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Michael Williams, the chief executive of US mortgage giant Fannie Mae, will step down once a successor has been found, the company says. Mr Williams was put in charge of Fannie Mae in 2009 after the firm had been rescued by the US government at the height of the financial crisis.

How big a whack did your credit score take during the grim years of economic distress following the housing bust? Was it 20 points, 50 points, 100 points — or maybe no drop at all? These are key questions affecting millions of potential home buyers who hope to qualify for mortgages as well as current owners looking to refinance. New research from a major credit-risk evaluation company suggests that the drop in huge numbers of Americans’ scores was dramatic.

The Justice Department is expected to announce Wednesday a settlement with Bank of America Corp. that resolves accusations that its Countrywide Financial unit engaged in discriminatory mortgage-lending practices, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has brought civil fraud charges against six former top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, saying they misled the government and taxpayers about risky subprime mortgages the mortgage giants held during the housing bust....

Information is sought on the mortgage giants' roles as landlords who own thousands of foreclosed properties in California. Also sought are details of their mortgage-servicing and home-repossession practices, a source says.

Fourteen mortgage servicers have begun mailing out 4.3 million letters to potential victims of robo-signing. The letters will invite borrowers to submit their cases for a free review by independent consultants. Aggrieved homeowners ensnared by a foreclosure system riddled with misconduct and error are set to get their first shot at winning some cash back from the banks.

A leading housing regulator on Monday announced changes to a government refinancing program that could help up to one million homeowners whose homes are worth less than their mortgage.

California is trying to determine whether BofA and its Countrywide Financial subsidiary sold investments backed by risky mortgages to investors in California under false pretenses, a source says. Investigators with the state attorney general's office have subpoenaed Bank of America Corp. in connection with the sale and marketing of troubled mortgage-backed securities to California investors, according to a person familiar with the probe.

Talks between states and top banks over mortgage abuses are nearing agreement on a major sticking point that has bogged down settlement negotiations for more than a year.

The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage this week fell below 4 percent for the first time ever, to 3.94 percent....