Elina Tarkazikis

New-home mortgage applications are on the rise, incentivizing builders to add housing stock in a market drained of supply and signaling a healthy spring buying season ahead, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Home sale prices posted their smallest annual gain since March 2012 and mortgage rates have declined, leaving bidders less inclined to race for a deal, but at the same time, a cooler housing market suggests more consumers may be willing to explore homeownership.

Millennials make up the largest cohort of homebuyers, but a quarter of them don't even know their credit score, which could be a call for mortgage lenders to help them prepare to enter the housing market.

Real estate experts think homebuilders should prevent natural disasters with better strategies, but this could drive up already rising prices and hurt buyer affordability, according to Zillow.

From New York to Seattle, here's a look at cities with the best homebuyer purchasing power for the upcoming competitive spring market, based on changes in house values compared to local wages and mortgage rates.

Consumers have much more confidence in the job market than they do on housing, and home prices could be the culprit, according to Fannie Mae.

Despite the pool of refinance candidates shrinking 30% from late 2017, the incentive for mortgage borrowers to refi shot up at the start of the year on interest rate declines, according to Black Knight.

Homeowners are stepping up their renovation game this year, which could be good news for home improvement financing, but bad news for the overall housing market as consumers age in place.

Home price appreciation tapered as buyers battling tight inventory and rising housing costs pulled back from the market, according to CoreLogic.

While millennials comprise the largest cohort of homebuyers, the aging baby boomer generation has created 7.86 million more homeowners and 2.82 million renters age 60 and older — growth rates higher than any other demographic.

Whether through greater investments in technology and talent, or streamlining back-end processes to improve the decision-making process, mortgage servicers are doing more to prioritize borrowers. Here's a look at seven of these borrower-focused initiatives and how they're reshaping mortgage servicing.

Only a fraction of mortgage borrowers return to their servicers to originate or refinance a mortgage loan, and it may be the industry's fault for not exhausting enough effort to keep them around.

Mortgage prepayment speeds fell to a 19-year trough despite recent interest rate declines, but could rise if those lower rates lead to an increase in home purchases, according to Black Knight.

Fewer mortgage borrowers are falling behind on their payments, and consumers' broader borrowing habits indicate an increased willingness to turn to nontraditional sources like fintechs for their lending needs, according to TransUnion.

Home affordability is at a 10-year low across the nation. Here's a look at the 12 cities most in danger of a housing bubble in 2019.

From FICOs to purchase volume, here's a look at seven mortgage lending trends that will shape the housing market this year.

Despite a healthier economy supporting wage and income growth, the narrative that homebuyers are struggling to afford homes for sale hasn't changed much. House values are still on the rise, meaning shoppers are struggling with how much house they can afford.

Refinance volume slipped following growth in mortgage rates, and loans refinanced through the Home Affordable Housing Program barely made a dent in overall volume, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Women have lower incomes than men, limiting their options when buying a house. But in some of the more pricey housing markets, single female homeowners outpace single male homeowners, which could suggest some tightening in the home value gap, according to Attom Data Solutions.

From Romeo, Colo., to Valentines, Va., here's a look at closing costs in some of the country's romantically-named cities this Valentine's Day.