Lenders

Lenders

• Builders optimistic as Waco-area housing permits increase

  Nov. 12--One month does not a trend make, but the number of housing permits issued by Waco in October at least has builders talking about a change for the better.

   

• Deep discounts on dreams

  Think a posh second home in a sunny spot is beyond your means?

   

• Home sales up 31 percent in October

  Nov. 11--Call it the first-time homebuyer bump.

   

• Rates on 30-year loans remain below 5 percent

  WASHINGTON - Rates this week for 30-year home loans stayed below 5 percent for the second week in a row.

   

• Median home prices fell nationwide in 3Q

  A real estate group says home prices fell in eight out of every 10 U.S. cities in the third quarter of this year as heavily discounted distressed sales made up 30 percent of all deals.

   

• Foreclosures crisis caused by investors. And lenders. And politicians. And buyers.

  A simple narrative is often used to characterize the foreclosure crisis at the heart of America's Great Recession: While banks are at fault for approving risky loans, people who lived in the homes are as much to blame.

   

• Consumer borrowing drops $14.8B in September

  WASHINGTON - Consumers borrowed less for a record eighth straight month in September amid rising unemployment and tight credit conditions.

   

• Goldman left foreign investors holding the subprime bag

  Nov. 3--NEW YORK -- Inside the thick Goldman Sachs investment circular were the details of a secret, $2 billion deal channeled through a Caribbean tax haven.

   

• Judges Upend Bankruptcy's Traditional Rules

  Some judges are penalizing lenders they think acted irresponsibly in the housing boom, pushing them further back in the payment line.

   

• First-Time Homebuyers Race to Meet Deadline

  Oct. 25--The Kilmans, along with their young daughter, Ava, had been renting a house in Madison.

   

• Little House on the Market: Recession, Changing Preferences Driving Smaller Homes

  Oct. 25--The downsizing of America is hitting home.

   

• FDIC and Mortgage Servicer Form JV to Acquire Failed Bank’s Loan Portfolio

  Deal will test viability of funding plan to take toxic assets off of lenders’ books.

   

• Barratt American is Going Out of Business

  Southern California-based builder was defeated by a bad economy and lack of support from creditors.

   

• More Details Emerge About Mercedes Homes’ Reorganization

  Restructuring of ESOP builder would leave employee-investors with nothing and give founding family, which lent the firm millions, sole ownership.

   

• Investigation of KB Home’s Involvement in Alleged Appraisal Inflation Scheme Expands to Florida

  Buyers in California and Arizona already have filed complaints against the builder, its preferred lender, and a proprietary appraisal service.

   

• LandSource Emerging from Bankruptcy

  The huge California land developer strikes a deal with all its creditors and plans to leave bankruptcy protection July 31.

   

• Mercedes Homes' Reorganization Plan Goes to Judge

  Proposal would give one major creditor, controlled by the Buescher family, all the stock in the newly restructured company.

   

• Troubled Bank Industry Continues California Lobbying

  Jul. 20--Banks that received billions of dollars in federal bailout funds continue spending heavily to lobby in the state Capitol against increased regulation of their industry.

   

• Seattle's Federal Home Loan Bank in Big Money Trouble Again

  Jul. 19--Don't look now, but another big Seattle-based bank is struggling under the weight of distressed mortgage-backed securities, declining loan business and the deflated housing market.

   

• Mercedes Homes Announces Plan to Exit Bankruptcy

  Florida-based builder hopes to be out of Chapter 11 by September.