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Web sites offer real estate agent rankings (AP)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 21:32:48 GMT
AP - Word of mouth is one of the most common ways homebuyers and sellers find a real estate agent. Now, there are several Web sites that tout a more scientific approach: ranking agents based on criteria such as years of experience, how many sales they've closed, and the number of positive testimonials from past clients.
5 Things to Freak Out About (The Motley Fool)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 20:47:14 GMT
The Motley Fool - Our fellow Americans are experiencing a world of hurt -- layoffs, postponed retirements, foreclosures, bankruptcies, and, at best, angst and uncertainty. Your empathy is appreciated, but is that really the best use of your energy right now?
Hypo Real Estate to receive euro20 billion loan (AP)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 18:00:26 GMT
AP - Troubled German lender Hypo Real Estate said Friday it has been granted euro20 billion ($25 billion) in loan guarantees from a government fund, which comes on top of a previous bailout to stabilize its business amid the financial turmoil.
US plans holiday relief from foreclosures, job loss (AFP)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 17:09:07 GMT

The Freddie Mac headquarters in McLean, Virginia. US President George W. Bush signed into law a bill to extend unemployment benefits over the Christmas holiday period and major federal lenders will freeze home foreclosures until the New Year, officials said Friday.(AFP/File/Paul J. Richards)AFP - US President George W. Bush signed into law a bill to extend unemployment benefits over the Christmas holiday period and major federal lenders will freeze home foreclosures until the New Year, officials said Friday.


Fla. governor embraces college tuition increases (AP)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 14:51:59 GMT

REFILE - CORRECTING SPELLING OF CHARLIE CRIST Governor Sonny Perdue of Georgia (L) talks with Governor Charlie Crist of Florida during a Plenary Session at the 2008 Republican Governors Association Annual Conference in Miami November 12, 2008. REUTERS/Hans Deryk (UNITED STATES)AP - Gov. Charlie Crist continued to veer away from his previous opposition to raising tuition with a proposal this week allowing for increases of up to 15 percent a year at all state universities. But a top Democratic lawmaker said it's the wrong time for that course as people struggle with foreclosures and layoffs.


New Look, Same Lenders (BusinessWeek Online)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:08:43 GMT
BusinessWeek Online - 1. The Shift When the subprime market began to collapse in 2006, many lenders and brokers shifted their business to loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration
FHA-Backed Loans: The New Subprime (BusinessWeek Online)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:08:43 GMT
BusinessWeek Online - As if they haven't done enough damage. Thousands of subprime mortgage lenders and brokers -- many of them the very sorts of firms that helped create the current financial crisis -- are going strong. Their new strategy: taking advantage of a long-standing federal program designed to encourage homeownership by insuring mortgages for buyers of modest means.
'Help' Can Be Costly (BusinessWeek Online)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:08:43 GMT
BusinessWeek Online - The implosion of the subprime mortgage market has been a boon to loan-modification consultants who promise to help borrowers refinance and get back on the road to financial stability.
UK home repossessions up 12 pct in 3Q from 2Q (AP)
Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:49:34 GMT
AP - Home repossessions in Britain jumped 12 percent to 11,300 in the third quarter from the previous quarter, the Council of Mortgage Lenders said Friday, more evidence that the financial crisis is taking its toll on households and the ailing housing market.
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac suspend some foreclosures (Reuters)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:33:13 GMT

The headquarters of mortgage lender Freddie Mac is seen in Mclean, Virginia, near Washington in this September 8, 2008 file photo. (Jason Reed/Reuters)Reuters - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two biggest U.S. home loan finance companies, on Thursday said they would suspend foreclosures of occupied homes until early 2009, as the government moves to stem the tide of home losses plaguing the economy.


Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac halting foreclosures (AP)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:24:22 GMT
AP - Mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are suspending foreclosures for about 16,000 households during the holiday season.
Foreclosure Pincers Tighten On Condo Complexes (Investor's Business Daily)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:46:12 GMT
Investor's Business Daily - As president of the Venetia condo association board, Sharon Dodge suffers from a malaise spreading fast across the U.S.: foreclosure fallout.
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac to suspend US home foreclosures (AFP)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:35:52 GMT

The Freddie Mac headquarters in McLean, Virginia. The two US mortgage finance giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, said on Thursday they halt home foreclosures until early January as they modify loans to help keep owners in their homes.(AFP/File/Paul J. Richards)AFP - The two US mortgage finance giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, said on Thursday they halt home foreclosures until early January as they modify loans to help keep owners in their homes.


US thrifts swing to $4B loss in 3Q (AP)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:04:04 GMT
AP - U.S. thrifts lost $4 billion in the third quarter as they set aside $7.9 billion to cover losses from bad mortgages and other loans amid worsening conditions in the U.S housing market, their government regulator said Thursday.
Banks, raters face subprime lawsuits and new rules (Reuters)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:45:05 GMT
Reuters - The U.S. subprime mortgage crisis has sparked more than 250 class action suits against Wall Street banks and rating companies and will lead to rising regulation in 2009, top litigators said on Thursday.
San Francisco-area homes sales jump nearly 39 percent (Reuters)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 19:06:56 GMT
Reuters - Home sales in the San Francisco Bay area rose nearly 39 percent in October from a year earlier and the median home price posted a record fall as bargain hunters bought properties in markets hit hard by foreclosures, a report on Thursday said.
FDIC chief calls again for foreclosure relief (AP)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:10:07 GMT
AP - FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said Thursday she is "still hopeful" of using federal bailout money to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.
UK mortgage lending down 44 pct from a year ago (AP)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:51:15 GMT
AP - Mortgage lending in Britain was down 44 percent in October compared to a year ago, further evidence the economic downturn is hurting an already weak property market, the Council of Mortgage Lenders said Thursday.
China shares fall but property, metals limit loss (AP)
Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:12:49 GMT
AP - Chinese shares joined the global sell-off Thursday but gains in property developers and gold miners provided a floor for the market, partly offsetting losses in banks and insurers.
The Bank Terrorist (Investor's Business Daily)
Wed, 19 Nov 2008 23:55:25 GMT
Investor's Business Daily - Housing: For years, a self-described "bank terrorist" blackmailed banks into making bad home loans in our inner cities. Now those loans are defaulting by the millions, and he's blaming banks.