A new rule making its way through Washington could restrict access to home loans when the market needs them the most, agents and lenders fear. The rule, which would stipulate what characteristics a mortgage must have to be labeled

Nearly half of lenders expect strategic defaults to increase from 2011 to 2012, according to a quarterly survey by FICO. The survey, which sought opinions from 262 risk managers across the U.S., found that 46 percent of respondents expected

The pilot bidding program for the FHFA’s REO conversion program has been extended by a month, possibly because of high demand. According to a HousingWire article on the program, investors will now have until May to bid on the

FHFA Acting Director Ed DeMarco added spice to the principal reduction pot on Tuesday, coming out in hesitant favor of the measure for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans. Long an opponent of the policy measure, DeMarco said in comments before the Brookings Institution that

The emerging market for converting REO properties into rentals could net as much as $100 billion in 2012 for investors, according to new data from CoreLogic. With assistance from the government’s REO conversion plan, the research firm is reporting

Numerous factors dictate a real estate agent’s success, but a new study in the “Applied Financial Economics” journal explores what impact an agent’s physical attractiveness may have on their prosperity. Entitled “Broker beauty and boon: a study of physical attractiveness

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA were hugely influential in the recent increase of multifamily originations, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). As the MBA explained in a summary of the data, originations

Foreclosure activity was down in the latest foreclosure report from RealtyTrac, which covered foreclosure filings, default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions for the first quarter of 2012. The total properties in these catergories is reported to be 572,928 properties during

Shifting economic factors, including rising rents and competitive home prices, are contributing to a new level of consumer interest in homes, according to Fannie Mae’s March 2012 consumer attitudinal National Housing

Government housing policy since 2008 has been a mixed bag, but the International Monetary Fund is suggesting that more government action, rather than less, may be the answer to the U.S.’ housing woes. In its latest World Economic Outlook

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is proposing a new set of rules that will change how mortgage servicers interact with their consumers. The proposed changes include clarifying billing statements and advance warning of interest-rate changes. “It’s time to

The Federal Reserve issued new policy guidelines to encourage banks to rent out more foreclosed properties and, in effect, bring the number of distressed properties down. According to Reuters, the central bank wrote a policy statement to Congress, suggesting

FHFA Acting Director Ed DeMarco gave tacit support to a principal reductions program for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in comments today before the Brookings Institution. DeMarco, long an opponent of the policy measure, said that under a revised

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury just released the Obama Administration’s Housing Scorecard for March, showing improvement in some areas from previous months. Raphael Bostic, an assistant secretary for

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has delayed a controversial credit rule that some saw as a major obstacle to homeownership. The rule, which we originally covered last week, would require lenders to analyze the creditworthiness of its borrowers with much

Banks are readying more than one million foreclosed properties for the real estate market in 2012, according to a new study by Moody’s Analytics. The sales will come amidst a turbulent foreclosure landscape. Prices for the 1.25 million REO