Real Estate News
Why Millennials Aren’t Buying Homes
Data shows that homeownership among millennials is down, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t interested in buying a home. In the last two decades, homeownership in the U.S. has declined across the board and especially so for young Americans. The rate of homeownership under the age of 35 has declined 9.8 percent since 1996. So […]
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JPMorgan Accepts $13 Billion Fine For Lending Practices
JPMorgan Chase Bank agreed to pay a $13 billion fine to the U.S. government for its role in the disastrous mortgage lending practices that landed more than 15 million American homeowners underwater. The announcement was made by Eric Schneiderman, the attorney general for New York, who chaired a state and federal workgroup investigating the wrongdoing. […]
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FHA Steps in to Help Nursing Homes by Backing Mortgages
Attempts by nursing home operators to stay relevant and profitable in the constantly changing world of health care, received a boost from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) last year. The FHA stepped up to insure 458 mortgage loans worth roughly $3 billion during the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2012. Those loans represented a […]
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New Rules Protect Consumers from Overzealous Mortgage Lenders
A new federal regulation puts the onus on lenders to take meaningful steps to ensure a person can afford a home loan, before they actually give them one. The “ability-to-repay” rule was issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to help keep borrowers from wading into mortgages too deep for them to handle. It […]
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Bank of America to Pay $10B to Fannie Mae to Settle Claims
The first week of 2013 has not been a happy new year for some of the nation’s largest banks, particularly Bank of America. On Monday, Bank of America agreed to pay $10 billion to Fannie Mae to clear up claims made on troubled mortgages, mainly associated with Countrywide Financial, the lending group that Bank of […]
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FHA Extends Program that Allows Quick ‘Flips’ of Properties
As the nation continues to wrestle with high unemployment rates and a recuperating real estate market, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) decided to continue one of its popular programs. The FHA extended its temporary waiver allowing loans on quick “flips” of renovated properties past its scheduled Dec. 31 expiration. Real estate flipping is a type […]
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Housing Market Expected to Rebound in 2013
With just a few weeks remaining until the end of the year, millions of Americans are seeking ways to make 2013 better, especially from a financial perspective. From making new real estate investments, refinancing mortgages, entering into reverse mortgages or resorting to a short sale, people are anxious to make all things right. Americans Faced […]
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Obama Eyeing New Leader for Federal Housing Finance Agency
Facing increased scrutiny from housing advocates and community groups, President Barack Obama is being asked once again to sidestep political protocol to replace Ed DeMarco, the acting head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). Obama is being asked to make a “recess appointment” for a new head of the FHFA, the government agency that […]
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Foreclosures on Hold for Holidays as Housing Market Slowly Recovers
With an improving economy and programs aimed at helping homeowners stay current with their mortgages, housing-market analysts say that 2012 will prove to be a turnaround year for homeowners and the country. In addition, mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, along with Bank of America, announced that they would suspend bank repossessions of homes […]
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Bank of America Sued For $1 Billion Over Fraud Allegations
The United States Department of Justice sued Bank of America today for more than $1 billion, accusing the company of deliberately generating substandard home loans and selling them to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. From 2007 to 2009 under a scheme called “the Hustle,” Countrywide Bank – now owned by Bank of America – intentionally […]
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