May 29, 2009·
Troubled mortgages hit record high
More than 616,000 homeowners were hit with foreclosure actions in the first 3 months of the year, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: May 28, 2009: 12:30 PM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Despite all the hand-wringing and attempts to contain the foreclosure plague, the problem still spread during the first three months of 2009, as the number of foreclosure actions started hit a record high, according to a quarterly report. Read more...
Troubled mortgages hit record high
May 20, 2009·
Renewed HOPE for Homeowners
Congress passed a bill amending HOPE for Homeowners that may make the program more useful.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: May 20, 2009: 5:06 PM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — One of the biggest disappointments of the foreclosure prevention fight has been HOPE for Homeowners, a plan Congress passed in an attempt to help as many as 400,000 underwater, delinquent borrowers from going into foreclosure.
In its first five months, HOPE for Homeowners helped one family stay in its home.
Congress and the Obama administration are hoping to do a lot better than that. Read more...
Renewed HOPE for Homeowners
May 15, 2009·
May 14, 2009
Slow Start to U.S. Plan for Modifying Mortgages
The Obama administration’s plan to help millions of troubled homeowners avoid foreclosure by reducing the size of their mortgage payments is just getting off the ground.
So far, two months after the program went into effect, about 55,000 homeowners have been extended loan modification offers, according to a senior administration official. At the same time, foreclosures continue apace. RealtyTrac reported Wednesday that foreclosure filings reached 342,000 last month, up 32 percent from April 2008. Moody’s has estimated that more than 2.1 million homeowners will lose their homes this year. Read more...
Slow Start to U.S. Plan for Modifying Mortgages
May 13, 2009·
Foreclosures: ‘April was a shocker’
A record number of foreclosure filings took place during April, but the number of repossessions fell 11%.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: May 13, 2009: 8:04 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Foreclosures in April exceeded even March’s blistering pace with a record 342,000 homes receiving notices of default, auction notices or undergoing bank repossessions, according to a regular industry report.
One of every 374 U.S. homes received a filing during the month, the highest monthly rate that RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosed properties, has recorded in four-plus years of record keeping. Read more...
Foreclosures: ‘April was a shocker’
May 12, 2009·
Home prices slide 14%
National median home price falls a record 13.8% in first quarter of 2009, primarily because the market is flooded with lower-priced foreclosures and short sales.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: May 12, 2009: 10:05 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The steep slide in home price accelerated at a record pace during the first three months of 2009, according to an industry report issued Tuesday.
The national median home price of single family homes sold during the first quarter fell 13.8% to $169,000 year over year, and 6.2% compared with the last quarter 2008, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). That was the largest year-over-year decline in the 30-year history of the report. Read more...
Home prices slide 14%
May 6, 2009·
Wed May 6, 2009 2:37am EDT
NEW YORK, May 6 (Reuters) – Home values in the United States extended their fall in the first quarter, with more than one in five homeowners now owing more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, real estate website Zillow.com said on Wednesday.
U.S. home values posted a year-over-year decline of 14.2 percent to a Zillow Home Value Index of $182,378, resulting in a total 21.8 percent drop since the market peaked in 2006, according to Zillow’s first-quarter Real Estate Market Reports, which encompass 161 metropolitan areas and cover the value changes in all homes, not just homes that have recently sold. Read more...
More than one in five homeowners underwater
May 5, 2009·
5 tips on buying a foreclosed home
Sure, there are great real estate deals to be had, if you know what you’re doing.
By
Amanda Gengler, Money magazine writer
May 1, 2009: 6:17 AM ET
(Money Magazine) — 1. Finding one has become easier
You don’t need to show up at courthouse auctions or comb through legal filings. These days many banks sell foreclosed homes through real estate agents.
To find listings, look on sites that specialize in foreclosed properties, such as realtytrac.com and foreclosurepoint.com. The local multiple-listing service often has selections as well. (The fact that the home is in foreclosure is not always highlighted in the MLS, but it’s often mentioned in the description.) Read more...
5 tips on buying a foreclosed home
May 4, 2009·
Pending home sales jump 3.2%
Buyers defy expectations with an increase in sales contracts signed during March.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: May 4, 2009: 1:59 PM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Is the housing meltdown ending?
Pending home sales rose in March for the second consecutive month and are up year over year. The Pending Home Sales Index from the National Association of Realtors showed a 3.2% gain to 84.6 from February, when it was 82. The index stands 1.6% higher than a year ago.
The consensus forecast of industry experts polled by Briefing.com had predicted no increase in the index. Read more...
Pending home sales jump 3.2%
May 1, 2009·
Foreclosure filings in record jump
Hope Now reports a 20% increase in initial foreclosure filings during March. But there was a steep drop in bank repossessions.
By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: April 30, 2009: 11:31 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Lenders continued to rewrite troubled mortgages at a fast clip during March, but the weakening economy still sent foreclosure starts soaring to a record high.
March mortgage workout results announced on Thursday by Hope Now – a coalition of mortgage lenders, servicers, investors and community groups put together to fight the foreclosure plague – were a decidedly mixed bag. Read more...
Record Jump in Foreclosure filings