Visit our Filed page for categories. To browse by specific topic, see our Inside page. For a list of companies covered on this site, visit our Companies page.
General Growth Properties Inc. says asset manager Blackstone Group has agreed to invest about $500 million for shares in the shopping mall operator once it emerges from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
General Growth disclosed the agreement in a regulatory filing on Wednesday detailing the company’s latest plan to exit bankruptcy. Get the full story »
Mortgage applications rose 13 percent last week as consumers refinanced at the lowest rates in decades. The Mortgage Bankers Association says the increase was driven by a 17 percent surge in applications to refinance home loans. Those taken out to purchase homes fell by more than 3 percent. The numbers are adjusted for seasonal factors. Get the full story »
The Securities and Exchange Commission has started a formal probe of possible insider trading by current and former officers and directors of mall owner General Growth Properties Inc.
General Growth, which has operated under bankruptcy protection since April 2009 and plans to exit later this year, disclosed the probe in its bankruptcy case Tuesday and in its quarterly report filed with the SEC last week. Get the full story »
Donald Trump and his lenders have inked a new loan agreement that resolves long-standing litigation related to the development of his Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago.
Trump and his lenders, led by Deutsche Bank Trust Co. Americas and Fortress Credit Corp., last week agreed to extend the term on an approximate $600 million construction loan for five years. So, all litigation between the parties has been dismissed. Get the full story »
Home Depot Inc. still sees room for profit growth this year as consumers take up long-delayed maintenance and repair projects for their homes.
The company posted a higher-than-expected quarterly profit and raised its full-year earnings forecast Tuesday, helped by cost controls. While sales missed expectations in a weak economy, investors were relieved that the top home improvement chain still expects an increase for the rest of the year. Get the full story »
The Obama administration invited banking executives Tuesday to offer advice on changing the government’s role in the mortgage market. Their response: stay big.
While the executives disagreed on the exact level of support needed, the group overwhelmingly advocated the government should maintain a large role propping up the nearly $11 trillion market.
U.S. housing starts rose but to a much weaker rate than expected in July, while permits for future home construction fell to their lowest level in more than a year, according to a government report on Tuesday that pointed to a weak housing market.
The Commerce Department said housing starts rose 1.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 546,000 units. June’s housing starts were revised to show an 8.7 percent fall, which was previously reported as a 5 percent drop. Get the full story »
The rate at which U.S. homeowners fell behind on their mortgage payments remained stubbornly elevated in the second quarter.
In the three months ended June 30, the number of mortgage holders 60 days or more behind on their payments was 6.67 percent, credit reporting agency TransUnion said Tuesday. That’s a big jump from 5.81 percent in the second quarter of last year, and well above the historical norm of 1.5 percent to 2 percent.
Ricker-Murphy Development LLC and Lake Tower Development LLC, a GE Pension Trust affiliate, announced Monday that they had secured a $170 million construction loan needed to complete the long-delayed Lincoln Park 2520 high-rise.
The development, on the site of the shuttered Columbus Hospital, opened a sales office and began selling units in early 2007 as the credit markets were collapsing. Thirteen months ago, the size of the Lucien Lagrange Architects-designed tower was trimmed, to 198 condos in 33 stories, from 292 units in 41. However, Ricker-Murphy said Monday it received approval for 229 residences in three connected towers — a 22-story north tower, a 39-story central story and a 16-story south tower. The condos will sell for $1 million to $5.7 million, excluding penthouses that will be priced at up to $11 million. Get the full story »
One luxury hotel off Michigan Avenue is suing a new competitor in the neighborhood, charging that the latter’s construction hurt business and damaged its reputation.
The Talbott Hotel, 20 E. Delaware Pl., said in a suit filed Thursday that the construction of the adjacent Elysian hotel interfered with its operations.
Guests complained about the noise, dust, fumes, vibration and debris, and the Talbott had to reimburse some guests, the hotel said. Some guests also gave the hotel bad reviews on Web sites such as Orbitz and Hotels.com, the Talbott said.
The Talbott sued the Elysian owners as well as the general contractor and project manager in Cook County Circuit Court. A spokeswoman for the Elysian said she could not immediately comment but would look into the matter. Get the full story »
Lowe’s Cos. posted weaker-than-expected quarterly results but kept its forecast for same-store sales growth this year, assuring investors it will benefit once U.S. consumer demand picks up.
Lowe’s, the second-largest home improvement chain behind Home Depot, said it still expects sales at stores open at least a year to rise about 2 percent for the fiscal year, which some analysts viewed positively given soft consumer sentiment. Get the full story »
The Federal Reserve said Monday that bank lending standards eased somewhat over the last three months while demand for business and consumer loans was largely unchanged.
In its quarterly Senior Loan Officer Survey, taken in July, the Fed found that tight lending conditions, which some economists have linked to the weak economic recovery, were starting to ease. Get the full story »
The Federal Reserve on Monday published new rules aimed at protecting consumers from abusive mortgage practices, including clearer cost disclosures and a ban on payments to mortgage brokers for steering borrowers into loans with higher interest rates.
The Fed said it would ban payments from lenders to brokers based on interest rates paid by borrowers or other loan terms. The final rule, which takes effect on April 1, 2011, will end the so-called “yield spread premium” payments blamed for pushing millions of borrowers into unaffordable loans. Get the full story »
Homebuilder sentiment unexpectedly fell for a third straight month in August to its lowest level in nearly 1-1/2 years, according to a survey on Monday that pointed to a weak housing market.
The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index slipped one point to 13, defying market expectations for a rise to 15. Get the full story »
(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
Average mortgage closing costs have jumped 40 percent in Illinois this year, according to an online survey by personal finance company Bankrate Inc.
The origination and third-party fees on a $200,000 mortgage added up to $3,505 in the the 2010 survey, up from $2,486 a year ago.
Illinois was not alone in the dramatic rise. Nationally average closing costs increased 36 percent to $3,741. Bankrate said one of the reasons for the increase has to do with new regulations implemented in January. Lenders are now required to provide an estimate of title and closing fees within 10 percent of what the final cost will bd, or they’ll risk penalties. The regulations require more labor in getting a loan together. Get the full story »
