http://www.anthonyboydston.com Your Arizona Real Estate Consultant Sat, 06 Mar 2010 10:19:38 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The Arizona Housing Department is waiting to hear how much of the $1.5 billion in additional foreclosure aid, announced by President Barack Obama in Las Vegas a few weeks ago, the state will receive. The U.S. Treasury Department is supposed to announce this Friday (tomorrow) what share of the money each of ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/arizonas-share-of-new-federal-foreclosure-funds/ Of the $1.5 billion allotted by the federal government to help states hardest hit by housing bubbles that burst, Arizona will receive $125 million. Arizona is one of five states to receive the money, all states where home prices have dropped more than 20 percent. The money was divided among ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/arizona-share-of-new-federal-foreclosure-aid-125-million/ The federal government has added a year to the Home Affordable Refinance Program, known as HARP.  Part of the $75 billion housing aid package, HARP allows homeowners who are underwater, meaning they owe more than their house is worth due to falling home values, to refinance to a lower interest rate.  Now, ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/federal-refinancing-aid-extended/ The federal tax credit for homebuyers boosted new home sales in metropolitan Phoenix last year. But now the expiration of the credit looms, and new home sales and building have slowed down again. In January, new home closings in the Phoenix area fell to 479, the lowest level in decades, reports ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/phoenix-home-building-slows-as-tax-credit-expiration-looms/ Arizona Democrats have introduced a package of legislation to help tackle the state's foreclosure crisis, and protect homeowners. HB 2715 would give homeowners facing foreclosure another 60 days to work out a loan modification. HB 27404 calls for allowing renters in foreclosure homes to stay in the house and continue to pay ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/arizona-foreclosure-help-legislation/ Metro Phoenix home values inched up in the latest S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home-price index. Between November and December of 2009, home prices ticked up 1.2 percent in the Valley, on a seasonally adjusted basis. Overall, the 20-city index climbed 0.3 percent for the period. Phoenix was one of only five cities to ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/phoenix-area-home-prices-up-in-latest-case-shiller-index/ Arizona is one of five states that will split $1.5 billion from a new federal program aimed at helping regions hardest hit by home foreclosures. President Barack Obama announced the new funds Friday in Las Vegas as part of a government push to reduce the number of homes falling into foreclosure ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/arizona-to-share-1-5-billion-in-new-federal-foreclosure-aid/ The federal foreclosure prevention program has aided about 12 percent of the U.S. homeowners who have applied, according to the latest statistics. At least one million borrowers have applied. Another 76,000 homeowners have been approved and should have loan modification soon, according to the U.S. Treasury Department. Another 830,500 borrowers are in "trial ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/who-has-received-a-loan-modification/ Several of Arizona's leading real estate groups have tackled a growing national housing problem in a new report: Opening Doors: A Discussion of Residential Options for Adults Living with Autism and Related disorders, During the next 15 years, more than 500,000 children with autism disorders will become adults. Now, most adults ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/new-ariz-housing-study-outlines-need-for-autistic-adults/ January's significant drop in pre-foreclosures is the indicator many metropolitan Phoenix housing-market watchers have been anxiously looking for during the past several months. For the first time since November 2008, the monthly tally of Valley homeowners to fall behind on their mortgages and face foreclosure is below 7,000. Actual foreclosures dropped ... http://www.anthonyboydston.com/arizona-real-estate/pre-foreclosures-fall-in-metro-phoenix/