Thursday, December 30, 2010

Mortgage Assistance Tapers Off
For more: http://bit.ly/dLgwZo
The number of troubled U.S. homeowners receiving assistance with their mortgages fell in the third quarter as the government's foreclosure-prevention effort tapered off.
House Appraisals Under Fire
For more: http://bit.ly/ep1oQx
Some homeowners say the valuation method is too stingy, preventing them from refinancing or borrowing against their houses.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

2010 worst year for bank failures since 1992
For more: http://wapo.st/hNe0Hp
Amid high unemployment, a struggling economy and a still-devastated real estate market, the nation is closing out the year with 157 bank failures, up from 140 in 2009. As recently as 2006, before the bubble burst, there were none.
Housing Recovery Stalls
For more: http://bit.ly/hJ58yw
A new bout of declining home prices is threatening to hamper the U.S. recovery, just as consumers and the overall economy have been showing signs of healing.
GOP Shifts on Fannie, Freddie Overhaul
For more: http://bit.ly/em2Xap
As Republicans prepare to assume control of the House next week, they aren't in as big a rush to privatize mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, cautioning that withdrawing government support in the housing market should be gradual.
Hard Call for FDIC: When to Shut Bank
For more: http://bit.ly/gr8i2Q
More than 300 U.S. banks and savings institutions failed in the past four years. But there are huge differences in how sick they were when regulators seized them.
Consumer Confidence Slipped in December
For more: http://nyti.ms/hw9JeC
Consumer confidence in the United States unexpectedly deteriorated in December, while prices of single-family homes fell at almost double the expected pace in October, tempering growing optimism on the economy’s recovery.
‘Doubling Up’ in Recession-Strained Quarters
For more: http://nyti.ms/ezVhdL
For the three generations of the Maggi family crowded into a recession-beaten three-bedroom ranch house here, the tension from living on top of one another for the last 10 months sometimes erupts at unexpected moments.

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Obama administration steps up monitoring of banks that miss TARP payments
For more: http://wapo.st/gH88X3
The moves come as the number of banks that failed to make at least one dividend payment to the government rose to 132 in the last quarter. These "deadbeats," as they are sometimes called, are virtually all community lenders and collectively received billions of dollars in taxpayer assistance.
U.S. Entices Big Banks in Canada
For more: http://nyti.ms/grvhda
Stephen Harper, the prime minister of Canada, is among the many Canadians who regularly remind the world that their country’s banking system was left largely unscathed by the global recession and credit market collapse because of its regulation and prudent management.
Ally to Pay Fannie Mae $462 Million
For more: http://nyti.ms/dSOFYS
Ally Financial said Monday that it would pay $462 million to settle buyback claims on $292 billion in home loans it sold to Fannie Mae before the industry tightened underwriting standards in the wake of the financial crisis.
Shoring Up Banks So None Fail
For more: http://nyti.ms/gUc1FZ
Global regulators are expected to reach an agreement that would make a select group of megabanks hold higher levels of capital. That requirement will make them safer, while removing some of the benefit they get from being big. But eliminating the taxpayer guarantee enjoyed by large lenders will require more fundamental measures, which will take years to achieve.

Monday, December 27, 2010

Prepping foreclosed homes for resale can be hazardous
For more: http://bit.ly/gd0LUJ
Stolen appliances, oceans of junk and even the occasional abandoned cat – it's all part of the business of securing and fixing up foreclosed homes.
Getting Your House Sold in 2011
For more: http://bit.ly/hlPkXz
If your New Year's resolution involves selling a home in 2011, you've got some work to do: There's lots of inventory out there. And in a buyer's market like this one, getting an offer on a home can be challenging.
New Rules of Finance: 'Thrift Is the New Black'
For more: http://bit.ly/gzVdMF
After a few brutal years, promises of easy wealth ring hollow. That won't stop some people from trying to guarantee an easy path to riches, but I'll let you in on a secret: "Slow and steady wins the race" has never been truer than it is today.