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WASHINGTON, DC – The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI) fell 3.7 points in February to 85.8, reversing last month’s increase. The decline can be attributed to decreases in five of the six HPSI components. The net share of respondents who said now is a good time to buy a home decreased 5 percentage points compared to January. Additionally, the net share who reported that now is a good time to sell a home decreased 2 percentage points. The net share who said home prices will go up in the next 12 months decreased 7 percentage points in February, while the net share of consumers who said mortgage rates will go down over the next 12 months also decreased 7 percentage points. Americans expressed a weakened sense of job security, with the net share who say they are not concerned about losing their job decreasing 2 percentage points. Finally, the net share reporting that their income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago increased 1 percentage point.

“Volatility in consumer housing sentiment continued into February, with the new tax law beginning to impact respondents’ take-home pay and the stock market creating negative headlines due to early-month turbulence,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Additionally, consumers’ expectations for higher mortgage rates suggest that consumers expect the Fed to hike rates a few more times in 2018. We will continue to track how consumer housing attitudes trend in the coming months as these various market forces play out.”

HOME PURCHASE SENTIMENT INDEX – COMPONENT HIGHLIGHTS

Fannie Mae’s 2018 Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) decreased in February by 3.7 points to 85.8. The HPSI is down 2.5 points compared with the same time last year.

The net share of Americans who say it is a good time to buy a home decreased 5 percentage points to 22%.
The net share of those who say it is a good time to sell fell 2 percentage points to 36%.
The net share of Americans who say home prices will go up decreased 7 percentage points to 45% in February.
The net share of those who say mortgage rates will go down over the next 12 months fell 7 percentage points to -57%.
The net share of Americans who say they are not concerned about losing their job fell 2 percentage points to 71%.
The net share of those who say their household income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago rose 1 percentage point to 17%. The share who say their household income is significantly lower than it was 12 months ago fell 2 percentage points to 9%, matching a survey low last seen in February 2017.
ABOUT FANNIE MAE’S HOME PURCHASE SENTIMENT INDEX
The Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) distills information about consumers’ home purchase sentiment from Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey® (NHS) into a single number. The HPSI reflects consumers’ current views and forward-looking expectations of housing market conditions and complements existing data sources to inform housing-related analysis and decision making. The HPSI is constructed from answers to six NHS questions that solicit consumers’ evaluations of housing market conditions and address topics that are related to their home purchase decisions. The questions ask consumers whether they think that it is a good or bad time to buy or to sell a house, what direction they expect home prices and mortgage interest rates to move, how concerned they are about losing their jobs, and whether their incomes are higher than they were a year earlier.

ABOUT FANNIE MAE’S NATIONAL HOUSING SURVEY
The most detailed consumer attitudinal survey of its kind, Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey (NHS) polled approximately 1,000 Americans via live telephone interview to assess their attitudes toward owning and renting a home, home and rental price changes, homeownership distress, the economy, household finances, and overall consumer confidence. Homeowners and renters are asked more than 100 questions used to track attitudinal shifts, six of which are used to construct the HPSI (findings are compared with the same survey conducted monthly beginning June 2010). As cell phones have become common and many households no longer have landline phones, the NHS contacts 70 percent of respondents via their cell phones (as of January 2018). For more information, please see the Technical Notes. Fannie Mae conducts this survey and shares monthly and quarterly results so that we may help industry partners and market participants target our collective efforts to stabilize the housing market in the near-term, and provide support in the future. The February 2018 National Housing Survey was conducted between February 1, 2018 and February 23, 2018. Most of the data collection occurred during the first two weeks of this period. Interviews were conducted by PSB, in coordination with Fannie Mae.

Fannie Mae helps make the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and affordable rental housing possible for millions of Americans. We partner with lenders to create housing opportunities for families across the country. We are driving positive changes in housing finance to make the home buying process easier, while reducing costs and risk. To learn more, visit fanniemae.com and follow us on twitter.com/fanniemae.

WASHINGTON – In an effort to help low-income residents become self-sufficient, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today awarded $34.9 million to public housing authorities, public housing resident associations, Native American tribes, and non-profit organizations across the nation to hire or retain service coordinators to help them find jobs, educational opportunities, and achieve economic and housing independence (see list below).

The funding, provided through HUD’s Resident Opportunities and Self Sufficiency – Service Coordinators Program (ROSS-SC) helps grantees hire or retain “service coordinators” who work directly with residents to assess their needs and connect them with education, job training and placement programs, and/or computer and financial literacy services available in their community to promote self-sufficiency.

“It’s part of our mission to help connect public housing residents to better, higher paying jobs and critical services as a means of helping them move beyond public assistance and toward self-sufficiency,” said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “This funding gives our local partners resources they can use to help residents become economically independent and achieve the dreams they have for themselves and their children.”

The purpose of HUD’s ROSS-SC program is to encourage innovative and locally driven strategies that link public housing assistance with public and private resources to enable HUD-assisted families to increase earned income; reduce or eliminate their need for welfare assistance; and promote economic independence and housing self-sufficiency. These grants provide funding to hire and retain Service Coordinators who will assess the needs of residents of conventional Public Housing or Indian housing and coordinate available resources in the community to meet those needs. In addition, ROSS-SC grants help improve living conditions for seniors, enabling them to age-in-place.
HUD’s mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.
More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet
at www.hud.gov and https://espanol.hud.gov.

Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) today announced that it will not utilize its second (January 24th) Benchmark Notes® announcement date this month. As announced in our 2018 Benchmark Securities Issuance Calendar, the company may forego any scheduled Benchmark Notes issuance.

Fannie Mae helps make the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and affordable rental housing possible for millions of Americans. We partner with lenders to create housing opportunities for families across the country. We are driving positive changes in housing finance to make the home buying process easier, while reducing costs and risk. To learn more, visit fanniemae.com and follow us on twitter.com/FannieMae.

WASHINGTON, DC – Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) today announced the launch of its Sustainable Communities Innovation Challenge (The Challenge). The company will commit $10 million over two years to attract promising ideas that will help it address the nation’s affordable housing issues. The company expects to receive proposals from across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Fannie Mae is seeking proposals to effectively increase access to sustainable communities that Fannie Mae, working with other industry stakeholders, can ultimately scale.

“The Challenge is a responsible way for Fannie Mae to uncover and explore innovative solutions to help address the affordable housing crisis in America. It supports our broad mission to increase housing opportunities across the country that are safe, sustainable, and affordable,” said Jeffery Hayward, Executive Vice President and Head of Multifamily, Fannie Mae. “We are excited to collaborate with new partners to source innovative ideas from other sectors.”

The Challenge is part of Fannie Mae’s corporate-wide initiative, Sustainable Communities Partnership and Innovation. The initiative focuses on developing collaborative, cross-sector approaches to advancing sustainable communities – safe, stable, and thriving communities that provide residents with integrated access to quality affordable housing and opportunities for employment, health and wellness, and education.

“Housing is inextricably linked to the broader community. Accordingly, we recognize that in order to affect systemic change, affordable housing must be approached holistically, by focusing on where it intersects with key components of a sustainable community,” said Maria Evans, Vice President, Sustainable Communities Partnership and Innovation. “With The Challenge, we are looking for new concepts, designs, and ways of solving our nation’s affordable housing issues from innovators who are working inside and outside of the traditional housing industry. Great ideas can come from anywhere.”

