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It’s official. Mortgage delinquency rates, especially 30-day delinquencies, have shifted course and they are trending up again. The good news is that delinquency rates, which are a precursor to foreclosure and short sale rates, still trail last year’s level

Regional Spotlight—(MCT)—Andrew Wells is hoping to buy a Baltimore home for around the cost of an old car: Less than $10,000. Turns out he's in good company.

Mortgage rates posted mixed results this week, but the benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to a record low of 4.41 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage has an average

Mortgage applications decreased 2.4 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 19, 2011.

Regional Spotlight—Reports from local agents in Andover, Massachusetts indicate that buyers aren't scouring the market before putting an offer down on a property. Lisa Johnson Sevajian, vice president of Coldwell Banker Andover, Massachusetts says, "Buyers are buying and they are buying quickly. The trend of two to four showings on a property before an offer would come in is changing. I'm seeing offers coming in during the first showing or shortly afterward. When buyers see value they want to take advantage of it right away."

Sales of newly built, single-family homes held virtually unchanged in July with a 0.7 percent dip from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 298,000 units, according to newly released data from the U.S.

The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties increased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 8.44 percent of all loans outstanding as of the end of the second quarter of 2011. This is an increase

Senate Bill 458 was signed and passed on July 15, 2011 with the intent to provide relief for homeowners and prohibit a deficiency after a “successful short sale.” As I read through the words of the bill, my worst fears were drawn to the words, “agreed upon” and “agreed to accept.” Immediately on the following Monday, July 17, investors rescinded thousands of short-sale approval letters throughout California on short sales that had been approved or were about to close. One investor rescinded over 300 approval letters throughout California.

By writing down all underwater mortgages to market value, the nation’s banks could pump $71 billion per year into the economy, create more than one million jobs annually and save families $6,500 per year on mortgage payments. That’s the bottom line in a new report by The New Bottom Line, a nationwide campaign representing 1,000 faith-based and community organizations seeking to hold Wall Street accountable and find solutions for struggling and middle-class families.

Nationwide housing starts edged down 1.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 604,000 units in July, according to figures released by the U.S. Commerce Department. The slight decline comes on the heels of significant gains in housing production in June, and was attributable to a moderate drop-off on the single-family side while production of multifamily units continued upward. "Although single-family housing production slid a few notches in July, the number was right in line with the second quarter average, so we view this report as an indication of relative stability," says Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev.

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes held unchanged at a low level of 15 on the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) for August, released recently. "Builders continue to confront the same major challenges they have seen over the past year, including competition from the large inventory of distressed homes on the market, inaccurate appraisal values, and issues with their buyers not being able to sell an existing home or qualify for favorable mortgage rates because of overly tight underwriting requirements," says Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Reno, Nev.

RE/MAX of New England has released its latest housing report and results show that overall, New England experienced a 14.5% jump in year-to-year sales. However, the month-to-month picture for each state is not as positive.

In the second quarter of 2011, fixed-rate loans accounted for about 95 percent of refinance loans, based on the Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC) Quarterly Product Transition Report released recently. Refinancing borrowers preferred fixed-rate loans, regardless

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has only two months to spend $11.2 billion on its no-down payment rural development loan program, a record amount at this juncture in the federal fiscal year for the program that provides no-down payment mortgages

Overall satisfaction with primary mortgage servicers has declined notably from 2010, as frustration continues to mount among homeowners who originated their mortgages during the peak of the housing boom, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 U.S. Primary Mortgage Servicer Satisfaction Study(SM) released recently. In addition, brand perceptions of mortgage servicing companies have deteriorated as a result of negative media coverage of reported abuses committed against homeowners by mortgage servicers.