The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission has concluded that the 2008 financial crisis in the U.S. was caused by a combination of corporate errors, regulatory failure and excessive risk-taking by Wall Street firms, the New York Times reported online Tuesday. Get the full story »
Filed under: Real estate
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Jan. 25 at 5:55 p.m.
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Filed under: Banking, Economy, Housing, Investing, Mortgages, Real estate, Regulations Risk taking, lax oversight cited for financial crisis
PrivateBancorp targets toxic commercial real estate loans
PrivateBancorp Inc.’s quarterly profit beat analysts’ estimates as its loan loss provisions halved and the lender expects to reduce its exposure to toxic commercial real estate loans this year.
The bank’s shares rose as much as 7 percent, to a high of $16.09, Tuesday morning on the Nasdaq. They pared some of the gains to close up 1.2 percent, at $15.19, at nearly three times the usual volume. Get the full story »
Suit charges Countrywide with ‘massive fraud’
Countrywide Financial, a unit of Bank of America Inc., conducted a “massive fraud” over its mortgage-backed securities, according to a lawsuit brought by investors, including TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Co., New York Life Insurance Co. and Dexia Holdings Inc., Bloomberg News reported Tuesday on its Web site. Get the full story »
Local home prices fall to lowest level since 2006 peak
Home prices in Chicago fell to their lowest level in November since local prices peaked in September 2006, according to a widely watched index.
In the Chicago area, prices were just slightly lower than where they were in March 2010, and that was in line with prices in the spring of 2002, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. Prices fell 2.2 percent in November from October, and were down 7.6 percent from November 2009. Get the full story »
Ex-Tribune CEO Michaels lists Streeterville condo
Elite Street | By Bob Goldsborough | Former Tribune Co. Chief Executive Randy Michaels has listed his 31st-floor, penthouse condominium unit in Streeterville for $989,000.
Tribune Co. Chairman Sam Zell named Michaels, whose real name is Benjamin Homel, to the company’s executive team in December 2007 and promoted him to CEO in late 2009. Michaels resigned under pressure in October, after weeks of escalating allegations that he and some associates that he had recruited had tarnished the company with boorish, sexist behavior. Get the full story »
Naperville Bank buying post office building
From TribLocal | Naperville Bank and Trust has its eyes on the historic downtown Naperville post office building, and the plan is moving forward after a contract was agreed upon Thursday.
Demolition hearing next step for Algonquin project
Trib Local | No qualified bids were made for the Riverside Square development in Algonquin, so a demolition hearing is the next step for the unfinished project once owned by Amcore Bank.
BofA loses $1.2B in 4Q on mortgage writedowns
Bank of America Corp., the largest U.S. bank by assets, reported a second straight quarterly loss, driven by a $2 billion writedown of its mortgage business. Get the full story »
HomeGoods coming to Magnificent Mile
HomeGoods is joining the growing array of discount chains on the Magnificent Mile.
The off-price home furnishings chain, long expected to set up shop on the boulevard, signed a lease to opened a 25,503-square-foot store on the third level of 600 N. Michigan Ave., according to Oakbrook Terrace-based Mid-America Real Estate Group. The store is slated to open late this summer. Get the full story »
Jan. 20 at 3:12 p.m.
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Filed under: Commercial real estate, Real estate, Retail, Stock activity Sears gets boost from Dillard’s move to form REIT
Shares of department-store operators climbed Thursday as investors made bets on which retailers may follow Dillard’s Inc. in its plan to form a real-estate investment trust.
Dillard’s said in a regulatory filing late Wednesday it believes the formation of a REIT may enhance its ability to access debt or preferred stock and improve its liquidity. The retailer said it plans to transfer interests in certain properties to the REIT and will then lease back the properties. Get the full story »
Chicago home sales down just 0.5% in 2010
Sales of existing homes in the Chicago area rose appreciably in December from the previous month but were still down almost 10 percent from their year-ago comparison, the Illinois Association of Realtors reported Thursday.
For the year though, thanks to a tax credit that helped sales during the first six months, Chicago-area sales of single-family homes and condos were down only 0.5 percent from 2009, to 69,010 homes sold last year. The median price of $185,000 in 2010 was a 5.6 percent drop from the previous year but the declines in median price varied widely across the area. Get the full story »
Steelmaker moving headquarters to Aon Center
A Portland, Ore.-based steelmaker seeking quicker access to its far-flung customers announced this afternoon that it will move its headquarters to the Aon Center in late June.
Evraz Inc. NA, the North American subsidiary of Russian steel behemoth Evraz Group, expects to employ more than 70 workers on the 78th floor, including an as-yet-undetermined number of Portland transplants. Get the full story »
Rate on 30-year fixed mortgage rises to 4.74%
Rates on the 30-year fixed mortgages rose slightly this week, following increases in Treasury yields. Freddie Mac says the average rate rose to 4.74 percent this week from 4.71 percent the previous week. It hit a 40-year low of 4.17 percent in November. Get the full story »
U.S. housing starts lowest since late 2009
Groundbreaking on new U.S. home construction fell more than expected in December to its lowest in over a year, suggesting the battered housing sector remains a major roadblock to economic recovery. Get the full story »
Nate Berkus lists Gold Coast condo for $2.65M
Nate Berkus shows off his Chicago condo in a video on People.com. (People)
ELITE STREET | By Bob Goldsborough | Chicago interior designer Nate Berkus, who rose to national fame through his frequent appearances on the “Oprah Winfrey Show” and who now hosts his own eponymous and Winfrey-backed, New York-based talk show, on Tuesday placed his seven-room, full-floor Gold Coast condo on the market for $2.65 million.
Berkus, 39, has owned the 3,980-square-foot condo unit since 2003, when he bought it for $500,000. The condo is located in a small, 12-unit building that was constructed in 1928 and that “feels like a co-op building, with some of the vintage features,” said Berkus’ listing agent, Katherine Chez of Coldwell Banker. Get the full story »
