Author: Greg Kosin

By: Gregory M. Kosin, President, Greater Illinois Title Company   The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its long awaited regulations last month that will change the way consumers shop for and close on residential real estate transactions. The new regulation combines disclosures required under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. At the CFPB rollout, the focus was on consumers: to help them make fair comparisons of different loan offerings, to provide for a better understanding of the long and short term costs of a loan and to provide a more detailed accounting of their transaction. The CFPB sought to determine what best helped borrowers understand the costs of their loans through extensive testing. This regulation is far-reaching and will take a great deal of…

After being struck by the 2008-09 recession, the home building industry seems to be clawing its way back to success, and investors in the right companies could do well  in the coming years. When the the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index climbs above 50, homebuilders begin to expect better times ahead. So investors in that sector got good news on Dec. 17, when word broke that the index had risen to 58. After getting devastated by the 2008-09 recession, the homebuilding industry seems to be clawing its way back to success, and investors in the right companies could do well  in the coming years. Coming on strong Homebuilders have not been this confident since July. For the last four months, the housing market index has continued to…

The title industry is benefitting these days from the record low mortgage interest rates as many rush to take advantage of new historical lows. Although about one third of parties applying for a new loan are not approved due to credit or appraisal issues, many are taking advantage of locking into shorter term loans including ten year mortgages. Existing home sales were up in August partially fueled by the low rates. Meanwhile, the American Land Title Association (ALTA), our industry’s national trade group, is joining with the National Association of REALTORS®, the Homebuilders and the Mortgage Bankers Association to urge passage of a one year extension to temporary high cost conforming loan limits for Fannie, Freddie and FHA. Although the deadline is October 1st and action is not expected by…