Paterson, lawmakers agree on foreclosure protection
New York Newsday (06/20/08) Madore, James T.

New York Gov. David Paterson has reached an accord with state legislators on measures aimed at helping people in areas hit hard by fo.... Read More

New York court offers home foreclosure help
New York Times (06/19/08) P. A25; Eligon, John

New York state's chief judge has created a new section of the court to quickly notify homeowners that they face a foreclosure proceeding,.... Read More

Countrywide will rework $16B in mortgages
USA Today (06/18/08) Knox, Noelle

Countrywide Financial plans to restructure or refinance $16 billion in adjustable-rate mortgages that have recently reset higher or that will re.... Read More

LI developer allocates parking spots for hybrid vehicles
Associated Press (06/17/08)

RexCorp Realty LLC is reserving parking spots near the front entrances of some of its Long Island, N.Y., office buildings for the drivers of environmentally.... Read More

May housing starts jump in Northeast, fall elsewhere
Philadelphia Inquirer (06/18/08) Heavens, Alan J.

Led by a boom in multifamily building activity, the Census Bureau confirms that housing starts in the Northeast soared 61.5 percent in.... Read More

Democrats to state Senate: Pass 'affordable' house bills
New York Sports Express (06/16/08) Sarlin, Benjamin

New York city and state Democratic officials are asking the Republican-controlled state Senate to approve a series of bills sanction.... Read More

New York may be first to offer grants for green residences
Clean Technology Investor (06/12/08) Krieger, Sari

New York state lawmakers have unveiled a bill to create a statewide grant program for green residential buildings. If passed, th.... Read More

Helping workers buy on LI
New York Newsday (06/16/08) Mason-Draffen, Carrie

In order to recruit and keep workers, certain Long Island employers are helping staff to pay for housing. Firms such as Margolin, Wine.... Read More

Levy offers scaled-down affordable housing bill
New York Newsday (06/13/08) Brand, Rick

Just two counties have been included in Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy's revised affordable housing plan. In Nassau and Suffolk, commu.... Read More

Economists predict more pain ahead but no recession
Los Angeles Times (06/18/08) Vincent, Roger

The faltering housing market will continue to put pressure on the nation's economy in the months to come, but researchers at UCLA say a rece.... Read More

Why you need flood coverage
Kiplinger.com (06/16/08) Lankford, Kimberly

The floodwaters hitting the Midwest should prompt homeowners across the United States to purchase flood insurance and protect their property.... Read More

Economy remains sluggish, Fed says
Washington Post (06/12/08) P. D1; Irwin, Neil

The Federal Reserve's most recent beige book report shows "softer, weaker or lower" economic activity in three regions and ".... Read More

Forecast says affordable housing plans have about 18 months
LoHud.com (06/12/08) Wolf, Craig

At the "Housing the Hudson Valley" conference in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., keynote speaker Robert D. Yaro called for affordable housing initiatives.... Read More

NAR urges reform of US healthcare system
The National Association of REALTORS joined a bipartisan group of members of Congress on June 10 as the House of Representatives introduced the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP), designed t.... Read More

US lawmaker targets Housing Rescue Bill by July 4
Reuters (06/09/08) Drawbaugh, Kevin

A bill to prevent thousands of homeowners from foreclosure in still on schedule to proceed to President Bush for signature prior to July 4. While Se.... Read More

N.Y. sets low-income mortgages
American Banker (06/10/08) P. 6; Hochstein, Marc

New York's state mortgage agency has decided to offer mortgages with a fixed interest rate of 2 percent for subsidized renters who want.... Read More

FHA officials seek to ban seller-assisted payments
Wall Street Journal (06/10/08) P. A13; Corkery, Michael; Crittenden, Michael R.

A public comment period on a proposed ban of seller-assisted down payments has been reopened by the FHA,.... Read More

Mortgages with no money down still available
Washington Post (06/09/08) P. D1; Hilzenrath, David S.

