Economy

The Department of Justice reached a $9 million settlement Wednesday with Westerly, R.I.-based Washington Trust over race-based lending discrimination and redlining in the state, saying the bank denied lending services to Black and Hispanic neighborhoods from 2016 to 2021.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a mortgage report based on statistics from 2022 and is looking for ways to simplify the refinance process while considering changes to mortgage servicing standards.

The rise in rates — 10-year Treasury yields are up over a percentage point since mid-May — is one of a series of shocks buffeting what's been a surprisingly resilient economy.

The morning after, the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield touched a 52-week high, but Freddie Mac reported a 1 basis point jump.

Doug Duncan explains why different players in the market have such contradictory takes on the real estate market right now and how to reconcile their varying outlooks.

Fewer of these mortgages are paying off, adding to the amount of credit on investors' books, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

And bond market pricing has moved higher in anticipation of today's Federal Open Market Committee announcement even though most expect no increase in short-term rates.

High mortgage rates and the lack of inventory for sale pushed the sector into a downturn twice recently - between May and November last year and in May of 2023 - according to First American

The 30-year fixed moved 6 basis points this week as investors digested the news from the Consumer Price Index report.

The mortgages are part of a program that received congressional scrutiny earlier this year.