Welcome to The Platinum Team!

Dedicated and Honest service to all.

RISMedia » Finance and Economy
Would-be Buyers Find Loans Are Out of Reach	9/3/2008 4:02 PM
By Monica Hatcher RISMEDIA, Sept. 4, 2008-(MCT)-Thanks to the housing slump, professional couple Gladys and Raul Castillo finally found homes they could afford-new condo units in foreclosure within walking and biking distance of their jobs in Miami’s Brickell financial district. They also had the credit record to meet lenders’ standards. But they couldn’t land an actual loan. “Almost [...]
Would-Be Buyers Find Loans Are Out of Reach	8/28/2008 7:27 PM
RISMEDIA, September 4, 2008–(MCT)–Thanks to the housing slump, professional couple Gladys and Raul Castillo finally found homes they could afford–new condo units in foreclosure within walking and biking distance of their jobs in Miami’s Brickell financial district.They also had the credit record to meet lenders’ standards. But they couldn’t land an actual loan. “Almost all of [...]
Bankrate - Mortgage Rates Dip Again	8/28/2008 2:32 PM
RISMEDIA, August 29, 2008-Mortgage rates were lower for the second week in a row, with the average conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate falling to 6.60 percent. According to Bankrate.com’s weekly national survey of large lenders, the average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average of 0.39 discount and origination points. The average 15-year fixed rate mortgage popular [...]
Mortgage Applications Increase Slightly in Latest MBA Weekly Survey	8/27/2008 2:35 PM
RISMEDIA, August 28, 2008-The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) this week released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 22, 2008. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, was 421.6, an increase of 0.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis from 419.3 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the [...]
Donna Miller Joins Chase as National Director for its Emerging Markets and Affordable Lending Group	8/27/2008 2:24 PM
RISMEDIA, August 28, 2008-Chase, one of the nation’s leading home lenders, announced that Donna Miller joined the company to lead its Home Lending business’ Emerging Markets and Affordable Lending (EMA) group. According to the company, Miller is responsible for developing strategies and programs that increase homeownership among minorities, new immigrants, affordable lending consumers and first-time home [...]
Fannie Continues Tightening the Screws	8/22/2008 2:21 PM
Commentary by Jason Kotar RISMEDIA, August 25, 2008-Effective August 1, 2008, Fannie Mae issued some new rules affecting the conversion of a principal residence to a second home or investment property. For a second home, both mortgages will be used to qualify for the new transaction (as occurs today.) The difference is that the borrower must prove [...]
Mortgage Applications Decrease Slightly In Latest MBA Weekly Survey	8/20/2008 2:55 PM
RISMEDIA, August 21, 2008-The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 15, 2008. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, was 419.3, a decrease of 1.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis from 425.9 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased [...]
Study Links Rise in Mortgage Rates to Falling House Prices in Many U.S Cities	8/18/2008 2:25 PM
RISMEDIA, August 19, 2008-New research by Christopher J. Mayer and Paul Milstein, professor of real estate and senior vice dean at Columbia Business School, shows that a rise in mortgage rates has had a significant negative impact on house prices throughout the U.S., reducing prices by more than 10%. Mayer predicts that prices will keep [...]
Mortgage Applications Decrease Slightly in Latest MBA Weekly Survey	8/13/2008 2:58 PM
RISMEDIA, August 14, 2008-The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 8, 2008. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, was 425.9, a decrease of 1.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis from 432.6 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the [...]
Pennsylvania Starts to Test Subprime Lenders	8/13/2008 2:43 PM
By Alan J. Heavens RISMEDIA, August 14, 2008-(MCT)-For Philadelphia Rep. W. Curtis Thomas, the problem of mortgage originators running around Pennsylvania uncontrolled hit a little too close to home.His father, W. Curtis Sr., 87, needed a new heater for the Musgrave Street house he has owned for 47 years. A friend had a friend who worked [...]

Local Real Estate Market Trends

Wall Street Journal Real Estate News

How to Attract Canadian Buyers	9/5/2008 11:50 AM
Thanks to a strong currency and stable economy, Canadians are snapping up American homes. But with so many houses on the market, it takes some effort to attract their attention. June Fletcher offers some tips.
Meet the Nouveaux Neighbors	9/5/2008 8:44 AM
Boosted by a stronger currency and rising house values at home, Canadians are now the biggest foreign buyers of U.S. homes.
Two NBA All-Stars Cut House Prices	9/4/2008 11:18 PM
Allen Iverson cut the price of his Pennsylvania home; Matthew Modine purchased a condo in New York City; Leonard Ross took the Hearst estate in Beverly Hills off the market.
Mortgages Fall Further	9/5/2008 6:40 AM
Home mortgage rates moved lower this week after indications that consumer spending could slow, Freddie Mac's chief economist said.
Trading Houses Hasn't Made Me Wealthy	9/4/2008 6:34 PM
If you're a true cheapskate, stay put. Moving is expensive and wasteful. Neal Templin's family would have come out ahead financially by staying put instead of moving to another city.
GMAC to Shrink ResCap Business	9/4/2008 6:50 AM
GMAC and its ResCap unit plan to close all 200 GMAC Mortgage retail offices and cut 5,000 jobs, in a plan that could lead to savings of $1 billion.
Housing Plan Fails to Excite	9/3/2008 6:36 AM
London homes remain so expensive that the government's housing stimulus plan falls short, economists and real-estate agents said.
U.K. Aims to Revive Housing Market	9/3/2008 6:36 AM
Britain's Brown unveiled the first in a series of measures to prop up the housing market and boost his approval ratings.
Foreclosed But Not Forgotten	9/3/2008 11:07 PM
A few ideas for avoiding another housing crisis.
California Seeks to Curb Sprawl	9/2/2008 8:25 AM
California lawmakers passed a bill aimed at cutting carbon-dioxide emissions by requiring cities and counties to prevent urban sprawl and improve public transportation.
Lehman Has Plan for Real-Estate Loans	9/2/2008 7:57 AM
Lehman is nearing a plan that will allow it to offload billions of dollars in real-estate loans from its books.
Starwood, Sands Plan Vegas Venture	9/5/2008 6:47 AM
Starwood Hotels' high-end St. Regis brand will make its first appearance on the Las Vegas Strip under a deal in which Starwood will manage a condo development for Las Vegas Sands.
Longs Property Is a Wild Card	9/5/2008 6:45 AM
Could CVS Caremark's pending $2.61 billion purchase of Longs Drug Stores come undone? Dissident shareholders hope so, having intensified their campaign to disrupt the deal just as the proceedings hit the home stretch. Their potential wedge is the value of Longs' real estate.
Toll Brothers Swings to Loss	9/4/2008 10:20 PM
Toll Brothers swung to a loss as the U.S. housing-market declines led to more write-downs for the builder and sales continued to fall.
Lehman's Clouded SunCal Bet	9/2/2008 7:18 PM
A mix of easy money and land speculation helps show why Lehman is scrambling to pare back its $40 billion commercial real-estate portfolio.

