Real estate

Fourth-quarter profits at Wintrust Financial in Rosemont, Ill., climbed 65% to $54.6 million from a year earlier, helped largely by acquisitions and increases in mortgage banking and other fee income.

The increase for the month represented the fastest annual pace of appreciation recorded in 2016.

Builders broke ground on more homes than forecast in December as a jump in apartment construction helped cap the seventh straight yearly increase, a report from the Commerce Department showed Thursday.

In a candid, in-depth exit interview, Ted Tozer discusses Ginnie Mae's growth during his seven years at the agency's helm, the need for comprehensive housing finance reform, big banks' retreat from mortgages, counterparty risk management and more.

While precise definitions vary, the term generally describes a smooth customer experience that may not even require a phone call or branch visit.

As mortgage rates continued to move higher, the share of home purchase loans began to increase in December, according to Ellie Mae.

Confidence among homebuilders retreated in January from an 11-year high, suggesting optimism has plateaued following Donald Trump's election victory, a report from the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo showed Wednesday.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development's proposed guidance has stirred up a debate on elevation standards as flooding occurs more frequently and in more unexpected places.

The default rate on first mortgages increased a single basis point in December compared with November but was down 13 basis points over the same month last year, according to the S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices.

To meet a 20% down payment, homebuyers on average have to spend more than two-thirds of the average annual income, according to a report from Zillow.

The Seattle company warned that fourth-quarter profit could fall more than 80% from a year earlier.

Higher interest rates will add stress for millennials looking to buy a home, according to an analysis from Fitch Ratings.

Bank of America Corp.'s fourth-quarter mortgage revenue almost doubled to $519 million from a year earlier.

PNC's fourth-quarter profit improved on higher lending to corporate customers for real estate and other loans.

Wells Fargo, which lost its status as the world's most valuable lender after a scandal in its retail bank, said profit dropped 5.4% as revenue from its mortgage business declined.

Homebuyers in Brooklyn competed for a record-low number of listings in the fourth quarter, driving up prices in the New York borough that's historically been seen as a refuge from Manhattan's high costs.

Housing is not in a bubble even though home prices are unlikely to decline in the next two years, according to a new report from Arch MI.

Homeowners in predominantly black and Hispanic neighborhoods are more likely than their counterparts in predominantly white neighborhoods to be underwater on their mortgages, according to a report from Zillow.

A Trulia analysis of U.S. listings shows that 3.9% of homes that moved from for-sale to pending moved back to for-sale again, nearly double the rate in 2015.

Refinance volume rose among millennial borrowers in November, reflecting a nationwide trend, according to Ellie Mae.