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RISMEDIA, July 26, 2011— This week, the House of Representatives plans to vote on the Interior Environment FY 2012 Appropriations bill, H.R. 2584, which is chock full of more than 40 provisions that would prolong pollution of the air, water, oceans, and lands of your favorite vacation destinations enumerated in the slideshow, "Wet, Hot, Dirty American Summer," released by the Center for American Progress. The sum effect of these and other pollution provisions in the House Interior and Environment Appropriations bill threaten clean air and clean water throughout the nation, exposing our children to sewage, dirty drinking water, mercury, smog, pesticides, and other pollutants.

RISMEDIA, July 26, 2011—(MCT)—Under a new state law, any lender who agrees to a short sale—which by definition will yield insufficient funds to cover the outstanding loans on a property—must accept it as payment in full for all loan balances. That is a good thing for upside-down homeowners who need to sell, says the California Association of REALTORS®. In a prepared statement applauding Gov. Jerry Brown for signing SB 458 into law, the association observed that previously a first mortgage holder could accept an agreed-upon short sale payment as full payment for the first mortgage but a junior lien holder could still hound the seller for the full amount owned on the junior lien.

RISMEDIA, July 26, 2011— Existing-home sales eased in June as contract cancellations spiked unexpectedly, although prices were up slightly, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Sales gains in the Midwest and South were offset by declines in the Northeast and West. Single-family home sales were stable while the condo sector weakened. Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, declined 0.8 percent

RISMEDIA, July 25, 2011—The “Gang of Six” compromise on the federal deficit that has been endorsed by President Obama mandates the most significant reductions in the mortgage interest deduction in the 98 years it has been in effect.

RISMEDIA, July 23, 2011— ATTENTION STUDENTS! Apply for our credit card and get free food, pizza, t-shirts, water bottles and backpacks. Sound familiar? Not anymore. A recent Sallie Mae survey found 84% of undergraduates own at least one credit card

RISMEDIA, July 11, 2011— Mortgage rates increased for the second week in a row, with the benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate now 4.79 percent, according to Bankrate.com's weekly national survey. The average 30-year fixed mortgage

RISMEDIA, July 9, 2011—Homeowners living in Cameron, Orleans, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard Parishes may be eligible for additional compensation under Louisiana’s Road Home Program under the terms of a settlement agreement

RISMEDIA, July 8, 2011—The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act has many components and one of the biggest ones is about to debut. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is slated to start operations on July 22, 2011. The truth is that work is already being done behind the scenes and has been for months now. The agency has been adding staff and setting up systems and should be ready to roll by the July date. They have also been working on some early Dodd-Frank tasks such as combining the Good Faith Estimate (GFE) under RESPA and the Truth in Lending (TIL) statement under TILA. This process, as of this writing, has been a pleasant surprise and bodes well for how CFPB will handle its numerous future regulatory endeavors.

RISMEDIA, July 7, 2011—Leading economists agree that 122 million Americans between the ages of 16 and 46 dictate the growth and success of the US and Global economy. This group has become labeled as the “Economic Influencers.” Professionals in every field are working harder than ever to influence this group, which dominates the landscape in numbers, and consequently, dollars. As traditional forms of communication continue to achieve less ROI, the tsunami of social media is reaching a tipping point. With 750 million users on Facebook alone, will you drown in the crashing waves or surf toward profitability?

RISMEDIA, July 7, 2011—The percentage of seriously delinquent mortgages—those that are 90 days past due or in foreclosure—held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have fallen more than a point in the last year.

RISMEDIA, July 7, 2011—Mortgage Marvel Rate Trends™, a daily survey of over 950 lenders, shows 30-year, fixed rates bouncing up 0.15% to 4.78% after setting a new six-month low last week.

RISMEDIA, July 6, 2011—Hours after the National Association of REALTORS® announced an 8.2 percent jump in May prices, CoreLogic confirmed its May numbers show a second consecutive month-over-month increase.

RISMEDIA, July 1, 2011—Consumer money resource Bills.com recently released results from its biannual Consumer Money Survey for the first half of 2011. This regular survey gauges consumer money attitudes and behaviors across a wide range of financial topics, including credit, debt, budgeting, and retirement by posing questions to site visitors using the Bills IQ tool.

RISMEDIA, June 30, 2011—S&P/Case-Shiller’s 10- and 20-city composites rose less than one percent in April over March, the first price increase the indices have measured in eight months.

RISMEDIA, June 29, 2011—The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently released a study that finds the nation’s 1.2 million public housing units need an estimated $25.6 billion for large scale repairs. This study updates a 1998 analysis and includes costs to address overdue repairs,