First, it was the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). Now, it’s the Emergency Homeowner’s Loan Program (EHLP). Both are government programs for housing, and both are due to fall short of their initial goals. Underperformance seems to be the

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) offered two plans for revamping mortgage servicing compensation. One model would reduce percentage-based servicing fees on government-sponsored enterprise loans and set aside three to five basis points of the principal balance to fund

The Appraisal Institute, the nation’s largest association of appraisers, has released a new form focused on adequately valuing the green features of a property. Appraisals have a long, storied history with many Realtors and builders, and sometimes not in

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke may have stopped in Cleveland to speak about emerging market economies, but his comments during the Q&A session that followed, which included addresses on housing, are garnering all the attention. Repeating statements he made

The question lately regarding mortgages is, how low can mortgage rates go? In the case of the 30-year FRM, the answer is still pending. After falling to a historical low of 4.09 percent, the 30-year rates have fallen yet again

The National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index, which measures the number of contracts to purchase previously owned homes, declined 1.2 percent from July to August, it still remains above 2010 levels. The August index, at 88.6, was

Standard & Poor’s released the latest Case-Shiller Indices yesterday, reporting gains in metropolitan home prices for the fourth straight month. Those indices, however, rely on nominal prices, not the “real” prices that consider inflation. But thanks to Bill McBride

Standard & Poor’s (S&P), the mammoth credit rating agency whose questionable ratings of risky credit derivatives are blamed for the 2008 financial crisis, is currently under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for ratings it gave to

The number of active mortgage originators declined for the fourth year in a row, a sign that economic conditions may not yet be ideal for sustained economic growth. According to the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), which tracks

According to a new report from noted research firm CoreLogic, the shadow inventories for U.S. residential housing continued their downward slope in July, falling to 1.6 million units, or a five-month supply of homes. Shadow inventory properties that are

Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has just released the findings of its latest Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices that charts monthly price trends in the housing market. The newest report, which surveys home prices

The National Association of Realtors (NAR), Mortgage Bankers Association and the National Association of Home Builders have stepped up their lobbying efforts to Congress in recent weeks to fight the planned expiration of the federal loan limit size increase

Representatives from both the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are asking the government to renew an $88 million fund for HUD non-profit counseling that was cut in recent budget negotiations. “This

Newly-released data from the Census Bureau shows that though new home sales continued their sideways trend, declines were slight and above both analyst predictions and year-over-year sales. August 2011 sales were at 295,000, a 2.3 percent decline from July

Predictions from analysts and fellow indexes alike point to a positive showing on Tuesday from the Case-Shiller, the influential report from Standard & Poor’s that charts housing prices, though long-term analysis remains complicated. MacroMarkets, a financial tech company based

According to a noted nonprofit in Berkeley, Calif., nonprofits should not only play a key role in any government plan for REOS, but should also ensure that REOs effectively help the entire community. The government’s catalog of REOs is