Interest rates

With the home selling season winding down and autumn in full swing, here's a look at the cities where both home purchase prices and monthly rents are starting to ease.

Former Chair Janet Yellen defended the Fed, expressed worry for the economy and gave advice to women on the rise at the MBA Annual Convention this week.

Mortgage applications decreased sharply from one week earlier as key interest rates stayed above 5%, although purchase volume grew from a year ago, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.

Mortgage-related earnings at five banks were lower due to the effect of higher interest rates on loan volume this year, even though late-season homebuyers improved consecutive-quarter origination numbers at three companies.

Mortgage applications fell last week as rates for the 30-year fixed conforming loan topped 5% for the first time since 2011, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.

Rising interest rates, both current and the prospect for future increases, took a toll on consumers' outlook on the housing market during September, according to Fannie Mae.

The new policy, meant to assist borrowers in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, will let servicers evaluate borrowers using pre-disaster payment information.

Despite available home equity shooting up in the first quarter, the share of total equity withdrawn by borrowers hit a four-year low, likely due to an increase in interest rates, according to Black Knight.

Higher interest rates on home mortgages drove the share of loans used to purchase houses rather than refinance to new heights in May.

Despite the long, stratospheric rise of home prices in the U.S., the inflation-adjusted monthly payment on the median single-family home in 2017 was less than in 1987, when home prices were lower but interest rates were higher.