Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.real From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: real Fri, Jun 26 1992 Date: Fri, 26 Jun 92 05:19:54 EDT Message-ID: 06-26 0000 DECISIONLINE: Real Estate USA TODAY Update June 26-28, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network MAY HOME SALES POST DROP: Existing home sales fell 1.7% last month from April, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.43 million units, the National Association of Realtors reports. May's drop followed a 0.6% drop in April. Prices of homes sold also fell as first-time home buyers continued to dominate the market. The median sale price was $100,900 last month, down from $103,300 in April, the NAR says. (For more, see special Sales package below.) SOME BEACH HOMES STILL OPEN: It's not too late to rent a beach house for Fourth of July weekend. Although it's one of the busiest times, there are still openings, says Doug Davis of Rehoboth Beach, Del.'s Doug Davis Realty. Many people want to unload now, so better prices may be available, Davis adds. Some beach homes only rent for full weeks, but many owners make allowances to rent the three-day holiday. SOME SPOTS ARE BOOKED SOLID: Nags Head, N.C., realtors report 85% of vacation homes are sold for the Fourth of July. August is booked solid. In West Galveston Island, Texas, beachfront homes and condos are 90% full. In Ocean City, N.J., beachfront and mid-island property is 70% rented. Along the bay, 90% are booked. Monterey Bay, Calif., beachfront property is sold out for the Fourth. Off-the-beach spots are 90% sold. ABA PREDICTS RIOT'S EFFECT: Financing for real estate construction may drop because of the Los Angeles riots, says Sung Won Sohn, chairman of the American Banker Association Economic Advisory Committee. The ABA, meeting in Washington Thursday, noted increased home building in the Pacific Northwest. In New York City, vacancy rates are rising, and commercial real estate and construction were reported as depressed. FED URGED TO CUT RATES: Hoping to boost growth of the nation's money supply, leading U.S. bank economists Thursday urged the Federal Reserve to cut its federal fund and discount rates. Citing slow economic growth and a weak recovery, Sung Won Sohn of the the American Bankers Association said a cut would result in a lower prime rate and mortgage and home equity rates. AUCTION PLANNED IN LOS ANGELES: An estimated $500 million in commercial property will be auctioned off in Los Angeles Aug. 13. The auction, touted as the world's largest non-governmental auction, is being organized by auctioneer Jones Lang Wootton USA. Included will be office and industrial buildings, retail centers, apartment buildings and hotels in 21 states and the District of Columbia. PARC FIFTY-ONE HOTEL BOUGHT: Starhotels, based in Florence, Italy, on Friday announced the purchase of the Parc Fifty-One hotel in Manhattan for $42 million from Park Lane Hotels International of Hong Kong. Located at 51st and Seventh Ave., the 178-room Parc Fifty-One Hotel, has been renamed The Michelangelo. The company said it is seeking to acquire additional hotels in the U.S. and certain European cities. `FAME' BUILDING RENOVATED: An arts foundation hoping to bring art to New York schools will soon move into the Manhattan high school that inspired the film and TV series "Fame." The High School for the Performing Arts left the building for Lincoln Center in 1984. A fire gutted the building in 1988. Arts Connection, a non-profit group, rescued the building at 120 W. 46th St., renovated it and will move in August. FIXED-RATE MORTGAGES STABLE: The rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages from the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. were listed at 8.48% Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday but down from 8.54% the week before. They were at 9.65% a year ago. For 30-year adjustable-rate mortgages, the rates were 5.84%, unchanged from Wednesday but down from 5.90% the week before. A year ago they were at 7.24%. ARM INDEXES STABLE: The one-year Treasury ARM index rates were listed at 4.12% Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday but down from 4.18% the week before. A year ago they were at 6.37%. For the 11th District ARM index, rates were at 5.427%, unchanged from Wednesday and unchanged from the week before. A year ago they were at 7.501%. T-BONDS DROP: Treasury security rates for the 30-year bonds showed a decrease Thursday, listing at 7.78%. That's down 0.04 from rates of 7.82% Wednesday and down 0.04 from 7.82% the week before. A year ago T-bonds were at 8.48%. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON SALES: THE NORTHEAST POSTS ONLY RISE: May home sales fell 2.2% in the Midwest, 3.1% in the South, and were unchanged in the West, according to the National Association of Realtors. The Northeast saw a 3.9% rise. May's poor showing was blamed on a sluggish economy and last winter's jump in mortgage rates. The average 30-year fixed loan rate hit 9.03% in late March, slowing sales. That sluggishness is still being felt, experts say. HOUSING NEWS NOT COMPLETELY BAD: The good news is that mortgage rates fell in April and May. Rates last week averaged 8.48%. That's boosting sales, but economists say the industry won't make substantial improvement until the overall economy picks up. But despite drops in April and May, total sales this year through May are 6.4% ahead of last year, when sales were hurt by the gulf war and recession. (End of package.) Real Estate Editor: Christopher Goldthwaite. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM