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Author Archives: Ryan Schuette

Ryan Schuette is a journalist, cartoonist, and social entrepreneur with several years of experience in real-estate news, international reporting, and business management. He currently lives in the Washington, D.C., area, where he freelances for DS News and MReport.

Prudent or Petty: The Government’s Settlement Strategy

In light of their ineffectiveness in preventing another downturn in housing and their possible contribution to the slowness of the housing recovery, the question then becomes whether the imposition of penalties by the federal government, while "not insurmountable," is really in the best interest of the American consumer. Are they prudent or just petty?

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NFHA Files Complaint Against BofA, Alleging Discriminatory Practices

The National Fair Housing Alliance and five member agencies filed a federal discrimination complaint against Bank of America on Tuesday, alleging widespread neglect in predominantly black and Hispanic communities across the country. The watchdog agency and members unveiled a HUD-funded report to support the claims that Bank of America violates the Fair Housing Act by neglecting REO properties in these communities.

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Home Prices Continue Upward Trend in July: FNC

The picture gets rosier for housing as home prices continue their climb back to the top. One recent price index puts the July increase for prices at 0.9 percent, with prices achieving their first sustained recovery on a year-over-year basis since the market went bust in 2007.

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Home Prices Up Yearly, Inventory Down Nearly 30%: RE/MAX

Home prices skimmed close to the bottom during July this year but climbed 6.3 percent year-over-year by August, according to RE/MAX. The real estate company revealed in its latest National Housing Report that median home prices ticked up from last year over the last seven straight months. Forty-six of the 53 metro areas covered by the RE/MAX report saw prices tick up from over last year, with 15 observing double-digit increases.

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Redfin: 19 Major Markets See Price Gains in August

Beating summer expectations, home prices ticked up 5 percent across 19 major U.S. markets in what real estate broker Redfin called an indicator of a housing market getting stronger. According to the broker, home sales went up 1.4 percent year-over-year, eclipsing a 2.5 percent decline in July. Home sales increased from 26.7 percent to 27.6 percent last month.

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NAR: Tight Lending Standards Stunting Home Sales and Employment

If Realtors have anything to say about tight lending standards, the observation would be such standards are preventing more home sales and holding back job creation. The Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Realtors recently reached their conclusions in a survey conducted with real estate agents. The findings? Lenders take too long with approving applications, requiring excessive information and preferring only interested homebuyers with high credit scores.

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Report: Are We in Better Shape Now than Four Years Ago?

When he ran for the presidency in 1980, Ronald Reagan, then Republican governor of California, struck at then-President Jimmy Carter over the strength of the economy. His question for Americans: Are you better off now than you were four years ago? That's the question Paul Ashworth and Paul Dales, senior analysts with Capital Economics, offered to answer in a report released by the consultancy on Friday. The report breaks down recent economic trends, including GDP, home sales, and median income.

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