Borrowers still have access to mortgages for up to 105 percent of the home price through Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, despite the .... Read More

100,000 affordable housing units needed right now
Brooklyn Daily Eagle (N.Y.) (06/05/08) Collins, Linda

New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner Shaun Donovan claims: "We need 100,000 more uni.... Read More

Mukasey declines to create a U.S. task force to investigate mortgage fraud
New York Times (06/06/08) P. C4; Lichtblau, Eric

U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey agreed that the mortgage fraud crisis is a serious problem but said it does not warrant the creat.... Read More

VA, Congress assist veterans in mortgage mess
Stars and Stripes (06/08) Philpott, Tom

U.S. Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, wants to make VA-backed loans relevant again by raising the c.... Read More

Despite interest rate cuts, foreclosures hit record high
Washington Post (06/06/08) P. D1; Merle, Renae

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reports a jump in the foreclosure rate to 2.47 percent in the 2008 first quarter from 1.28 percent.... Read More

MBA: Mortgage applications fell 15.3 percent last week
MarketWatch (06/04/08) Hoak, Amy

The Mortgage Bankers Association reports a seasonally adjusted decline in home-loan applications of 15.3 percent during the week ended May 30 from the .... Read More

A new local levy on developers benefits the working class
New York Daily News (05/30/08) Friedman, Wendy Ilene

The revised version of a tax incentive for developing affordable housing units will take effect in New York City in June. The new 4.... Read More

Bank of America takes top spot in customer service
Charlotte Observer (NC) (05/30/08)

Bank of America received the highest score in J.D. Power and Associates' latest annual survey on customer service in home equity lending. On a 1,000-.... Read More

In new sale, Starrett City would stay affordable
New York Times (06/02/08) P. B1; Bagli, Charles V.

The owners of the Starrett City housing complex in Brooklyn, N.Y., are pursuing a sale with a buyer who vows to keep the 5,881 apartm.... Read More

30-year mortgage rates rise past 6 percent
San Francisco Chronicle (05/30/08)

Freddie Mac reports a jump in the 30-year fixed mortgage rate to 6.08 percent during the week ended May 29 from 5.98 percent the prior week, marking .... Read More

With foreclosures in D.C. focus, predatory lending idles
American Banker (05/29/08) P. 1; Kaper, Stacy

House lawmakers who helped push through a predatory lending bill in November are frustrated that Senate Banking Committee Chairman C.... Read More

Investors press lenders on bad loans
Wall Street Journal (05/28/08) P. C1; Simon, Ruth

Unhappy buyers of home equity loans, subprime mortgages, and other real estate loans are trying to force the nation's banks and mortga.... Read More

New York housing market warms up in April
Sales of existing single-family homes in New York State in April increased by more than 14 percent compared to March, according to preliminary single-family sales data accumulated by the New York Stat.... Read More

Private mortgage insurers appear unwilling to follow the leaders
Chicago Daily Herald (05/23/08) Harney, Ken

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac both have eliminated policies requiring mortgage borrowers in declining markets to boost their down payments by 5.... Read More

Senate bill would cut size of Fannie, Freddie loans
San Francisco Chronicle (05/22/08)

Legislation approved by the Senate Banking Committee would reduce the conforming loan limit to $550,000 from the $729,750 temporary ceiling slated to.... Read More

Homes are biggest bargain since 2004
CNNMoney (05/20/08) Christie, Les

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index for the first quarter reveals improving affordability due to low mortg.... Read More

Hempstead: Project draws new input
New York Newsday (05/23/08) Henderson, Nia-Malika

On Long Island, the developers of the massive, $2 billion Lighthouse building plan received support and suggestions at a May 22 public.... Read More

Wells Fargo tightens home loan policies
Los Angeles Times (05/23/08)

In response to rising defaults and changes in mortgage insurers' requirements and pricing, Wells Fargo & Co. is requiring higher credit scores on mortg.... Read More

GSE bill: Path clears in Senate, but then what?
American Banker (05/21/08) P. 1; Kaper, Stacy; Sloan, Steven
 
Although the Senate Banking Committee passed a bill that enhances oversight of the government-sponsored enterpr.... Read More

Where home prices are holding up
Wall Street Journal (05/20/08) P. D1; Opdyke, Jeff D.

