Mortgage and Real Estate News: February 2016

Saturday, February 27, 2016

G20 to say world needs to look beyond ultra-easy policy for growth

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - The world's top economies declared on Saturday that they need to look beyond ultra-low interest rates and printing money to shake the global economy out of its torpor, while renewing their focus on structural reform to spark activity.

A communique from the Group of 20 (G20) finance ministers and central bankers flagged a series of risks to world growth, including volatile capital flows, a sharp fall in commodity prices and the potential "shock" of a British exit from the EU.

Thursday, February 25, 2016

Million-dollar mansion makeover contest at Chateau on Central in Phoenix

Designers have transformed three urban mansions in midtown Phoenix's high-profile Chateau on Central as part of a yearlong contest.

And on Friday, the winner of the contest to deck out the five-story houses complete with their own elevators will be picked by luxury real-estate experts, including Monica Monson and Luis D. Ortiz of Bravo's "Million Dollar Listing New York."

L.A. seizes tiny houses from homeless people

Escalating their battle to stamp out an unprecedented spread of street encampments, city officials have begun seizing tiny houses from homeless people living on freeway overpasses in South Los Angeles.

Three of the gaily painted wooden houses, which come with solar-powered lights and American flags, were confiscated earlier this month and seven more are planned for impound Thursday, a Bureau of Sanitation spokeswoman said.

IMF report urges G20 to prepare global economic stimulus plan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Group of 20 nations must plan now for a coordinated stimulus program to keep a slowing global economy from stalling, International Monetary Fund staff said in a report on Wednesday.

The report was prepared for senior G20 officials who are meeting in Shanghai later this week amid falling equity markets, volatile currencies and signs of economic weakness throughout the world.

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

California housing market slows on TRID implementation

Although the California housing market for January 2016 shows a slight decrease from December 2015, year over year rates have increased, according to the California Association of Realtors report.

In January, existing single-family home sales totaled 383,670 on a seasonally adjusted annualized rate. This is down 5.4% from December 2015 and up 8.8% from January 2015.

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Metro Phoenix rents are rising in lots of strange places

Ask just about anyone living in a metro Phoenix apartment, and they will tell you rents are rising.

Almost half of Valley renters saw their monthly payments jump by more than 9 percent in 2015. That's from a new Rentcafe.com survey that breaks rents down by ZIP Code in the region.

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Stricter standards loom for investment advice

Millions of Americans are lagging badly with their retirement investments. Many people don't save enough, have too much money in the wrong investments or pay excessive fees. Hardly anyone debates those points.

Macerich goes high-rise at Scottsdale Fashion Square

Scottsdale Fashion Square is going big on the site of the former Harkins Camelview 5.

Macerich is seeking the city's approval for a 150-foot height limit for a high-rise residential development.

As number of auto loans rises, so does number of delinquencies

The number of U.S. consumers with an auto loan grew 7.8 percent in the fourth quarter, the largest year-over-year increase since TransUnion started tracking the data in 2009.

But nationwide, 60-day delinquencies jumped 6.4 percent to their highest level since 2010, fueled by growing delinquency rates in states with energy-dependent economies.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Scalia and constitutional property rights

When Antonin Scalia joined the Supreme Court in 1986, property rights were definitely the "poor relation" of constitutional law. Most judges, including even many conservatives, believed that the courts should largely stay out of property rights issues. Justice Scalia did much to change that. During his thirty years on the Court, he helped lead a revival of judicial protection for constitutional property rights. But he also missed a valuable opportunity to link that revival to the originalist approach to constitutional interpretation that he forcefully advocated on other issues.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Quicken Loans Super Bowl Ad Draws Praise, Criticism

Detroit-based Quicken Loans, the third-largest mortgage lender in the country, drew some strong reactions for a commercial promoting its Rocket Mortgage program—a phone app that allows users to qualify for a mortgage loan in as little as eight minutes—that aired during the Super Bowl on Sunday.

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Bitcoin: A 21st Century Currency Explained By a Wall Street Veteran

It has been described as a "techno tour de force" by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and as a "remarkable cryptographic achievement…that has enormous value" by Google CEO, Eric Schmidt. It was even predicted by Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman in 1999 when he said, "The one thing that's missing, but will soon be developed, is a reliable e-cash."

ATM and overdraft fees top $6 billion at the big 3 banks

Ever taken out cash from an ATM machine and gotten socked with a $3 fee (or worse)? You probably weren't thrilled about that.

Nobody likes those fees. Except banks.

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