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Apartment industry makes gains

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

The apartment industry continues to show signs of gradual improvement, according to the National Multi Housing Council's (NMHC) July 2004 quarterly Survey of Apartment Market Conditions. Senior apartment executives asked to rate the change in market conditions from April 2004 to July 2004 reported improvements in occupancy rates, continued high sales volumes, and widely available equity financing as investors continue to seek out apartment properties.  more...

Phillips Edison grows retail holdings

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Phillips Edison acquired the 271,815-square-foot Fairview Park Plaza shopping center in Centralia, Ill.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

The property is co-anchored by Schnuck's, a regional food chain, Goody's, Peeble's and Big Lots.

Phillips Edison & Co. is a fully integrated real estate company that acquires, develops, redevelops, leases and manages its retail real estate portfolio.

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Home Depot leases Texas space

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Hillwood has leased the 450,000-square-foot Gateway 53 building in Roanoke, Texas, to The Home Depot.

The value of the transaction was not disclosed.

The property was built as speculative space in 2003. The building is part of 5.9 million square feet of industrial space that has been built in the Roanoke section of AllianceTexas since 1999.  more...

Cutting-edge mortgage technology

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

The Inman Innovator awards will be presented July 28 at Real Estate Connect in San Francisco. A complete list of finalists in each category is available online.

Five companies will compete for the Inman Innovator Award this year in the mortgage technology category.  more...

Economy hits turbulence

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

The Conference Board today announced that the U.S. leading index decreased 0.2 percent in June from the previous month.

The leading index now stands at 116.2 (1996=100). Based on revised data, this index increased 0.4 in May and increased 0.1 percent in April. During the six-month span through June, the leading index increased 1.5 percent, with eight out of 10 components advancing (diffusion index, six-month span equals 80 percent).  more...

Fixed mortgage rates slide

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Mortgage rates continued to creep lower this week, as economic conditions remained sluggish, according to surveys conducted by mortgage buyer Freddie Mac and Bankrate.

In Freddie Mac's weekly survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.98 percent for the week ended today, down slightly from last week when it averaged 6 percent.

The average for the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage this week is 5.39 percent, down one basis point from last week when it averaged 5.4 percent.  more...

Texas newspaper faces fair-housing charges

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today announced it has charged the San Antonio Express-News and its parent company, Hearst Communications Inc., with violating the Fair Housing Act by accepting and publishing 42 ads for rental housing that excluded potential renters because of their race, religion, sex, national origin or familial status.  more...

Radian's net income up 8%

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Adjustable-rate mortgages a risky bet

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Adjustable-rate mortgages are gaining popularity among homeowners, and recently accounted for about one-third of new loan applications in the country – the highest level in a decade – according to an announcement by the University of Southern California Lusk Center for Real Estate.

Adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) feature fixed rates for far shorter periods than the standard 30-year fixed mortgages.  more...

Countrywide earnings jump 83%

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Countrywide Financial Corp. today announced net earnings of $700 million for the second quarter of 2004. That's an increase of 83 percent over net earnings of $383 million in the second quarter of 2003.

Earnings per diluted share were $2.24, up 64 percent from last year's second-quarter earnings per share of $1.37.  more...

Fidelity earnings dip

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Fidelity National Financial today reported a dip in net earnings for the second quarter from a year ago. The company's earnings were $222.1 million, down from $248.3 million a year earlier.

Earnings per share were $1.26, down from $1.62 during the same quarter last year.  more...

Shareholders sue Washington Mutual

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

A lawsuit on behalf of all purchasers of Washington Mutual stock has been filed against the largest U.S. savings and loan.

The complaint charges WaMu with violations of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934.  more...

Home improvement spending grows

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Overnight mortgage rates increase

By Inman News, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

Long-term mortgage interest rates were higher Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield climbed to 4.47 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average rose to 5.67 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate gained to 5.09 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up at 3.4 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield rose to 5.2 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more...

Disclosure validates mortgage-broker kickback

By Robert Bruss, Thursday, July 22, 2004.

DEAR BOB: We purchased our home last November. When signing the closing papers, I noticed for the first time a payment from the lender to our mortgage broker of 1.25 percent of our home equity credit line, which was part of the transaction. I commented to the closing agent, "This looks like a kickback." He replied, "The only reason it is not illegal is because it was disclosed to you." I let it go, figuring it was no money out of my pocket and we got a good deal. Several months later, I met an associate with the same lender who discussed my credit line.  more...

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