The Challenge will be broken into three phases, each focused on a different affordable housing challenge. The first phase is designed to advance the research, design and development of new ideas and innovative solutions that meet at the intersection of affordable housing and economic and employment opportunities. The first phase, starting December 18, 2017 and accepting proposals through February 23, 2018, seeks ideas to:

Expand access to affordable housing in sustainable communities where strong employment opportunities are typically accompanied by high housing costs; and
Improve access to quality employment opportunities for residents of existing affordable housing, while making sure housing is affordable to more people.
Proposals will be evaluated against a predetermined set of criteria set forth in the Request for Proposal (RFP) and will go through multiple rounds of review, including a semi-final review by an Expert Advisory Panel comprised of leaders from public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Fannie Mae will make final contract award decisions.

To learn more about The Challenge, including eligibility requirements, or to submit a proposal, please visit www.fanniemae.com/thechallenge.

Fannie Mae helps make the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and affordable rental housing possible for millions of Americans. We partner with lenders to create housing opportunities for families across the country. We are driving positive changes in housing finance to make the home buying process easier, while reducing costs and risk. To learn more, visit fanniemae.com and follow us on twitter.com/fanniemae.

WASHINGTON, DC – Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) announced today that it will suspend evictions of foreclosed single-family properties during the holiday season. The suspension of evictions will apply to single-family and 2-4 unit properties from December 18, 2017 through January 2, 2018. During this period, legal and administrative proceedings for evictions may continue, but families will be allowed to remain in the home.

“We’re taking steps to support families and to extend the timeline of help for struggling borrowers during the holidays,” said Jacob Williamson, Vice President of Single-Family Distressed Assets at Fannie Mae. “We also encourage homeowners who may be struggling with their mortgage to reach out to Fannie Mae or their servicer to get help. Options are available to avoid foreclosure, and we want to help pursue those options whenever possible.”

Homeowners can visit www.knowyouroptions.com for resources on how to prevent foreclosure, including how to find out if Fannie Mae owns their loan. Homeowners also can contact Fannie Mae at 1-800-232-6643 for more information.

Fannie Mae helps make the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and affordable rental housing possible for millions of Americans. We partner with lenders to create housing opportunities for families across the country. We are driving positive changes in housing finance to make the home buying process easier, while reducing costs and risk. To learn more, visit fanniemae.com and follow us on twitter.com/FannieMae.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $615,922,000 to help hard-hit areas in the State of Florida to recover from Hurricane Irma. The grant announced today by the Trump Administration is provided through HUD’s Community Development Block Grant – Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) Program and will support the repair of damaged homes, businesses, and critical infrastructure in the state.

“President Trump and the entire federal family stand with the people of Florida to help them recover from this devastating storm as quickly as possible,” said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “HUD and the State of Florida will work together to speed the rebuilding of seriously damaged homes and businesses that lack the resources to recover on their own if not for these recovery dollars.”

Governor Scott said, “I want to thank HUD and the Trump Administration for supporting those whose lives were devastated by Hurricane Irma. These funds will help Floridians rebuild their lives following the devastation of Hurricane Irma. We must continue to work to ensure everyone impacted by this storm can fully recover.”

On Sept. 8, President Trump signed the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2018 and the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act, 2017. The Act appropriated $7.4 billion in CDBG-DR funding for major disasters declared in calendar year 2017. To distribute these funds, the Act requires HUD to direct the funds to the areas most impacted by qualifying disasters. HUD will announce additional grants to other jurisdictions as more data become available on the unmet needs from 2017 disasters including Hurricane Irma, Hurricane Maria and the California fires.

In making today’s allocation to the state of Florida, HUD relied upon information from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Small Business Administration (SBA) on the number of seriously damaged homes lacking adequate insurance and businesses that failed to qualify for SBA’s disaster loan program. HUD’s analysis found thousands of middle- and lower income homeowners and renters experienced serious damage to their residences and were not adequately insured for flood damage. Similarly, businesses located within hard-hit areas of the state suffered serious damage from flooding that is not covered by insurance or other resources. The grant announced today is designed to meet needs not being met by private insurance or other sources of federal assistance.

CDBG-DR grants support a variety of disaster recovery activities including housing redevelopment and rebuilding, business assistance, economic revitalization, and infrastructure repair. State and local governments are required to spend the majority of these recovery funds in “most impacted” areas as identified by HUD. HUD will issue administrative guidelines shortly for use of the funds that will increase grantees’ flexibility in addressing their long-term recovery needs, particularly in the area of housing recovery.

HUD’s mission is to create strong, sustainable, inclusive communities and quality affordable homes for all.
More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet
at www.hud.gov and https://espanol.hud.gov.

Washington, D.C. – The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today issued a Credit Risk Transfer Progress Report describing the status and volume of credit risk transfer transactions through the second quarter of 2017. The Report provides a comprehensive picture of how Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) transfer a substantial portion of credit risk to the private sector through a variety of transactions in the single-family market.

The Report demonstrates that the majority of the underlying mortgage credit risk on mortgages targeted for credit risk transfer (CRT) has been transferred to private investors through CRT and mortgage insurance. The Progress Report shows that:

The Enterprises have transferred a portion of risk on $1.8 trillion of unpaid principal balance (UPB) from the start of the CRT programs in 2013 through the second quarter of 2017, with a combined Risk in Force (RIF) of about $60.6 billion;
In the second quarter, the Enterprises transferred risk on $213 billon of UPB with a total RIF of $6.4 billion;
Debt issuances, like Structured Agency Credit Risk (STACR) and Connecticut Avenue Securities (CAS), accounted for 70 percent of RIF, and insurance and reinsurance transactions accounted for 25 percent;
Front-end reinsurance transactions increased from 2 percent of RIF in the first quarter of 2017 to 4 percent in the second quarter; and
In the first half of 2017, loans targeted for credit risk transfers represented 62 percent of the Enterprises’ single-family loan production.
“This report shows that the Enterprises have made tremendous progress with credit risk transfer in a short period of time, as they continue to leverage a receptive private sector market and reduce risk for taxpayers,” said FHFA Director Melvin L. Watt.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., /PRNewswire/ — Realtor.com®, a leading online real estate destination operated by News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA]; [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc., today announced the launch of Property Tycoon, a new real estate listings game, that allows participants to test their market knowledge by selecting homes they think sold over asking price from a selection of homes.

“At realtor.com®, our goal is to help demystify the home-buying journey and Property Tycoon puts a fun spin on helping people understand how factors such as square footage and location impact home values,” said Nate Johnson, chief marketing officer for realtor.com®. “Whether you’re a real estate veteran or just starting out, Property Tycoon is an enjoyable way to test your real estate knowledge and learn more about different local markets.”

Players are given a game budget of $5 million to “purchase” as many properties as they think sold for more than their asking price from a group of 60 properties in a specific city. All featured properties are real realtor.com® listings sold in the last 60 to 90 days. Players can check their score using the Property Tycoon game results board and earn game badges for things like their placement in the competition.

Property Tycoon sweepstakes prizes are awarded after the end of the week, are based on random drawings, not based on game scores or results, and consist of a grand prize of $1,000 and five secondary prizes of $100 each.

