DEAL OF THE WEEK

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/20/09 9:00 AM EST

California Investors Gamble and Buy 798 Home Lots in Hard-Hit Reno, NV(RENO, NV) -- Talk about a positive outlook in one of the nation's hardest-hit residential pockets -- two California investors-developers have it in spades.Reno, NV is now in its... Read More

NAHB Reports Housing Affordability Index Remains Near Record Highs

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/19/09 3:55 PM EST

(WASHINGTON, DC) - According to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) released today, the nationwide housing affordability, bolstered by affordable interest rates and low house prices, hovered for the third consecutive quarter near its highest... Read More

Freddie Mac Reports 30-Year Rates Near Record Breaking Levels

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/19/09 1:00 PM EST

15-Year FRM Drops to Lowest Ever Recorded in Freddie Mac Survey History(MCLEAN, VA) -- Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.83 percent with an... Read More

Mortgage Delinquencies Continue to Rise Nationally, Says MBA

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/19/09 10:55 AM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties rose to a seasonally adjusted rate of 9.64 percent of all loans outstanding as of the end of the third quarter of 2009, Read More

MBA Reports Mortgage Applications Decreased This Week

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/18/09 12:05 PM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Today the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 13, 2009.  The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume decreased 2.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted... Read More

New Home Starts Decline in October

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/18/09 11:00 AM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Nationwide housing production fell 10.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 529,000 units in October as builders awaited word on whether an important home buyer incentive would be extended, according to data released today by... Read More

U.S. Hotels Posted Declines in Early November

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/16/09 2:56 PM EST

(HENDERSONVILLE, TN) - According to data from Smith Travel research, the U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements during the week of 1-7 November 2009.In year-over-year measurements, the industry's occupancy fell 3.6 percent to end the... Read More

Bankrupt South Florida Luxury Resort Sold for Fire-Sale Price of $29,707 Per Unit

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/12/09 3:30 PM EST

Resort at Singer Island (SINGER ISLAND, FL) -- Talk about fire-sale prices for luxury condominium resorts.The 239-suite, two-year-old Resort at Singer Island in South Florida has been sold for $7.1 million or $29,707 per unit.  Comparable new construction would be... Read More

STR Reports U.S. Hotel Pipeline for October

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/12/09 12:31 PM EST

(HENDERSONVILLE, TN) -- According to Smith Travel Research, the total active U.S. hotel development pipeline includes 4,089 projects comprising 435,265 rooms, according to the October 2009 STR/TWR/Dodge Construction Pipeline Report released this week. This represents a 32.7-percent decrease in the... Read More

CONDO ROUNDUP

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/09/09 8:00 AM EST

(ORLANDO, FL) -- A foreign buyer has paid a foreign seller $37.6M or $58,750 per unit for 640 units at three properties on City Street near Downtown Orlando. On a square-foot basis, the price equates to $56.22. Gerald A. Smith and his brother, Robert E. Smith, principals at Orlando-based Smith Equities Real Estate Investment Advisors, ... Read More

STR Reports U.S. Hotel Performance for October

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/06/09 11:43 AM EST

(HENDERSONVILLE, TN) -- According to Smith Travel Research, the U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements during the week of 25-31 October 2009.In year-over-year measurements, the industry's occupancy fell 7.2 percent to end the week at... Read More

Commercial Real Estate Forecast Uncertain

Posted by NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS 11/19/09 10:00 AM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- The recent deep economic downturn has had a pronounced impact on commercial real estate sectors, but credit availability is the big unknown that will determine how soon commercial markets recover, Read More

CMBS Delinquencies Up Another 28 Basis Points on Large Office and Hotel Defaults

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/16/09 3:02 PM EST

(NEW YORK, NY) -- The commercial mortgage-backed securities picture in the U.S. continues to look dim.Job losses and subsequent office loan defaults, coupled with continued hotel underperformance, resulted in another  monthly  increase  in U.S. CMBS delinquencies, according to the  latest... Read More

Chase to Hire 1,200 Mortgage Loan Officers by End of 2010

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/11/09 12:40 PM EST

(NEW YORK, NY) -- Good news today on the mortgage broker hiring front.Chase, the third largest commercial real estate lender in the U.S., plans to hire 1,200 mortgage loan officers by the end of 2010. Chase is the U.S. consumer... Read More

REALTY CAPITAL MARKET ROUNDUP

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/11/09 8:00 AM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Freddie Mac is holding its hand out again as it reports a third-quarter net loss of $6.3 billion. That compares with net income in the second quarter of $768 million. The agency's gross loss was $5 billion but came to $6.3 billion after factoring in the $1.3 billion dividend on its senior preferred stock to the Treasury. Read More

DEALS OF THE WEEK

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/09/09 9:00 AM EST

Solar panel roof designer signs largest industrial lease in 20 years in San Francisco marketSolyndra Inc. of Fremont, CA takes entire 506,490-square-foot Page Technology Park in FremontTwelve-year lease value is estimated at $45 millionSeparately, logistics software firm leases 325,000 square... Read More

Dubai Real Estate Bounce on the Way, Colliers Data Show

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/18/09 3:30 PM EST

(DUBAI, U.A.E.) -- Take it from Colliers, Dubai real estate prices and development are rebounding. The latest numbers from Colliers' Dubai House Price Index indicate real estate prices in Dubai have risen almost 7 percent in the third quarter of this year from the previous quarter. Read More

