Today’s News Synopsis:

CoreLogic reported a 2.8 percentage point decrease in cash sales for homes back in April.  The Federal Reserve is beginning to consider increasing rates more due to decreasing risk in the economy.  The NAHB released a new poll showing the majority of Americans still consider owning a home a top priority.

In The News:

Housing Wire – “U.S. expands investigation into money laundering by foreign cash buyers” (7-27-16)

“The federal government revealed Wednesday that its investigation into foreign buyers using high-end U.S. real estate as a means to launder money found that potentially illicit activity is behind a “significant” portion of the cash transactions in Manhattan and Miami, and plans to expand the investigation into several other areas.”

DS News – “Cash Sales Share Slows” (7-27-16)

“Cash sales fell 2.8 percentage points in April 2016 from the previous year and accounted for 31.6 percent of total home sales, according to a recent data release from CoreLogic.”

Construction Dive – “AIA: Construction growth forecast more ‘tempered’ in 2016, 2017 amid economic challenges” (7-27-16)

“The American Institute of Architects’ semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast predicts that nonresidential spending will increase nearly 6% in 2016 and 5.6% in 2017, a downward departure from its February projections of 8.3% and 6.7%, respectively.”

Bloomberg – “Fed Begins Crawl Toward Rate Hike as Near-Term Risks Diminish” (7-27-16)

“Federal Reserve policy makers took a step toward raising interest rates later this year but stopped short of signaling that the move could come as soon as September.”

Housing Wire – “Fannie Mae updates HomeReady to make it even easier to get a 3% down mortgage” (7-27-16)

“The federal government revealed Wednesday that its investigation into foreign buyers using high-end U.S. real estate as a means to launder money found that potentially illicit activity is behind a “significant” portion of the cash transactions in Manhattan and Miami, and plans to expand the investigation into several other areas.”

Mortgage Professional America – “Ellie Mae integration with First American streamlines title and closing experience” (7-27-16)

“Ellie Mae has announced an enhanced integration with one of the country’s largest title insurance companies, according to a news release.”

NAHB – “New Poll Shows Housing Remains a Priority for Most Americans” (7-27-16)

“An overwhelming four-out-of-five Americans believe that owning a home is a good investment, according to a recent poll commissioned by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) to gauge public sentiment on the value of homeownership and government programs that encourage homeownership and housing production.”

Housing Wire – “Affordability constraints hold back pending home sales” (7-27-16)

“Pending home sales remained in a holding pattern in June, however they increased slightly, according to the Pending Home Sales Index from the National Association of Realtors.”

 

Bruce Norris will be presenting his newest talk Stay Put, Cash Out, Or Change Seats? at the REI Expo in San Francisco Thursday-Saturday, August 11-13.

Bruce Norris will be presenting his newest talk Stay Put, Cash Out, Or Change Seats? with InvestClub for Women on Wednesday, September 21.

Bruce Norris will be presenting Stay Put, Cash Out, Or Change Seats? with InvestClub for Women and Robert Hall & Associates on September 28.

Bruce Norris of The Norris Group will be presenting the 9th annual I Survived Real Estate 2016 on Friday, October 21.

Image copyright source: www.flickr.com/photos/87913776@N00

 

Looking Back:

New home sales were not up to par the previous month after having decreased 6.8% to 482,000 according to the latest data from HUD and the US Census Bureau.  At the same time, demand for homes was less active according to the latest Redfin data.  A recent ruling by the New Hampshire Supreme Court established that MERS had the authority to foreclose, something that had recently been challenged.