To help players establish a better understanding of the real estate market, Property Tycoon also features economic insights that players can use to learn more about the selected city and get a leg up on the competition.

The Property Tycoon Fantasy Real Estate Sweepstakes Game I promotion starts 6/4/2017 and ends 6/10/2017. Open only to residents of the United States. Void where prohibited. No purchase necessary. Prizes to be awarded based on random drawings. Prizes: a Grand Prize of US $1,000 and five (5) Secondary Prizes of US $100 each. (Total value of all six (6) prizes is $1,500.) Important details apply: for eligibility, how to enter, how the Property Tycoon game experience works, how prizes are awarded, odds of winning and important dates, restrictions, requirements and other details, please see the Official Rules, at: http://www.realtor.com/property-tycoon/rules. There is no guarantee that additional Property Tycoon sweepstakes will be offered. Sponsor: realtor.com® division of Move Sales, Inc. 3315 Scott Blvd., Santa Clara, CA 95054.

For more information, please visit: http://www.realtor.com/property-tycoon.

About realtor.com®
Realtor.com® is the trusted resource for home buyers, sellers and dreamers, offering the most comprehensive source of for-sale properties, among competing national sites, and the information, tools and professional expertise to help people move confidently through every step of their home journey. It pioneered the world of digital real estate 20 years ago, and today helps make all things home simple, efficient and enjoyable. Realtor.com® is operated by News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc. under a perpetual license from the National Association of REALTORS®. For more information, visit realtor.com®.

Bochum, Wien, 5 September 2016 – The Management Board of Vonovia SE (“Vonovia”) and the Administrative Board and Executive Committee of Conwert Immobilien Invest SE (“Conwert“) have signed a business combination agreement (“BCA”). Under the terms of this agreement, Vonovia intends to publish an offer to acquire all shares in Conwert.

Vonovia intends to offer all Conwert shareholders 74 Vonovia shares for every 149 Conwert shares. This implies a price of €17.58 per Conwert share based on the Vonovia closing price on Friday, 2 September 2016. This represents a resulting premium of 23.8%, based on the Conwert volume-weighted average share price of the last six months of €14.20 per share. As an alternative, as legally required in Austria, Vonovia plans to offer Conwert shareholders a cash consideration of €16.16 per share.

The transaction aims to combine the complementary property portfolios of both companies. Managing the portfolios under one roof facilitates
significant value creation for tenants and shareholders alike. As a result of this combination, Vonovia will further expand its footprint in the dynamically growing cities of Leipzig, Berlin, Potsdam and Dresden, and add a very attractive presence in the German-speaking city of Vienna to
its German portfolio.

Rolf Buch, CEO of Vonovia SE: “The planned takeover of Conwert presents Vonovia with a great opportunity to expand our portfolio in dynamic
regions and cities. We are therefore making an attractive offer to Conwert shareholders and invite them to join our success story. Conwert
shareholders will benefit from the premium offered, future synergies, and a higher dividend potential and pay-out ratio. Additionally, the
takeover of Conwert further strengthens our market position in attractive regions in Germany and expands our footprint to the attractive
location of Vienna. Our sophisticated, proven management platform will allow us to integrate Conwert seamlessly for the equal benefit of all
shareholders and tenants.”

Dr Alexander Proschofsky, Chairman of the Conwert Administrative Board, adds: “Vonovia’s offer underlines the successful development Conwert has made in the last year. A merger with Vonovia constitutes an attractive opportunity to further develop Conwert’s potential under a new roof. Subject to legal examination, we intend to recommend to our shareholders to accept this offer.” Dr Alexander Proschofsky has already declared that he intends to accept the offer and tender all of his Conwert shares.

Adler Real Estate AG, one of the largest Conwert shareholders, has also committed to tendering its entire stake in Conwert into the exchange offer (at least 26.2m shares, representing approx. 26% of fully diluted share capital including treasury shares). Conwert has committed to tendering its treasury shares, subject to its legal check.

Following a successful takeover, Vonovia will be given the opportunity to newly appoint the Administrative Board. For Vonovia, Corporate Governance
plays an important role. Vonovia will nominate the majority of the Administrative Board members and has committed to ensure that the minority shareholders will be represented adequately on the Administrative Board. In this respect, Vonovia will support the candidates that will be proposed by the Conwert Administrative Board.

All members of the Conwert Administrative Board have declared that they will vacate their seats, if the takeover offer is successful, and Conwert
will call an extraordinary general meeting, at Vonovia’s request, for the purpose of assigning new members to the Administrative Board.

With around 340,000 residential units nationwide, Vonovia has the critical mass needed for the efficient management of Conwert’s approximately
24,500 residential units, in particular in the German real estate market. Conwert has very attractive properties in the dynamically developing
city of Leipzig, and in growth cities like Berlin, Potsdam and Dresden, as well as in North Rhine-Westphalia. Conwert’s Austrian portfolio
presents a good opportunity for Vonovia to expand its portfolio into the German-speaking city of Vienna.

The Conwert Headquarters will remain in Vienna. The Austrian property portfolios will continue to be managed by Conwert. Additionally, Conwert
will remain listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange.

The consummation of the takeover offer will be subject to reaching the andatory acceptance threshold of 50% plus 1 share of all Conwert shares as well as certain standard market completion conditions that will be set out in detail in the offer document, which is expected to be published
on 17 November 2016.

Following the successful completion of the offer, Conwert shares will be exchanged into Vonovia shares from Vonovia’s existing authorised capital.
Furthermore, Vonovia has sufficient resources to finance the cash consideration of the offer.

Through the integration, Vonovia plans operational synergies of at least €7m per year, to be fully realised by the end of 2018. By partially refinancing Conwert, Vonovia plans to realise financial synergies of €5m, to be fully realised in the financial year 2017.

The transaction fulfills all of Vonovia’s acquisition criteria. Vonovia expects the transaction to be, in particular, NAV per share and FFO per
share accretive.

About Vonovia
Vonovia SE is Germany’s leading nationwide residential real estate company. Vonovia currently owns and manages around 340,000 residential units in all of Germany’s attractive cities and regions. Its portfolio is worth approximately €24 billion. An additional 54,000 or so third-party apartments are also managed by Vonovia. As a modern service company, Vonovia focuses on customer orientation and tenant satisfaction. Offering tenants affordable, attractive and livable homes is a prerequisite for the company’s successful development. Accordingly, Vonovia makes long-term investments in the maintenance, modernization and senior-friendly conversion of its properties.

The company will also be creating more and more new apartments by realizing infill developments and adding on to existing buildings. The company, which is based in Bochum, has been listed on the stock exchange since 2013 and on the DAX 30 since September 2015. Vonovia SE is also listed on the international indices STOXX Europe 600, MSCI Germany, GPR 250 and EPRA/NAREIT Europe. Vonovia has a workforce of 6,900 employees.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., – Realtor.com®, a leading online real estate destination operated by News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA]; [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc., today released a new study that identifies the price premium to buy a home in a strong public school district, as well as the top 10 districts garnering the highest home prices and demand from buyers. School districts rising to the top are: Beverly Hills Unified in Los Angeles; Highland Park Independent School District in Dallas; Kenilworth School District No. 38 in Kenilworth, Ill.; Rocky River City School District in Cuyahoga, Ohio; Clear Creek Independent School District in Harris, Texas; and School Town Of Munster School District in Lake, Ind.

