Archive for April, 2007

Why The Heck Do You Want To Blog?

I get that question fairly often. Mainly I am an information junkie and this allows me to feed my habit while making a little bit of money. Hopefully I can share the information I find in such a way that you enjoy it, find it useful, and come back on occasion.
I did see an [...]

30Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 2 comments | Continued

David Lereah Joins Move Inc.

Move Inc. the website company behind realtor.com and other real estate sites has just announced that David Lereah is joining the company as Executive Vice President in charge of a yet to be named division that will be rolled out in the 3rd quarter, 2007.
I can not find in the press release whether he will [...]

30Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 3 comments | Continued

Nicolas Cage Buys Haunted Mansion in New Orleans French Quarter

Actor Nick Cage has bought a landmark New Orleans French Quarter property right up the street from the new home of Brad Pitt and Angela Jolie according to the website Big Time Listings. The Lalaurie House in New Orleans has had a checkered past and according to Wikopedia is considered the most haunted property in all [...]

30Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 9 comments | Continued

Creative Mailboxes

But do they sell houses?

See many more at Sam’s Mailbox Picture Collection

29Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Can You Buy Bob The Builders House? Yes You Can!

Well, you can buy the home of Bob the Builder creator’s home in the town of Putney in England. The home was bought with the royalties from the hit show that Keith Chapman created. While the home has been extensively refurbished, it does not come with the characters Bob, Wendy, and Scoop.
The 5 bedroom home [...]

29Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued

South Carolina’s Low Country Looking At Smart Growth Alternatives

Parts of South Carolina’s “Low Country” are being discovered. The region has been a sleepy and rural area, but as the opportunity to live near the ocean is being bought up, growth and development is coming to this part of the old south. Instead of lining up with hat in hand to monetize every square [...]

29Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 0 comments | Continued

Residential Housing Slump Affecting National Economy

The Commerce Department’s report Friday showed how the slumping residential real estate market is affecting the national economy. The combination of slower sales and tighter lending led to the economy rising only 1.3 percent in the first quarter of 2007. Businesses are pulling back in the face of the slowdown as they do not want [...]

28Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 2 comments | Continued

Morgan Stanley and Inland Form Billion Dollar REIT

Morgan Stanley and Inland Western Retail Real Estate Trust are teaming together to form a billion dollar fund to invest in shopping centers across the country. The REIT is aimed at upscale retail centers that are experiencing increasing rents and valuations. The open air shopping centers are some of the best performing real estate in [...]

28Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Beazer, Ryland, Meritage, and Pulte Home Sellers Get Their Buts Kicked

If you were looking for good news out of the residential construction world, today is the day to go out and play golf. Quarterly results for some of the major homebuilders were released today and they were down right ugly. Take a look:

Beazer: Net loss for the three months ended March 31 was $43.1 million, [...]

27Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 1 comment | Continued

Bank Of America Expanding Reverse Mortgage Business by Purchasing Seattle Mortgage

Bank of America is purchasing Seattle Mortgage Co. from Seattle Financial Group for an undisclosed amount. Seattle Mortgage had been doing business as Reverse Mortgage of America since 1995 having written over 40,000 reverse mortgages and over 4 billion in outstanding balances.
Is this another example of the big boys moving in during a slowdown, [...]

27Apr2007 | Tom Royce | 3 comments | Continued