Housing Woes Fuel Apartment Surge
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Falling home prices and lethargic sales have been bad news for homeowners, but a boost for one group of real-estate investors: apartment-building landlords. As millions of families switch from being homeowners to renters, apartment-building values have soared.

Revamping, Home Depot Woos Women
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In the spring, Home Depot hopes to turn a woman’s fancy toward redecorating. So it is pushing curtains in the hues of “tilled soil” and paint in “cornbread,” delicate almond-colored benches with matching scalloped mirrors and rugs in colors like “Wilderstein brook trout,” all designed by Martha Stewart.

Americans increasingly view global economy as a negative
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A growing number of Americans consider the accelerating trend toward globalization a bad thing for the United States. At the same time, a majority now see being the world's No. 1 economic power as an important national goal.

Mortgage Rates Rise; 30-Year at 4.8%
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Mortgage rates rose in the latest week, leaving the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages closer to 5%, according to a weekly survey by Freddie Mac.

For Housing, A Quick Fix Or Less Risk
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What can be done with Frannie? We love her and we need her. But we have to get along without her, or at least learn to live without relying on her so much. Frannie is an amalgam of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two government-sponsored enterprises that became government-run operations after the financial crisis left them insolvent.

HSBC Is Said to Be the Focus of a Tax-Evasion Investigation
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Federal authorities are considering whether to serve a broad legal summons on HSBC to ascertain whether it sold tax-evasion services to scores of wealthy American clients, people briefed on the matter said Wednesday.

Federal Reserve Statement on Monetary Policy
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The full text of the statement released Wednesday by the Federal Reserve.

A Reservist in a New War, Against Foreclosure
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While Sgt. James B. Hurley was away at war, he lost a heartbreaking battle at home. In violation of a law intended to protect active military personnel from creditors, agents of Deutsche Bank foreclosed on his small Michigan house, forcing Sergeant Hurley’s wife, Brandie, and her two young children to move out and find shelter elsewhere.

New home sales lowest in 47 years
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Buyers purchased the fewest number of new homes last year on records going back 47 years.

Financial Crisis Was Avoidable, Inquiry Finds
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The 2008 financial crisis was an “avoidable” disaster caused by widespread failures in government regulation, corporate mismanagement and heedless risk-taking by Wall Street, according to the conclusions of a federal inquiry.

U.S. Home Prices Slump Again, Hitting New Lows
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The long-predicted double-dip in housing has begun, with cities across the country falling to their lowest point in many years, data released Tuesday showed.

Don't Bank on It
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Banks enjoy guarantees not to fail unless the U.S. government goes down with them, writes Al Lewis. They remain free from regulations that might curb their reckless risk-taking. Yet given these advantages, a spotty financial performance is the best they can do?

Global Price Fears Mount
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Inflation fears—fueled by spiraling food, oil and raw material prices—are mounting around the globe, prompting the head of the European Central Bank to signal that it could raise interest rates in the future even though some countries have been weakened by the Continent's debt crisis.

Most '09 tax changes made to help economy remain
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This year's tax season will look a lot like last year's, with a few sweeteners added.

Mortgage Giants Leave Legal Bills to the Taxpayers
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Late last year, Randy Neugebauer, Republican of Texas and now chairman of the oversight subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee, requested the figures from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. It is the regulator charged with overseeing the mortgage finance companies and acts as their conservator, trying to preserve the company’s assets on behalf of taxpayers.

College Saving Gets Trickier
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Burned by your 529 plan? There's a chance that your provider has sweetened the deal. But recent tax changes may make other strategies more attractive.

A New Landscape for Credit Cards
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Credit cards are back in vogue for both issuers and consumers. Card issuers are again opening the doors for subprime borrowers who were locked out during the recession. They also have retooled their business models to meet new federal regulations.

When Luck Plays a Role in Selling a Home
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WITH the last year such a dismal and confusing period for so many home sellers in New Jersey, some inevitably decided along the way to drop one agent and try another.

More Transparency for Variable-Rate Loans
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As of Jan. 30, lenders will be required to provide more detailed, easier-to-read disclosures — in spread-sheet-style tabular format — of the interest rates and monthly payments associated with all mortgages, most significantly adjustable-rate mortgages, or ARMs.