Realtor.com® compared homes located in school districts rated nine or 10 on the GreatSchools.org 10 point scale to homes situated in districts rated six or less. The analysis shows homes within the boundaries of the higher rated public school districts are, on average, 49 percent more expensive – at $400,000 – than the national median of $269,000 and 77 percent more expensive than schools located within the boundaries of the lower ranked districts with a median of $225,000.

“It’s common knowledge that buyers are often willing to pay a premium for a home in a strong school district,” said Javier Vivas, manager of economic research for realtor.com®. “Our analysis quantifies just how good it is to be a seller in these areas. On average, homes in top-rated districts attract a price premium of almost 50 percent and sell more than a week faster than those located in neighboring lower ranked school districts.”

Houses located in these areas, on average, also move eight days faster than homes in below average school districts and sell four days faster – at 58 days – than the national average of 62 days. Additionally, properties within the boundaries of higher-rated school districts are viewed 26 percent more, on average, than the average home on realtor.com® (an indicator of buyer demand) and 42 percent more than homes in areas with below average schools.

A look at the top school districts
Highest Price Premiums
In top-ranked Beverly Hills Unified School District, homes sell for 689 percent more at $3.8 million than other homes in Los Angeles County at $550,000. That’s 1.6 times the premium of homes located in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District – rated 9 – that covers Santa Monica, Calif. and Malibu, Calif. and has a median list price of $2.5 million. Beverly Hills’s price premium is 3.9 times more than Culver City Unified School District in Culver City, Calif. that has a rating of 8 and a median list price of $975,000.

The district with the second highest home price premium is Highland Park Independent School District in Dallas where homes are 632 percent more expensive at $1.8 million than the median home in Dallas County at $277,000. Homes in Highland Park are 3.7 times and 4.4 times more expensive, respectively, than neighboring districts of Coppell Independent School District in Coppell, Texas – rated 9 – with a median of $470,000 and Dallas Independent School District in Dallas – rated 5 – with a median of $400,000, respectively.

Kenilworth School District No. 38 in Kenilworth, Ill., where homes carry a median sales price of $1.6 million, ranked third in the nation with its home price premium of 606 percent compared to the Cook County. That’s 2.1 times more than the neighboring district of Wilmette Public Schools District 39 in Wilmette, Ill., rated 10 by GreatSchools, with a median list price of $780,000, and 1.2 times more than Winnetka School District 36 in Winnetka, Ill., rated 10, with a median list price of $1.4 million. Winnetka School District 36 is also ranked fifth in the nation for its home price premium.

Rounding out the Top 10 school districts with the highest price premiums are: Indian Hill Exempted Village School District – Hamilton, Ohio; Winnetka School District 36 – Winnetka, Ill.; Manhattan Beach Unified School District – Los Angeles; Scarsdale Union Free School District – Westchester, N.Y.; Saddle River School District – Bergen, N.J.; San Marino Unified School District – Los Angeles; and Mariemont City School District – Hamilton, Ohio. See chart below for additional detail.

Highest Demand from Home Buyers
The district with the highest home buyer demand – as measured by realtor.com® listing views compared to the surrounding county – is Rocky River City School District in Cuyahoga, Ohio, rated 10, where listings within district boundaries receive 2.8 times more views than other areas in Cuyahoga County. Homes in the Rocky River District also receive 1.7 and 1.5 times more listing views, respectively, than Westlake City School District in Westlake, Ohio ranked 9 by GreatSchools and Lakewood City School District in Lakewood, Ohio with a GreatSchools rating of 6.

Vivas added, “While highly ranked school districts in these markets have pushed home prices higher than their surrounding areas, the majority of these high demand markets are relatively affordable when compared to the national median which is a big factor contributing to their popularity.”

The second most popular school district in the nation for home buyers is Clear Creek Independent School District in Harris, Texas. It garners 2.2 times the listing views of Harris County and 1.2 and 1.0 times as many views, respectively, as nearby districts of Pasadena in Pasadena, Texas (rated 5) and La Porte Independent School District in La Porte, Texas.

Coming in as the third most viewed school district for home buyers, School Town of Munster School District in Lake, Ind., has a GreatSchools rating of 9 and receives nearly 2.2 more listings views than other homes in the county. That’s 1.36 more views than neighboring district of School Town Of Highland Independent School District, rated 6, in Highland, Ind.

Completing the Top 10 list are Orange School District – New Haven, Conn.; Etiwanda Elementary School District – San Bernardino, Calif.; Longmeadow School District – Hampden, Mass.; Strongsville City School District – Cuyahoga, Ohio; Plymouth-Canton Community School – District Wayne, Mich.; and Regional School District 05 School – District New Haven, Conn. See chart below for additional detail.

About realtor.com®
Realtor.com® is the trusted resource for home buyers, sellers and dreamers, offering the most comprehensive database of for-sale properties, among competing national sites, and the information, tools and professional expertise to help people move confidently through every step of their home journey. As the official site of the National Association of REALTORS®, realtor.com® pioneered the world of digital real estate 20 years ago, and today helps make all things home simple, efficient and enjoyable. Realtor.com® is operated by News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc. For more information, visit realtor.com®.

MADISON, N.J. — Century 21 Real Estate LLC today announced the launch of its “Give Dad Nothing” Father’s Day gift campaign, enabling children of all ages to give their dads exactly what they seemingly wish for year-after-year – a piece of absolutely nothing.

Starting today and until June 19, 2016 at 11:59 p.m., consumers can log onto givedadnothing.com and enter the name of their dad to receive a free, printable certificate of a 24-hour license on Father’s Day for a parcel of land in Nothing, Arizona. They can then download, print or e-mail the certificate, along with a special #givedadnothing Father’s Day card, and send Dad this unique gift idea digitally or by U.S. mail. Plus, the microsite givedadnothing.com also houses a sharable video about the Father’s Day gift campaign and an interactive 360-degree view for consumers to explore the town of Nothing.

“Our strategic growth initiatives and continued investment in marketing activities are helping to drive our market momentum as a brand, and this campaign allows us to tap into a culturally relevant moment in time and help our affiliated sales associates engage, connect and build long-term relationships with homebuyers and sellers in a clever, unexpected way,” said Cara Whitely, chief marketing officer, Century 21 Real Estate. “As a brand, we have always believed in the power of real-time social and digital marketing initiatives that position SMARTER. BOLDER. FASTER®. CENTURY 21 affiliated sales professionals as the local market leaders and innovators in the markets that they serve.”

Nothing, Arizona is a deserted town located in Mohave County approximately 120 miles northwest of Phoenix.

To claim a piece of Nothing or to give Nothing as a gift, please visit givedadnothing.com. To follow along in the fun, search #GiveDadNothing or visit the CENTURY 21 brand’s Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube social channels.

The CENTURY 21 brand first revolutionized real estate with the introduction to the industry of the franchisor/franchisee model by real estate brokers Art Bartlett and Marsh Fisher on July 28, 1971. Today, the CENTURY 21 brand is the most recognized name in real estate* and the leader in brand awareness among consumers presented with a list of real estate agencies for the 17th year in a row.* Century 21 Real Estate LLC is committed to making a difference in people’s lives by delivering to market innovative tools and technologies, marketing support and the use of its iconic brand marks that help its independent brokers and affiliated sales associates provide a seamless experience to real estate consumers around the world.

