News about properties and real estate
Checklist: Buying a Condo Conversion I am a first-time buyer. I have just viewed a 1,050-square-foot unit in a Brooklyn, N.Y. building, built in 1957. I like it, and I also like the $442,000 asking price. But before I commit, please tell me: What are the disadvantages of buying a newly converted condo? What should …
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The new flipping: short sales [South Florida] Untold millions of dollars that banks could have recovered from the sale of distressed Florida homes have instead been pocketed as profits by a new breed of property flipper. These flippers target houses on the verge of foreclosure and persuade banks and mortgage companies to accept lowball buyouts, …
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Homeowners left in a lurch after mortgage refinancing checks bounce In early April, Jeff Franson refinanced his mortgage, switching it from Chase to SecurityNational Mortgage Co. On a sunny Saturday in early October, as he was mowing the front lawn of his Mokena, Ill., home, a process server drove up and handed Franson papers that …
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Districts in Distress [South Florida] Stressed community development districts in Florida this month have told bondholders that they continue to rely on reserves to make debt payments. Some have filed notices of default and analysts expect their number to increase. The state currently has 571 active CDDs, according to state records. Since the early 1980s, …
When government auctions went online, what was for sale got lost Erika Ginsberg-Klemmt and William Anderson met online, but not in a good way. Driven by the misconception that they had stumbled on a brilliant formula that would allow them to buy a Siesta Key condominium for pennies on the dollar, the two novice real …
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Even the Rich Are Treating Their Houses Like Piggy Banks In recent years, millions of Americans looked at their houses and saw big, fat piggy banks. And it occurred to them to take out big, fat new mortgages. Few did it on the scale of Ronald Burkle. Mr. Burkle, the grocery-store billionaire, has $56 million …
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