Economy

The price of homes rose 0.3% in April from the previous month, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Fannie Mae will no longer charge mortgage lenders to submit loans to its Desktop Underwriter automated underwriting system, a decision that follows a similar move by Freddie Mac earlier this month.

Purchases of new homes rose in May to the highest level in seven years, signaling the industry is gaining momentum heading toward the second half of the year.

Nonbank lender HomeBridge Financial Services has lifted the curtain on a new mortgage platform aimed at community banks and credit unions.

Wells Fargo Bank is marketing $914 million of commercial mortgage bonds, according to a presale report released by Kroll Bond Rating Agency.

Royal Financial in Chicago has agreed to sell $29.1 million in distressed assets, a deal mandated by a bankruptcy judge as part of the company's acquisition of PNA Bank.

Fewer consumers today believe it's difficult to get a mortgage than a year ago. However, the majority of survey respondents still think the origination process is too tough and that there are too few homes on the market.

Previously owned homes sold in May at the fastest pace since November 2009, driven by first-time buyers and indicating budding momentum in the residential real estate market.

A Lone Star Funds affiliate agreed to buy U.S. apartment landlord Home Properties Inc. in a transaction valued at about $7.6 billion, including debt.

Varde Partners has closed a $500 million fund that will invest in real estate securities, the firm announced this week.

U.S. consumers are increasingly using their credit cards rather than tapping home-equity credit lines to pay debts or finance a big purchase, according to Sanford C. Bernstein.

KB Home rose the most in three months after reporting fiscal second-quarter earnings that beat analysts' estimates and a jump in orders for houses.

Black and Hispanic home-loan applicants in New York are more than twice as likely to be denied as white applicants, a study by StreetEasy found.

Pressure from community groups forced Valley National Bancorp to strengthen its commitment to lend in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods in order to win approval for a Florida acquisition. Other banks, too, are now placing CRA efforts front-and-center as they aim to sell deals to the public and their regulators.

Ginnie Mae's issuance of mortgage-backed securities exceeded Fannie Mae's issuance in May for the first time since the late 1980s.

Homebuyers snapped up properties more quickly in May, the brokerage firm Redfin said.

Mortgage rates dropped as Europeans worrying about a Greek default beefed up investments in American mortgage-backed bonds.

Optimism abounds in Fannie Mae's survey of mortgage lenders for the second quarter of 2015.

Residential mortgages for new purchases increased in May, after a steady decline for the previous 12 months, according to Ellie Mae's monthly volume report.

Wells Fargo has hired a new head of commercial real estate lending for its Orange County, Calif., office.