Floridians are among those who stand to benefit from home loan discounts being distributed by Bank of America — some of which are in the six-figure range, the Palm Beach Post reported. In fact, the average discount across the country for the first 5,000 homeowners in the program was $145,000. “I’m really shocked and don’t quite know what to make of that number,” said Ken Johnson, a real estate economist at Florida International University. “If they are trying to get balances so they are no longer underwater, that sounds very much like Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach, where we lost 50 percent value.” [Palm Beach Post]

Bank of America has alerted 5,000 homeowners that they may qualify for reduced loans as a part of a settlement of foreclosure abuses, according to the New York Daily News. The reduction could apply to as many as 200,000 customers by the bank’s estimation. [more]

Miami foreclosure protesters cleaned up an abandoned property in Liberty City and took the home’s garbage to a Bank of America branch downtown, MSNBC reported. “Banks maintain foreclosed properties in white neighborhoods, why can’t they do the same in black communities?” said Trenise Bryant of the Miami Workers Center. [more]

Florida Association of Realtors President Summer Greene

Bank of America has paid an average of $12,000 to the 678 Florida homeowners who participated in its short sale program, Palm Beach Post reported. The program was launched in October and targeted 20,000 distressed Florida homeowners, in hopes of convincing them to opt for a short sale rather than endure the state’s prolonged foreclosure process, which increases costs for banks. [more]

In another symbol of the faulty paperwork America’s largest lenders used to file for foreclosures, Bank of America has sued itself 11 times in Palm Beach County foreclosure cases since late March, the Huffington Post reported.

The suits stem from Bank of America servicing mortgages on behalf of other investors, a practice undertaken by most big banks that led to the so-called robo-signing scandal. As the servicer, the bank processes payments, negotiates with borrowers and handles foreclosure proceedings without actually owning the loan. [more]

Miami Beach Convention Center

More than 19,000 homeowners could get help with their mortgages this week at an expo in Miami Beach put on by Bank of America, the South Florida Business Journal reported. The bank, which has approximately 1 million mortgages in Florida, booked 140 rooms at the Miami Beach Convention Center for the event, which will take place from Thursday to Saturday. [more]

If you’re seriously underwater and headed to foreclosure, what would you say if the lender suddenly offered you the chance to remain in your home as a tenant for an extended period plus have your mortgage debt wiped away? Would you say yes?

Or would you instead conclude: Hey, why pay rent? It’s going to take the bank more than a year to complete the foreclosure and evict us, so why not just stay put and save some money? [more]

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has dramatically revised its long-term forecast for U.S. home prices, the Huffington Post reported. ”We… updated our home price model and believe that prices are bottoming now,” the authors of the study said of the bank’s most recent data, released today. [more]

Joseph Smith, monitor for mortgage settlement

The $25 billion foreclosure settlement was formally filed in U.S. District Court in Washington D.C. today, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The settlement, between the government and five major mortgage companies — Ally Financial, Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo — empowers Joseph Smith, formerly a financial regulator in North Carolina, to monitor banks’ compliance with the 42-page set of standards it creates. Smith will also have the power to levy fines against banks that do not comply with the new standards, the Journal said. [more]

National construction spending grew by about 0.5 percent in December, Bloomberg News reported, at the fastest pace in four months — an indication that the industry may be finding its footing.

Building expenditures jumped 1.5 percent in December, according to data provided by the Department of Commerce. Private construction spending rose 2.1 percent and housing starts fared especially well, growing by 3.4 percent last year to the highest level since 2008. [more]