CAR – “July sales and price report” (8-25-09)

“Home sales increased 12 percent in July in California compared with the same period a year ago, while the median price of an existing home declined 19.6 percent, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported today.”

Orange County Register – “Credit unions see LA/OC home price jumping 8%” (8-25-09)

“Some stabilization in late 2009 with an increase of home sales especially in the lower priced segment of the market. Home sale increase will likely begin with the coastal regions of the state. 5% increase in state median price by 2010.”

Orange County Register – “Feds find firming O.C. home values” (8-25-09)

“O.C.’s ‘seasonally-adjusted purchase-only house price index’ showed a 2nd consecutive gain in Q2! (See fever chart above!) The 0.4% gain between the spring and winter quarters followed an 0.1% advance in Q1. The last back-to-back gains were in 2005’s Q4 and 2006’s Q1. Still, this index fell at a 7.4% annual rate in Q2 and places O.C. home pricing off 29.8% from its peak in 2006 Q1.”

Orange County Register – “A view of Huntington Beach’s foreclosure pipeline” (8-25-09)

“In Huntington Beach, as of Monday, there were 52 properties with estimated values of more than $1 million in preforeclosure, meaning the owners have received notices of default, according to ForeclosureRadar.com. Most of these are homes. The values range from a Huntington Harbour home at $1,016,992 to commercial land on Pacific Coast Highway valued at $4,353,702.”

Bloomberg – “Home Market Shows Signs of Life as Declines Slow” (8-25-09)

“The worst may be over for the U.S. real estate market, according to two gauges of home prices. The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index, which tracks 20 metropolitan areas, declined 15.4 percent in June from a year earlier, the smallest drop since April 2008, the group said today in New York. Nationally, prices fell 6.1 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, the best performance in a year, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency.”

Bloomberg – “Luxury Hotel Chains Dropping Five-Star Ratings to Conserve Cash” (8-25-09)

“Hotel operators need to reduce services to conserve cash. Occupancy rates for luxury hotels worldwide fell to 57 percent in the year through July from 71 percent in the same period a year earlier, a bigger drop than for other types of accommodation, according to Smith Travel Research. The average daily room rates at the most luxurious hotels around the world dropped 16 percent to $245.13, the Tennessee- based hotel-data company estimates. Prices for mid-range hotels fell about 13 percent to $87.12.”

Bloomberg – “Citi’s Mortgage Unit Adds 1,400 to Stem Foreclosures” (8-25-09)

“Citigroup Inc. said its mortgage business has hired 1,400 employees this year to help modify delinquent loans as President Barack Obama’s administration increases pressure on banks to stem foreclosures. The hires, made in recent months, are in addition to about 2,600 employees previously dedicated to late payments, said Sanjiv Das, chief executive officer of the New York-based bank’s CitiMortgage unit. The hires brought the unit’s overall staffing back up to about 10,000, where it was before a series of job cuts that began last year, Das said in an interview.”

Bloomberg – “Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank Defer IPO Fees for REITs” (8-25-09)

“Bank of America Corp., Deutsche Bank AG and Credit Suisse Group AG are deferring underwriting fees for initial public offerings by mortgage-investment companies after buyers balked at the deals. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, the top underwriter of initial U.S. stock offerings this year, agreed to delay part of its fees from two recent sales until the companies, known as real estate investment trusts, generate an 8 percent return on equity for a full year. The New York-based firm will forfeit the payments if the target isn’t met within six years, according to regulatory filings. Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse have accepted similar terms to underwrite mortgage REITs”

Inman – “New MLS service catches heat” (8-25-09)

“Last week, the Fresno, Madera and Merced Realtor associations in California became the first three associations to exclusively use calREDD -- a service that is building toward a statewide multiple listing service -- to view properties, place listings and access agents. While the move to utilize calREDD was supported by the presidents and boards for all three associations, the new system, which is powered by vendor Concentric Software of Rocklin, Calif., is frustrating some members and drawing criticism from other multiple listing service vendors.”