News

Recent gains in housing are closely linked to rising consumer confidence, according to numbers juxtaposed and analyzed by Clear Capital in its latest report on home price movements. The feeble underpinnings of price increases, however, could soon topple, according to the real estate valuation company. Threatening to temper consumer sentiment--and in turn, home prices--is the fear Congress will not act in time to avert the looming "fiscal cliff" of $500 billion in tax increases and spending cuts that lie in wait at year-end, Clear Capital warns.

Wall Street took notice as the Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS) Working Group fired its first shot against a major financial institution.

Interthinx and Middleberg Riddle & Gianna are teaming up to offer attorney-backed compliance services to mortgage lenders.

Mortgage-related business closings and failures are on track to post fewer incidences in 2012 than any year since the mortgage crisis began. In the third quarter, 17 mortgage-related businesses failed, down from 25 in the previous quarter and 31 in the same quarter last year, according to a findings released by Mortgage Daily. Bank closings followed this trend, falling from 15 failings in the second quarter to 12 in the third. Both numbers are down from the third quarter of last year, when 26 banks failed.

According to Fannie Mae's monthly summary, its book of business grew at a compound annualized rate of 1.9 percent in August, bringing its year-to-date growth to 0.4 percent.

MGIC Investment Corporation is on its way to resolving stipulations from Freddie Mac in order to continue issuing insurance.

Having reached its apparent peak in June, construction spending continued its backward slide in August, the Census Bureau reported.

Despite some heavy risks hanging over the industry, Moody's is projecting a positive future for the nation's homebuilders, the agency revealed.

The former Beverly Hills home of Ernest Borgnine has hit the market in Los Angeles, California. The gated estate, designed in 1938 by architect L.G. Scherer, is currently listed for $3.395 million.

More than 800 homeowners from across Missouri, Kansas, and Nebraska, came together with local business leaders, real estate professionals, politicians, and civil rights leaders this week in support of homeownership. The rally took place in Independence, Missouri, and is one of nine events organized by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) to urge elected officials to back homeownership initiatives.