In the News

FHA can't put off technology upgrades any longer

Brian Collins

WASHINGTON — The Federal Housing Administration needs additional funds to replace a 1960s-era computer operating system and make other necessary tech updates, according to Richard Green, a former senior adviser to the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

"Something bad is going to happen unless they address this," Green said in an interview. "If the system fails, FHA single-family and multifamily loans will be unavailable until a replacement system is up and running."

SoCal market snapshot

Many counties outside L.A. are basking in the glow of residential and commercial growth

Kavita Daswani

San Diego County

As San Diego enjoys a biotech boom, new residential developments are flourishing, in part to meet the demand of the growing workforce in the coastal county.

National Retailers Are Abandoning Small Town, USA

Jarred Schenke

JASPER, Ala. — David Gifford, a preacher from Hamilton, Alabama (population: 6,800), drives nearly an hour to Jasper (population: 14,000) to shop at the JCPenney at the mall here in the northern part of the state.

As he saunters through the men's department, the 6-foot-3-inch, heavy-set Gifford cuts an imposing figure. But the leader of the Detroit Church of God in Detroit, Alabama (population: 237) is jovial, open and happy to chat.

Aids Charity Funds Anti-Spot-Zoning Legislation in L.A.

AIDS Healthcare Foundation, with a $1.4 billion budget for 2017, has been known to front various political campaigns that ultimately will provide service to or advocate for AIDS patients. Its new investment totaling more than $4 million in an anti-spot-zoning legislation in L.A. has many perplexed, though.

High-end Homes May Face Lower Demand
High-end home brokers see signs that East Coast slowdown could move to Los Angeles.
Helen Zhao

Developers and brokers of high-end homes in Los Angeles are seeing cause for concern in East Coast luxury markets such as New York and Miami, where prices have softened and sales volume has waned.

What Issues Will Carson Face?

MReport recently had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Richard Green, Director and Chair of the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate. Dr. Green noted several issues that Dr. Carson will face as he enters his term as Secretary of HUD. The first issue, Dr. Green, states, is the power vacuum in Ginnie Mae.

Former HUD senior advisor Richard Green: Here are the issues with Trump's budget

Ginnie Mae staffing levels and FHA infrastructure will both suffer

Ben Lane

Late last week, Julián Castro, who served as secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development from 2014 to 2017 under former President Barack Obama, told HousingWire that he has several issues with President Donald Trump’s budget proposal, which calls for a $6.2 billion cut to HUD’s budget.

The Economist

Los Angeles - Dense as in smart

When homeowners are given vetoes over development, they prevent it

High Rent, Few Options

In Southern California – a region where most residents can't afford to buy a house – rents are the least affordable they've ever been, and the trend is likely to worsen.

Those are just two conclusions from recent studies of Southern California's housing market by the California Housing Partnership Corporation and Harvard University.

An AIDS Charity Fights Builders in L.A.

The nonprofit AIDS Healthcare Foundation has spent more than $4 million on a ballot measure.

Nicole Piper