Home, Mortgage and Personal Finance News

The real estate and economic markets are constantly changing. Whether you’re a renter or homeowner, a blue collar worker or a Wall Street investment banker, these market fluctuations affect the value of your credit, assets and personal finances. To help you make the best decisions about your money and property, our RateMarketplace.com News page is updated daily with information on current interest rates and the latest trends in real estate and personal finance.

• Mortgage Applications Slide as Loan Rates Jump
  CNBC (July 23, 2008)
  The highest 30-year mortgage rates in a year eroded demand for U.S. home loan applications last week, according to an industry trade group on Wednesday.
• Falling Home Prices Continued Drag on U.S. Economy
  ABC News (July 23, 2008)
  Average U.S. home prices dropped 4.9% in May from a year ago, according to a government report released Tuesday morning.
• Secrets of Staging: Sell Your House for More, Quickly
  U.S. News & World Report (July 22, 2008)
  According to a website dedicated to all things staging, staged homes sold for 6.9% more than their unstaged counterparts. Staged homes stayed on the market for half the time (11 days) that unstaged houses (22 days).
• A New Shakedown? Debt Collectors Resort to New Tactics
  Newsweek (July 21, 2008)
  The collections industry is adapting new strategies designed to wring cash from already-strapped consumers. They're claiming to be more open to partial payments plans than ever before. Unfortunately, some of the industry is also resorting back to the harassing behaviors that got them into trouble with regulators and courts in the past.
• Learn How You Can Avoid Foreclosure
  The Miami Herald (July 21, 2008)
  The key factor that makes a difference between those who keep their homes or lose them to foreclosure: The borrowers who call their lenders and pursue their options.
• New HUD Chief Mobilizes to Address Housing Crisis
  Federal Times (July 21, 2008)
  The Housing and Urban Development Department is trying to help threatened homeowners refinance their home loans in hopes of staving off more housing foreclosures.
• Struggling, But Staying in a Home
  The New York Times (July 20, 2008)
  As the foreclosure crisis worsens, government officials and industry executives seem to be growing more creative in addressing the problem. Two recent initiatives allow struggling homeowners who lose their mortgages to stay in their homes and work their way back to financial solvency.
• Housing Suffers Further as Economy Slouches
  MarketWatch (July 20, 2008)
  The housing market, already hit hard from tightening mortgage lending standards, has taken another blow on the chin, economists said Friday.
• Who's Watching Your Credit Score?
  Yahoo Finance (July 18, 2008)
  Sure, the better your credit score the easier (and cheaper) it is to borrow. But more than ever, your credit score is becoming your life's little report card. Find out who else besides creditors is keeping an eye on your credit rating.
• Mortgage Applications Rise in Third Straight Week
  CNBC (July 16, 2008)
  U.S. mortgage applications rose for a third consecutive week, reflecting an increase in demand for home loan refinancing as interest rates plunged, an industry group said on Wednesday.
• Weighing the Benefits of Debt Settlement
  U.S. News & World Report (July 16, 2008)
  For a fee, consumers can get help negotiating lower debts. Find out how debt settlement companies work.
• Strapped Homeowners Discover Safety Hatch in Sale-Leasebacks
  The Wall Street Journal (July 16, 2008)
  Homeowners buckling under heavy mortgage debt are resorting to a different kind of relief measure: selling their home and then renting it back from the new owner.
• Need a Mortgage Now? Bring Lots of Cash
  CNN Money (July 16, 2008)
  In a brutal real estate market where all the players want to hedge against the tremendous risks, down payment requirements and up-front fees have soared, shutting many potential home buyers out of the market.
• Consumers Get a Bit of Mortgage-Rate Relief
  TheStreet.com (July 15, 2008)
  A potential leveling out of mortgage loan rates could give some needed breathing room to consumers looking to buy a home. The rates for 30-year fixed rate mortgages averaged 6.37% with 0.6 point, marginally higher than last week's average of 6.35% with 0.6 point, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.
• Amid Fannie/Freddie Woes, Lock in Mortgage Rate Now
  CNBC (July 14, 2008)
  With worries about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac looming over the banking industry, the best bet for homebuyers now is probably to lock in a mortgage rate while the scenario plays itself out.
• Fannie, Freddie Rescue: Hard Questions
  CNN Money (July 15, 2008)
  Paulson goes to Congress to seek authority to stand behind mortgage finance giants, finds some support but some criticism as well.
• Fed to Curb Shady Mortgage Lending
  Time Magazine (July 14, 2008)
  Chairman Ben Bernanke and his central bank colleagues approved a plan Monday that would crack down on dubious lending practices that have hurt many of the riskiest "subprime" borrowers - people with tarnished credit histories or low incomes.
• Mortgages: More Expensive, More Scarce
  CNN Money (July 14, 2008)
  As rumors of big mortgage companies' collapse swirl, many Americans are unable to find affordable home loans.
• Home Prices Are Low, But Getting a Mortgage Is Tough
  The Wall Street Journal (July 15, 2008)
  Home prices are attractive, mortgage insurers have been dramatically tightening their standards throughout the U.S., making it difficult for many home buyers to get the financing they need to purchase a property.
• The Unraveling of the Suburban Fringe
  BusinessWeek (July 12, 2008)
  Most of the overbuilding during the housing bubble took place in outer-ring suburbs. They are also likely the places to be hit worst by the downturn.
• U.S. 30-, 15-Year Mortgage Rates Change Little in Week
  Reuters (July 10, 2008)
  U.S. 30- and 15-year mortgage rates saw little change in the latest week, according to a survey released on Thursday by mortgage funding company Freddie Mac. U.S. 30-year mortgage rates averaged 6.37%, up slightly from 6.35% a week ago, while 15-year mortgages stood at an average of 5.91%, compared with 5.92% last week. One-year adjustable rate mortgages, or ARMs, held steady at an average of 5.17%.
• Tips for Retirement Home Buyers
  Reuters (July 10, 2008)
  Columnist Linda Stern says it's definitely a good time to go home shopping.
• Contractors at the Ready for Remodeling Work Amid Slowdown
  The San Jose Mercury News (July 10, 2008)
  The nation's housing crisis is benefiting homeowners who want to make improvements to their property. They would have had to wait up to a year to hire a contractor during the housing boom. Now, they're the ones in control.
• U.S. Foreclosure Filings Surge 53% in June
  ABC News (July 10, 2008)
  The number of homeowners stung by the rout in the U.S. housing market jumped last month as foreclosure filings grew by more than 50% compared with June a year ago, according to data released Thursday.
• The Fannie and Freddie Doomsday Scenario
  Fortune Magazine (July 10, 2008)
  What would it take for the government to step in and help Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and how would a rescue affect you, the taxpayer?
• Mortgage Application Volume Climbs 7.5%
  CNN Money (July 9, 2008)
  The number of people applying for home loans increased last week despite rising interest rates.

