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04/11/10
Bill targets appraisal-management companies
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 7:04 pm

Arizona real-estate appraisers are seeking new state regulations that would force a group of real-estate firms known as appraisal-management companies to meet higher standards of conduct and disclose their fees to consumers.

Appraisers support Senate Bill 1351, which requires background checks on appraisal-management company owners, forces companies to reveal hidden fees to consumers, and makes them comply with rules for lenders and appraisers.  more…



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Forensic Mortgage Loan Audit Review May Be Latest Scam
Filed under: General, Mortgages
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 6:41 pm

Summary: Forensic Mortgage Loan
Audit Review May Be Latest Scam

There are all types of scam artists out there. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between legitimate companies and scam artists.

There are people out there claiming to be forensic mortgage loan auditors. These people have expertise in the rules and regulations governing mortgage loans and if a lender has failed to comply with federal or state laws governing mortgage loans, you might benefit from their services. But not everybody benefits. Particularly if the forensic auditor requires a hefty upfront payment for services. As with any service out there, make sure you check the company out and never pay anybody anything until they are able to successfully obtain what they have promised you. The more you know and learn, the better off you will be.  more…


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Housing meltdown surprised Fannie Mae executives
Filed under: General, Real Estate, Mortgages
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 6:25 pm

WASHINGTON - Two former Fannie Mae executives said Friday that competitive pressures, combined with the political goal of increasing homeownership, were to blame for the company’s decision to back riskier mortgages that fueled the housing bubble.

Daniel Mudd, Fannie Mae’s former chief executive, and Robert Levin, former chief business officer, testified before a panel examining the roots of the financial crisis. Both executives left Fannie Mae after it was seized by regulators in fall 2008.  more…


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Valley bankruptcies spiked in March
Filed under: General, Finance
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 6:20 pm

Valley area bankruptcy filings hit a new cyclical high in March, despite some encouraging national numbers suggesting that the strains on consumers might be easing.

Filings in the Phoenix metro area rose to 3,063 in March, up 59 percent from a year earlier and an increase of 999 filings from the February 2010 total.  more…


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Centerpoint’s auction yields no bids; lender forced to take over project
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 5:55 pm

The Centerpoint condominium towers in downtown Tempe failed to sell at a foreclosure auction Tuesday, forcing the lender, ML Manager LLC, to take over the property.

Peoria-based ML Manager, the successor to real-estate lender Mortgages Ltd., asked a minimum bid of $8 million to sell the property at the foreclosure auction. Because there were no bidders, ML Manager now owns the property.  more…


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Bernanke: Housing, jobs biggest economic hurdles
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 5:38 pm

WASHINGTON - Problems in the housing market and high unemployment are the biggest economic challenges the nation faces, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday.

After suffering through the worst recession since the 1930s, the economy seems to have stabilized and is growing again, Bernanke said. But he warned: “We are far from being out of the woods. Many Americans are still grappling with unemployment or foreclosure or both.”  more…


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Foreclosures hit record in March for Phoenix area
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 5:24 pm

The number of Phoenix-area homes foreclosed on by lenders hit a new record in March.

There were 5,556 foreclosures in metropolitan Phoenix last month, a 30 percent jump from February, according to the Information Market, a property-records research firm.  more…


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Vacant-lot owners can face garnisheement
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 5:14 pm

Question: Four years ago, we purchased a lot in the Arrowhead area of Peoria for $300,000. We paid a $20,000 cash down payment with a mortgage of $280,000. Although it has been difficult, we have kept the payments current on this lot until five months ago. Our neighbor is a real-estate broker, and she says that the lot is worth $80,000. The mortgage lender has now scheduled a foreclosure sale in three months.  more…


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Amid rising foreclosures, Legislature weighs aid
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 5:01 pm

In March, as a record number of homes were foreclosed on in metropolitan Phoenix, several pieces of Arizona legislation that would have helped homeowners facing foreclosure or dealing with the aftermath died.

Six of seven bills that made up the proposed Foreclosure Rescue for Arizona Act were never heard in the Legislature. The one piece of legislation from the package to be heard in the House would require landlords to give renters more notice and time to move out of foreclosure homes. This would help Arizona residents but not struggling homeowners. The bill is supposed to be heard in the Senate later this week.  more…



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Pending home sales up 8.2%
Filed under: General, Real Estate
Posted by: Lillian Wong @ 4:30 pm

WASHINGTON - The housing market is coming back from the winter doldrums.

The number of buyers who agreed to purchase previously occupied homes rose sharply in February, far exceeding expectations, a report said Monday.

That’s a sign that a second round of government incentives is pushing buyers to make offers before a deadline at the end of this month. Buyers may also be motivated by worries that mortgage rates will climb later this year.  more…



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