Foreclosures | Mortgages | Financing
By swheeler@housingwire.com Mortgagers feel the burden of new regulations that look out for the homebuyer. Implementing the servicing rule’s requirements necessitated system changes and staff training, which had an incredible impact on their business operations, and bottom line. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
While California’s housing market is following seasonal norms, its affordability crisis continues to lurk in the background as homebuyers struggle to enter the market. In the latest report fro PropertyRadar, Madeline Schnapp, director of economic research for PropertyRadar, notes that affordability has become a significant issue in many coastal counties throughout the state. …read more
From:: Real Estate Wire
Gold futures stormed higher Thursday, as U.S. stocks struggled to rally after registering three straight days of gains. April gold closed $14.90, or 1.2%, higher at $1,226.30 an ounce. The advance for the yellow metal comes about 24 hours after minutes from the Federal Reserve indicated that the U.S. central bank is concerned about the slowdown in the global economy-a position that could be supportive for gold prices since it implies fewer interest-rate increases in 2016. Lower rates boost the luster of precious metals that don’t offer a yield. Gold’s recent run-up suggests that some investors aren’t placing a lot of faith in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index’s recent bout of hefty gains.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Gold futures stormed higher Thursday, as U.S. stocks struggled to rally after registering three straight days of gains. April gold closed $14.90, or 1.2%, higher at $1,226.30 an ounce. The advance for the yellow metal comes about 24 hours after minutes from the Federal Reserve indicated that the U.S. central bank is concerned about the slowdown in the global economy-a position that could be supportive for gold prices since it implies fewer interest-rate increases in 2016. Lower rates boost the luster of precious metals that don’t offer a yield. Gold’s recent run-up suggests that some investors aren’t placing a lot of faith in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index’s recent bout of hefty gains.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) – President Barack Obama does not plan to meet Fidel Castro during his visit to Cuba next month, a senior White House official said Thursday. “I wouldn’t expect him to meet with Fidel Castro, Raul Castro is the president of Cuba,” said Ben Rhodes, deputy national security advisor.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Amazon.com Inc.’s stock slipped 0.1% in midday trade Thursday, but outperformed the broader stock market, after the online retailer was upgraded at Canaccord Genuity, which said valuation is now “as reasonable as it has been in years.” Analyst Michael Graham raised his rating to buy from hold, and boosted his stock price target to $750, which was 40% above current levels, from $600. Graham said he had “regrettably missed last year’s big move” in Amazon’s stock–it more than doubled in 2015–because he was concerned that margin improvement would slow. But with the stock down 21% year to date, he suggested the price more appropriately reflected his concerns. Other reasons for the upgrade include expectations of continued strong sales growth, gains in ecommerce market share and significant growth in Amazon’s cloud business. “We believe [Amazon’s] stock is unlikely to truly retreat into ‘value’ territory as long as top-line momentum is strong, and we expect this to persist for the foreseeable future,” Graham wrote in a note to clients. Amazon’s stock was declining Thursday much less than the technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 , which fell 0.7%, and the S&P 500 , which was down 0.3%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister on Thursday said the country is “not prepared” to cut oil production, Agence France-Presse reported. The remarks come after the world’s top oil producer reached a tentative agreement with Russia earlier this week to freeze production at current levels if other producers went along. Iran on Wednesday welcomed the pact but didn’t indicate it would comply. “If other producers want to limit or agree to a freeze in terms of additional production that may have an impact on the market but Saudi Arabia is not prepared to cut production, Finance Minister Adel al-Jubeir said. Brent crude for April delivery on London’s ICE exchange was down 25 cents, or 0.7%, at $34.25 a barrel, while March West Texas Intermediate crude was up 13 cents, or 0.4%, at $30.79 a barrel.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Anglo American PLC [uk: aal] on Thursday offered to buy back up to $1.5 billion in bonds, a move that comes after three major credit agencies this week cut their ratings on the miner’s debt. Anglo’s debt offer involves bonds denominated in euro, sterling and U.S. dollars that mature this year, in 2017 and in 2018. Standard & Poor’s on Thursday joined Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings in cutting their ratings on Anglo to junk status. Anglo, in a regulatory filing, said the buyback would allow it to “reduce gross debt and smooth the company’s debt maturity profile while improving cash flows by reducing interest expense.” Investors have until Feb. 25 to respond to the offer.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
Oil futures erased gains Thursday after the Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. crude inventories rose 2.1 million barrels in the week ended Feb. 12. Analysts surveyed by oil-data firm Platts had forecast a rise of 3.3 million barrels. The EIA said gasoline inventories rose by 3 millin barrels last week while distillate inventories rose 1.4 million barrels. The Platts survey found expectations for a 1 million barrel fall in gasoline stocks and a 1.8 million barrel decline in distillate stocks. March crude oil futures were up just 1 cent at $30.67 a barrel following the data, after trading as high as $31.98 in earlier activity.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News
While Craigslist and other online venues can be a valuable asset for locating tenants, it’s helpful to proceed with caution. Remember, not all online property management scams are directed at potential tenants. Property management companies can also find themselves the target of scammers in a variety of ways. If you typically post detailed rental information on Craigslist in a search for tenants, or even have a website that provides property information and photos, be aware that your property management company can quickly become a scamming victim.
In one of the latest ploys, scammers will co-opt photos and other information from legitimate rental websites, lower the monthly rent, add a contact phone number and email, and collect multiple security deposits along the way. Others scammers will offer a quick deposit to hold a property, “accidentally” overpaying and requesting a refund. This is a classic scam, and many have been taken in by the quality of the counterfeit money orders and cashier’s check they’ve received.
So how do you prevent this from happening to you and your property management company?
By exposing scammers, you’ll help to make popular rental sites (like Craigslist) a legitimate source for property managers and applicants alike.
From:: Property Management