LAS VEGAS, – Simon, a global leader in retail real estate, continues its impressive pace of redevelopment and expansion projects as the industry gathers in Las Vegas for this year’s RECon Global Retail Real Estate Convention.

At the end of 2016’s first quarter, redevelopment and expansion projects were underway at 33 Simon properties in the U.S. and Europe. Simon’s share of the costs of all new development and redevelopment projects under construction was approximately $2 billion.

All three of Simon’s domestic property types – regional malls, The Mills, and Premium Outlets – are participating in this effort.

“We are very optimistic about our business and bullish on malls,” said David Simon, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “We continue to deploy capital in our most powerful assets and develop new centers that will be strong economic engines for their markets.”

In the regional mall portfolio, growth is occurring through transformational expansions, selective new developments, and acquisitions.

Last month, Simon acquired The Shops at Crystals, a luxury retail property located in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip that boasts more than 324,000 square feet of highly sought-after retail space. The project includes eight luxury flagship stores – Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Hermes, Dolce & Gabbana, Tom Ford, Prada, Fendi and Tiffany & Co. – as well as eight unique-to-market luxury retailers including Celine, Saint Laurent and Richard Mille.

In downtown Miami, Simon, in a joint venture with Swire Properties and Whitman Family Development, is set to deliver the 500,000 square foot retail component of Brickell City Centre. This project is anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue and will open this fall. Construction is underway in Fort Worth at The Shops at Clearkfork, anchored by Neiman Marcus, a luxury theater, and 100 high-end specialty stores. The Shops at Clearkfork will open in 2017.

Permitting continues on our mixed-use project on Long Island, Syosset Park, with a construction start anticipated next year for this project that will feature office, hotel, residential, retail, dining, and entertainment components.

In the heart of Boston’s Back Bay, a multi-year transformation of Simon’s iconic Copley Place has recently commenced. Installation has begun on new stone flooring, new escalators, upgraded lighting, and other amenities. Construction has also begun on a dramatic, elegant new pedestrian entrance into the property which will feature an expansive new foyer and an enhanced pedestrian connection to the Back Bay Station. All of this work will be completed this year.

Work will begin soon adjacent to Neiman Marcus, both above ground and below ground, to construct the foundation of the 52-story Copley Residential Tower, whose structural frame will begin to rise above Neiman Marcus in 2018. Work will also begin on a two-story high atrium that contains 40,000 square feet of additional retail and restaurant space and faces Stuart Street. This atrium will provide direct access to Copley Place, Neiman Marcus, and the new retail and restaurant space.

Significant redevelopment projects are ongoing at some of Simon’s most productive properties. Saks Fifth Avenue recently opened a 200,000 square foot, state-of-the-art flagship store at the Houston Galleria and a multi-level mall extension will feature 35 new and unique retailers and several new restaurants in 110,000 square feet of space, all opening in 2017. At the iconic King of Prussia Mall in suburban Philadelphia, work is finishing up on a 155,000 square foot expansion that will link The Court and The Plaza, creating space for more than 50 new stores and restaurants, including first-to-market retailers, luxury brands, and signature dining experiences. This expansion will open in August.

The legendary Stanford Shopping Center in the Bay Area continues to evolve even as it celebrates its 60th birthday. Bloomingdale’s has relocated into a new, two-level, 120,000 square-foot store and their former store has been demolished and is being replaced with a roster of exciting new retailers. Work is finished at Roosevelt Field where in February, Neiman Marcus opened its only Long Island store.

At the bustling La Plaza Mall in McAllen, Texas, demolition of a former Sears store is complete which paves the way for a 245,000 square foot expansion wing that will accommodate up to 50 new specialty stores, four junior anchors, and an exciting dining plaza with six first-to-market restaurants. This new expansion is scheduled to open in fall 2017. Simon will also upgrade the interior and exterior of the existing mall and add two new parking decks which will be able to accommodate approximately 2,000 vehicles.

The Mills’ flagship property, Sawgrass Mills, continues to expand to meet customer and retailer demand. The Oasis, the property’s open-air dining, entertainment, and retail hub, is undergoing a redevelopment which will enhance this 130,000 square foot space. Sawgrass Mills will also complete a new, modern 1,700-space parking garage in summer, 2016, offering convenient, free parking adjacent to The Colonnade Shops.

Commencing in 2017 will be the development of an enclosed mall expansion of the giant South Florida retail landmark which will add over 50 new stores. The 265,000 square foot expansion is anticipated to open by Holiday 2019. Planning is also continuing on the neighboring Sawgrass Town Center, an open-air, full-price lifestyle component that will feature shops, restaurants, and hotels.

A second 1,900-car parking deck will also be built in conjunction with this expansion. All of this activity comes on the heels of the recently-completed expansion of Sawgrass’s Colonnade Shops which added tenants such as Tod’s, Rag & Bone, and Montblanc to one of the world’s finest luxury outlet collections.

The Mills platform is active on the west coast as well. Bloomingdale’s Outlet store is coming to The Outlets at Orange and it will be the first Los Angeles-area location for this brand when it opens in time for the 2016 holiday season. The new Bloomingdale’s Outlet will be part of a 60,000 square foot expansion at the property.

Last month, an 80,000 square foot addition at Ontario Mills dubbed ‘Fashion Alley’ opened, housing a variety of name brand outlet stores and restaurants including The North Face, Uniqlo, Tommy Hilfiger, and Coach.

In the Premium Outlets portfolio, a new 355,000 square foot outlet center located in Columbus, Ohio will open next month and Clarksburg Premium Outlets, a 392,000 square foot center in Clarksburg, Maryland is scheduled to open in October.

Construction has started on another new project, Premium Outlet Collection – Edmonton International Airport. This will be a 428,000 square foot center and is scheduled to open in October 2017.

Two additional Premium Outlets projects are scheduled to break ground in 2016. Local officials and Simon executives will gather on June 2nd to mark the beginning of construction at Norfolk Premium Outlets. This center, consisting of 332,000 square feet, will offer approximately 85 stores and is scheduled to open in summer 2017.

Denver Premium Outlets will break ground in August. Located north of Denver in Thornton, Colorado, the 320,000 square foot center will boast more than 80 retailers and is expected to open in late 2017. The addition of a hotel, restaurants, and additional retail is expected in later phases of the project.

Simon’s Premium Outlets platform is growing by new development and renovation. At the same time, the platform is living up to the ‘Premium’ in its name by delivering not only premium brands to its centers, but also new and unique brands to the platform. Last year Mont Blanc, Paul Smith and Philipp Plein opened at Woodbury Common Premium Outlets; Roger Vivier, Dsquared2 and Zadig & Voltaire debuted at the expanded San Francisco Premium Outlets; and MCM opened at Orlando Vineland Premium Outlets, to name a few. In the coming months we will also open stores with Givenchy, Lafayette 148 New York, Perrin Paris, Acne Studios, Agent Provocateur, Hackett, Lalique – each with their first outlet stores in the U.S.

