Real Estate News – March 22, 2011



Lots of good stuff in today’s real estate headlines; here’s a sampling:

Homeowners associations increasingly are seeking to ban sexual offenders and predators in an attempt to improve safety and maintain property values (via Dispatch.com): http://bit.ly/hSolJ9


Easy credit fueled the housing boom and pushed homeownership to record highs. Now, that process is in reverse. Tighter credit has put homeownership out of reach for millions of Americans who are now being driven toward renting (via Reuters.com): http://reut.rs/feZhJS


Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair said banks should look toward more lending even though financing via the securitization market is “not there anymore” (via HousingWire.com): http://bit.ly/h7eOri


The banking industry faces hundreds of lawsuits across the country over accusations of abuses in lending. As such, state attorneys general have teamed up to try to negotiate a national settlement with the 14 largest banks and mortgage servicers (via REALTORMag): http://bit.ly/hJlg7F


Nevada, which for the last four years has had the highest foreclosure rate in the country, is cracking down on home owners who want to harm their foreclosed upon homes. A new bill proposed Monday by the Nevada State Assembly would allow authorities to charge home owners who willfully damage a home during the foreclosure process with a felony (via REALTORMag): http://bit.ly/egh3JT


From asking an unrealistic sales price to buying too many homes, celebrities and their super-size homes aren’t immune to a sluggish real estate market (via REALTORMag): http://bit.ly/ehQdD6


A bill introduced and referred to house committee would help fund mediation between mortgagees and mortgage borrowers who are facing foreclosure (via ReverseMortgageDaily.com): http://bit.ly/hATIJl


One More Casualty of the Foreclosure Crisis: Property Tax Revenues (via HuffingtonPost.com): http://huff.to/f4jtB0


A New Jersey real estate investor has been sentenced to 50 months in federal prison in a mortgage fraud and property-flipping scheme involving rental properties in Paterson (via App.com): http://bit.ly/dGiHPn