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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/30/2009 - 12:50am
The U.S. Senate has rejected legislation that would have allowed bankruptcy judges to reduce the principal owned on a homeowner's mortgage, a measure known as "cramdown."
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/30/2009 - 12:09am
New unemployment filings decreased last week, but the total number of persons collecting unemployment benefits hit an all-time high, according to figures released today by the Commerce Department.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/29/2009 - 12:49am
Mortgage rates may soon be nudging back up from the ultra-low levels they have been occupying for the past six weeks, after yields on 10-year bonds rose following today's announcements by the Federal Reserve.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/29/2009 - 12:04am
Mortgage applications dropped sharply in the week ending April 24, ending what had been a series of steady increases over the past two months.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/28/2009 - 12:40am
A new initiative to help resolve issues with second liens that have presented problems for many homeowners seeking assistance with problem mortgages was announced today the Obama Administration.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/27/2009 - 12:15am
The Countrywide brand, until recently the biggest name in mortgages, is being retired as Bank of America consolidates its home lending operations under a single roof.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/27/2009 - 12:49am
U.S. home ownership dipped to its lowest level in nearly nine years in the first three months of the year while housing vacancies reached an all-time high, according to figures released Monday by the Commerce Department.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/24/2009 - 12:56am
The dizzying descent down the rabbit hole of the current financial markets just got curiouser and curiouser.
Long term, 30-year fixed mortgage rates dipped below the rate of short-term adjustable rate mortgages in the weekly Freddie Mac survey for the first time ever. That means, for the moment at least, a long-term loan may be cheaper in the short run than its adjustable rate cousin - which goes against the usual reason for getting an adjustable rate in the first place.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/24/2009 - 12:16am
Sales of new, single-family homes were essentially unchanged in March, while the supply of unsold new homes shrank by 5 percent, according to figures released today by the Commerce Department.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/23/2009 - 12:03am
Sales of existing homes declined slightly in March but prices rose, suggesting that the housing market is still struggling to find its footing after months of decline.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/22/2009 - 12:56am
In the middle of a credit crunch, there's a mortgage boom going on.
Overall lending is down, as banks have tightened their purse strings. But demand for mortgages is as strong as ever, driven by some of the lowest interest rates on record and housing prices driven into the ground by the foreclosure crises. But many potential borrowers have been unable to climb aboard the bargain bus, due to tightening credit restrictions by major lenders in the wake of the foreclosure crises.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/22/2009 - 12:07am
Home prices rose slightly for the second straight month in February, raising hopes that the implosion of the real estate market may finally be bottoming out.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/21/2009 - 12:41am
Total losses in the global economic meltdown could reach $4 trillion by 2010, according to a report released today by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/21/2009 - 12:00am
A report sharply critical of the Treasury Department's management of the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) was released today by the program's legal overseer.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/20/2009 - 12:24am
Housing prices across the United States have fallen so far from their previous highs they are now considered slightly undervalued, with further declines yet to come.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/17/2009 - 12:56am
Lending by the 20 largest banks to receive TARP funds remained flat through the first two months of the year, despite the program's stated goal of providing government funds to free up credit.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/17/2009 - 12:00am
The subprime loans, exotic mortgages and endlessly repackaged securities that gave rise to the housing bubble are a thing of the past. New legislation now making its way through Congress seeks to ensure that they stay that way.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/16/2009 - 12:49am
Financially stressed homeowners should finally begin to get some relief, now that the Treasury Department has completed arrangements with the first major lenders to participate in the administrations mortgage modification program.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/16/2009 - 12:18am
Hopes for a revival in home construction were dampened Thursday, with reports that new housing starts fell sharply in March following an unexpected rally the month before.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/15/2009 - 12:58am
Mortgage lending increased, but all other forms of credit declined in February among banks that were the major recipients of government funds under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), the U.S. Treasury reported Wednesday.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/15/2009 - 12:05am
Foreclosures shot up to a new all-time high in March, as banks ended self-imposed moratoriums that had been put in place to allow distressed homeowners time to seek assistance.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/14/2009 - 12:38am
Median housing prices continued to drop rapidly in February, falling 3.0 percent, according to the monthly IAS360 House Price Index released today by Integrated Asset Services.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/14/2009 - 12:08am
With rising foreclosures driving more and more Americans out of home ownership, you'd think it would be a good time to be a landlord. After all, most people who lose their homes become renters.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/13/2009 - 12:55am
As the economy soured and credit tightened over the past two years, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has become an increasingly popular option for mortgage-seekers with limited resources and weak credit. Now, some fear the FHA could be headed for a financial crisis of its own.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/13/2009 - 12:03am
The good news is that most economists expect that the ongoing recession will end in the latter part of this year. The bad news is that many Americans are unlikely to notice.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/10/2009 - 12:16am
President Barack Obama put on his salesman's hat Thursday, urging homeowners to take advantage of low interest rates and new government programs to refinance their mortgages to save money and help boost the economy.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/10/2009 - 12:25am
Short-term assistance to ease the immediate effects of job loss and other financial crises may be a more effective way to help homeowners than loan modifications and other efforts to reduce long-term debt. That's the conclusion of a new study released by several Federal Reserve economists.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/09/2009 - 12:28am
Mortgage rates rose slightly in the past week, the first increase after four weeks of declines that saw rates reach record lows.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/08/2009 - 12:06am
Distressed homeowners seeking to avoid foreclosure may have more help available than they realize.
Foreclosure workshops providing consumer assistance are frequently available in many states, particularly those with high rates of endangered homeowners. The workshops are typically free of charge and are offered by a variety of community-based organizations, many of them affiliated with the Department of Housing and Urban Development(HUD) -led HOPE NOW alliance.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/08/2009 - 12:21am
U.S. wholesale inventories fell by record rate in February, the Commerce Dept. announced Wednesday, suggesting that businesses are beginning to get a handle on the glut of unsold goods that is holding down production.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/07/2009 - 12:54am
Mortgage delinquencies continued to rise in February, despite a number of other encouraging signs for the U.S. housing market, an indication that the ongoing recession has yet to hit bottom.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/07/2009 - 12:03am
The good news for consumers is that mortgage rates are at an all-time low. The bad news is, there may not be much money to lend.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/06/2009 - 12:05am
Historically low interest rates are driving a hiring boom in the mortgage industry, as lenders strive to contend with sharply increased demand brought on by historically low interest rates and other incentives.
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/03/2009 - 12:16am
For many financially troubled homeowners, mortgage modifications obtained in 2008 provided only temporary relief, as more than four out of 10 quickly found themselves falling back into trouble again
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/03/2009 - 12:55am
Under pressure from banks and some members of Congress, the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board has relaxed a controversial rule that some analysts say contributed to last fall's economic meltdown. The big question now is, will undoing it help set things right again?
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- Kirk Haverkamp - MortgageLoan.com | 04/02/2009 - 12:03am
Pending home sales rose unexpectedly in February, (NAR), a possible indication that the depressed housing market may finally be bottoming out.
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