A Guide for Aging in Place

As many older Americans choose to remain in their homes as they age, they will become more concerned about issues related to mobility, home safety and caregiving options. To address those concerns, the MetLife Mature Market Institute has published The MetLife Aging in Place Workbook: Your Home as a Care Setting, a free guide to help individuals and families assess potential care needs, determine whether their home should be modified or whether assistive devices are needed, identify potential care sources and understand costs. The workbook also includes a list of organizations and government agencies that can provide additional assistance.

The free publication is available at www.maturemarketinstitute.com

Nearly three-fourths of current real estate professionals plan to remain active in the industry during the next two years, while 18 percent are somewhat certain and 8 percent aren’t so sure, according to NAR’s 2010 Member Profile. Agents with three years or more of experience in the business were more likelyto remain active than those with less than two years, and brokers were more likely than sales agents to remain active.

I LOVE REAL ESTATE and will remain active!

Foreclosures Hit Record High in 2010

A total of 3.83 million foreclosure filings were reported on a record high 2.87 million properties in 2010, up 2 percent from 2009 and an increase of 23 percent from 2008, according to a year-end study from RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosure properties. The report concludes that 2.33 percent of all housing units in the United States (one in 45) received at least one foreclosure filing last year, up from 2.21 percent in 2009, 1.84 percent in 2008, 1.03 percent in 2007 and .58 percent in 2006. Nevada, Arizona and Florida posted the highest foreclosure rates in 2010, while California, Florida, Arizona, Illinois and Michigan combined to account for half of all foreclosure filings logged in the United States last year. On a positive note, foreclosure filings declined in the fourth quarter of 2010, falling 14 percent from the previous quarter and 8 percent from the final quarter of 2009. But the RealtyTrac report attributes some of the recent declines in foreclosure totals to the continuing controversy surrounding foreclosure documentation and procedures that have prompted many mortgage lenders to temporarily suspend some foreclosure proceedings.