Survey: Encouraging trends ahead for real estate
The Urban Land Institute has released a three-year real estate forecast and it offers some “some encouraging trends in both the residential and commercial sectors through 2014,” the Wall Street Journal reports. Distressed properties continue to be a factor, but the forecast predicts housing starts to nearly double by 2014, and as demand improves, so will home prices.

In other news:

WEEK-TV in Peoria reports on the state’s Homeowner Assistance Initiative offering help to families facing foreclosure.

Chicago Sun-Times reports that rates for a 30-year, fixed mortgage have fallen below 4 percent again.