Economy

Sales of previously owned homes unexpectedly climbed in June to the highest level in more than nine years, giving a boost to residential real estate as it approached the end of its busy selling season.

Wintrust Financial in Rosemont, Ill., reported strong momentum from mortgage growth and acquisitions.

HUD reverses course and decides to investigate findings by the Inspector General that some DPA programs don't comply with FHA rules.

Mergers and acquisitions are important, but simply buying out the competition is no longer the road to success.

Property valuation firm LRES will now offer commercial evaluations as a result of its March acquisition of InsideValuation.

Fannie Mae has priced its Connecticut Avenue Securities, the series 2016-C04, at tighter spreads to its previous deal, completed in April.

There were patterns of racial disparities in mortgage originations in the St. Louis, Milwaukee and Minneapolis metropolitan statistical areas, according to the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.

A private flood insurance bill passed by the House is making Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac uneasy because they fear it could lead to greater losses, according to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office.

The Federal Housing Administration released lender guidance spelling out the circumstances under which it will insure mortgages on properties encumbered by Property Assessed Clean Energy liens similar to tax assessments.

Karl "Chip" Case, the co-creator of the S&P/Case-Shiller Index of home prices, has died at 69.

The value of owning a home has never been greater, at least according to one figure buried in a monthly Commerce Department report.

MGIC Investment Corp. earned $109 million in the second quarter, as an income tax provision for the period cut into net income.

Mortgage origination volume is now expected to grow in 2016 versus the prior year, according to Fannie Mae.

In markets where consumers spend a substantial amount of income on housing, it's often cheaper to rent than buy. But in these expensive markets, owning a home is more affordable.

Federal Housing Administration borrowers have been refinancing faster than expected, creating a drag on efforts to build up the capital reserves of the agency's mortgage insurance fund.

Think the $1.9 billion "house" mortgage securitization that JPMorgan completed in April was big?

RealtyTrac is renaming its parent company Attom Data Solutions as it rolls out a new property database that links different data sources into a centralized resource.

Synovus Financial in Columbus, Ga., reported higher second-quarter earnings on solid growth in revenue and loans for investment properties.

New home construction in the U.S. rose more than forecast in June, providing some momentum for residential real estate near the end of its busy selling season.

The promise of digital verification, beyond process improvements and time savings for lenders, is the ability to help both consumer and lender drive to the right outcome more quickly, with greater transparency and predictability along the way.