Banks Must Unload 12,000 Houses
Nearly 1 in 5 homes for sale in metro Atlanta is being sold by a bank that acquired it via foreclosure. Atlanta has 12,309 bank-owned foreclosed homes for sale in the five-county metro area, out of 71,148 homes for sale, as of Oct. 3 according to RealtyTrac.com, a national foreclosure research company.
Here is a breakdown by county...
Fulton - 4,407
DeKalb - 3,145
Gwinnett - 1,831
Clayton - 1,553
Cobb - 1,373
Because banks must be aggressive sellers, the flood of bank-owned properties onto the market threatens to soften homes prices across metro Atlanta after years of solid growth.
Atlanta Business Chronicle, October 5, 2007
Friday, October 05, 2007
Monday, October 01, 2007
FREE SHIPPING on all real estate supplies
Need additional supplies to assist in the marketing/sale of your property? MLSmart Realty is offering FREE SHIPPING on all real estate supplies ordered online at www.MLSmart.com during the month of October!
Shop the MLSmart Store online at www.MLSmart.com for signs, brochures, lockboxes, books & much more! No need for a discount code, simply shop as much as you want until October 31, 2007 and you will not be charged shipping.
Need additional supplies to assist in the marketing/sale of your property? MLSmart Realty is offering FREE SHIPPING on all real estate supplies ordered online at www.MLSmart.com during the month of October!
Shop the MLSmart Store online at www.MLSmart.com for signs, brochures, lockboxes, books & much more! No need for a discount code, simply shop as much as you want until October 31, 2007 and you will not be charged shipping.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
New-Home Sales Tumble to 7-Year Low
New-homes sales tumbled in August to the lowest level in seven years, a stark sign that the credit crunch is aggravating an already painful housing slump. Sales of new homes dropped by 8.3 percent in August from July, the Commerce Department reported Thursday, driving down sales to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 795,000 units. That was the lowest level since June 2000, when sales clocked in at a pace of 793,000.
The median sales price in August fell by 7.5 percent from a year earlier to $225,700. That was the biggest drop in percentage terms in nearly 37 years. The median price is the middle point at which half sell for more and half for less. The average sales price dropped by 8 percent in August from a year earlier to $292,000. That was the biggest decline in 17 years.
Sales fell in the South and the West in August compared with July. Sales, however, rose in the Northeast and Midwest.
By JEANNINE AVERSA, AP Economics Writer, September 27, 2007
New-homes sales tumbled in August to the lowest level in seven years, a stark sign that the credit crunch is aggravating an already painful housing slump. Sales of new homes dropped by 8.3 percent in August from July, the Commerce Department reported Thursday, driving down sales to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 795,000 units. That was the lowest level since June 2000, when sales clocked in at a pace of 793,000.
The median sales price in August fell by 7.5 percent from a year earlier to $225,700. That was the biggest drop in percentage terms in nearly 37 years. The median price is the middle point at which half sell for more and half for less. The average sales price dropped by 8 percent in August from a year earlier to $292,000. That was the biggest decline in 17 years.
Sales fell in the South and the West in August compared with July. Sales, however, rose in the Northeast and Midwest.
By JEANNINE AVERSA, AP Economics Writer, September 27, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Metro Atlanta attorney admits to role in $20M mortgage fraud ring
A Roswell, Ga., real estate attorney on Thursday pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank, mail and wire fraud, bank loan application fraud, money laundering and wire fraud in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme.
James F. Stovall III, 56, participated in scheme involving property flips orchestrated by one of his clients, "Reti Relocation Services Inc." From April 2000 to June 2001, Reti flipped some 50 properties in metro Atlanta in subdivisions such as Brookstone in Acworth; Windward and Seven Oaks in Alpharetta; and Towne Lake in Woodstock.
The fraudulent scheme involved the submission of false qualifying information and documents through the mails and the wire transfer of scheme proceeds. In the overall scheme, financial institutions and lenders were fraudulently induced to make loans totaling more than $20 million.
Stovall pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank, mail, and wire fraud, bank loan application fraud, and money laundering, and one count of wire fraud. He faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.
Atlanta Business Chronicle, September 21, 2007
**Be careful - mortgage fraud is very prevalent in metro Atlanta and is a SERIOUS crime. If you suspect something is fraudulent in your real estate transaction you must report it!
A Roswell, Ga., real estate attorney on Thursday pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank, mail and wire fraud, bank loan application fraud, money laundering and wire fraud in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme.
