Originations

The president of San Diego-based valuation data and technology provider DataQuick is defending his profession against what he says are misconceptions about the fundamentals of valuations and the current regulations of the industry.

Existing home sales in Illinois in July were up 18% over the previous year but median prices were down by 4%, the Illinois Association of Realtors reported. The data includes both single-family properties and condominiums.

A commercial real estate investment advisor in Orlando calls Standard & Poor's downgrade of the United States sovereign credit rating "good news for commercial real estate" both nationally and locally.

The large amount of maturing mortgage debt is an opportunity for institutional investors to acquire at good prices commercial real estate from sellers who are overleveraged, a report from a unit of BNY Mellon Asset Management declares.

Florida existing home sales increased 12% in July over the previous year, while existing condominium sales also increased 12%, according to the Florida Realtors. There were 15,517 single-family homes sold last month, up from 13,874 the prior year.

Sales of single-family existing home sales fell 4% in July after a 1% increase in June, but condominium sales were unchanged month over month, according to the National Association of Realtors.

The Dow had fallen more than 400 points and long-term rate-indicative 10-year Treasury yield had plunged to a record low below 2% at one point Thursday as the average weekly 30-year mortgage rate tracked by Freddie Mac hit a low not seen in over 50 years.

The biggest short- and long-term challenges facing commercial real estate going forward are the large amount of debt maturing between now and 2015, said an executive with Deloitte LLP.

Over the next two years JP Morgan Chase will grant $1 million in downpayment assistance as an incentive to police officers and city employees in Detroit who agree to purchase vacant homes and return to the city.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has rejected an appeal from Fair Isaac Corp., Minneapolis, letting stand a judge's ruling dismissing some of its claims before trial against VantageScore Solutions, Stamford, Conn., and Experian, Costa Mesa, Calif.

In the title business, agents serve an important function, operating in areas where underwriters do not have their own production offices.A number of recent developments regarding agencies show that even in a tough mortgage origination environment this business model remains attractive.

Last week I was walking through the town of Huntsville, Ont., with my family and noticed a brilliant marketing idea by a local shop owner. He owned a bike store and obviously wanted to not only attract customers for his bikes, but also his other products.

A.M Best Co., Oldwick, N.J., has cut its financial strength ratings to "A" from "A+" and issuer credit ratings to "a-" from "aa+" of the property/casualty units of Old Republic International Corp., Chicago, in large part because of the problems the parent company is having with Republic Mortgage Insurance Co.

Investors Bancorp Inc., Short Hills, N.J., has agreed to acquire Brooklyn (N.Y.) Federal Bancorp Inc., for $10 million total. All shareholders of Brooklyn Federal, except for BFS Bancorp MHC, will receive cash (approximate total $3 million) for their stock. The BFS shares will be converted into shares of Investors.

Veros Real Estate Solutions said it's connected a “large lender” to its custom interface with the Uniform Collateral Data Portal.

Atlanta-based SunTrust Banks Inc., said C.T. Hill, its corporate executive vice president and head of consumer banking and mortgage, would now have his primary focus on the company's mortgage business.

Flagstar Bancorp, Troy, Mich., is selling 22 retail banking branches in Indiana to First Financial Bancorp, Cincinnati, for a 7% premium on $328 million in deposits. The deal should result in a one-time gain of $23 million.

AARP Foundation is suing Wells Fargo and Fannie Mae in the San Francisco Federal Court over the rights of a survivor to redeem the property after a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage borrower dies.

Stock market volatility drove rates on the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage to hit a new low point for the year but it also contributed to a pull-back in the purchase market, holding the increase in mortgage application volume to just 4.1% for the week ended Aug. 12, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

July was a "typical" month for housing sales in the Houston metro area, according to the local Realtors group. But because of last year's federal tax credits, which tended to push sales forward to beat the April 30 deadline, July's sales figures look somewhat stronger than they actually are.