Real Estate | featured news

Court hearings meant to protect New York homeowners from foreclosure are hopelessly slowed by endless paperwork and requests for additional information.

It turns out most of us value nearby stores and parks rather than McMansions. Luckily, that's probably where we're headed.

As the nation's five largest mortgage lenders edge close to a $25 billion settlement over foreclosure abuses, it's becoming clear that the deal will have little or no impact on their future bottom lines.

California has until Monday to share in a multi-state deal with banks to obtain mortgage relief and reforms. Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, who walked away from talks last year, says the door remains open.

In Manhattan, parking lots and garages are making way for all sorts of development, especially luxury condominiums.

The average 30-year mortgage rate rose to 3.98 percent Thursday, reflecting a 0.10 percentage point jump after setting a new historic low last week, according to Freddie Mac. Despite the jump, the 30-year fixed rate has remained below 4 percent for eight weeks, and the Federal Reserve yesterday indicated it plans to keep interest rates at zero for some time.

More and more, homeowners say that mortgages they thought were dead and buried are springing back to life, sometimes haunting them all the way into foreclosure.

Fewer people bought new homes in December. The decline made 2011 the worst year for new-homes sales on records dating back nearly half a century. The Commerce Department said Thursday new-home sales fell 2.2 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 307,000. The pace is less than half the 700,000 that economists say must be sold in a healthy economy.

An 80-story skyscraper under construction at ground zero will have to stop at seven stories unless the developer can line up more tenants, planners said Monday, adding to problems that have plagued the $11.7 billion World Trade Center project.

Fixed mortgage rates in the U.S. touched historic lows over the past week, with the 30-year home loan returning to its record trough of 3.94%, amid troubling reports on the state of the housing market.