Category Archives: Mortgages

Foreclosure Enron?

Posted on April 5, 2013 by grim

From DealBook/NYT: Blame Abounds Over a Flawed Foreclosure Review Private consultants and federal regulators are facing a fresh round of scrutiny in Washington after botching a broad review of foreclosures and failing to thwart financial misdeeds. A new report by … Continue reading →

Posted in Mortgages, National Real Estate, Politics, Risky Lending | 86 Comments

Greedy Banksters can’t stop picking on Helpless Victims

Posted on March 29, 2013 by grim

From HousingWire, a pawn of the real-estate-industrial-complex: Borrower spends on lingerie … should they get a loan mod? During the course of foreclosures when parties are discussing or attempting loss mitigation, borrowers submit financial records for lenders and servicers to … Continue reading →

Posted in Mortgages, Risky Lending, Unrest | 108 Comments

These guys would have fit right in here

Posted on February 7, 2013 by grim

From the NY Times: S.& P. E-Mails on Mortgage Crisis Show Alarm and Gallows Humor The executive at Standard & Poor’s was clear: “This market is a wildly spinning top which is going to end badly.” That sober assessment of … Continue reading →

Posted in Mortgages, National Real Estate, Risky Lending | 77 Comments

HARP 4.0?

Posted on January 30, 2013 by grim

From Bloomberg: Menendez, Boxer plan bill to help struggling homeowners Underwater homeowners may get additional federal assistance for refinancing government-backed loans under a proposal being revived in the U.S. Senate. Democratic Senators Robert Menendez of New Jersey and Barbara Boxer … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Recovery, Mortgages, Politics | 133 Comments

Walking away about to get easier

Posted on January 28, 2013 by grim

From Bloomberg: Fannie Adds Bailout For Underwaters Walkaways Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will let some borrowers who kept up payments as their homes lost value erase their debts by giving up the properties, helping Americans escape underwater loans while … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 113 Comments

Are Free-and-Clear Owners and Cash Buyers driving the Market?

Posted on January 11, 2013 by grim

From CNBC: Homeowners With No Mortgage Offer Clues to Recovery As federal regulators and banks argue over whether new lending standards will make mortgage credit too tight or too expensive, one important fact about the housing market goes largely overlooked: … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 141 Comments

Shadow shrinks, but still large enough to loom over Jersey

Posted on January 3, 2013 by grim

From HousingWire: Shadow inventory contracts as investors snap up foreclosures Current residential shadow inventory continued to fall from peak levels, CoreLogic said in a third quarter report. Shadow inventory shrank to 2.3 million units in October, which represents a supply … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures, Mortgages | 96 Comments

New bailout plan has Treasury subsidizing refis

Posted on December 17, 2012 by grim

From Bloomberg: Treasury Plan Would Cut Rates on Some Mortgages in Bonds Some struggling homeowners left out of current U.S. government mortgage-aid programs because their home loans have been packaged into private securities could see their interest rates cut through … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Foreclosures, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 155 Comments

Cheap mortgages here to stay?

Posted on December 11, 2012 by grim

From the WSJ: Freddie Mac: Mortgage Rates to Stay Low, Property Values to Rise in 2013 Mortgage rates are likely to remain near record lows for the first half of 2013, while property values are expected to strengthen, said mortgage-finance … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 96 Comments

More than a million short sales

Posted on October 16, 2012 by grim

From Mortgage News Daily: HOPE NOW: Short Sales Top 1 Million HOPE NOW, the voluntary, private sector alliance of mortgage servicers, investors, mortgage insurers and non-profit counselors, reported that its participants completed an estimated 75,968 permanent loan modifications during August. … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreclosures, Mortgages, Politics | 147 Comments

Many borrowers locked out of lower rate mortgages

Posted on September 18, 2012 by grim

From the LA Times: Two-thirds of Americans with mortgages pay 5% interest or higher US. interest rates are at rock-bottom levels, but that’s not helping most Americans with mortgages. And those high-cost loans remain a big drag on the economy, … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, Mortgages, National Real Estate | 193 Comments

Inept banks blamed for poor HAMP performance

Posted on September 17, 2012 by grim

From the Huffington Post: Banks’ Disorganization Pushed 800,000 Homeowners Into Unnecessary Foreclosure: ProPublica Over the past several years, we’ve reported extensively on the big banks’ foreclosure failings. As a result of banks’ disorganization and understaffing — particularly at the peak … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreclosures, Mortgages, National Real Estate, Risky Lending | 111 Comments

White House shows support for HARP 3

Posted on September 15, 2012 by grim

From the White House Blog: Infographic: The Plan to Help Homeowners Refinance Congress is currently considering a plan that would help millions of responsible homeowners save hundreds of dollars each month by refinancing their mortgages. The plan to expand access … Continue reading →

Posted in Housing Recovery, Mortgages, Politics | 120 Comments

Dems seek HARP expansion

Posted on September 11, 2012 by grim

From HousingWire: Senators bargain on HARP expansion Senate Democrats reintroduced a bill to expand refinancing for an estimated 13.5 million Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage borrowers. Sens. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., will keep the origination cut-off … Continue reading →

Posted in Foreclosures, Mortgages, Politics, Risky Lending | 99 Comments

Just when you thought the bailouts were over

Posted on August 21, 2012 by grim

From HousingWire: Obama to renew push for wider mortgage refinance plan The Obama administration will renew efforts to pass a wider refinance plan for more underwater homeowners when Congress reconvenes in September. “The housing market is beginning to pick back … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Housing Recovery, Mortgages, Politics | 119 Comments