Housing Market, Homeowner | featured news

While it's cheaper to buy than to rent in most of America's big cities, access to mortgages is tough in the wake of tighter credit standards from banks.

The Obama administration is considering a program to let millions of homeowners refinance at today’s rates.

It's an ominous sign for housing. The percentage of homeowners who have missed at least one mortgage payment has risen for the second straight quarter, the Mortgage Bankers Assn. says.

An initiative from the Obama administration is meant to allow eligible homeowners to postpone all or part of their mortgage payments for a year or more.

Fixed mortgage rates have fallen to their lowest levels of the year, giving Americans more incentive to buy homes or refinance their loans. Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate on the 30-year loan fell to 4.63 percent from 4.71. The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage slipped to 3.82 percent from 3.89 percent. Both are at their lowest points since December. It marked the fourth straight weekly decline.

The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to kill President Barack Obama's signature program to help struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure.

With home prices down and mortgage rates near record lows, a lot of people feel that now is the perfect time to jump into the housing market.

The foreclosure crisis is getting worse as high unemployment and lackluster job prospects force homeowners in an increasing number of U.S. metropolitan areas into dire financial straits....

It's been around since 1913, but its time may be up. Such a change would generate billions of dollars in federal revenue that could be used to cut the deficit while inflicting little pain on most middle-class homeowners.

With one out of every 245 Minnesota housing units in foreclosure during September, news has broken that Wells Fargo, along with other big banks, may have helped push some homeowners off properties with the use of "robo signers."And the bank, with deep ties to Minnesota, has no intention of changing its ways.