Real Estate Investing and Housing Trends

The subprime mortgage meltdown has not only hurt homeowners and investors, but thousands of people are losing their jobs at mortgage companies.
Here's the dirty details:

More than a dozen mortgage companies have gone bankrupt this year as lenders cut off credit lines and investors who buy the loans stopped bidding except for the safest mortgages.

At least 90 US mortgage companies have halted operations, filed for bankruptcy or sought buyers since the start of 2006, according to Bloomberg data.

Accredited Home Lenders Holding Co., a subprime lender based …

Real Estate and Housing Trends

Homeowners in many US states continue to become casualties as their homes go into foreclosure and their property values sink.  This is according to RealtyTrac Inc. in Irvine, California, who just released foreclosure data for July.
It's Really Ugly Out There
As more of those risky, but alluring teaser-rate, adjustable mortgages reset, homeowners are in a pickle, unable to make their mortgage payments.
Here's the highlights of the current data released:

There was a 93% increase from a year ago in NODs (Notice of Defaults), scheduled auctions or bank …

Real Estate Investing and Housing Trends Update

As Gomer Pile would say, "Surprise, surprise, surprise!"
The US Federal Reserve unexpectedly approved a cut in its discount rate on loans to banks by a half percentage point from 6.25 percent to 5.75 percent.  This action has been taken after the Fed has poured billions of dollars into the banking system to help maintain liquidity.
"Financial market conditions have deteriorated, and tighter credit conditions and increased uncertainty have the potential to restrain economic growth,'' the FOMC said in a statement released in Washington."
While the …

Real Estate and Housing Trends

The biggest U.S. mortgage lender, Countrywide Financial Corp., was downgraded to a "Sell" by Merrill Lynch & Co., today due to more fallout from the credit crunch.  Could bankruptcy soon follow?  "Effective insolvancy" would happen if creditors force Countrywide to sell assets at depressed prices or investors lose confidence in its ability to raise cash.
Countrywide's stock price has lost almost half its value this year on concern a credit crunch in the mortgage industry will erode profit.  Bankers have cut back lending to mortgage providers …

Real estate and housing trends

Home builders are hurting from the housing bubble pop in more ways than just soft sales and land aquisition write-offs.  Case in point, Beazer Homes based in Atlanta, is in trouble with the law, namely the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the FBI.
I'm sure the heads of Beazer Homes are hot and bothered from more than just Atlanta's humid weather. You see, the SEC began a formal investigation in July to see if anyone at the company or an associated entity violated securities laws.  In …