Housing

There's been chatter that investors are shying away from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities because Congress may not enact housing finance reform. Be skeptical of those claims.

As lawmakers tackle Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, any revamp must lessen risk to the mortgage system and U.S. taxpayers.

When California lawmakers tried earlier this year to force local governments to allow four or more homes on land zoned for single-family residences, fierce pushback from suburban communities stopped the plan in its tracks.

The Federal Housing Administration chief has already been serving as the acting deputy secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Denmark's new government said it plans to take on Blackstone Group Inc. and promised stricter housing laws after criticizing the U.S. firm for what it characterized as an "unsustainable" business model.

The industry has taken some steps to lower barriers to affordable housing, but some observers say that more can be done.

Wisconsin Republican Sean Duffy routinely pushed to restructure the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and authored a bill to reform the flood insurance program.

Cities and counties in Southern California will have to plan for the construction of 1.3 million new homes in the next decade, a figure more than three times what local governments had proposed over the same period, according to a letter released by state housing officials.

The agency says the "disparate impact" standard needs to be amended to align with a recent Supreme Court ruling. But consumer advocates say the change would make it more difficult for borrowers to allege discrimination under the Fair Housing Act.

California officials are threatening legal action if Cupertino, hometown of Apple, doesn't meet its housing goals.