Margert in the News
New Home
Sales Rise 4.7% in February
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Wall Street Journal, MARCH 26, 2009
Sales of new homes rose in February for the first time
in seven months, the Commerce Department reported
Wednesday, another sign that the housing market is
thawing. The increase was fueled by higher activity in
the South and West, where deals on foreclosures and
other "distressed" properties, particularly in
California, are helping to drive interest.
The data "have allayed some fears that the housing
market would continue to freefall," said Omair Sharif,
an economist with RBS Greenwich Capital, "but it's way
too early to say if we've hit bottom."
Sales of new homes nationwide rose 4.7% last month to a
337,000 annual rate, though they still are down sharply
compared with this time last year, and increased
competition from cheaper existing homes could hamper
their sales ability in the coming months. The median
sales price for a new home was $200,900 last month, down
from $251,000 in February 2008, but still high compared
with the median sales price of an existing home last
month of $165,400.
Falling prices and low mortgage rates are helping to
stir buying activity, along with the government's $8,000
tax credit, part of the stimulus bill, for buyers who
purchase a home before Dec. 1. The number of new homes
for sale -- some 330,000 units -- is the lowest in
almost seven years, a sign builders are beginning to
work through bloated inventories after cutting back on
new construction.
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IRS
Probes Nonprofit Pay Practices
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The Wall Street Journal
WASHINGTON -- An Internal Revenue Service official warned nonprofits to be
mindful of executive-compensation practices amid public ire over large bonuses
at insurer American International Group Inc. (AIG) and other Wall Street firms
that have received federal aid.
Lois Lerner, the IRS's director of tax-exempt organizations, told a gathering of
lawyers representing charities Monday that scrutiny of nonprofits' pay practices
is likely to increase. Nonprofit leaders should be sure to practice due
diligence in making sure their executive pay can be justified through data on
comparable practices at similar organizations, she said.
"If you're not looking, we're looking," Ms. Lerner said at Georgetown University
Law Center's Representing & Managing Tax-Exempt Organizations conference here.
The IRS has intensified oversight of charities recently, through reports and an
overhaul of nonprofits' annual tax form.
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Mortgage Delinquencies Soar
in the U.S.
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - More U.S. consumers are falling behind on their
mortgages, an indication that the housing market has yet to hit bottom, a top
credit bureau executive told Reuters.
Dann Adams, president of U.S. Information Systems for Equifax Inc, reported that
7 percent of homeowners with mortgages were at least 30 days late on their loans
in February, an increase of more than 50 percent from a year earlier.
He also said 39.8 percent of subprime borrowers were at least 30 days behind on
their home mortgage loans, up 23.7 percent from last year.
"I'm trying to find optimism in these numbers, but I'm pretty hard pressed to do
that," Adams said, despite a recent burst of relatively positive news that has
fueled hope that the U.S. housing market has turned a corner.
Late last month the Commerce Department reported that sales of newly built U.S.
single-family homes rose to a 337,000 annual pace in February, the highest in 10
months.
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Margert Announces New HOME Program Funding Round
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Far Rockaway, Queens, May 4, 2009....Margert Community Corporation, a local
program administrator for the state division of housing, announced today a new
funding round to provide homeownership purchase assistance to low and moderate
income families in the county of Queens.
The New York State HOME Program is administered by the New York State Housing
Trust Fund Corporation (HTFC). The program uses federal HOME Investment
Partnership Program funds to expand the supply of decent, safe, and affordable
housing within the State.
HOME awards are used to provide a first time homebuyer purchase assistance
subsidy, in the form of a deferred payment (or forgivable) loan, and may not
exceed $ 30,000. Eligible activities include down payment and closing costs
assistance.
Eligible HOME recipients must be low and moderate income residents of Queens
County, who have found a home they can afford and can qualify for permanent
financing. To qualify for our HOME program, you must complete a homebuyer
education course taught by Margert Community Corporation.
To meet the community renewal goals identified in our strategic plan,
Margert's 2007 HOME program will have a local preference component as follows:
first preference is to residents of Queens Community District 14 purchasing new
construction within the Edgemere and Arverne Urban Renewal Areas; second
preference to residents of southeast Queens CDs 9, 10, 12, 13 and 14; and third
preference to all other qualified Queens residents.
Margert’s 2007 HOME program has set aside two units for veteran first time
homebuyers, two units for frail elderly first time homebuyers, and two units for
first time homebuyers with physical disabilities.
In addition to home purchase assistance, Margert provides a wide range of
housing programs and services, including housing counseling, homeownership
training, affordable mortgage loans, special loan programs, credit counseling, a
“Your Money Counts” course and home maintenance training.
To apply, please visit Margert on the web (www.margert.org) or
call 718-471-3724.
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