• Fed Plans New Rules on Home Lending
  AOL Money & Finance (July 8, 2008)
  The Federal Reserve will issue new rules next week aimed at protecting future homebuyers from dubious lending practices, its most sweeping response to a housing crisis that has propelled foreclosures to record highs.

• Pending U.S. Home Resales Decline More Than Forecast
  Bloomberg (July 8, 2008)
  Contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes declined more than forecast in May, a sign prices that have been sliding for more than two years have yet to touch bottom.

• Housing Agency Expands Mortgage Aid Program
  Reuters (July 8, 2008)
  The Federal Housing Administration will loosen its mortgage refinance program to help more delinquent borrowers and those facing hardships like job loss, the agency said on Tuesday.

• Housing Bill's Tax Credit Draws Criticism
  The Wall Street Journal (July 8, 2008)
  U.S. lawmakers are touting a home-buyer tax credit in a high-profile housing bill before Congress, but critics say it may do little to help consumers amid the mortgage crisis.

• Debt Collectors on the Rampage
  CNN Money (July 7, 2008)
  More consumers are falling behind in loan repayments, and finding themselves the target of aggressive debt collection agents who don't always play by the rules. Here's what you need to know.
• Housing Bill May Get Senate OK This Week
  The San Jose Mercury News (July 6, 2008)
  The Senate is on the verge of final passage of its housing relief, which is designed to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners nearing foreclosure, pull new buyers back into the real estate arena, and permanently raise conventional and FHA loan limits in high-cost markets.
• Foreclosures to Rise, Whomever Wins White House
  The Washington Post (July 6, 2008)
  Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain both promise help for homeowners facing foreclosure. But home foreclosures will keep rising next year no matter who is elected president in November.
• News Archive

Find out more on how you can...

• Refinance your current mortgage loan, lower payments, get a lower mortgage rate, or get some cash out into your pocket. Get started on Refinancing »
• Put the equity in your home to good use with a home equity loan. Find out more about Home Equity »
• Consolidate all of your debt into one convenient loan. Get more on Debt Consolidation »
• Looking to renovate or make improvements to your home? Find more about Home Improvement »

Get low Mortgage Rates for