MBA Newslinks Archive

“Global financial market volatility, weak foreign economies, low alternative investment yields and a variety of factors creating uncertainty have reinforced the advantages of direct investment in U.S. commercial real estate. Together, these forces have drawn additional foreign investment to the U.S., encouraging many to focus on capital preservation and asset stability rather than yield.” –Marcus & Millichap Vice President of Research Services Jay Lybik.

“The overall health of the housing market looks great at first glance, but dig a bit deeper you’ll find inequality between renters and homeowners. Even though the majority of homeowners are confident and believe now is a good time to sell, they’re holding off because they expect home values to continue to appreciate and want to ride the wave. They also don’t want to turn around and become buyers in a competitive market.”–Zillow Chief Economist Svenja Gudell.

“For most capital sources, commercial and multifamily mortgage delinquency rates are near the lowest levels seen during the past 20 years. Strong property fundamentals, rising property values and solid mortgage availability are all supporting these rates.”–MBA Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research Jamie Woodwell.

“With elevated prepayment activity, we continued to see hits to servicing profitability resulting from mortgage servicing right markdowns and amortization. Nonetheless, the profitability on the production side of the business generally outweighed servicing losses.”–MBA Vice President of Industry Analysis Marina Walsh.

“As homeowners feel increasingly confident about the outlook of housing and their homeownership investments, they are more likely to consider a move for themselves–up, down or laterally to another market. Perhaps this is a signal that more existing homes may gradually come to market freeing up more options for first-time and move-up buyers.”–Gino Blefari, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Irvine, Calif.

“The recent string of monthly increases in commercial real estate valuations confirms that pricing remains on the upswing following the weakness seen earlier this year.”–Peter Muoio, chief economist with Ten-X, Irvine, Calif.

“Trended data credit reports provide information going back two years on every account in the consumer’s report, allowing a far more extensive evaluation of each borrower’s use of credit.”
–Stan Baldwin, chief operating officer with Informative Research, Garden Grove, Calif.

“While the overhang of distressed properties has largely cleared the market, the housing crash still casts a large shadow over the housing market, making it difficult for the housing market to rev completely back up. Mortgage underwriting remains stricter than it has in the past and appraisals are often too cautious as well. New home construction has also been slow to come back online, worsening supply constraints.”–Mark Vitner, senior economist with Wells Fargo Securities, Charlotte, N.C.

“The publication today of the redesigned Uniform Residential Loan Application represents a significant step in a multi-year effort to update, standardize and enhance the quality of loan information for underwriting single-family mortgages.”–Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt.

“The constrained supply in this sellers’ market continues to frustrate potential homebuyers and adds further upward pressure to nominal home prices. While nominal price growth remains strong, prices adjusted for the impact of income and interest rate changes on consumer house-buying power remain historically very low.”–Mark Fleming, chief economist with First American Financial Corp., Santa Ana, Calif.