RISMedia » Real Estate
Real Estate in Prime Time - Adding a New Dimension	9/3/2008 4:07 PM
By Maria Patterson RISMEDIA, September 4, 2008-It would have been hard to imagine back in the early 1990s that a cultural phenomenon could emerge from the simple concept of ‘lifestyle.’ But the visionary founders of HGTV knew they were onto something and proceeded to build one of the most wildly popular cable networks that exists today-now [...]
How Does the Economy Effect the Real Estate Industry?	9/3/2008 4:05 PM
Commentary by James A. Crumbaugh III RISMEDIA, Sept. 4, 2008-I’ve been in the real estate industry for so long that I feel like I should be 90 years old. The truth of the matter is that I’m only 57, but I’ve been in the industry since before I was even of legal age to drink. That [...]
NAR Pulse: This Week’s Top Stories from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS	9/3/2008 4:04 PM
RISMEDIA, Sept. 5, 2008-This week’s headlines from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS include: motivate buyers with NAR’s new publication; check out the marketing tools and resources from the REALTOR Benefits® Program; and Good Neighbor Awards finalists make a difference in their communities. Get Buyers Off the Fence! It’s a Great Time to Buy is a market sensitive [...]
Would-be Buyers Find Loans Are Out of Reach	9/3/2008 4:02 PM
By Monica Hatcher RISMEDIA, Sept. 4, 2008-(MCT)-Thanks to the housing slump, professional couple Gladys and Raul Castillo finally found homes they could afford-new condo units in foreclosure within walking and biking distance of their jobs in Miami’s Brickell financial district. They also had the credit record to meet lenders’ standards. But they couldn’t land an actual loan. “Almost [...]
NonStopNeighbors Announces New Realtor FAST-START Pack	9/2/2008 4:00 PM
RISMEDIA, Sept. 3, 2008-NonStopNeighbors, a vendor of neighborhood and community websites, announced the new FAST-START pack for Realtors looking to sponsor a neighborhood website in their area. According to the company, the FAST-START pack makes it easier than ever for Agents to create useful community content for a neighborhood website they can sponsor to develop leads [...]
4 Ways to Spruce up a Home for Sale	9/1/2008 4:07 PM
By Marshall Loeb RISMEDIA, Sptember 2, 2008-(MCT)-If you’re planning on putting your home on the market or helping a client to do so, consider fixing it up first. Simple cosmetic changes don’t cost very much and they can make a real difference to a buyer. From Consumer Reports, here are four ways your clients can spruce up [...]
Study - How to Real Estate Search Engines Measure Up?	9/1/2008 4:05 PM
RISMEDIA, Sept. 2, 2008-A real estate industry study released last week shows that most popular consumer real estate search engines offer home seekers only a small fraction of the homes actually available on the market-and that many of the listings are inaccurate or out of date. Real estate searches on these popular sites in three [...]
4 Top Producers Named to HouseHunt Hall of Fame	9/1/2008 4:01 PM
RISMEDIA, Sept. 2, 2008-Four top producers who combine superior customer service and real estate expertise with cutting edge technology have been named to the 2008 HouseHunt Hall of Fame, according to an announcement by Michael Bearden, president and CEO of HouseHunt, Inc. A total of 35 member-agents have been named to this elite group since [...]
NAR Pulse: This Week’s Top Stories from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS	8/28/2008 2:45 PM
RISMEDIA, August 29, 2008-This week’s headlines from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS include: remember to take advantage of travel deals from NAR REALTOR Benefits Program; protect your business with antitrust publications from NAR; and the city of Asheville, NC receives recognition for increasing affordable housing. Travel Deals from NAR REALTOR Benefits Program Planning holiday, business or leisure [...]
Friday’s Featured Listing - Terrington, a Luxury Home Neighborhood	8/28/2008 2:38 PM
RISMEDIA, August 29, 2008-Waterfalls, swimming pools, outdoor gourmet kitchens and spa retreats-a few key features that make Terrington more than a dream home destination in Cary, North Carolina. Eb Moore, CEO of Coldwell Banker Howard Perry and Walston has announced that the firm will be handling the sales and marketing for Terrington, a luxury home neighborhood [...]

Local Real Estate Market Trends

Wall Street Journal Real Estate News