Simon continues to add impact restaurants and anchors throughout all three platforms. In 2016 we will have added over 35 retailers such as Dick’s Sporting Goods, Sea Life Aquarium, Legoland Discovery Center, Madame Tussauds Nashville, Von Maur, Primark, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy’s Backstage, Matchbox Restaurant, The Cheesecake Factory, Nordstrom Rack, Shake Shack, Zara, and Century 21 Department Store.

About Simon
Simon is a global leader in retail real estate ownership, management and development and an S&P100 company (Simon Property Group, NYSE: SPG). Our industry-leading retail properties and investments across North America, Europe and Asia provide shopping experiences for millions of consumers every day and generate billions in annual retail sales. For more information, visit simon.com.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., — Realtor.com®, a leading online real estate destination operated by News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA]; [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc., and HomeAdvisor, a leading nationwide home services digital marketplace, today announced a new agreement to integrate HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide on realtor.com® listings. The addition provides homeowners and dreamers with valuable information about average national and local project costs and trends in popular home repair and improvement projects.

All cost data from HomeAdvisor’s True Cost Guide comes from data submitted by real homeowners to provide consumers with local project costs for over 300 types of home projects. Realtor.com® users also have access to HomeAdvisor’s nationwide network of pre-screened service professionals to help them complete their home projects. Service professionals in HomeAdvisor’s network undergo a criminal and financial background check prior to joining, and are customer-rated and reviewed.

“Home buyers and sellers rely on realtor.com® for the most comprehensive and accurate real estate listing information,” said Ray Picard, executive vice president of sales for Move. “Our new agreement with HomeAdvisor helps us put even more real estate-related information at their fingertips, no matter if they are looking for a home or want to improve the one they own.”

“Last year, over 10 million homeowners trusted HomeAdvisor to find a professional for their home projects,” said Adam Burrows, HomeAdvisor’s senior vice president of business and corporate development. “This agreement extends that trusted resource to realtor.com® users looking to gain the best returns on their biggest investments — their homes.”

To access local home improvement costs, get up to speed on renovation trends, or read reviews on home professionals, realtor.com® users can simply click the HomeAdvisor True Cost Guide widget on the right-hand side of any “recently sold” or “not for sale” home listing.

About Move, Inc. and realtor.com®
Move, Inc. operates the realtor.com® website and mobile experiences, which provide buyers, sellers and renters of homes with the information, tools and professional expertise they need to discover and create their perfect home. News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] acquired Move in November 2014, and realtor.com® quickly established itself as the fastest growing online real estate service provider as measured by comScore.

As the official website of the National Association of REALTORS®, consumers know they can look to realtor.com® for the most comprehensive and accurate information anytime, anywhere. With relationships with nearly 800 multiple listing services (MLS), realtor.com® has more than 3 million for-sale listings, which account for more than 97 percent of all MLS-listed for-sale properties. More than 90 percent of the listings are updated every 15 minutes. Move’s network of websites provides consumers a wealth of innovative tools, including Doorsteps®, Moving.com™, SeniorHousingNetSM and others. Move supports real estate professionals by providing many services to grow their businesses in an increasing digital, on-demand world, including ListHub™, the nation’s leading listing syndicator and centralized intelligence platform for the real estate industry; TigerLead®; Top Producer® Systems; and FiveStreetSM and Reesio as well as many free services.

About HomeAdvisor
HomeAdvisor is a nationwide digital home services marketplace providing homeowners the tools and resources they need to complete their home repair, maintenance and improvement projects. HomeAdvisor’s marketplace makes it easy for homeowners to view average home project costs from coast to coast, using True Cost Guide, find and schedule local prescreened home professionals using ProFinder technology, and instantly book appointments using online booking or HomeAdvisor’s award-winning iOS and Android mobile apps. Homeowners can access HomeAdvisor’s resources for free. No membership or fees are required. HomeAdvisor is based in Golden, Colo., and is an operating business of IAC (NASDAQ: IAC).

SEATTLE, – Determining the right time to put a home on the market often tops the list of concerns for sellers – as it should, since timing can influence the final sale price of each home significantly, according to new data from Zillow®.

Zillow has found that, nationally, homes listed in late spring (May 1 through May 15), sell around 18.5 days faster and for 1 percent more than the average listingi. The optimal listing window has shifted since Zillow’s first analysis, featured in Zillow Talk: Rewriting the Rules of Real Estate, likely because of low inventory in housing markets across the country. When Zillow conducted this analysis previously, there were nine percent more homesii on the market, and homes listed between mid-March and mid-April sold fastest and for the highest price.

“The housing market today is heavily influenced by low inventory,” said Zillow chief economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. “Faced with increasingly competitive markets, many buyers are forced to consider several homes and make multiple offers, elongating the home shopping experience. By listing homes further into the shopping season, sellers may attract buyers who are increasingly eager to purchase and may be more willing to pay a premium for the home.”

Local market variations and weather patterns make the buying season more volatile in some parts of the country. The markets with the largest sale differences between the best months and worst months to list are regions with distinct climate changesiii, such as Seattle, Minneapolis and Washington D.C., making it more important for sellers in these regions to carefully consider the timeframe of their home sale. Sellers in Texas and California will find themselves with more flexibility in list timeframe, as these markets show little variation in sale price based on listing month.

Applying this analysis to individual homes, today, Zillow launches Best Time to List, a new tool that helps homeowners identify the optimal time to list their own home for sale. The tool estimatesiv how much the timing of a listing will influence the final sale price.

Sellers can use this information to have a more informed conversation with their local real estate agent to determine the best time to put their home on the market.

About Zillow
Zillow® is the leading real estate and rental marketplace dedicated to empowering consumers with data, inspiration and knowledge around the place they call home, and connecting them with the best local professionals who can help. Zillow serves the full lifecycle of owning and living in a home: buying, selling, renting, financing, remodeling and more. In addition to Zillow.com®, Zillow operates the most popular suite of mobile real estate apps, with more than two dozen apps across all major platforms. Launched in 2006, Zillow is owned and operated by Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z and ZG) and headquartered in Seattle.

SAN JOSE,- Realtor.com®, a leading destination of online real estate services operated by News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA]; [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc., today announced the launch of House TalkSM, a new online community created to help the millions of people who visit realtor.com® get answers to their home-related questions.

House Talk Home Page
House TalkSM is a resource for all things real estate. Whether you’re buying or selling a home, want to share a home improvement tip, or have a question about a rental lease – House TalkSM is the place for you. With a robust community of peers and professionals, participants are empowered to ask questions and give answers on real estate topics that matter to them. Users looking for fast answers can also search for key discussion topics to see if they have already been addressed by the group.

Conversation topics that are currently trending include: adjustable rate mortgages, bathroom remodels and kitchen cabinets. General community topics include: financing, buying and selling, home improvement, renting, talk of the town, unique homes and block party. Realtor.com® House TalkSM is available at: http://community.realtor.com/.

“Buying a home is a complicated process – one that only gets more complicated after you’ve closed and walk through the front door,” said Tapan Bhat, chief product officer for realtor.com®. “House Talk was born from a desire to alleviate uncertainty and give home buyers, sellers, renters and dreamers a forum to ask questions and share their own experiences. When you have someone ready to help, suddenly things seem more manageable.”

Anyone can join the conversation by simply creating a community account at community.realtor.com. Participants can then click the “start a discussion” button to ask a question or “reply” in an established thread. Users also have the option to “like” a discussion and upload photos or videos to their posts.

