Good morning! Today is Monday, July 20. The House and Senate return to work today with a second stimulus plan on the agenda. Major League Baseball held exhibition games across the nation in front of empty stands. The NBA’s exhibition games are slated to start July 28 at Disney World.
And in mortgage and housing news …
DOOR OPEN FOR CASA: After Anthony Casa took a leave of absence from the Association of Independent Mortgage Experts for sending lewd video texts, his (at least) temporary replacement vowed to keep the organization on track and seemed to keep the door open for Casa’s return.
RURAL PRICE INCREASES: Rural real estate prices rise as more people consider leaving cities.
COVID SUBURBS: Five ways the coronavirus pandemic has changed suburbs.
FED BUYS MORTGAGE BONDS: The Federal Reserve bought $22.7 billion worth of mortgage bonds, but sold none of them.
WORST TO COME: Banks’ loan-loss reserves send a sharp warning about the vulnerability of the economy.
BIDDING WARS: Realtors in many parts of the country report strong demand for homes — so intense that some sellers field dozens of offers as soon as their listing hits the market, and once-ordinary properties are fetching tens of thousands of dollars over their asking prices.
REAL ESTATE DOCTOR: Crocker Partners, a commercial real estate company in Boca Raton, Fla., hopes a newly created job position—a director of environmental health–will help frame its brokerage’s response to the pandemic. The position will bring in a medical professional with experience in health care and infectious diseases, to help the firm develop a program to keep their employees healthy during the pandemic.
BLACK HOUSING CRISIS: Black Americans have long been more likely to pay unaffordable rent and mortgages compared with white people, according to census data. With the current downturn, Black households face a greater probability of being unable to pay, raising the risk some may be forced onto the streets or into shelters already disproportionately occupied by Black people.
STANDOUT OFFERS: While it can be difficult to be the first of multiple offers coming in, you can make your offer the one that will get your clients the home they have fallen in love with. A list of tips for making your offer standout.
SAUDI ARABIAN FANNIE MAE: Saudi Arabia’s mortgage-refinancing firm has bought a portfolio of home loans worth more than 3 billion riyals ($800 million) from the Public Pension Agency, as the kingdom’s equivalent of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the U.S. steps up activity.
NOW WHAT? The government granted homeowners mortgage relief payment options if they couldn’t pay their mortgages due to the coronavirus-induced economic meltdown. Here’s what to do when that grace period ends.
EVICTION MORATORIUMS EXPIRE: Most of the eviction moratoriums gave tenants a short break — from 60 to 120 days — from paying their monthly rent. They also stopped evictions based only on a tenant’s inability to pay. But moratoriums just delay the amount owed, not cancel it, and many of these tenant protections have already or are about to expire.