Data and Analytics sent out a release to remind mortgage servicers of a new HUD requirement related to how Federal Housing Administration (FHA) properties with homeowner association (HOA) delinquencies are serviced.

The results of the Census Bureau's and HUD's American Housing Survey are now available for the first time ever via the Census' American FactFinder data access tool, the agencies announced Thursday. The survey covers a wide range of topics, including housing problems, householder's satisfaction with home and neighborhood, purchase price and type of mortgage, and socio-economic characteristics of the householder. Statistics are provided on the national level for apartments, single-family homes, manufactured housing, new construction, and vacant housing units.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) increased for the third straight month in November, improving 1.7 percent to 106.4, the National Association of Realtors reported Friday. Economists had expected a slightly fast, 1.8 percent increase to 106.7. The index, the NAR said, is at its highest level since April 2010.

New home sales jumped 4.4 percent in November to 377,000, the highest level since April 2010, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported Thursday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected the report to show a sales pace of 375,000.

Home prices fell in October for the first time since March, according to the monthly Case-Shiller Home Price Index. Both the 10-city index and the 20-city index decreased 0.1 percent from September to 158.77 and 146.08 respectively. The value of the 10 city index fell 0.10 and of the 20-city index dropped 0.09. The 10-city index for October was 3.4 percent higher than it was in October 2011 and the 20-city index showed a 4.3 percent year-year gain.

Despite a continuing surge in builder confidence, housing starts dropped 3.0 percent in November to 861,000 the Census Bureau and HUD reported jointly Wednesday. At the same time start activity for both September and October was revised lower. Applications for permits, according to the report, rose 3.6 percent to 899,000--the highest level since July 2008 as permit activity for October was revised slightly upward.

Over the weekend, key players gathered in Long Island to assist struggling homeowners affected by Hurricane Sandy. The HOPE NOW Alliance organized the event, which provided face-to-face help from mortgage servicers, non-profit housing counseling organizations, and insurance companies, among others.