It’s a potential nightmare scenario for homebuyers, sellers and real estate agents: a deal is reached and the property passes a home inspection, but the bank’s appraisal comes in below the contract price. The financing falls through and with it months of effort and hundreds of dollars in closing costs. more

David Splaine, a real estate professional with RE/Max Professionals, East Greenwich, recently earned the Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist designation, which recognizes Splaine’s experience, knowledge and expertise in the luxury home market. Splaine, who has worked in real estate since 2002, specializes in the Kent County and North Kingstown markets. In addition to being a certified luxury home marketing specialist, he is also a certified residential specialist, certified investor property specialist and accredited buyer representative. Splaine holds a bachelor’s of science degree in business administration from Villanova University. more

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has a birthday gift for 91-year-old widow Jeanette Ogle that should cause any senior to think twice before signing up for a government-insured reverse mortgage. more

Despite recent signs of improvement, foreclosures and their lingering effects on families continue to be a crisis in the Ocean State, says HousingWorks RI Executive Director Nellie Gorbea. more

If you buy or own an energy-efficient house, does this make you less likely to default on your mortgage? Is there a connection between the monthly savings on utility costs and the probability that you’ll pay your loan on time? more

Could rental houses owned and managed by deep-pocketed hedge funds and big investors be the post-bust steppingstones to homeownership for huge numbers of renters? more

If you want to buy a house with minimal cash by using an FHA-insured mortgage, here’s some sobering news: Thanks to an ongoing series of fee increases and underwriting tweaks – the most recent of which were announced Jan. 31 – FHA is getting steadily more expensive, and may not work for you. more

BOSTON – Attorney General Martha Coakley and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman have called for a new permanent leader to replace Edward DeMarco as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency. more

As of March 31, more than 2,000 homeowners in Rhode Island have received some type of relief through the National Mortgage Settlement, Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin announced Tuesday. more

Rebecca “Becky” Moniz, an agent with Weichert, Realtors – Cress & Co., is the recent recipient of the Kent Washington Association of Realtors Good Neighbor Award. The award honors her efforts, and those of her strategic partners, in supporting Rhode Island’s military community. During the past several years, Moniz has served on the Rhode Island Association of Realtors Realtor Troop Support Tast Force, assisting in raising funds to bring the Military Childhood Education Coalition to Rhode Island, coordinating a partnership with the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program to educate deploying military-service members on home ownership and providing advice and home-buying seminars for veterans. Moniz has been with Cress & Co. since 2009 and is the former broker/owner of Young Realty Inc. more