Foreclosures | Mortgages | Financing
Recent data from Ellie Mae showed that it takes about a month and a half on average to close a mortgage. Several speakers at Wednesday’s housing summit hosted by the Urban Institute and CoreLogic said that closing times could conceivably be much shorter than that, even as little as 10 days. So what’s keeping lenders from closing a loan in a week and a half instead of a month and a half? Appraisers. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
Mattel Inc.’s board of directors has started to work on a CEO transition, The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday, citing sources familiar with the matter. The toy maker hired search firm Spencer Stuart this summer to help identify an external or internal successor to CEO Christopher Sinclair, the report said. Sinclair, who took over in January 2015, has said he plans to see the company through a complete turnaround effort. Shares of Mattel fell 2.6% late Wednesday after ending the regular trading day down 0.4%.
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From:: Stock Market News
Real estate in 2017 is to be shaped by cities that meet not only the economic standards of a sustainable market, but also the demand for distinct neighborhoods within those markets.
This is according to the Urban Land Institute’s (ULI) and PwC’s latest report, “Emerging Trends in Real Estate® 2017,” which analyzes trends-to-come in both the U.S and Canada housing markets. Ten “gateway” markets, as defined in the report—those with both a diverse economy and “niche” neighborhoods—will stand above the rest:
Dominating the report’s list are markets in California, North Carolina and Texas, which have become ideal investment areas in both the commercial and residential sectors.
“Viewed as a fluke when it hit the study’s top 10 list five years ago, Austin’s rise to the top of the list signals the durability of the city’s long-term appeal to investors,” says Mitchell Roschelle, real estate research leader and PwC partner. “Austin, along with many of this year’s top 10 cities, boasts attractive, niche neighborhoods and a vibrant, diverse economy.”
Five up-and-coming markets, in addition to the top 10, are also on the rise, according to the report:
Market-based trends aside, 2017 will also be marked by construction labor shortages tightening affordable housing inventory—a trend that can be reversed if all real estate-related constituents contribute to a solution, the report’s authors, Alan Billingsley, Hugh Kelly, Anita Kramer and Andrew Warren, state.
“This is a real opportunity for the real estate industry to lead a way toward solutions. Real estate in all its guises—construction, property management, brokerage, and even finance—offer ample opportunities to create entry-level jobs that are not ‘dead-end jobs,’ but the first step on a career path.”
Municipalities that have begun to address affordable housing shortages have set the example to follow in 2017, as well, according to the report. Many have resorted to a conventional standby: inclusionary zoning.
“The most widely used approach by far…is an old idea that has roared back to life: inclusionary zoning,” the report’s authors state. “Through such zoning, cities require or encourage developers to create below-market-rate rental apartments or for-sale homes in connection with the local approval of a proposed market-rate development project.”
“Optionality,” in addition—the ability for both landlords and tenants to determine the use of a space—will be a trend next year, according to the report.
“Both on the investor side and the user side of the market, optionality—not just one use, not just one user, not just one user profile—may be gaining favor as a way to navigate the cross-currents of volatile markets,” the report’s authors state. “Optionality from a user standpoint allows for the adjustment of space needs to vary in terms of size, location, and use on an as-needed basis.”
Advancements in real estate-related technology will also occur, furthering the accuracy, speed and transparency involved in real estate transactions—“an ‘auto-correcting’ real estate cycle.”
View the full report here.
For more information, please visit ULI.org.
From:: Finance and Economy
Quarterly earnings and insurance in force was up significantly at National Mortgage Insurance Corp. A more modest gain was made with new insurance written.
Before income taxes, National M.I. earned $6 million during the period that opened on July 1, 2016, and closed on Sept. 30, surging from $2 million the prior quarter.
Those details and more were revealed Tuesday in the third-quarter earnings report from the Emeryville, California-based company’s parent, NMI Holdings Inc.
From:: Financing
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. will cut about 900 positions worldwide and divest certain businesses as part of its restructuring effort to refocus on research and development activities. The company plans to initiate the reorganization process immediately with the core steps completed by the end of October 2017. “The restructuring actions are expected to lower the company’s annual operating expenses to a range of $820 million to $840 million from a current annual rate of $1.08 billion,” the chip maker said in a statement Wednesday. Marvell expects to incur charges of $90 million to $110 million over the next four quarters, including cash charges of $35 million to $50 million. Shares were unchanged in late trading after the stock closed at $12.94.
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From:: Stock Market News
The Federal Open Market Committee announced it will not be raising rates. While that long-awaited rate hike looks more probably in December, the Fed indicated that it will be a small increase. In fact, rates could remain historically low for some time. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
American International Group Inc. shares fell 2.6% late Wednesday after the insurance company reported third-quarter earnings below Wall Street expectations. AIG said it earned $462 million, or 42 cents a share, in the third quarter, reversing a loss of $231 million, or 18 cents a share, in the prior-year quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected per-share earnings of $1.13 for the quarter. Net income during the quarter included an after-tax net realized capital losses of $526 million, or 48 cents a share, mostly on higher foreign-exchange losses related to the British pound weakening following the Brexit vote, AIG said. After-tax operating income was $1.1 billion, or $1 a share, for the third quarter of 2016, up from $691 million, or 52 cents a share, in the prior-year quarter. AIG’s board of directors has authorized an additional increase to its previous share buyback of $3 billion, which results a remaining authorization of about $4.4 billion. The board also declared a cash dividend of 32 cents a share, payable Dec. 22 to shareholders of record on Dec. 8. Shares of AIG had ended the regular trading session down 0.2%.
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From:: Stock Market News
MetLife Inc. shares jumped 2% in after-hours trade Wednesday, after the insurer beat profit and revenue estimates for its third quarter. The shares later reversed those gains to trade flat. The company said it had net income of $571 million, or 51 cents a share, down 52% from a year ago. Excluding losses on derivatives and a goodwill impairment charge, the company had per-share earnings of $1.27, above the FactSet consensus of $1.15. Revenue fell 2% to $17.7 billion from $18.0 billion, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $17.2 billion. Premiums, fees and other revenue came to $13.1 billion, down 1% from a year ago. Shares are down about 4% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 2.6%.
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From:: Stock Market News
Donald Trump moved ahead of Hillary Clinton in a new poll of Ohio voters released Wednesday. Trump leads Clinton by five points, 46% to 41%, among likely voters, according to the latest poll from Quinnipiac University. The rivals were tied at 45% in the university’s prior poll. Other polls released by Quinnipiac on Wednesday showed Clinton leading Trump by five points in Pennsylvania, and races in Florida and North Carolina too close to call.
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From:: Stock Market News
Oil futures fell Wednesday to settle at their lowest level in five weeks after U.S. government data revealed its largest weekly climb for domestic crude inventories on record. The Energy Information Administration said crude supplies rose 14.4 million barrels for the week ended Oct. 28. December WTI crude fell $1.33, or 2.9%, to settle at $45.34 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That marked the lowest settlement since Sept. 27, according to FactSet data.
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From:: Stock Market News