Death of the American dream?
Once the benchmark of personal success, the American dream of homeownership is waning as more would-be homeowners are choosing to rent, according to a report by Morgan Stanley.
U.S. homeownership has fallen below 60 percent, to 59.7 percent, not including 7.5 million delinquent mortgage borrowers. The lowest recorded rate was 62.9 percent in 1965, the first
Lenders pay back borrowers
Here is something you don't hear every day: your lender was accused of lying and is now required to give you some money to make up for it.
The Federal Trade Commission today started mailing out a total of $108 million in refund checks to 450,177 homeowners who were allegedly overcharged by Countrywide Home Loans, which
Posted in Mortgages
Tagged Bank of America, Countrywide, Federal Reserve Board, Mortgages, Wells Fargo
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Loan limits battle
The clock is ticking. In less than three months, Fannie, Freddie and Federal Housing Administration loans will get smaller.
But some lawmakers are poised to prevent the lower loan limits from going into effect on Oct. 1.
A bipartisan bill introduced last week seeks to keep the current loan limits for another two years. That would allow
Petraeus takes off the gloves
Just six months into her job as assistant director of the Office of Servicemember Affairs at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Holly Petraeus is kicking butts and taking names of mortgage lenders who dare to mess with America's military families.
Last week, Petraeus, the wife of Gen. David Petraeus and daughter of Gen. William Knowlton, formally
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Tagged Congress, consumer financial protection bureau, credit card, Foreclosure, military, Mortgages
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Mortgage help for jobless
As you might have heard by now, more help is on the way for unemployed homeowners who are struggling to keep up with their mortgage payments.
But not all of those who are jobless and delinquent on their mortgages will qualify for assistance.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development recently announced that starting Aug. 1 the
Raters are parties to politics
The bond-rating companies have waded into the scrum over the debt limit. Moody's and Standard & Poor's jumped off the bench and onto the field and are throwing punches. They're not dispassionately reporting from the press box.
Please keep in mind, when you read and watch articles about the debt debate, that Moody's and S&P aren't
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Tagged mortgage rates, Mortgages, politics
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Mortgage rates drop
Mortgage rates fell this week after release of a dismal employment report. Read Polyana da Costa's report.
In the Rate Trend Index, the majority predict that mortgage rates will remain relatively unchanged this week. Polyana agrees with the majority, and I think rates will rise. In the last few weeks, when we have disagreed, she has
No longer perverse
Mortgage bond yields finally fell today, as they normally would do after the release of a horrific monthly employment report.
Yields on Freddie Mac mortgage bonds have fallen 9 basis points since yesterday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury has fallen even further. As I write, it has fallen 14 basis points, to 3.02 percent.
This means
Rates react perversely to jobs
Employment didn't gain any headway in June, and that's supposed to be good news for people who have jobs and who qualify for mortgages.
The unemployment rate edged up to 9.2 percent in June, compared to 9.1 percent in May, according to the Labor Department. The economy grew by a net 18,000 jobs. That's an average
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Tagged economy, mortgage rates, Mortgages
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$1.2 million mansion for $10K?
Here in Florida, the Foreclosure State, we thought we'd already cataloged every genus responsible for this plague on all our houses, from the predatory lenders to the oblivious robosigners and rocket dockets to the no-mod-for-you bank Nazis. That was, until we caught wind of the HOA chasers.
The St. Petersburg Times recently profiled an opportunistic little
Posted in Mortgages
Tagged Florida, Foreclosure, homeowners association, Mortgages, robosigning
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