Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.real,americast.usa-today.real From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: real Fri, Oct 30 1992 Date: Fri, 30 Oct 92 09:37:04 EST Message-ID: 10-30 0000 DECISIONLINE: Real Estate USA TODAY Update Oct. 30-Nov. 1, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network HUD OKS LOAN SELECTION CHARGE: Mortgage brokers and real estate agents who help homebuyers select a mortgage will be able to charge for that service under a proposed federal regulation. The Department of Housing and Urban Development regulation will cover closings that take place starting Dec. 3. The Mortgage Bankers Association says the rule hurts home buyers by raising their costs. BOND OWNERS SUE MARRIOTT: Marriott Corp.'s restructuring plan met a new challenge Thursday as nine institutional owners of $100 million of the hotel company's $2.9 billion of debt filed a Federal Court suit to block the plan. The plan would leave Marriott International Inc. with a pristine balance sheet and Host Marriott Corp. with all of Marriott's real estate and debt, including $500 million of mortgages. VETERANS AFFAIRS ENDS CEILING: The Department of Veterans Affairs said Thursday it would suspend its ceiling on mortgage rates and allow veterans to negotiate their own rates during the next three years. Previously, the VA set a ceiling on mortgage rates, adjusting the rate to reflect market conditions. The current ceiling was 7.5%. But the ceiling put veterans at a competitive disadvantage in some areas. SURVEY FORECASTS SLOW GROWTH: U.S. construction spending rose 0.3% in September after falling 0.8% in August, according to the average of five forecasts in a Bloomberg Business News Survey. Although most other firms surveyed expected a boost from stronger home building activity, Evans Economics said a plunge in non-residential construction offset those gains. CONSULTANTS ADDRESS CONFERENCE: The National Association of Home Builders will hold its Semi-Annual Construction Forecast Conference Monday at the National Housing Center in Washington, D.C. President Bush and Gov. Bill Clinton will use the event for a last-minute chance to garner industry support before Tuesday's election. Top housing consultants from both camps will speak. BURNHAM PACIFIC BUYS BUILDING: Burnham Pacific Properties Inc., A San Diego-based real estate investment trust, Thursday said it has acquired a four-story, 180,470-foot office building in Orange, Calif. The trust paid $23.5 million for the property, including seven acres of land. The property is fully leased on a 15-year term, expiring March 31, 2000, as the corporate headquarters for the Bergen Brunswig Corp. TURNER WINS CONTRACT: Turner Construction Co. Thursday won a contract with Vanderbilt University for construction of its new Medical Research Building II at the Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tenn. Turner has been performing preconstruction services for the past two years for the new eight-story, 200,000 square foot medical research building designed by The Stubbins Associates Inc. PROPERTY TRUST FINISHES COMPLEX: Property Trust of America said Thursday that it has completed development on three multi-family developments with a total value of $18.5 million. The developments are the final phase of The Pavilions multi-family complex in Albuquerque, N.M., The Crest at Shadow Mountain in El Paso, Texas and Homestead Village in Dallas. AMERICAN SOUTHWEST CAN PAY: American Southwest Financial, a privately-owned issuer of collateralized mortgage obligations, can make November bond payments on CMOs affected by the recent bankruptcy filing of a Phoenix-based finance company, ASF said Thursday. A judge's ruling on the bankruptcy filing by W.E. Financial, an affiliate of Estes Homebuilding, will determine subsequent payments. FIXED-RATE MORTGAGES STABLE: The rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages from the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. were listed at 8.23% Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday and up from 8.01% the week before. They were at 8.91% a year ago. For 30-year adjustable-rate mortgages, the rates were 5.13%, unchanged from Wednesday and up from 4.97% the week before. A year ago they were at 6.66%. ARM INDEXES STABLE: The one-year Treasury ARM index rates were listed at 3.48% Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday and up from 3.26% the week before. A year ago they were at 5.39%. For the 11th District ARM index, rates were at 4.874%, unchanged from Wednesday and unchanged from the week before. A year ago they were at 6.714%. T-BONDS DECLINE: Treasury security rates for the 30-year bonds were unchanged Thursday, listing at 7.57%. That's down 0.03 from rates of 7.60% Wednesday. Rates were down 0.04 from rates of 7.61% the week before. A year ago they were at 7.91%. Real Estate Editor: Martin Baucom. (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