Philadelphia Real Estate And Beyond August 19, 2011
Philadelphia Real Estate And Beyond August 19, 2011
Homewood Suites Coming to 41st and Walnut in University City Neighborhood – Campus Apartments in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania is construction a Homewood Suites hotel near the intersection of 41st and Walnut. Homewood falls under the Hilton Brand and this location is slated to have 136 suites with separate bedrooms and kitchenettes and will cater to those in need of accommodations for extended stays (www.NakedPhilly.com)
Mortgage Services Approving More Short Sales – Mortgage servicers contending with attorney general investigations and extended foreclosure delays turned more to short sales in the past year.In August 2009, short sales accounted for 8% of all liquidations of distressed properties. That number grew to 25% by the middle of 2011, according to research from Moody’s Investors Service. (www.HousingWire.Com)
Housing Inventory Declines As Sales Pace Slows – There were 3.65 million existing-homes available for sale at the end of July, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The tally is down 1.7 percent from June, but the time it will take to clear the supply from the market has lengthened from 9.2 months in June to 9.4 months in July, because sales have slowed considerably over the summer months. NAR reported Thursday that completed sales transactions for existing homes fell 3.5 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.67 million. That’s down from an annual rate of 4.84 million in June. (www.DSNews.com)
New Home Construction Slumps in July – Housing starts, the number of new homes being built, fell 1.5% to an annual rate of 604,000 units during the month, the Commerce Department said. The government report also showed permits to build new homes, a proxy of future construction activity, fell 3.2% during the month to an annual rate of 597,000 units. (www.CNNMoney.com)
A Lot Of Catholic Churches Are For Sale – St. Agatha’s on 39th St. in West Philly is planned to go apartments, the former Catholic Church of the Assumption at 11th and Spring Garden Streets is for sale, The former St. Anthony of Padua church at 23d and Fitzwater Streets is for sale by its current owner, Greater St. Matthew Baptist Church, and the church at St. Boniface, on Norris Square in lower Kensington, is for sale. (www.Philly.com)
95% of Refinances Opt For Fixed Rate Mortgages – In the second quarter of 2011, fixed-rate loans accounted for about 95 percent of refinance loans, based on the Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) Quarterly Product Transition Report released recently. Refinancing borrowers preferred fixed-rate loans, regardless of whether their original loan was an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) or a fixed-rate. According to the report, an increasing share of refinancing borrowers chose to shorten their loan terms during the second quarter. Of borrowers who paid off a 30-year fixed-rate loan, 37 percent chose a 15- or 20-year loan, the highest such share since the third quarter of 2003. (www.RisMedia.com)
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Blog post compliments of CenterCityTeam’s Philadelphia Real Estate Blog
Frank L. DeFazio, Esquire
Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors – Society Hill
530 Walnut Street, Suite 260
Philadelphia, PA 19106
215.521.1623 Direct
610.636.4364 Cellular
888.308.1148 Fax
[email protected]
www.CenterCityTeam.com
