Connect to share and comment

Average US rate on 30-year mortgage rises to 3.51 per cent; 15-year up to 2.69 per cent

The Canadian PressMay 16, 2013 11:17
WASHINGTON - Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages rose this week but stayed near their historic lows. Cheaper mortgages have helped the economy by spurring more home-buying and refinancing. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate for the 30-year loan increased to 3.51 per cent from 3.42 per cent last week. That's still near the average of 3.31 per cent reached in November, the lowest on records dating to 1971. The average on the 15-year loan rose to 2.69 per cent. That's up from 2.61 per cent last week, which was the lowest on records going back to 1991.

Mortgage applications drop as rates rise: MBA

May 15, 2013 20:30
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Applications for home mortgages fell last week for the first time in more than a month as interest rates jumped, sapping demand for refinancing, an industry group said on Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, fell 7.3 percent in the week ended May 10.

OSFI looking at whether low-risk, uninsured mortgages also need tightening

The Canadian PressMay 15, 2013 11:00
OTTAWA - Canadian Mortgage Trends.com says it has been notified that the national banking regulator is looking at a possible further tightening of mortgage rules — this time for those with low risk mortgages that don't require government-backed insurance. The industry newsletter posted an item on its webpage Monday that the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions verified it is looking at whether amortization periods should be limited to 25 years on mortgages with 20 per cent or more equity, that don't require to be insured.

Nearly 40,000 homes seized in Spain in 2012

Agencia EFEMay 10, 2013 18:16
Madrid, May 10 (EFE).- Banks seized a total of 39,167 homes in Spain in 2012 as a result of foreclosure proceedings, according to a central bank survey of lenders published Friday. The Banco de España study showed that in 83 percent of the cases the homes were primary dwellings. The survey also revealed that more than half of the homes were turned over voluntarily by families. Of them, roughly 75 percent were handed over under the so-called "dacion en pago" procedure, whereby the lender fully discharges the borrower of the debt.

Fed says 96,000 borrowers getting additional checks to correct errors in mortgage compensation

The Canadian PressMay 10, 2013 06:17
WASHINGTON - Some 96,000 borrowers who received checks to compensate them for wrongful foreclosures on their mortgages will be getting an additional check to correct for errors in the initial payment, the Federal Reserve announced Wednesday. The Fed said the affected borrowers received initial compensation amounts that were too low because of errors made by Rust Consulting, the company handling the payments.

Fewer US homes entered foreclosure path or got repossessed in April; scheduled auctions rose

The Canadian PressMay 9, 2013 00:55
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Fewer U.S. homes entered the foreclosure process or were repossessed by lenders last month, the latest indication that the nation's foreclosure woes are waning. Nationally, home repossessions fell 20 per cent in April from the previous month and were down 32 per cent from a year earlier, foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday. Foreclosure starts, the initial step in the process that can eventually lead to a home being foreclosed upon, dipped 4 per cent last month from March and tumble 28 per cent from April last year, the firm said.

Spain's Senate passes bill to limit home evictions

Agencia EFEMay 8, 2013 22:15
Madrid, May 8 (EFE).- Spain's Senate on Wednesday passed a bill proposed by the governing conservative Popular Party that bolsters protection for homeowners who are behind on their mortgage payments and face possible foreclosure. The PP pushed the bill through the Senate - just as it did in the lower house - despite a lack of support from the opposition, who wanted to insert a clause to erase the mortgage debt of people who lose their homes. Under current Spanish legislation, a person who is evicted after defaulting on a mortgage remains liable for the unpaid balance.

TransUnion: Improving housing market helps lower rate of late payments on US mortgages in 1Q

The Canadian PressMay 8, 2013 13:27
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - A resurgent housing market, rising home values and steady job gains are helping more U.S. homeowners stay on top of their mortgage payments. The percentage of mortgage holders at least two months behind on their payments fell by 21 per cent in the first three months of this year versus the same period in 2012, credit reporting agency TransUnion said Wednesday. The sharp annual decline in the mortgage delinquency rate represents the biggest quarterly drop on record for TransUnion, whose data go back to 1992.

New York to sue BofA, Wells Fargo over mortgage practices

May 7, 2013 12:55
By Karen Freifeld and Aruna Viswanatha NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said on Monday he plans to sue Bank of America Corp and Wells Fargo and Co for violating the terms of a settlement designed to end mortgage servicing abuses. Schneiderman issued the announcement, which suggests lawsuits could be filed against the banks within two months, ahead of a widely anticipated report from the monitor for the multi-state settlement, which is expected to be critical of banks.

NY attorney general: Wells Fargo, Bank of America violate refinancing terms in mortgage accord

The Canadian PressMay 6, 2013 11:45
ALBANY, N.Y. - New York's attorney general on Monday accused Wells Fargo and Bank of America of violating the terms of last year's national mortgage settlement by failing to process hundreds of refinancing requests promptly. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has notified the national monitoring committee established to enforce the five-bank agreement, citing complaints of 210 prompt-processing violations by Wells Fargo and 129 by Bank of America. If the committee defers taking action, Schneiderman said he will sue for compliance.
Syndicate content