Housing experts note that residential prices can vary dramatically within metropolitan areas, but the central cores tend to .... Read More

Senate strikes housing rescue deal
Wall Street Journal (05/20/08) P. A1; Paletta, Damian; Hagerty, James R.

Democrats and Republicans in the Senate have ended weeks of negotiations with a plan that would allow the.... Read More

State set to pass LI affordable housing bill
New York Newsday (05/20/08) Moore, Elizabeth

New York lawmakers could soon pass an inclusionary zoning law for Long Island, forcing developers to earmark 10 percent of their unit.... Read More

Congress moves closer to licensing mortgage brokers
Central Valley Business Times (CA) (05/21/08)

The U.S. Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee has passed legislation that would require all residential mortgage loan.... Read More

NYSAR President Page calls for increase in conforming loan limit
NYSAR joined with a coalition of REALTOR associations from across the nation to call upon Congress today to assist the recovery of the housing market by permanently increasing the conforming loan limi.... Read More

U.S. Senate panel reaches agreement on anti-foreclosure measure
Bloomberg (05/16/08) Vekshin, Alison; Kopecki, Dawn

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has tentatively come to terms on an anti-foreclosure measure, which calls for Fannie Mae and Fredd.... Read More

Credit scores, not income, to govern FHA insurance rates
Chicago Daily Herald (05/16/08) Harney, Ken

The FHA could institute risk-based insurance pricing on all of the loans it insurers by mid-July, basing premiums on FICO scores and down pa.... Read More

First-time homebuyers to get CPF tax exemption?
Suffolk Life (05/14/08) Greenberg, Susan J.

New York State Assemblyman Fred Thiele (R-Bridgehampton) has introduced legislation on behalf of East Hampton that would exempt first-time h.... Read More

Mortgage applications increase
Investor's Business Daily (05/15/08) P. A2

Home loan demand rose during the week ended May 9, 2008, marking the second consecutive week of increased application volume.  The Mortg.... Read More

Foreclosure bill stalls in Senate
Albany Times Union (NY) (05/15/08) Churchill, Chris

In New York, a tepid response from GOP lawmakers could prevent the state Senate from voting on legislation passed by the Assembly th.... Read More

Foreclosures up 65 percent in a year
Washington Times (05/14/08)

RealtyTrac Inc. reports a 65-percent jump in U.S. foreclosure filings nationwide to 243,353 from 147,708 during the year-over-year period ended in Apr.... Read More

NAR: One of three metro areas show price increase in first quarter
One out of three metropolitan areas in the US showed rising home prices in the first quarter, according to the latest quarterly survey from the National Association of REALTORS.

In the first .... Read More

Senate passes a flood program bill
National Underwriter (Property & Casualty - Risk & Benefits Management Edition) (05/13/08) Postal, Arthur D.

The U.S. Senate passed the Flood Insurance Reform and Modernization.... Read More

Parking space as living space?
New York Times (05/11/08) Brenner, Elsa

In Westchester County, N.Y., housing director Deborah DeLong says just 970 moderate-income housing units were erected from 2000 through 2005, an.... Read More

2007 subprime off 70 percent
National Mortgage News (05/12/08) Vol. 32,  No. 32, P. 1; Muolo, Paul

Subprime origination volumes plummeted 70 percent to $180 billion in 2007, according to a new survey from Nat.... Read More

NY announces $25 million for affordable housing
Associated Press (05/07/08)

Gov. David Paterson has announced that $25 million has been approved by the New York State Housing Finance Agency and the New York State Affordable Housing .... Read More

More homes hit market in April
Wall Street Journal (05/08/08) P. D4; Hagerty, James R.

Many sellers hurried to list their homes in April before potential buyers go shopping this spring. According to the real estate .... Read More

55+ consumer seeking quality, not downsizing
Kitchen and Bath Design News (05/01/08)

Baby Boomers are emerging as one of the more lucrative housing market demographic groups and will be responsible for approximately 250,000 new-h.... Read More

Homeowner rescue bill passed despite veto threat
New York Times (05/09/08) P. C3; Herszenhorn, David M.