ESP Vacation Rentals is combining its roster of vacation and annual rentals with Duncan Real Estate’s property management and vacations rental clientele. Duncan Real Estate is adding 45 properties, which pushes its total to 110.
The resulting company will retain the name of Duncan Real Estate. ESP, based in Bradenton, has officially closed its offices.
Amanda Edge, [...]

Bank of America Corp. has completed its purchase of Countrywide Financial Corp., making the Charlotte-based bank the nation’s leading mortgage originator and servicer.
The Federal Reserve and Countrywide’s shareholders cleared the way for the acquisition last month. As of Tuesday’s close, Bank of America controls between 20 percent and 25 percent of the country’s home loan [...]

U.S. construction spending fell 0.4 percent in May on continued deterioration in the residential sector, but outside of home building private spending rose for the fifth consecutive month, government data on Tuesday showed.
Economists polled by Reuters ahead of the report were expecting a 0.6 percent decrease in overall construction spending after a 0.1 percent drop [...]