Origination

Mortgage applications rose for the second straight week as key interest rates fell back toward 5%, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

As ominous as the dark smoke that choked the Bay Area while California's most destructive wildfire raged 200 miles north, a second tragedy now is looming over the state — the loss of thousands of homes in an already housing-starved region.

It's in lenders' best interests to show first-time homebuyers how to avoid overextending themselves, which is easy to do in a housing market short on inventory and long on big down payments, the CEO of Freedom Mortgage says.

Consolidation is coming in the mortgage industry, but a protracted timetable will continue to constrict industry profits.

Toll Brothers Inc. reported its first drop in orders since 2014, led by a big falloff in California demand, a sign that high-end property markets are cooling. Shares slumped.

Rejected or not, cities selected as finalists for Amazon's second headquarters are topping the charts of housing markets expected to overperform in 2019 as companies see the value in their proposals, according to Zillow.

The performance of loans included in commercial mortgage-backed securities improved for the fifth consecutive quarter, with delinquencies down 179 basis points over the time frame, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The lack of housing affordability, caused by rising home prices and mortgage rates, remains a roadblock to homeownership.

The San Diego region has no shortage of homes next to fire-prone hillsides covered in highly flammable chaparral and grasslands. The undulating, arid topography has carried flames at mind-boggling speeds in some of the state's most destructive blazes.

No surprise for potential North Texas homebuyers, but a new report ranks Dallas-Fort Worth as one of the U.S. markets that's seen the most home price growth.