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RISMEDIA, August 5, 2010—Pending home sales edged down with near-term sales expected to be notably lower in contrast to the spring surge when buyers rushed to take advantage of the home buyer tax credit, according to the National Association of Realtors. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator, declined 2.6% to 75.7 based on contracts signed in June 2010 from an upwardly revised level of 77.7 in May, and is 18.6% below June 2009 when it was 93.0. The …

We had a ShortSaleDailyNews subscriber contact us through our Ask the Expert panel the other day about a Servicer that played dumb about the Fannie and Freddie HAFA programs.  Actually, the loss mitigator that answered the phone simply denied that the HAFA programs were beginning and that they had ‘no clue’ when they would be implemented.

The reader had been staying ahead of the game and knew that the GSE programs were in full effect  on August 1.  In fact, …

RISMEDIA, August 3, 2010—(MCT)—The 4.5% fixed-rate mortgage is here, although more than 14 months late. That magic number, or a close approximation, was reached recently, when Freddie Mac reported a 30-year rate of 4.54%. The possibility first arose in early 2009, when the government began mass-purchasing mortgages from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prop up housing. Just about everyone predicted the rates would hit what builders and real estate agents call a “sweet spot” in a few months, and …

RISMEDIA, August 2, 2010—The lending landscape has changed quite drastically over the past several years. Practices, approvals and standards that were once widely accepted have either vanished or transformed beyond the point of recognition. Many banks, which were once extremely careless with their loan underwriting techniques and approvals, have dug themselves into a significant hole that will take many years to climb out of. Promotions such as “100% Financing” and “No Doc Loans” were both major contributors to the financial …

RISMEDIA, July 30, 2010—(MCT)—Government cash didn’t help John Foley and Cindy Case sell their Minneapolis house before the federal home buyer’s tax credit expired at the end of April, so the couple decided to take matters into their own hands.

They hosted a backyard party with food and an open bar, invited the neighbors and professional contractors—in case potential buyers had questions about remodeling. To top it off, they’re offering their own ,000 rebate on the 5,000 home.

Three years …