Economy

The strong recovery in commercial real estate has enabled borrowers to resolve a lot of problem loans made before the financial crisis, but Fitch Ratings continues to expect no recoveries from "hope notes."

A proposal issued two weeks ago by the FHFA calls on the two government-sponsored enterprises to identify opportunities to increase their purchases of small multifamily properties in rural areas, sparking some concern among lenders.

Manhattan's luxury-home market is losing its luster.

After lenders and their technology providers spent much of 2015 implementing the TILA-RESPA integrated disclosures, forthcoming compliance audits and a government-sponsored enterprise plan to start collecting data from the new forms will tell if those efforts truly paid off.

Changes to the tax code approved by Congress may set the stage for increased privatization of real estate investment trusts, according to a new report from Fitch Ratings.

Property Assessed Clean Energy loans have been available in Florida since 2010, but lending, as well as securitization of these loans, has lagged far behind California largely due to a series of lawsuits challenging the program's validity.

Interest rates on fixed-rate mortgages remained largely unchanged this week, according to Freddie Mac.

Bill de Blasio's plan to create apartments for New York's poor and middle class has come under fire from community leaders who say that what developers and the mayor call "affordable" remains out of reach for those in need.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are telling lenders that they are willing to retain loans with defects if they believe the defects are minor and can be fixed. But Freddie is one-upping Fannie by offering to retain such loans without charging lenders a fee.

Senior citizens' equity in their homes rose by about $147 billion to $5.76 trillion, from the second quarter to the third quarter, according to the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association.

The price of the loans underlying commercial mortgage-backed securities increased modestly from October to November, according to DebtX.

The rising number of Chinese buying U.S. homes could be a boon for investors with a stake in residential mortgages.

New homes sold at a slower pace than projected in November, a sign momentum in housing is cooling as the year draws to a close.

Mortgage applications increased 7.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending Dec. 18, compared to a week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Arch Mortgage Insurance introduced a new pricing program to better aligns a policy's risk with the amount of the premium. But analysts have expressed concerns about pricing competition.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency appears to be on course to decide next year whether Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should update their credit scoring models.

Existing-home sales plummeted in November confirming fears in the mortgage industry that a new consumer disclosure rule is delaying mortgage closings.

Vestin Realty Mortgage I Inc. in Las Vegas said it will seek to remove its common stock from trading on Nasdaq.

Sales of previously owned homes slumped in November to the lowest level since April of last year as a change in industry rules lengthened the amount of time it took buyers to close on a deal.

Home prices are likely to decline because of the increase in short-term interest rates, but observers are split on whether it will hurt or help sales.