Housing Market, Real Estate | featured news

The U.S. government said on Thursday that the biggest U.S. banks will provide $25 billion in relief to distressed homeowners and states, as officials hold lenders responsible for taking illegal shortcuts during foreclosures and other mortgage paperwork.

California's attorney general said on Thursday her state will receive up to $18 billion in benefits under a federal-state mortgage settlement to be announced later today.

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.