Deadline Newsroom Feed 10/19/07

Compiled by Broderick Perkins
© 2007 DeadlineNews.Com

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Deadline Newsroom Feed – From the previous week, all the news that really hits home from DeadlineNews.Com and elsewhere.

From The Deadline Newsroom

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Why Is Plagiarism So Rampant In Realty Blogs?
Deadline Newsroom – "Why Is Plagiarism So Rampant In Realty Blogs?" by realty blog award-winning real estate agent Mary Pope-Handy, made my day, at her expense, unfortunately.

SF Bay Area Home Sales Take A Nose Dive
Deadline Newsroom – San Francisco Bay Area home sales plummeted so far in September, sales were at a level not seen since at least 1988 and the high-tech, high-priced Silicon Valley region saw sales slip the lowest level since 1984.

Rents Inflated By Soft Owner-Occupied Market
Deadline Newsroom – As hundreds of thousands of homeowners enter some stage of foreclosure each month, it's not surprising rents are up in each of the 32 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) tracked by Novato, CA-based RealFacts.

Blue Notes From The Beige Book
Deadline Newsroom – Using perhaps the gloomiest language yet this year, realty market sources on the ground around the nation found little cheer in a housing market that appears on the verge of hibernation.

Chronic Mortgage Confusion
Deadline Newsroom – Consumers are confused, concerned and craving more regulatory protection when it comes to home loans.

Home Heating Wearing Out Wallets
Deadline Newsroom – As sure as year-end holiday decorations hit the stores before Halloween, the annual home heating fuel cost forecast is a real horror.

Buying Foreclosures Not For The Novice
Deadline Newsroom – On a scale of fear where 1 is a sort of "pshaw" and 10 is your life flashing before you, the fear of buying foreclosures should be right up there with the out-of-body experience.

A Lasting Simulated Life
Deadline Newsroom – Before there were avatars and Second Life and other sorted virtual realty realities, The Sims lived, loved and sometimes loathed in homes and communities you developed.

© 2007 DeadlineNews.Com

DeadlineNews.Com's Editorial Content Is Intellectual Property - Unauthorized Use Is A Federal Crime

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News from elsewhere...

CONSUMER

Mortgage Mess Impacts Renters; Some End Up in Shelters
Experts say tenants in many regions of the country are being evicted and in some cases ending up homeless as a rising number of landlords nationwide are entering foreclosure, reported The Seattle Times.

Rentals Out Of Reach
Across America, working families who rent their homes are being squeezed. In part, that's because federal housing policy has increasingly emphasized homeownership to the exclusion of other options for the past decade.

Latino Homeownership
On October 9, the California Building Industry Association (CBIA) and the California Homebuilding Foundation (CHF) unveiled the results of a groundbreaking research project detailing the problem and providing insight on the attitudes and priorities of Latino Californians.

Consumer Electronic Installs Provide Builders with New Revenue Stream Opportunities
Home builders can take advantage of increasing consumer demand for integration of consumer electronics products into new houses, according to a study released from the Consumer Electronics Association.

California Appraisers Get Protection From Pressure
A new California law makes it illegal to pressure appraisers to arrive at a predetermined property value that's been set by mortgage brokers or homeowners to ensure a sale goes through.

FINANCE

'Hope Now' Provides Only So Much Hope
Some advocates say they doubt the initiative will be effective because some alliance members have shown reluctance to modify loans to affordable levels.

A Mortgage Meltdown Quiz
A one question quiz that can make or break you. Not really.

It's a Great Time for a Mortgage Loan
Countrywide Home Loans, the nation's largest mortgage lender, is sending 7000 home-loan consultants to open houses and real-estate offices.

Mortgage Execs: Housing Price Decline To Continue
US buyer and guarantor of home loans behind Fannie Mae, said investors in mortgage-backed securities likely will remain wary of committing more money.

United States of Subprime
An analysis of more than 130 million home loans made over the past decade reveals that risky mortgages were made in nearly every corner of the nation, from small towns in the middle of nowhere to inner cities to affluent suburbs.

MARKETS

Remember when housing wasn't supposed to hurt the economy?

Fed: Housing, Credit Woes Slow Economy
Many real-estate contacts expect housing markets to remain subdued for several months (months?)," the Fed said.

US Economy Grows at Softer Pace Amid Housing, Finance Woes
Some business leaders see more troubles in real estate and credit difficulties "but there is cautious optimism."

New Housing, Income Inequality, and Distressed Metropolitan Areas
This report examines the link between income inequality and new housing construction in various metropolitan areas using data from the Census and Neighborhood Change Database on 215 metropolitan areas.

New Wave Optimism Means Calling An End To Housing Slump
At least there's an end to it, and some areas are already enjoying new rounds of housing booms. Unhappy news from the Mortgage Bankers Association and the National Association of Home Builders suggests better times ahead for sellers. (Talk about turning a phrase.)

DeadlineNews.Com: 'Best Repurposing Of A Realty Journalist'
"Fun, credible, astute and up to date."

TRENDS/COMMENTARY

Real Estate Funds Hit by Housing Data
It was a black week for real estate funds. Aside from the two funds shorting the industry, the average real estate fund ...

S&P downgrades ratings on 1,413 Classes of Subprime Backed Securities Worth $22.02 billion
Are there any left?

Remodeling Activity Expected to Trend Down in 2008
The weakness in house prices and consumer confidence has taken a toll on home improvement expenditures, with declines expected to extend well into 2008.

'Bubble Blogger' Takes on Housing Market
"It's possible that prices could fall 50 percent in real terms," said Patrick Killelea, a self-styled real estate guru who's making it his business to burst your bubble. "You could lose half the value if you bought in 2005-2006."

Movies That Really Hit Home
An amazing number of titles put the spotlight on homes, housing and community.

BUSINESS/COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE

Profits Fall for Mortgage Banking Companies in 2006
A survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association of 189 mortgage banking companies found a decline in profits in 2006 from 2005.

Vision to Carve Prime New York Real Estate From the Hudson River
Critics of the authority point to its abandonment of a plan to set aside equal shares of its housing units for wealthy, middle-income and low-income tenants.

There's Nothing Wrong With Being A Salesperson
A reader expresses frustration that licensing criteria isn't more challenging for the real estate profession and wonders if Realtors should correctly be called salespeople. Realty Times says, "Yes, and be proud of it!"

The Holidays Are Coming Fast. Is Your Housing Client, Professional or
Friend On The List? St. Joseph The Home Seller kits. Clock houses. Monopoly. House warming gifts. Come 'n' get 'em.

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Broderick Perkins, an award-winning consumer journalist of 30 years, is publisher and executive editor of San Jose, CA-based DeadlineNews.Com, a real estate news and consulting service, and the new Deadline Newsroom, DeadlineNews.Com's new backshop. In both cases, it's where all the news really hits home.

DeadlineNews.Com's Editorial Content Is Intellectual Property • Unauthorized Use Is A Federal Crime