About Move, Inc. and realtor.com®
Move, Inc. operates the realtor.com® website and mobile experiences, which provide buyers, sellers and renters of homes with the information, tools and professional expertise they need to discover and create their perfect home. News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] acquired Move in November 2014, and realtor.com® quickly established itself as the fastest growing online real estate service provider as measured by comScore.

WASHINGTON, DC – Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTC) provided $1.6 billion in financing to the multifamily market to support small loans comprising over 33,000 units in 2015. Over ninety percent of the small loan units the company financed in 2015 supported affordable and workforce housing.*

“Small loans are a critical part of the work we do to make affordable, quality rental housing a reality for renters in urban areas and smaller markets across the nation,” said Bob Simpson, Multifamily Vice President for Affordable, Green, and Small Loans, Fannie Mae. “We have been financing small loans for nearly 20 years and since 2009 we have provided over $17 billion in liquidity to the small loan market primarily through our Delegated Underwriting and Servicing (DUS®) lenders.”

Owners of smaller properties have unique financing needs and Fannie Mae offers a variety of product offerings, streamlined underwriting and processing, and increased delegations to its Small Loan lenders. Fannie lenders are delegated the ability to underwrite, close, deliver, and service small loans, which provides greater speed and certainty of execution.

Below are the 5 DUS lenders that produced the highest volume in Small Loans in 2015, listed in descending order:

Greystone Servicing Corporation, Inc.
Arbor Commercial Funding, LLC
Walker & Dunlop, LLC
Hunt Mortgage Group
PNC Real Estate

Providing liquidity to the rental market has been the core mission of Fannie Mae Multifamily for nearly 30 years. The company’s unique DUS platform relies on shared risk and leverages private capital through its DUS lenders, who retain more than 20% of the credit risk on Fannie Mae’s entire multifamily guaranty book of business, as of December 31, 2015.

As the most reliable source of financing in the multifamily sector, Fannie Mae is committed to serving the spectrum of the nation’s rental housing needs.

*Small loans are defined as loans of $3 million or less nationwide and $5 million or less in high-cost markets, as well as properties with 5 to 50 units. Affordable and workforce housing is defined as units affordable to families earning at or below 120% of the median income in their area.

Fannie Mae enables people to buy, refinance, or rent homes.

FAIRFIELD, Conn. – November 23, 2015 – GE (NYSE: GE) has signed an agreement to sell a portfolio of first lien mortgage loans from its UK Home Lending business, representing aggregate ending net investment (ENI) of approximately US$5.8 billion, to an investment consortium made up of opportunistic funds managed by Blackstone, TPG Special Situations Partners (TSSP), and CarVal Investors. The loans have a face value, or customer servicing balance of US$5.9/£3.8 billion. The transaction is expected to close in December 2015; terms were not disclosed.

“This transaction represents the sale of almost all our remaining UK mortgage business, which successfully provided financing for UK home owners,” said Keith Sherin, GE Capital chairman and CEO. “We began this year with around US$13 billion of ENI and when this transaction closes, we will have approximately US$0.4 billion of ENI remaining in our UK mortgage business. This is an important step as we continue to execute on our plan to sell most of the assets of GE Capital.”

As previously announced, GE is embarking on a strategy to focus on its high-value industrial businesses and is selling most GE Capital assets. GE and its Board of Directors have determined that current market conditions are favorable to pursue disposition of these assets. GE will retain the financing verticals that relate to GE’s industrial businesses.

When completed, this transaction will contribute approximately US$0.4 billion of capital to the overall target of approximately US$35 billion of dividends expected to be paid to GE under this plan (subject to regulatory approval). In total, the combined sales of the UK Home Lending portfolios, including this transaction, will contribute nearly US$1 billion of capital to the target. With the transaction, the total ENI for 2015 announced sales is about US$136 billion.

“We are pleased with the progress we are making to reach and close agreements for our businesses and assets. The speed and value we have achieved is a testament to the hard work of our GE Capital teams around the world,” concluded Sherin.

About GE:
GE (NYSE: GE) is the world’s Digital Industrial Company, transforming industry with software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive. GE is organized around a global exchange of knowledge, the “GE Store,” through which each business shares and accesses the same technology, markets, structure and intellect. Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors. With people, services, technology and scale, GE delivers better outcomes for customers by speaking the language of industry. www.ge.com

GE’s Investor Relations website at www.ge.com/investor and our corporate blog at www.gereports.com, as well as GE’s Facebook page and Twitter accounts, including @GE_Reports, contain a significant amount of information about GE, including financial and other information for investors. GE encourages investors to visit these websites from time to time, as information is updated and new information is posted

WASHINGTON, DC – Economic growth for the third quarter of the year likely came in weaker than expected, largely because of a worsening net exports picture, but fourth-quarter growth is expected to withstand ongoing headwinds, according to Fannie Mae’s (FNMA/OTC) Economic & Strategic Research (ESR) Group. Slowing global growth and the appreciating dollar should continue to weigh on the U.S. trade deficit as we move through the remainder of 2015. In addition, the employment picture remains murky as the September jobs report came in well below expectations, showing the weakest average employment gain over a three-month period since February 2014. However, because consumer spending should remain supportive and the negative impact from the strong dollar should dissipate, the ESR Group expects the economy to strengthen slightly to 2.4 percent in 2016 from a forecast of 2.2 percent for 2015.

In the housing market, recent indicators were mixed. Single-family and multifamily starts, existing home sales, and pending home sales dropped in August. On the upside, new home sales reached a new expansion high in August, and builders’ confidence rose to a fresh recovery best in September, which should help boost homebuilding activity, if the skilled labor shortage alleviates. Overall, expectations of housing activity are little changed, with total home sales projected to rise approximately 8 percent in 2015 and an additional 4 percent in 2016. Projected mortgage originations for 2015 were revised higher in this month’s forecast as a result of the ESR Group’s annual benchmark to the 2014 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data.

“Despite recent headwinds, which likely will slow economic growth compared to the first half of 2015, we see positive trends for consumer spending and housing heading into the fourth quarter,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “Strong home price gains should help drive an increase in household net worth again in the third quarter, and, combined with low gasoline prices and mortgage rates, should support strong consumer spending throughout the rest of the year.”

SAN JOSE, Calif., – Buyers and sellers can now create the home of their dreams and worst nightmares on realtor.com®. Just in time for Halloween, realtor.com®, a leading provider of online real estate services operated by News Corp subsidiary Move, Inc. today announced the launch of “Build Your Own Haunted House.”

Haunted House
Consumers can build a spooky home complete with haunts and sounds and share it via email, Facebook or Twitter any time during the month of October. The haunted house option offers a menu of animated and customizable options such as lighting color to adorn the outside of the home as well as lawn features, including a customizable for-sale sign, tombstones, jack-o-lanterns and skeletons. Spooky homes also can be customized with flying features that include witches, ghosts, crows, or bats, and sounds from wailing ghosts, shrieking witches, thunder or wind to add even more fright.

Since no Halloween is complete without a creepy costume, users also have the option to place a headshot onto a zombie as part of their scary home scene. Once the house is complete, it comes alive with the sights and sounds of Halloween.

