Stories for 12/18/2009 - 1 to 25 of 28    (click headline for complete story)

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     : (GREEN BUILDING) D.R. Horton Expanding on Green:   One of the companies least interested in green building in years past appears to have changed its outlook ... at least in its California markets.  12/18/2009 5:06 PM

     : (CHART) Updated Economic Indicators Chart Now Available:   The latest updated indicators chart includes new statistics on housing starts, building permits, housing completions, the Consumer Price Index and the Producer Price Index.  12/18/2009 2:47 PM

     : (TRUST FUND) Trust Fund Financing Nears:   A nearly decade-long saga regarding creation of a national housing trust fund may be coming to a close with a House effort to seed it with $1 billion in 2010. The financing mechanism is tucked in the  12/18/2009 1:22 PM

     : (SECTION 8) New York Nixes Thousands Of Vouchers:   Faced with a cash crunch, the New York City Housing Authority tells 3,018 prospective Sec. 8 housing voucher recipients they won't have a home for Christmas. In a rare move, NYCHA officials tell families  12/18/2009 1:20 PM

     : (AFFORDABILITY) Housing Affordability Worsens:   Working homeowners who spend more than half of their income on housing costs increased from 18% to 20% between 2005 and 2008, finds a new study by the Center for Housing Policy  12/18/2009 1:19 PM

     : (BANKERS) Mortgage Banker Profits Plunge:   Average profits on mortgage loans originated by independent mortgage bankers and subsidiaries dropped to $902 in the third quarter of 2009, compared with the $1,358 average per loan realized  12/18/2009 1:17 PM

     : (CAPITAL FUND) Public Housing To Get New Assist:   Public housing renovations receive a new boost with the prospect of an additional $1 billion infusion into capital funding. The money is included in the Obama administration's latest attempt to generate  12/18/2009 1:15 PM

     : (DRYWALL) Toxic Drywall Fix In The Works:   Guidelines that will allow use of Community Development Block Grant money to help homeowners pay for renovations of homes plagued with toxic Chinese drywall are on the drawing board at  12/18/2009 1:13 PM

     : (INSIDE HUD) Carrion Builds Mini-HUD Empire:   A move by President Barack Obama to create competing constituencies within his administration has veteran HUD executives in turmoil over policy creation and implementation and  12/18/2009 1:10 PM

     : (SAFE) SAFE Act Rule Proposed:   A proposed rule to set minimum standards states must meet in order to comply with the Secure & Fair Enforcement Mortgage Licensing Act is unveiled by HUD. The rule would apply to licensing  12/18/2009 1:07 PM

     : (HOMEOWNERSHIP) Housing Starts Increase Selective:   While housing starts increased by 8.9% in November to a seasonally adjusted rate of 574,000, the increase in single-family home starts is less dramatic at 2.1%, Commerce Dept. statistics  12/18/2009 1:04 PM

     : (DEVELOPER) NYC Deal On Affordable Housing:   A massive plan to transform 26 acres of choice midtown Manhattan West Side property into a high-rise residential and business district will include 743 apartments for low- and middle-income residents  12/18/2009 1:01 PM

     : (NEW LAW) Foreclosure Protection Law Signed:   Legislation requiring settlement conferences and banning premature evictions is signed into law by New York Gov. David Patterson. The law is intended to strengthen the state's subprime  12/18/2009 12:59 PM

     : (BAILOUT) GSEs May Ask For More TARP Cash:   Success among most private recipients of Troubled Assets Relief Program in repaying their financial bailouts fails to apply to government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  12/18/2009 12:57 PM

     : (FANNIE MAE) GSE In Ohio Land Bank Deal:   Fannie Mae links with the new Cuyahoga County land bank to sell foreclosed homes for $1 to the initiative. The government-sponsored enterprise will contribute $3,600 toward demolition of  12/18/2009 12:55 PM

     : (MORTGAGE BROKERS) Mortgage Brokers Circle Wagons:   A battered mortgage broker industry is taking steps to protect itself from an increasingly negative perception and a growing effort to strictly regulate it. The Nat'l Assn. of Mortgage Brokers creates a  12/18/2009 12:53 PM

     : (RENOVATIONS) Financing OK For Apartment Revamp:   A $15 million financing package to renovate two large Cleveland apartment communities is approved by the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. The tax-exempt multifamily housing revenue bonds will  12/18/2009 12:51 PM

     : (LEGISLATION) Tax Credit Exchange Extension Proposed:   A broad tax reform bill offered by House Ways & Means Chairman Charles Rangel includes a provision to extend the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) exchange program for one  12/18/2009 12:49 PM

     : (FEMA) State Wants FEMA Housing To Remain:   Texas' emergency management chief asks the Federal Emergency Management Agency to extend by four months its programs providing mobile homes and rental assistance to residents  12/18/2009 12:47 PM

     : (NOMINATION) Mortgage VP To Head Ginnie Mae:   President Barack Obama nominates Theodore Tozer to be president of the Govt. Nat'l Mortgage Assn. Tozer presently is senior vice president of capital markets for Nat'l City Mortgage, a division  12/18/2009 12:45 PM

     : (BALLOT PETITIONS) Dirty Campaign Tricks Alleged:   Backers of a ballot initiative in Missouri to limit the uses of eminent domain claim opponents, primarily municipal governments, are using the courts to try to delay the drive. Missouri Citizens for  12/18/2009 12:42 PM

     : (INTEREST RATES) Rates Up But Still Below 5%:   Mortgage interest rates rose slightly in the past week but remain below 5%. Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.94% with an average 0.7  12/18/2009 12:40 PM

     : (CLEAN WATER) Water Power Grab Opposed:   An array of opponents are lining up in an attempt to halt progress of a measure offered by Sen. Russ Feingold that would restore federal supervision of all water sources in the United States. The federal  12/18/2009 12:38 PM

     : (NYC DEAL) Starrett City Get New Affordable Life:   New York City-based owner of the nation's largest federally subsidized affordable housing complex refinances its mortgage on the site, enabling the massive apartment complex overlooking  12/18/2009 12:35 PM

     : (CONSTRUCTION) Resurgence In Former Boom Markets:   Research from Florida-based Metrostudy shows several large homebuilders look to increase housing starts in several key U.S. markets next year. Among the publicly-traded homebuilders most  12/18/2009 12:33 PM

Housing Affairs Letter