October 2008
The Archives
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10.25.08Alpha Bank and Trust closesAlpharetta-based Alpha Bank and Trust was closed by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance on Friday, and the FDIC was named as receiver of the failed bank. Minnesota-based Stearns Bank is assuming all insured deposits under a purchase and assumption agreement. It is the 16th bank failure of the year, and is directly tied to Alpha’s construction and land development loan portfolio. It's also the third bank failure in Georgia since the start of the housing downturn. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates ...
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10.24.08Foreclosures drop 12 percent in SeptemberNationwide foreclosure filings, including default notices, auction sale notices, and bank repossessions, decreased 12.48 percent in September, according to the latest report from RealtyTrac. Still, foreclosures remained nearly 21 percent above last year as foreclosure filings affected one out of every 475 households. Not too much should be made of the 12 percent decrease, as it can be primarily attributed to changes in state laws that have temporarily slowed the pace of foreclosures. For example, California, which accounts for close to one-third of nationwide foreclosure filings, recently enacted a law which requires an additional 30-day notice before foreclosure proceedings can be started. Nevada remained ...
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10.17.08Housing starts take steep fallNew home construction dropped dramatically in September, according to the latest report by the U.S. Commerce Department. Total housing starts, a forward-looking indicator of the housing market, fell 6.3 percent last month. That’s 31 percent below the pace of construction in September 2007 and the lowest reading of the index in 17 years. Economists had predicted a drop of only 1.7 percent. Single-family housing starts took the greatest hit, falling 12 percent from last month and almost 42 percent from last year. In the South, total housing starts rose by 0.5 percent, though they were still 32.5 percent below last year’s numbers. Single-family starts, ...
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10.16.08Where are home prices heading?Unfortunately a number of economists are saying that the housing implosion is nowhere near over, and that prices are expected to continue falling in at least 75 percent of the 100 to cities in the United Sates. There's an interesting in-depth article over at the New York Times, which is certainly worth reading. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service to you! Will This One Make Explore?, originally uploaded by jazzmanzem.
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10.16.08Homebuilder confidence falls to record lowSometimes it’s tough to be a homebuilder. In the midst of extreme volatility on Wall Street and fears of a global economic slowdown, it seems that no one wants to buy new homes, and the confidence of homebuilders has taken a beating as a result. The National Association of Home Builders announced today that its index of builder confidence fell to a record low of 14 in October. Any reading in the index below 50 indicates negative sentiment about the market. The report surveys 446 residential developers across the country and gauges their perceptions of market conditions. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys ...
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10.08.08Pending home sales jump in AugustThe National Association of Realtors reported today that pending home sales increased 7.4 percent from July to August, and were 8.8 percent higher than last year. It’s the highest level of pending home sales since June 2007. The news was unexpectedly positive, as most economists had predicted that the index would fall in August. In the South, pending home sales only increased 2.3 percent in August but were still 2.1 percent below August of 2007. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service ...
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10.08.08Fed shaves half a point off interest rateThe Federal Reserve, in a move coordinated with central banks worldwide, has shaved the U.S. interest rate by half a point to 1.5 percent. The move, coming after approval of the $700 billion bailout and several days of steep selling in stock markets across the globe is another attempt to stem the tide of the continuing credit crunch. We’d love to be your real estate closing attorneys in Atlanta Georgia. Want to know more? Contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss how Harlan and Associates can be of service to you! The Only Way To Shave, originally uploaded by Leviathor.