“At realtor.com, we want to make the home experience enjoyable, and what’s more fun than having the opportunity to build your own haunted house and share it with friends and family,” said Nate Johnson, chief marketing officer for realtor.com®. “This speaks to the brand experience we are trying to create at realtor.com.”

Users are invited to “Share the Scare” with all their friends, an option which encourages them to show off their creepy creation by either sending a “Happy Halloween” email-o-gram with a personalized note or posting their haunted house to Twitter or Facebook.

Realtor.com®’s “Build Your Own Haunted House” will be available until midnight on Oct. 31.

About Move, Inc. and realtor.com®
Move, Inc. operates the realtor.com® website and mobile experiences, which provide buyers, sellers and renters of homes with the information, tools and professional expertise they need to discover and create their perfect home. News Corp [NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV] acquired Move in November 2014, and realtor.com® quickly established itself as the fastest growing online real estate service provider in the first half of 2015 as measured by comScore.

As the official website of the National Association of REALTORS®, consumers know they can look to realtor.com® for the most comprehensive and accurate information anytime, anywhere. With relationships with more than 800 multiple listing services (MLS), realtor.com® has more than 3 million for-sale listings, which account for more than 97 percent of all MLS-listed for-sale properties. More than 90 percent of the listings are updated every 15 minutes. Move’s network of websites provides consumers a wealth of innovative tools, including Doorsteps®, Moving.com™, SeniorHousingNetSM and others. Move supports real estate professionals by providing many services to grow their businesses in an increasing digital, on-demand world, including ListHub™, the nation’s leading listing syndicator and centralized intelligence platform for the real estate industry; TigerLead®; Top Producer® Systems; and FiveStreetSM and Reesio as well as many free services.

WASHINGTON, DC – Fannie Mae’s Economic & Strategic Research Group today launched the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index™ (HPSI), which distills results from its consumer-focused National Housing Survey™ (NHS) into a single, monthly, predictive indicator. Reflecting more than four years of data, the HPSI is designed to provide distinct signals about the direction of the housing market, helping industry participants to make better informed business decisions.

Unlike existing general indices of consumer economic sentiment, the HPSI is devoted entirely to housing. The index is constructed from answers to six key NHS questions that solicit Americans’ evaluations of housing market conditions and address topics related to their home purchase decisions. These questions ask consumers whether they think it is a good or bad time to buy or to sell a house, the direction they expect home prices and mortgage interest rates to move, how concerned they are about losing their jobs, and whether their incomes are higher than they were a year earlier. The Economic & Strategic Research Group expects to release the HPSI at 8:30 a.m., ET on the seventh day of each month or the first business day afterward.

“The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index provides the market a single number to track consumer attitudes focused on the housing market,” said Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae. “Utilizing our National Housing Survey, the only consumer sentiment survey of its kind focused on housing, the HPSI will offer insights regarding current and future-looking housing market outcomes and will complement existing data sources to inform housing-related analysis.”

“Consumer attitudes toward the current home selling climate have slid back to their April 2015 level, contributing to a slight decline in the August HPSI reading relative to its four-year high, reached two months ago,” said Duncan. “Expectations of rising mortgage rates and increasing concerns in the last six months about the direction of the economy seem to be weighing on consumers’ assessment of the housing market. Those who think it’s a good time to buy or sell a home have consistently pointed to favorable mortgage rates as the primary reason for their optimism. Those who think it’s a bad time to buy or sell a home have consistently pointed to unfavorable economic conditions as the primary reason for their pessimism. Still, the four-year upward trend in the HPSI indicates that consumers remain fairly optimistic about the housing market.”

HOME PURCHASE SENTIMENT INDEX – COMPONENT HIGHLIGHTS
The August 2015 HPSI fell 0.5 points to 80.8, continuing the decline from the all-time high reached in June 2015. The HPSI is up 5.3 points since this time last year. On net, two components of the HPSI improved in August, with Confidence About Not Losing Job increasing 3 points and Good Time to Sell increasing 1 point. Home Price and Mortgage Rate net expectations both fell 3 points since last month.
•The percent of respondents who said that it is a good time to buy a house rose to 63%, rising 2 percentage points from last month’s all-time survey low.
•Those who say it is a good time to sell rose 2 percentage points to 47%. The percent of respondents who say it is a bad time to sell also increased to 44%.
•The percent of respondents who said that home prices will go up over the next 12 months fell to 47%. The percent who said that home prices will go down rose to 9%.
•The share who expect mortgage interest rates to go up in the next 12 months rose 3 percentage points to 54%. The share who say mortgage rates will go down remained the same at 5%.
•The share of respondents who say they are not concerned with losing their job rose to 83%, while the share of respondents who say they are concerned with losing their job fell to 16%.
•The share of respondents who say their household income is significantly higher than it was 12 months ago fell to 24%, while those who say it is significantly lower fell to 12%.

ABOUT THE FANNIE MAE HOME PURCHASE SENTIMENT INDEX
The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index™ (HPSI) distills information about consumers’ home purchase sentiment from the Fannie Mae National Housing Survey™ (NHS) into a single number. The HPSI reflects current and forward-looking housing market outcomes and complements existing data sources to inform housing related analysis and decision making. The HPSI is constructed from answers to six NHS questions that solicit consumers’ evaluations of housing market conditions and address topics that are related to their home purchase decisions. The questions ask consumers whether they think that it is a good or bad time to buy or to sell a house, what direction they expect home prices and mortgage interest rates to move, how concerned they are about losing their jobs, and whether their incomes are higher than they were a year earlier.

The six questions of the Home Purchase Sentiment Index include:
•In general, do you think this is a very good time to buy a house, a somewhat good time, a somewhat bad time, or a very bad time to buy a house?
•In general, do you think this is a very good time to sell a house, a somewhat good time, a somewhat bad time, or a very bad time to buy a house?
•During the next 12 months, do you think home prices in general will go up, go down, or stay the same as where they are now?
•During the next 12 months, do you think home mortgage interest rates will go up, go down, or stay the same as where they are now?
•How concerned are you that you will lose your job in the next twelve months? Are you very concerned, somewhat concerned, not very concerned, or not at all concerned that you will lose your job in the next twelve months?
•How does your current monthly household income compare to what it was twelve months ago?

ABOUT THE FANNIE MAE NATIONAL HOUSING SURVEY
The most detailed consumer attitudinal survey of its kind, Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey™ polled 1,000 Americans via live telephone interview to assess their attitudes toward owning and renting a home, home and rental price changes, homeownership distress, the economy, household finances, and overall consumer confidence. Homeowners and renters are asked more than 100 questions used to track attitudinal shifts, six of which are used to construct the HPSI (findings are compared to the same survey conducted monthly beginning June 2010). To reflect the growing share of households with a cell phone but no landline, the National Housing Survey has increased its cell phone dialing rate to 60 percent as of October 2014. For more information, please see the Technical Notes. Fannie Mae conducts this survey and shares monthly and quarterly results so that we may help industry partners and market participants target our collective efforts to stabilize the housing market in the near-term, and provide support in the future. The August 2015 National Housing Survey was conducted between August 1, 2015 and August 24, 2015. Most of the data collection occurred during the first two weeks of this period. Interviews were conducted by Penn Schoen Berland, in coordination with Fannie Mae.