By Michael Casey Pundits who predicted a wave of rental evictions after the ban ended were wrong, in part because the process takes time. But evictions seem to be picking up. BOSTON (AP) – Soon after losing his trucking job amid the pandemic, Freddie Davis got another blow: His landlord in Miami was almost doubling the rent on his Miami apartment. Davis girded for what he feared would come next. In September, he was evicted – just over a month after a federal eviction moratorium ended. He’s now languishing in a hotel, aided by a nonprofit that helps homeless people.
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By Jim Saunders After the Fla.-owned property insurer’s staff announced its recommendation – an 8% average policy rate increase – the board rejected it and now wants a full 11%. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – With thousands of new policies a week pouring into Citizens Property Insurance Corp., the state-backed insurer’s board on Wednesday approved seeking 11% across-the-board rate increases next year. The Citizens Board of Governors tossed aside a widely reported staff recommendation that, in part, called for increasing homeowners’ rates by an average of 7.3% in 2022, with the hikes varying based on factors such as location. The 11% increase
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Tornado with lightning By Natalie Kizer and Kerry Smith Dozens of lives were lost when tornadoes hit dozens of towns, and a local Realtor association’s building suffered major damage as people start to rebuild. MAYFIELD, Kentucky – The historic series of tornadoes that tore through the South left a highway of destruction in their wake. Many homeowners lost everything, and Realtors have been stepping in to help. An early theme in helping victims, however, is what to do? Immediate needs – food, shelter, clothes – must be addressed, but with so much loss, programs to address immediate, short-term and long-term
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By Aldo Svaldi Of the at-risk homeowners leaving forbearance, 73% have at least 20% home equity – and 28% have at least 50%. They may sell but they can avoid foreclosure. DENVER – Millions of U.S. homeowners took advantage of a government program that provided them a reprieve from mortgage payments when their finances took a hit during the pandemic. As the clock runs out on those “forbearance” agreements, a large majority of homeowners who sought relief have exited and are back on track with their payments. Just over 1 million active forbearance plans were still in place in mid-November,
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The increase is an average and could be more or less for some homeowners. The request must first be approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Citizens Property Insurance Corporation’s Board of Governors on Wednesday will be asked to approve a recommendation of a 2022 rate package that reflects a new 11% cap on annual rate increases in 2022. Board members will consider a statewide average increase of 8.0% for personal lines policyholders – homeowners, condominium unit owners, mobile homeowners, dwelling and renters. If approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR), the 2022 rates would go
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By Gina M. Parlovecchio, Brad Resnikoff and Matthew Bisanz A new nationwide attempt to stop real estate money laundering could be massive – but there are a lot of “maybes” while FinCEN accepts public comments. WASHINGTON – On Dec. 6, 2021, the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) solicited public comment on how it should impose recordkeeping and reporting requirements on certain persons involved in all-cash real estate transactions. Comments must be submitted to FinCEN by Feb. 7, 2022. The requirements contemplated in the 2021 Anti-Money Laundering Regulations for Real Estate Transactions (ANPRM) may be applied nationwide to a broad
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“Replacement cost” covers the rebuild of a destroyed home, and that option is now more expensive for the same reason new homes are: higher supply costs. NEW YORK – The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic reached into a number of industries, including home construction, which faces a shortage of supplies and trained labor. At the same time, demand for new construction or home remodeling is on the rise. As a result, it costs more to insure a home and, in some cases, prices rose more than inflation. The Insurance Information Institute (III) found that insurance premiums spiked an average of
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By Kerry Smith The company that lists residential flood risk on realtor.com released its latest report on commercial RE. It suggests that repair costs could rise 25% by 2051. SAN FRANCISCO – A new report from First Street Foundation and global engineering and consulting firm Arup looks at the risk to communities from flooding. Previous First Street studies provided flood risk data for individual homeowners – it creates the “risk from flooding” for realtor.com home listing – and the latest report offers an assessment of flood-related risks on the commercial market. The report, “The 4th National Risk Assessment: Climbing Commercial
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Even experts have trouble accurately predicting mortgage rates, but given Fed moves, one suggests only a slight increase – about 3.5% overall in 2022. NEW YORK – Mortgage rates play a big role in borrowers’ buying power – and super-low rates over the past year allowed many homebuyers to stretch their housing budgets, an important tool as they faced high home price increases. But many economists predict higher rates over the next few months. What can homebuyers expect for 2022? While the trajectory of rates is never simple to predict, particularly due to the ongoing pandemic, Nadia Evangelou, senior economist
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By Kerry Smith HUD legal opinion: Special Purpose Credit Programs – a type designed to correct past lending shortfalls to protected groups – are legal under the Fair Housing Act. WASHINGTON – Can a lender legally create a special program for communities that have historically experienced lending discrimination? Yes, according to a legal decision rendered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In 1976, Congress created Special Purpose Credit Programs (SPCP) when it amended the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). The SPCPs were created to “help remedy longstanding discrimination in credit markets,” noting that “such remedial programs do
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