James F. Stovall III, 56, participated in scheme involving property flips orchestrated by one of his clients, "Reti Relocation Services Inc." From April 2000 to June 2001, Reti flipped some 50 properties in metro Atlanta in subdivisions such as Brookstone in Acworth; Windward and Seven Oaks in Alpharetta; and Towne Lake in Woodstock.
The fraudulent scheme involved the submission of false qualifying information and documents through the mails and the wire transfer of scheme proceeds. In the overall scheme, financial institutions and lenders were fraudulently induced to make loans totaling more than $20 million.
Stovall pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank, mail, and wire fraud, bank loan application fraud, and money laundering, and one count of wire fraud. He faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.
Atlanta Business Chronicle, September 21, 2007
**Be careful - mortgage fraud is very prevalent in metro Atlanta and is a SERIOUS crime. If you suspect something is fraudulent in your real estate transaction you must report it!
Friday, September 21, 2007
Money Magazine's 2007 Top Places to Live
Two metro Atlanta cities made Money Magazine's "Best Places To Live" this year...
#10 - Suwanee, GA
Population: 11,200
Median home price (2006): $293,868
Average property taxes (2006):$2,311
Pros: Green space, affordable housing
Cons: Traffic, I-85 interchange
Six years ago the residents of Suwanee voted to more than double their property taxes. The payoff: a boost from 28 acres of green space to more than 270, and a feeling of investment in their hometown. That's abundantly clear at the newly developed Town Center. Built on a heavily trafficked downtown corner, it meshes park space, retail and office properties and housing into one multiuse plaza - and residents have embraced it in a big way. Housing is reasonable, and schools are topnotch.Though the town has planned recent development deliberately, the area around Interstate 85, which runs through Suwanee's southeastern corner, lacks for aesthetics but not for congestion. Still, the rest of the city has a lot to offer.
#64 - Peachtree City, GA
Population: 36,700
Median home price (2006): $284,241
Average property taxes (2006): $2,688
Two metro Atlanta cities made Money Magazine's "Best Places To Live" this year...
#10 - Suwanee, GA
Population: 11,200
Median home price (2006): $293,868
Average property taxes (2006):$2,311
Pros: Green space, affordable housing
Cons: Traffic, I-85 interchange
Six years ago the residents of Suwanee voted to more than double their property taxes. The payoff: a boost from 28 acres of green space to more than 270, and a feeling of investment in their hometown. That's abundantly clear at the newly developed Town Center. Built on a heavily trafficked downtown corner, it meshes park space, retail and office properties and housing into one multiuse plaza - and residents have embraced it in a big way. Housing is reasonable, and schools are topnotch.Though the town has planned recent development deliberately, the area around Interstate 85, which runs through Suwanee's southeastern corner, lacks for aesthetics but not for congestion. Still, the rest of the city has a lot to offer.
#64 - Peachtree City, GA
Population: 36,700
Median home price (2006): $284,241
Average property taxes (2006): $2,688
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Overnight real estate rates lower
Long-term mortgage interest rates dropped again Wednesday. The 30-year fixed-rate average fell to 5.95 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate sank to 5.61 percent. The 1-year adjustable, however, gained to 5.72 percent. Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states. Points on these mortgages range from zero to 3.5.
Long-term mortgage interest rates dropped again Wednesday. The 30-year fixed-rate average fell to 5.95 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate sank to 5.61 percent. The 1-year adjustable, however, gained to 5.72 percent. Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states. Points on these mortgages range from zero to 3.5.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
At 42 stories, this will be no 'mini' MansionThe Mansion on Peachtree is a 42-story luxury hotel and condo project near Lenox Square mall. It will have 127 hotel rooms and up to 42 condos. Condo prices will start at about $2.6 million for nearly 3,000 square feet of space on a lower floor. But you'll need $12 million to buy a 10,500-square-foot penthouse. The developers are City Centre Properties and John Williams, who founded Post Properties, but left the company five years ago.
Developers say about half the condominiums already have been sold for the Mansion on Peachtree, which will tower over the Lenox Square mall end of Buckhead.
The Mansion will further strengthen Buckhead's position as home to the region's highest concentration of influence, high-end retail, tablecloth restaurants and entertainment. The building will face the revitalized streetscape of Peachtree Road once the road's renovation project moves north of the Buckhead MARTA station. The Mansion is within walking distance of the St. Regis Hotel and condominiums, another mixed-use building with multi-million dollar condos, and the planned $1.2 billion Buckhead Avenue, which is to become a Rodeo Drive type of district built atop the old Buckhead Village nightclub district.
The Mansion is scheduled to open next spring, and developers say the condos are about 50 percent sold.
AJC, 9/17/07
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