Housing, Construction Sales on the Rise
Reuters reported Monday, May 4, that recent figures for housing and construction sales suggested moderation in the long housing slump.

The National Association of Realtors said its Pending Home Sales Index rose 3.2 percent from the end of February to the end of March. These numbers were buoyed by a wealth of first-time buyers who entered the market in March to take advantage of favorable prices and mortgage rates.

Demand for prime mortgages, according to a survey from the Federal Reserve, also rose in the first quarter of 2009 – marking the first increase in demand for prime mortgages since early 2007.

Construction sales also received a boost in March; a report from the U.S. Commerce Department showed construction spending rose 0.3 percent in March -- the first increase in six months.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE53S3NK20090505?sp=true

Pres. Obama's "Making Home Affordable" Program to Increase Refinances
The Washington Post reported April 29 that the Obama administration unveiled an expansion of its $75 billion foreclosure prevention plan. The plan will provide new subsidies to mortgage lenders and investors who lower mortgages to affordable levels.

According to MakingHomeAffordable.gov, the Home Affordable Refinance Program gives up to 4 to 5 million homeowners with loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac an opportunity to refinance their mortgages.

"Ensuring that responsible homeowners can afford to stay in their homes is critical to stabilizing the housing market, which is in turn critical to stabilizing our financial system overall. Every step we take forward is done with that imperative in mind," Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said in a statement.

For more information about this plan, read the articles below in the Washington Post and on MakingHomeAffordable.gov

Sources: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/28/AR2009042801766.html http://makinghomeaffordable.gov/about.html

New "Show Me How" Videos now available at BradfordSoftware.com
ClickFORMS, the sophisticated appraisal software made simple, just became even more simple to use.

As a part of the new and improved Help section of BradfordSoftware.com, we have recently added 10 new "Show Me How" videos, teaching users how to fully utilize the various features in ClickFORMS. With the new videos, you'll not only learn the basics about ClickFORMS, but you'll also learn how to use features you might not have even tried to utilize yet!

The videos included in this section cover:

• Choosing a Template
• Converting FNMA 2055 to FNMA 1004
• Creating a PDF
• Setting up your Digital Signature
• E-mailing a report as a PDF
• Inserting a PDF into a report
• Printing reports
• Saving Comments and Responses
• Importing property data
• Custom MLS import

You can view all of these videos at: http://bradfordsoftware.com/help/showmehow/

Make sure to bookmark this link, as new videos will be added periodically. You will need a broadband internet connection to optimally view these videos, and you will also need to download the free Adobe Flash plug-in for your web browser. If you do not already have Flash installed, you can download the plug-in at: http://www.adobe.com/go/EN_US-H-GET-FLASH

Quickness meets quality with VeroVALUE
When you use VeroVALUE AVM (Automated Valuation Model) look-ups with ClickFORMS, you can be sure your appraisal reports will be done faster and with better results. VeroVALUE is a web service program that pulls information from the internet for comparables and market analysis. Standard AVM data with VeroVALUE includes value estimates, value range, confidence score, available subject property information, market data information and historical price trends.

When used with ClickFORMS, pre-validated comparable data will be uploaded to your appraisal reports, as well as new graphs and metrics to heighten the sophistication of your appraisal report. The process is as simple as a few mouse clicks, and the data is added to your ClickFORMS report instantaneously.

As a ClickTALK reader, you are receiving advance notice of a sale on VeroVALUE look-ups that will take place the week of May 18 with Bradford Technologies. Make sure to call our sales department at 800-622-8727 x301 to learn more about this sale, or visit our Online Shopping Mall: http://shop.appraisalworld.com.