GLOBAL CONDO MARKET ROUNDUP

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/16/09 8:00 AM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- Condo buyers and developers just got the break of the year. The Federal Housing Administration is relaxing rules that will allow lenders to offer more loans with less-strict qualifications. Now borrowers can make down payments that equate to only 3.5 percent of the sale price, ... Read More

Inflated Real Estate Markets in Asia and Pacific Rim Headed for Crash, Warns World Bank

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/06/09 8:00 AM EST

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) -- The World Bank, representing 186 countries, sees signs of a coming market crash in the inflated prices in real estate, stocks and currencies now being traded around the world. Read More

Hong Kong Faces Property Bubble Explosion as Home Prices Rise 28% This Year

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 10/30/09 3:43 PM EST

(HONG KONG) -- Speculators are having a field day in Hong Kong's frenzied home market. The government is fighting hard in this city of seven million residents to keep the price bubble from bursting. Read More

Dubai's Emaar Properties Reports Y-T-D Revenues of USD $1.47 Billion

Posted by Michael Gerrity 10/23/09 2:48 PM EST

(DUBAI, U.A.E.) -- Emaar Properties PJSC, the Dubai-based global property developer, has recorded revenues of AED 5,429 million (US$ 1,478 million) in the first nine months of 2009, led by its strategy of strengthening customer-oriented initiatives to support property purchases and a commitment to project delivery. Read More

New Luxury Condo Tower Coming to Kuala Lumpur's Business District

Posted by Michael Gerrity 10/14/09 10:45 AM EST

(KUALA LAMPUR, MALAYSIA) - Malaysia-listed premier property developer Eastern & Oriental Berhad (E&O Group) today announced the official launch of St Mary Residences Tower A targeting international home purchasers. Read More

STR Global Reports Worldwide Hotel Pipeline for October 2009

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/20/09 10:02 AM EST

Middle East & Africa Markets(LONDON, UK) -- According to the October 2009 STR Global Construction Pipeline Report released this week, the Middle East/Africa hotel development pipeline now includes 437 hotels comprising 120,682 rooms. The United Arab Emirates reported the largest... Read More

Latin America Hotel Construction Pipeline Continues to Decline

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/17/09 2:50 PM EST

Click here to enlarge chart (ORLANDO, FL) -- According to a Lodging Economics report released today, as of the end of Q3 2009 the Latin America Construction Pipeline has a total of 482 projects and 83,291 guest rooms. After 6... Read More

Hualailai Resorts Closes Record $43M in August Real Estate Sales

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/17/09 9:30 AM EST

(KONA, HAWAII) -- The surf is high in the North Kona Coast's Hualailai Resort as the 13-year-old community rings up a record $43 million in August real estate sales.  Year-to-date, sales total $90 million.The good news comes as occupancy rises... Read More

Macao Heating Up Again as Developers Gamble on Erecting Billion-Dollar Casinos

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/17/09 9:00 AM EST

(MACAO, CHINA) -- Whether you spell it Macao or Macau, the world's largest casino market once again is attracting big-name developers eager to cash in on what they see as a resurgent gaming era beginning in 2011. Read More

Abu Dhabi's Yas Island Awarded Leading Tourism Development Project in 2009

Posted by Michael Gerrity 11/13/09 9:00 AM EST

(ABU DHABI, UAE) -- Aldar Properties' new Yas Island leisure and entertainment destination was selected as the World's Leading Tourism Development Project at the World Travel Awards held earlier this week in London.Launched in 1993 to acknowledge and recognize excellence... Read More

Surveyors Find Global Commercial Real Estate Investors' Fears Easing but Not Gone

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/09/09 2:18 PM EST

(NEW YORK, NY) -- The third-quarter survey released today by New York-based Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors finds investors' fears on global commercial real estate markets are easing but not gone all together. Read More

DEAL OF THE WEEK

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 11/02/09 8:30 AM EST

Toronto high-Tech data center sold for $553.84 per square footAllied Properties REIT pays $180 million for eight-story propertySeller Northam Realty Advisors doubles its original purchase Deal is second-largest in Canada this yearConstruction cost of new data centers pegged at $1,300... Read More

Debt-Loaded Dubai Banking on Rising Oil Prices to Re-Fuel Real Estate Blitz

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 10/27/09 2:45 PM EST

(DUBAI, U.A.E.) -- Like a Las Vegas gambler who seldom admits failure, Dubai government officials are trekking to London and Frankfurt in the next several weeks to raise the second $10 billion in a $20 billion bond program launched in February of this year. Read More

REALTY CAPITAL ROUNDUP

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 10/26/09 8:00 AM EST

(SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA) -- CNL Financial Group, a 36-year-old, privately-held Orlando, FL real estate and development company, is joint-venturing with Sydney, Australia-based Macquarie Group to form CNL Macquarie Global Growth Trust which has launched a $1.5 billion intial public offering. Read More

Evergrande Group Catches Eye of China's Billionaire Investors

Posted by Alex Finkelstein 10/23/09 9:30 AM EST

(BEIJING, CHINA) -- It's not unlike the Monopoly party game - only the stakes are larger, much larger.Li Ka Shing Li Ka Shing, Zheng Yutong, Luan Xiong and Xu Jiayn, names that are largely unknown to the U.S. real estate... Read More