Three whose houses were auctioned still have their homes

The three owners whose houses were auctioned in the town’s tax sale last September have all paid up on delinquent taxes and will keep their homes.

Tax Collector Jane Berendsen-Hill said two weeks ago, all three homes were redeemed by the owners as allowed during the six-month period after the tax sale. She reported the news to the Board of Finance recently.

Social Security Paying Out More Than it Receives says CBO

The bursting of the real estate bubble and the ensuing recession have hurt jobs, home prices and now Social Security.
This year, the system will pay out more in benefits than it receives in payroll taxes, an important threshold it was not expected to cross until at least 2016, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Now is the Time to Finance With a Reverse Mortgage!

Now may be the best time for homeowners to take advantage of the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage or reverse mortgage. Soon, FHA will change the amount that borrowers qualify for under this program.
The principal limit factors (or PLFs), which determine the amount of money a homeowner can receive from his or her loan based on age and interest rates, were already reduced at the beginning of this year. David H. Stevens, assistant secretary of Housing for the Federal Housing Administration, said that in order for the program to successfully continue in 2011, the annual mortgage premium will have to increase from 0.5% to 1.25% and the principal limit factors will have to be reduced at least another 1-5%, depending on the homeowner’s age.

Urban Financial Group acquired by Knight Capital

Urban Financial Group acquired by Knight Capital of Jersey City, New Jersey.
Knight Capital Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NITE), today announced that it has agreed to acquire Urban Financial Group, Inc., an originator of direct and brokered home equity conversion mortgages (HECM), or reverse mortgages.

Reverse Mortgages Production to Drop 20%

Reverse mortgage is projected to decrease by 20% in 2010 according to Torrey Larsen, President of Security One Lending, San Diego, CA. In 2009 reverse mortgages increased 25% to $30.2 billion. Larsen sees increasing popularity for reverse mortgages returning. "I am also encouraged by the Obama Administration requesting a $250 million in credit subsidy for the FHA's reverse mortgage program along with a contingency appropriation to meet all program demand, even if demand exceeds projections," said Larsen.