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REO

Survey: Rising Rates, First-Time Homebuyers Drive Market in November

Rising mortgage rates pushed first-time homebuyers to buy properties in November, while investors lost their enthusiasm for distressed properties, according to a new report from Campbell Surveys. The research firm found first-time buyers' share of home purchases jumped from 34.4 percent in October to 37.2 percent last month as long-term rates began to climb from record lows set in early November. Meanwhile, investor activity continued a two-month decline.

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California Home Sales Down 12 Percent from Last Year: Report

California continued to feel the housing slump in November with a 12.4 percent decrease in sales from last year, according to statistics from MDA DataQuick. An estimated 31,403 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month -- down 3.9 percent from October. The median price paid for a home in California during the month of November was $255,000. Foreclosure sales made up 37.8 percent of the existing homes sold last month.

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More Increases in CMBS Delinquencies, Particularly Office: Reports

Moody's rating service and Fitch Ratings both reported increases in defaulted commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) last month, of 24 and 18 basis points, respectively. Both companies show the office sector with the greatest increases in delinquencies across the five core property types in November.

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LPS: Number of Loans Delinquent, in Foreclosure Dips Below 7 Million

Lender Processing Services (LPS) offered the media a sneak peek at its upcoming November mortgage market report Thursday. Based on the company's assessment, the number of home loans in the United States 30 or more days delinquent or in foreclosure declined slightly. LPS' study will show that 6,925,000 mortgages were past due or already winding their way through the foreclosure pipeline as of the end of November. The previous month, the company's analysts put the figure at 7,043,000.

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CoreLogic Home Price Index Shows Decline for Third Straight Month

National home prices in October were down 3.93 percent from year-earlier levels, CoreLogic reported Thursday, marking the third month in a row the company's index has recorded an annual drop in residential property values. October's reading follows a 2.43 percent annual decline reported for the month of September and a 1.08 percent drop in August, signaling that the deterioration in home prices is getting progressively steeper with each passing month.

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Foreclosures Fall to Lowest Level Since 2008 on Robo-Signing Delays

Data from RealtyTrac shows that foreclosure activity last month fell to a level not seen since November 2008, after problems with paperwork prompted case reviews, foreclosure suspensions, and re-filings of affidavits by mortgage servicers. Foreclosure filings nationwide dropped 21 percent from the previous month and 14 percent from a year earlier. For the first time since February 2009, RealtyTrac says the total number of filings for the month dropped below 300,000.

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New Regulatory Rule to Support Foreclosure-Ridden Neighborhoods

Federal regulators on Wednesday announced changes to the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) parameters to support communities affected by high foreclosure levels. The final rule encourages depository institutions to finance development projects in areas that qualify for HUD's Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). Institutions will receive CRA credit for any NSP-eligible activities, such as loans extended to grant recipients to buy foreclosed homes or a donation of REO properties to a nonprofit housing organization.

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Report Reveals Continued Declines in West Coast Foreclosure Starts

New data from ForeclosureRadar shows that though there has been no major drop in delinquencies in the West Coast states of Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington, foreclosure starts have fallen to 2008 levels. The company's report deduces that the drop in foreclosures is due to robo-signing issues and the moratoriums that followed the controversy. Notice of default filings in November were down 9.3 percent in California, while notice of sale filings dropped a stunning 31.7 percent in Washington.

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Home Staging May Thwart ‘Mansion Squatting’ in Vacant Homes

According to Showhomes, a nationally franchised network of home stagers, staging a vacant home can keep squatters from moving in, a rising problem in the struggling housing market. A total of 19 million homes were vacant in the first quarter of 2010, reports the U.S. Census Bureau. Squatters are even occupying million-dollar homes in what has been called ""mansion squatting."" Actor Randy Quaid and his wife were recently caught squatting inside a $1 million property they previously owned in Southern California.

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Report: Modesto Claims Highest Share of REO Sales in the Nation

Where do REOs take the largest piece of the home sales pie? According to data compiled by the independent real estate research and analytical firm Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, it's Modesto, California. In this Northern California city, Hanley Wood found that 60.5 percent of total home sales closings during the third quarter of this year were for bank-owned properties. By comparison, the company says the national average is 28 percent. REOs also comprised the majority of all home sales transactions in seven other metropolitan areas.

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