Real Estate

Real Estate News - cleveland.com

• Northeast Ohio, nationwide home sales rose in April, fueling hopes that prices will follow suit
  Sales are up and inventory isn't climbing, according to reports released by Ohio and national trade groups.
  
  
• American Greetings details headquarters plans, says Westlake construction to start in early 2013
  Executives unveiled the first designs for the $150 million to $200 million headquarters project during a meeting with employees this afternoon.
  
  
• U.S. housing starts rose to 717,000 in April
  Even with the gains, the rate of construction and the level of permits requested remain roughly half the pace considered healthy.
  
  
• Residential Capital seeks Chapter 11 protection
  Residential Capital LLC, a perpetually troubled mortgage subsidiary of government-owned Ally Financial Inc., has filed for bankruptcy protection.
  
  
• Obama wants Congress to help homeowners
  Refocusing on the economy, President Barack Obama on Friday pushed Republicans to back housing policies the White House says would help shore up struggling homeowners and prevent foreclosures.
  
  
• Consumer watchdog weighs limits to mortgage fees
  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Wednesday that it might ban origination fees that vary with the size of the loan, known as "origination points." Lenders would charge the same flat fee for all loans.
  
  
• U.S. rate on 30-year mortgage hits record 3.83%
  Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the rate on the 30-year loan ticked down to 3.83 percent. That's the lowest since long-term mortgages began in the 1950s and below the previous record rate of 3.84 percent reached last week.
  
  
• Fannie Mae earned $2.7 billion in first quarter, doesn't seek aid
  Fannie has received about $116 billion so far from the Treasury Department, the most expensive bailout of a single company.
  
  
• Fossil fuel exploration may transform peaceful community into oil boom town
  A relatively new twist on a 65-year-old technology, horizontal hydraulic fracturing may enable energy companies to hit pay dirt in southern Illinois.
  
  
• Cleveland-area housing market showing signs of recovery
  It's not a rebound to the pre-recession days of soaring home prices and spiking sales. But the number of available homes is falling. With fewer choices, buyers are moving faster, sometimes offering full price. And would-be tenants are popping up at open houses, offering to rent properties that haven't yet sold.
  
  
• Rate on 30-year mortgage hits record 3.84%
  Average U.S. rates for 30-year and 15-year fixed mortgages fell to fresh record lows this week, offering more incentive for Americans to buy or refinance homes.
  
  
• DDR raises 2012 guidance on shopping center operations, reports flat funds from operations
  The shopping center owner and manager, based in Beachwood, swung to a loss and reported flat funds from operations, the key performance measure for real estate investment trusts. The company said its portfolio was 93.7 leased as of March 31. And DDR has been raising rents as it signs, and renews, deals with tenants.
  
  
• Forest City's new CEO saw pay jump to $4.5 million in 2011: What the Boss Makes
  David LaRue became Forest City's president and chief executive on June 10.
  
  
• Owner of Stanley Block building ordered to fix it or tear it down by Cleveland Housing Court judge
  The company that owns the Stanley Block building in downtown Cleveland must address safety problems next week and either demolish or diligently repair the property, according to a decision issued Friday by the Cleveland Housing Court.
  
  
• Capital One reports payment as unpaid because it was 1 cent short: Money Matters
  Cleveland reader says Capital One recorded her payment as a missed payment because she mistakenly underpaid by 1 cent.
  
  
• Real estate broker Anthony Viola wins fight against prosecutors
  The Cleveland Heights real estate broker, who was convicted in federal court of being a key figure in one of the nation's biggest mortgage fraud cases, won acquittals today on more than 50 similar charges in state court while representing himself.
  
  
• U.S. rate on 30-year mortgage dips to 3.88%
  The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage has dipped to near its record low, keeping home-buying and refinancing affordable.
  
  
• Associated Estates reports higher FFO, lower losses as apartment occupancy, rents rise
  The apartment owner reported first-quarter financial results on Tuesday. Shares closed trading at $16.68 per share, up 14 cents or 0.85 percent.
  
  
• House prices at post-bubble lows in Cleveland, other cities, despite improvements in sales
  Across the country, prices have fallen to late-2002 levels. In Cleveland, prices are at levels last seen in August 1998.
  
  
• U.S. home prices drop for 6th straight month; Cleveland-area prices hit new low
  The steepest declines in home prices were in Cleveland, Atlanta and Chicago.