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Business Week says some commission rates are rising
     ( NEW YORK ) – Business Week magazine reports real estate commissions in some parts of the country are going up as anxious sellers are willing to pay more to attract the attention of agents with buyers, and listing agents are become more particular about the homes they list.
     The magazine said commissions of 8 percent are not unusual in hard-hit parts of the country – such as California – and that some home builders are paying agents as much as 10 percent to help them reduce inventory.
     Business Week quoted an agent with EXIT Realty in Minneapolis as saying he charges sellers 6 percent commissions for his “typical menu of services,” 7 percent if the seller wants a guarantee that the home will be sold in 39 days, and for an 8 percent commission he’ll do free home staging and mount additional advertising.

Kansas considers inspection law
     (TOPEKA, Kan.) – Home inspectors are battling the state’s real estate agents over a proposal to make inspectors liable for botched inspections that result in lawsuits against brokers.
     The proposal would require home inspectors to become registered and would set standards for the business. It also would allow inspectors to be sued for up to $10,000 if they miss something important.
     Some inspectors oppose the bill, saying it almost certainly would increase the price of a home inspection. Real estate agents, however, say it is important to make inspectors liable for their work.

Illinois considering meth lab disclosure
     (SPRINGFIELD, Ill.) – The Illinois House is considering a bill that would add “methamphetamine lab” to the list of disclosures home sellers and real estate agents must make to potential home buyers.
     The bill is sponsored by Rep. Mike Smith, who says there had been a rash of meth lab discoveries and arrests in his district south of Peoria in recent months.
     He says he sponsored the bill because residue from meth labs can cause serious health problems, including cancer, neurological damage and damage to the liver and kidneys.
     Currently, there are no real standards to determine how cleaned up a meth lab must be before the home can be returned to the market.

In wake of death, agents asked to pair up for showings
     (JEFFERSON, Wis.) – The killing of a RE/MAX agent by man who supposedly was a potential home buyer has stunned her broker sufficiently that the broker is now asking agents to form buddy teams when showing houses.
     Thirty-four-year-old James A. Hole has admitted strangling and beating agent Ann Nelson, 71, to death. Hole told police he became agitated when the agent became questioning him about why he wanted to look at homes he couldn’t afford.
     Since the death, owners of RE/MAX Community Realty have asked agents to go out in pairs in when showing properties. Prospective buyers also are being asked to meet agents at the company’s office first before seeing homes.

Agent, son, charged with burglarizing colleague’s listing
     (PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla.) – A local real estate agent and his son have been arrested on charges of taking a refrigerator and stove from the listing of a colleague.
     Thomas Lewis and his son, Vincent, have been charged with felony burglary and grand theft.
     Thomas Lewis said he was only borrowing the items with the intent of loaning them to someone to use until that person moved out of state.
     The Lewis father and son were turned in by neighbors who saw them remove the items.

Carpenter union sues builder for using illegal aliens
     ( EDISON , N.J. ) – The New Jersey Regional Council of Carpenters has filed a lawsuit against the home builder D.K. Horton, contending the builder uses illegal alien workers so it can lower its construction costs.
     The carpenter’s union claims Horton, headquartered in Fort Worth , Texas , pays illegals a lower wage and does not provide them employment benefits. The union says the illegals are taking jobs away from American workers.
    The union says employing illegal workers is a violation of the state’s Construction Industry Independent Contractor Act, as well as the state’s racketeering statutes. The lawsuit says in 2006, Horton fired a unionized construction company so it could replace workers with illegal aliens.

Charlotte, Raleigh, best cities to buy foreclosed homes
     (NEW YORK) – Forbes magazine has named Charlotte, N.C., as the best place in the country to buy a foreclosed home, reporting that buyers can buy the average foreclosure for as much as 28 percent below the median home price of $147,000.
     The magazine used statistics from RealtyTrac to look at communities where foreclosures were the biggest problem, but then factored in its view of how quickly the community was likely to recover from the current housing recession.
     Charlotte was deemed to have good prospects of a quick recovery, meaning an investor in foreclosed homes now could expect a quick return on investment.
     Other good investment cities named in the report were:
     -- Raleigh, N.C.; Nashville, Tenn.; Oklahoma City; San Antonio; Albuquerque; Knoxville, Tenn.; Seattle; Indianapolis; and Washington, D.C.-Alexandria-Arlington, Va.

HUD (finally) offers pro-consumer RESPA reforms
     (WASHINGTON) – Thirty years after writing an unreadable and often unenforceable law, and six years after promising to reform it, the Department of Housing and Urban Development has proposed changes to the Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act that theoretically will make it easier for consumers to comparison shop for loans and eliminate surprise fees at the closing table.
     The proposal is being put out for comments from housing leaders and members of Congress. If all goes well, it could go into effect sometime next year.
     Key proposals demand that so-called “junk fees” be explained before closing so that consumers know what they are paying for and can find alternative mortgage packages if they so choose. HUD estimates the provision could save home buyers almost $700 per closing.
     The proposal rewrites mortgage disclosures, demanding that all key terms be disclosed on the first page of a simple, four-page good-faith estimate. The estimate would disclose whether the loan's interest rate could increase and whether the loan includes a prepayment penalty, as well as what the borrower can expect to pay upfront for appraisals and title insurance.
     Yield spread premiums also are disclosed, but are included in the category of “Service Charge.”
     To review HUD’s proposal, go to: www.HUD.gov/respa

FTC makes final decision in Milwaukee MLS case
     (WASHINGTON) – The Federal Trade Commission has unanimously approved a final consent order against Multiple Listing Service Inc. in Milwaukee, ruling the MLS must allow non-traditional listings, such as fee-for-service listings, to appear in its database. The decision has no practical effect because the MLS already had changed its policy.
     In making the ruling, and in a special letter to the National Association of Realtors, the FTC refuted NAR’s contention that the federal agency should delay its order until the commission finalizes another MLS case, against Realcomp in Michigan, in which an administrative law judge decided in favor of the MLS in a similar case.
     The FTC said it was finalizing the Milwaukee order to make sure that the MLS did not go back to its previous anti-competitive position. It told NAR that despite the ALJ’s ruling in the Realcomp case, that decision was not final and could be overturned by the commission members.

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