Economy

Banks could originate 300,000 more home loans per quarter and face only a slightly higher risk of default, according to a new report. But lenders are unlikely to loosen lending standards until they are sure that Fannie, Freddie and the FHA have eased up on buyback requests.

Contracts to purchase previously owned homes unexpectedly dropped in October as tighter credit and weak wage gains held back would-be buyers.

The Census Bureau/HUD American Housing Survey isn't just a great source of factoids about the country's housing stock; it's chock-full of fascinating details with mortgage lending implications.

Fannie Mae has partnered with the Detroit Land Bank Authority to stabilize distressed neighborhoods.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will let borrowers who have gone through foreclosure buy back their homes at market prices under a policy shift announced by the regulator for the two U.S.-owned companies.

More property owners are jumping on a drop in financing costs and loosening terms to pay off their mortgages.

According to Home Mortgage Disclosure and Mortgage Bankers Association data, independent, nonbank mortgage lenders originated 40% of the home purchase loans made in 2013.

Home prices in 20 U.S. cities advanced at a slower pace in the 12 months through September as the housing market continued to make gradual progress.

Part two of this three-part series covers what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau wants to see from originators if they close loans in their own name.

New initiatives meant to increase access to credit have rekindled the debate over whether housing counseling is the best and most cost-effective way for preparing consumers to become mortgage borrowers.

Altisource Portfolio Solutions, a mortgage technology company in Luxembourg, has acquired Owners.com, an online property listings service in San Francisco, for $20 million.

Some topics of conversation for mortgage originators to discuss with their real estate referral partners.

Giving roughly 5 million immigrants at least temporary relief from deportation could conceivably ease lenders' and borrowers' qualms about mortgages to undocumented workers who qualify with individual taxpayer identification numbers.

Bond investors are wresting higher yields from landlords in the fledgling business where rental homes are financed by credit markets.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac updated their representation and warranties frameworks in a move designed to encourage mortgage lenders to ease credit restrictions by limiting repurchase requirements.

The average rate for the 30-year mortgage dropped below 4% compared with the previous week, according to a report by Freddie Mac.

The number of mortgages refinanced grew by four percentage points in October from September, according to an Ellie Mae report.

An automated consumer training technology aims to mitigate compliance risk in loans outside qualified mortgage standards for liability protection.

October housing sales figures in California remained tepid despite the lowest mortgage rates in 18 months, according to a new report from the California Association of Realtors.

Purchases of previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly rose in October to a one-year high as low borrowing costs helped sustain the recovery in residential real estate.