Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.real From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: real Fri, Apr 10 1992 Date: Fri, 10 Apr 92 05:43:42 EDT Message-ID: 04-10 0000 DECISIONLINE: Real Estate USA TODAY Update April 10-12, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network COMPANIES SCALE BACK SPENDING: Companies plan to reduce spending on buildings and equipment this year, the Commerce Department says. In the latest survey, covering January through March, businesses said capital spending will increase 4.6% to $554 billion, down from the 5.4% increase they predicted in the October-November survey. Businesses reported reluctance to expand while slowdowns continue in key markets. DELAYS SLOW GOVERNMENT PURCHASES: The Government Services Administration is under orders to analzye thousands of buildings owned by the Resolution Trust Corp. and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to see if they could serve the government. Buying buildings instead of leasing space could save billions. So far, no deals have been done, says the General Accounting Office. Bureaucratic delays are partly blamed. SLUMP MAY LEAD TO RALLY: The five-year slump in new-home construction may have set the stage for a housing market rally, suggests Bernstein Research, the economic forecasting arm of a New York stock-brokerage firm, Sanford C. Bernstein. The current construction won't meet the demand for new homes in the 1990s. That should keep home starts and prices rising, predicts Giulio Martini, a Bernstein analyst. ANALYST PREDICTS SHORT SUPPLY: Although housing starts have fallen 37% since 1987 and have averaged less than 1.1 million since 1989, household growth should still outstrip the supply of homes in coming years, says Giulio Martini, an analyst for Bernstein Research, an arm of a New York stock-brokerage firm, Sanford C. Bernstein. He foresees a market for 1.4 million new homes yearly between now and the end of 1995. FANNIE MAE REPORTS EARNINGS: The Federal National Mortgage Association reported Thursday that its first-quarter earnings rose 19%, a reflection of the high number of transactions from the refinancing boom. The association earned $381.6 million, or $1.39 a share, in the first three months of 1992, up from $320 million or $1.19 a share a year earlier. Fannie Mae finances about one in eight single-family home buys. N.J. GROUP RECEIVES SUPPORT: The New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency, providing low-interest loans and technical assistance to community-based, nonprofit developers, recently approved $300,000 in financial support to the New Jersey Community Loan Fund. The Agency will earn a 4.50% return on $200,000 over a five-year period. The other $100,00 will be used for administrative expenses and a loan pool. PLANS MEET `CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE': A developer's plans to bulldoze near Walden Pond, the site of Henry David Thoreau's cabin, has brought protests from celebrities and conservationists. Fearing an 18-acre parcel less than half a mile away could soon be leveled for a three-story office complex, groups have planned a six-mile walkathon for Sunday. Participants include former Sen. Paul Tsongas and singer Don Henley. ORE. LEGISLATOR INVESTIGATED: Oregon's Ethics Commission is deadlocked on whether to dismiss an ethics case against state Rep. Tom Brian and will reconsider the case in May. At issue is whether Brian violated laws by accepting $10,000 from a Japanese firm he helped - by using his legislative stationery - in real estate deal. He denies wrongdoing. GROUP OFFERS BUILDING AWARD: Hoping to encourage environmentally conscious home-building, the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish counties (Washington) is offering the MAME Environmental Award for the best examples of responsible homebuilding. The award will be presented at the association's ninth annual competition. The entry deadline is Aug. 14, and the awards ceremony will be held in October. FIXED-RATE MORTGAGES STABLE: The rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages from the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. were listed at 8.96% Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday and down from 8.98% the week before. They were at 9.49% a year ago. For 30-year adjustable-rate mortgages, the rates were 6.22%, unchanged from Wednesday and up from 6.19% the week before. A year ago they were at 7.39%. ARM INDEXES UNCHANGED: The one-year Treasury ARM index rates were listed at 4.50% Thursday, unchanged from Wednesday and down from 4.64% the week before. A year ago they were at 6.26%. For the 11th District ARM index, rates were at 5.800%, unchanged from Wednesday and unchanged also from the week before. A year ago they were at 7.848%. T-BONDS FALL: Treasury security rates for the 30-year bonds showed a decline Thursday, listing at 7.86%. That's down 0.05 from rates of 7.91% Wednesday and down 0.05 from 7.91% the week before. A year ago T-bonds were at 8.25%. 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