Purchase

Fueled by a rush for housing after wildfires burned thousands of homes, a record amount of money changed hands in the Sonoma County, Calif., real estate market at the end of 2017.

The percentage of refinances grew to 40% of all closed loans in December, according to Ellie Mae.

Even as mortgage rates rose to their highest level since March, application activity increased from one week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Sales of existing homes rose slightly in December, helping the metro Milwaukee housing market to its best performance in 12 years.

PennyMac Financial Services Inc. is setting up its new mortgage broker channel to target home-buyer and higher-balance loan segments, and eventually become one of the dominant players in the space.

Back in September, a modest ranch house sold in Sunnyvale for $782,000 over its asking price, signaling that the Bay Area housing market was even crazier than it seemed.

Here's a look at the top 10 markets where it's more affordable to buy a home than rent a three-bedroom property.

Here's a look at 10 housing markets where limited competition, lower prices and plentiful inventory give buyers the upper hand in home sales transactions.

Baltimore-area home sale prices continued to rise in December, even as the number of sales declined from the same time last year.

The new cap on the mortgage interest deduction should help the first time home buyer market by forcing sellers to lower prices, at least in the near term.

Mortgage application volume started the year on the upswing because of higher refinance activity, even with a slight increase in rates.

Home sales and prices in metro Denver once again hit record highs in 2017, but the pace of price gains slowed as the market reached a higher altitude.

The Santa Fe-area housing market in 2017 saw the largest number of sales in more than a decade, and average home prices were some of the highest since the national housing bubble burst in 2008.

Consumer credit scores are improving, but many qualified borrowers are still hesitant about buying a house. New tools are helping lenders better assess risk and show consumers with lower credit scores they can qualify for mortgages.

Consumer confidence in the housing market during December was better than it was 12 months prior but weaker than in November.

Oahu's 2017 housing market finished strong with gains in both condominium and single-family home sales and median prices, and experts from the real estate industry expect the momentum to continue this year.

MountainView is brokering a nonrecourse $3.5 billion package of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage servicing rights on behalf of an unnamed seller.

Refinance volume fueled recent market gains by nonbank mortgage originators. But lower volume amid the shift to purchase lending has nonbanks trimming headcounts and may position banks to recapture market share.

Technology-focused mortgage lender loanDepot has created another joint venture with a homebuilder, this time with AV Homes.

Manhattan home resales fell in the fourth quarter as buyers wavered ahead of the expected tax overhaul and stood firm in their refusal to overpay.