Bloomberg – “Pending Sales of Existing Homes in U.S. Surge 3.6%” (8-4-09)

“The number of contracts to buy previously owned homes in the U.S. rose in June for a fifth straight month and exceeded economists’ forecasts, as lower prices and mortgage rates attracted buyers. The 3.6 percent gain in the index of signed purchase agreements, or pending home resales, followed a 0.8 percent gain the prior month that was larger than previously estimated, the National Association of Realtors said today in Washington.”

Bloomberg – “D.R. Horton, Pulte Report Losses, Say Outlook Remains Difficult” (8-4-09)

“D.R. Horton and Pulte reported lower orders and revenue as the three-year housing slump eroded demand. Both companies, along with Centex Corp., which also reported earnings yesterday, were forced to cut prices by an average of 8.7 percent to lure buyers. Foreclosure filings increased to a record 1.5 million in 2009’s first half, according to property data service RealtyTrac Inc. Unemployment in June climbed to 9.5 percent.”

Bloomberg – “Simon’s Earnings Drop as Malls Confront Recession” (8-4-09)

“Simon lost more than a third of its market value in the 12 months through yesterday as the value of its properties dropped, unemployment climbed and consumers spent less in the recession. June retail sales excluding automobiles, gas stations and restaurants fell 3.8 percent from a year earlier, according to the Washington-based National Retail Federation”

Bloomberg – “Bank of America Among Worst for Loan Modifications” (8-4-09)

“Bank of America began 27,985 trial loan modifications, or 4 percent of its eligible loans, under the government’s Making Home Affordable program started in March, the report today shows. Wells Fargo had a 6 percent rate, trailing JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s pace of 20 percent, and Citigroup Inc.’s 15 percent.”

Bloomberg – “Bank of America Among Worst for Loan Modifications” (8-4-09)

“Bank of America began 27,985 trial loan modifications, or 4 percent of its eligible loans, under the government’s Making Home Affordable program started in March, the report today shows. Wells Fargo had a 6 percent rate, trailing JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s pace of 20 percent, and Citigroup Inc.’s 15 percent.”

Inman – “Real estate sites make PCMag's Top 100” (8-4-09)

“Real estate-related sites Trulia, craigslist and HotPads.com made PCMag.com's ‘Top 100 Web Sites of 2009,’ along with a number of other portals, applications and tools that could also be useful to tech-savvy real estate professionals.”

Inman – “Title insurers ready for rebound” (8-4-09)

“Fidelity National Financial, which became the nation's largest title insurer with its acquisition of bankrupt rival LandAmerica Financial Group Inc.'s underwriting companies in December, saw second-quarter revenue grow by 34 percent from a year ago, to $1.57 billion. Pretax profits grew more than 13-fold, to $91.9 million, the company said.”

Orange County Register – “U.S. mortgage aid reaches fraction of eligible borrowers” (8-4-09)

“Roughly 9% of eligible borrowers have received a trial loan modification under the Obama administration’s $75 billion foreclosure prevention plan, the Treasury Department said today. The total is for people at least 60 days late on their mortgages — including folks just one month late or current on their payments would result in an even smaller percentage of eligible borrowers getting help.”