Reports circulated late Tuesday that the Department of Housing and Urban Development spent more than $31,000 on a new custom dining room set for Secretary Ben Carson’s office in late 2017 and that the agency is planning more furniture upgrades to the tune of $165,000.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
For the second time in less than a year, a major city is suing Wells Fargo for alleged discriminatory lending practices against minority borrowers. Last year, the city of Philadelphia sued Wells Fargo. Now, Sacramento is suing Wells Fargo as well for allegedly steering minority borrowers to high-cost loans.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
Pending home sales dropped suddenly in January, falling to the lowest level in more than three years. In addition to new home construction making progress closer to its historical annual average of 1.5 million starts, NAR explained two other factors must start occurring to alleviate the excruciatingly low supply levels that are slowing sales.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
Just as the company predicted one year ago, Ocwen Financial suffered another year deep in the red in 2017, posting its fourth straight yearly loss of more than $100 million. But, at least Ocwen’s net losses are trending in the right direction.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
Real gross domestic product in the fourth quarter decreased slightly from the previous estimate. The report explained that while the estimated GDP did drop slightly from the previous estimate, the general picture of economic growth remains the same.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
Mortgage applications increased 2.7% from last week, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey. However, this increase was led by purchase applications as refinances continued to drop.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
Highly qualified appraisers are able to assist homeowners with appeals of property taxes, which can be a homeowner’s largest annual expense, the nation’s largest professional association of real estate appraisers said today.
Source: Appraisal Institute
California-based JMAC Lending, announced the opening of its new corporate headquarters. The new HQ for the company is located in Orange County and the new workspace more than doubles the lender’s office space, providing a central operating center to support the company’s clients and strategic business initiatives, the company said.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
The Hispanic community continues to drive homeownership growth in the U.S. In fact, Hispanics became the only demographic to have increased their homeownership rate for the last three consecutive years. However, several factors are still holding them back from further homeownership gains.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
In a deal that seemingly comes out of nowhere, Ocwen Financial announced Tuesday afternoon that it is buying PHH Corp. for $360 million in cash. The deal comes after years of turmoil for both companies that led to significant shifts in each companies’ business. Click the headline for the full details of the deal.
Source: HousingWire Magazine
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