real estate news: Is Freddie Mac Betting Against Homeowners? - 01/30/12 03:33 PM
According to an investigation by NPR and ProPublica, Freddie Mac may be profiting off homeowners' high-rate mortgages. The report suggests that at the same time the agency was profiting, it was also making it more difficult for those locked in high-rate mortgages to refinance.
Freddie and its cousin, Fannie Mae, have imposed new rules and regulations, and introduced new fees, thereby narrowing the number of borrowers who qualify for a Freddie-insured mortgage.
Scott Simon, managing director of the mortgage-backed securities team at bond trading investment firm PIMCO, says this puts the government-sponsored entity (GSE) "squarely on the opposite side of the … (5 comments)
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real estate news: Housing Market Poised for Turnaround in 2012? - 01/20/12 03:37 PM
This week was big for housing news, and the latest data suggests there's reason for cautious optimism about this year's real estate market. U.S. loan delinquency rates fell in year-over-year in December, down 7.7 percent from 2010. That rate is unchanged from November, but represents a significant drop from the previous year.
Some more good news?
Housing starts rose year-over-year in December, climbing 24.9 percent from 2010. Rates on a 30-year fixed mortgage fell to yet another all time low, hitting 3.88 percent. Of course it's not all good news. Even with the year-over-year drop in delinquencies, there are still 6.1 … (4 comments)
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real estate news: Foreclosure Rates Fall in 2011 - 01/12/12 11:41 AM
According to a report released by RealtyTrac today, foreclosure filings fell 34 percent in 2011. That seems like good news, but it's deceiving. The reason behind the decline is not more people paying their mortgage, but the robosigning controversey that spurred lenders to perform a massive review of foreclosure proceedings.
The review meant lenders stopped processing new foreclosures while they cleaned up their existing inventory. This created a huge backlog in the foreclosure pipeline. So, while it ultimately decreased the number of filings in 2011, it also means lenders will be playing catch-up this year.
According to Brandon Moore, CEO of … (3 comments)
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real estate news: Freddie Mac Gives Unemployed Homeowners a Break - 01/10/12 10:52 AM
Last Friday, Freddie Mac announced unemployed homeowners will be allowed to reduce to suspend mortgage payments for up to a year under a new policy announced by the mortgage finance firm. The new rules will take effect on February 1, 2012.
According to the news release, Freddie Mac will give mortgage lenders the authority to extend forbearance without prior approval for six months, and the agency can extend approval for up to an additional six months after that.
Homeowners are still responsible for paying off their full mortgage plus interest after the forbearance period ends.
Previously, Freddie allowed lenders to grant … (2 comments)
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real estate news: 2012 Housing Market Predictions - 12/08/11 12:07 PM
It's no secret the housing market was in rough shape this year. Fewer homeowners were underwater, but the number was still high: According to the latest figures from CoreLogic, over 22 percent of residential properties were in negative equity at the end of Q3 2011. Home sales rose, but prices continued to fall, with a recent Zillow survey indicating a 4 percent year-over-year drop.
With all that bad news, the question on many people's minds is "What will 2012 bring?" I make my housing market predictions for 2012 on my CBS MoneyWatch blog this week.
Some of the key takeaways:
Surprisingly, many homeowners … (6 comments)
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real estate news: Robert Pattison and Kristen Stewart's Bel Air Mansion For Sale - 12/07/11 11:01 AM
We've all been hearing a lot of negative news about the housing market as of late, and it's no surprise: The stagnant housing market directly impacts the economy as a whole. That said, all the bad news can bring even the most optimistic person down.
Sometimes it's necessary to have a little fun to combat the housing market blues, and that's what I'm doing today on my CBS MoneyWatch blog. The latest news out of Hollywood is the former home of Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattison ("Robsten" to all you Twihards), stars of the "Twilight" series, is up for sale.
The … (2 comments)
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real estate news: FHA's Total Delinquency Rate Tops 17 Percent - 12/02/11 11:57 AM
There was bad news this week for the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) - according to Edward Pinto, Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former executive vice president and chief financial officer at Fannie Mae, FHA's total deliquency rate topped 17 percent in October.
That's a huge number. Since FHA has 7.3 million loans outstanding, a rate of 17 percent means more than 1 million loans are delinquent. What's worse is FHA already knows about $41 billion in losses and only has $28 billion in liquid assets, meaning they have a $13 billion dollar hole they need to fill.
What's … (5 comments)
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