Tag Archives: HUD

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).

New home sales fell to a five-month low, 350,000, in June, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Wednesday. Economists had expected sales to inch up slightly from the preliminary sales report in May. May sales were revised up to 382,000 from the originally reported 369,000.

Nearly 30 years after playing for the Detroit Lions, All Pro running back Billy Sims is ready to test his mettle in real estate. The 1978 Heisman Trophy winner announced that he has partnered with Detroit businessman David Chief Tomby to start a minority investment firm.

Housing starts in June soared to their highest level since October 2008, surging 6.9 percent to 760,000, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Wednesday but housing permits dropped 3.7 percent to 755,000 giving back half of May's gain.

Once again, data compiled in the Obama administration's Housing Scorecard pointed to both signs of promise and reasons for concern. One positive indicator for housing was the 7.4 percent rise in home equity to $457.1 billion in the first quarter of 2012. On the downside, the impact of serious delinquencies and underwater mortgages continues to strain the housing market. One popular administration program for underwater borrowers is the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). So far, HUD Acting Assistant Secretary Erika Poethig said almost half a million families have taken advantage of the program, and refinanced families save an average of $2,500 per year.

CitiMortgage announced Thursday the launch of its proprietary ""Citi Military Road to Recovery Tour"" designed to help current and former Armed Services members who need assistance with their mortgages. The tour will feature five homeowner-support events near military bases all around the United States. At these events, Citi's Homeowner Support Travel Team of mortgage experts and HUD-approved housing counselors will have individualized discussions with both current service members and veterans.

The Case-Shiller Home Price Indexes rose for the first time in eight months in April, Standard & Poor's reported Tuesday The 10- and 20-city indexes each rose 1.3 percent, to the highest levels this year. Year-over-year, the 10-city index was down 2.2 percent and the 20-city index off 1.9 percent, both improving from March.

New home sales jumped to 369,000 in May - the highest level since April 2010 - as the median and average home prices both dropped, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Monday. Economists had expected sales to reach 350,000 from the prior month's 343,000.

Housing permits soared in May to their highest level since September 2008, surging 7.9 percent to 780,000, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported jointly Tuesday but housing starts dropped 4.8 percent to 708,000 giving back all of April's gain. At the same time, permits for April were revised upward to 723,000 from the originally reported 715,000. April housing starts were also revised upward to 744,000 from the originally reported 717,000.

On July 1, borrowers wanting to take out an FHA-insured loan would have potentially experienced a closing delay of 3 months or more if they had debt totaling or exceeding $1,000. Now, the FHA ""credit-dispute"" rule has been withdrawn, according to an agency letter released Friday. A HUD spokesperson said in an email that the decision to rescind the earlier proposal was based on input received. A new guidance on the issue will also be published very soon, the spokeperson stated.