“McMansions,” the derogatory name given to overly-large, mass-produced suburban homes, were as much a feature of the housing boom as subprime loans and credit default swaps, with new developments of such homes seemingly springing up wherever land was available. But as

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke offered measured comments on housing in a speech at the National Association of Home Builder’s (NAHB) International Builders Show in Orlando, Florida on Friday, describing a market more in transition than one that has

Housing affordability reached record heights in 2011, according to the National Association of Realtor’s (NAR) latest Housing Affordability Index (HAI),reaching its highest levels since the index was first launched in 1970. Based on median home price, median family income

By Peter Ricci The announcement that San Diego-based real estate firm Abbot Realty Group (ARG) would pull all its listings off third-party MLS websites and cease all future syndication was not, historically speaking, an unprecedented development; Edina Realty Inc.,

Mortgage applications soared nearly 10 percent this past week as record low interest rates lifted refinancing activity, an industry trade group said. The Mortgage Bankers Association, which measures loan application volume through the market composite index, said loan volume

A majority of Americans believe mortgage rates will remain steady over the next year, while home price expectations in January improved for the fourth consecutive month in a row, Fannie Mae said in its consumer sentiment report. The government-sponsored

How many new homes were added to the latest Improving Markets Index? Where did Illinois home sales end up for 2011? And has housing finally bottomed out? We take a look at this week’s real estate news, Feb. 6

The finances of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), and the affects that delinquent loans have had on them, have been a constant source of media coverage the last couple of months, with some predicting the future bailout of the agency

A quick glance through the news feeds these past couple weeks yields many good developments for the housing market. Along with improved residential construction numbers, strong local sales and a rebound in consumer confidence, there were huge jumps in multifamily

The Federal government and state Attorneys General have reached an agreement with the five largest mortgage services to address mortgage loan servicing and foreclosure abuses. The $26 billion dollar agreement is unprecedented and  will provide financial relief to homeowners

A recent report out of Bloomberg says that BofA is struggling to keep up with the deluge of mortgage refinancing applications that have followed revisions to the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), so much so that they are asking

The fourth quarter may be a time of plummeting temperatures in Chicago and greater Illinois, but the change of the seasons had little effort on the quarter’s home sales, which posted surging gains for both areas. According to the

The National Association of Home Builder’s (NAHB) 55+ Housing Market Index (HMI), a specialized index that follows the 55+ housing market, posted year-over-year gains for the fourth quarter in 2011. Along with gains in construction and a 29-city addition to the

Milwaukee-based home loan insurer Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corp. (MGIC) may have posted a loss of $135.3 million for the fourth quarter in 2011, but that’s down from $186.7 million in 2010, a decline of nearly 30 cents a share

Fannie Mae has announced the expansion of their Online Offers system through HomePath properties. The system will collect and manage offers for all Fannie Mae owned properties, except auction properties. The Online Offers pilot was launched in 2010 in

Strategic defaults, a Chapter 11-esque move in which homeowners walk away from their property and stop paying their mortgage, are happening with increasing regularity in today’s housing market, and if current legislation is any indication, they are happening much