Category: Mortgage

Banker Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison

By Mike Colpitts The former owner of one of the largest privately held U.S. mortgage lending companies and Colonial Bank was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison and ordered to forfeit $38.5 million for his part in a massive $2.9 billion fraud scheme that drove his bank and mortgage company into failure. Lee B.… Continue reading Banker Sentenced to 30 Years in Federal Prison

Investor Purchases Rack Up

By Mike Colpitts Investors shopping for a deal are purchasing more than one-in-five residential properties in the U.S. and make up the second largest share of home purchasers right behind first time buyers. The rise in investor purchases has been developing over the last year as home values and the prices on all sorts of… Continue reading Investor Purchases Rack Up

Banks Mortgage Servicers Penalized

By Mike Colpitts Nearly four years after the foreclosure crisis began to make inroads to wreck the U.S. economy and mortgage lenders started foreclosing on homes without proof of ownership, the U.S. Treasury is finally taking action to withhold payments to three of the nation’s largest banks as a way to penalize their mortgage servicing… Continue reading Banks Mortgage Servicers Penalized

Interest Rates Hold Steady as New Home Purchases Fall

By Mike Colpitts Restrained by a weak U.S. economy and lower demand for new home purchases, mortgage interest rates held steady after moving just one-basis point last week, according to Freddie Mac. The rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage remained at 4.50%. The fixed 15-year loan narrowly edged up two basis points to 3.69%. New… Continue reading Interest Rates Hold Steady as New Home Purchases Fall

Jumbo Mortgages to Get More Expensive

By Mike Colpitts Mortgages on the nation’s most expensive homes are about to get more costly. In October the government is expected to halt backing jumbo mortgages of more than $625,500 through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, triggering higher interest rates and down payments. The change could also send home values lower in some high-end… Continue reading Jumbo Mortgages to Get More Expensive

Mortgages Biggest Spike in 3 Months

Demonstrating that there’s pent up demand for refinances and new home purchases despite erratic highs and lows in the marketplace, applications for home mortgages spiked to the highest level in three months as mortgage interest rates continued to fall. The biggest jump in the last quarter was led by refinancing, which gained 16.5% for the… Continue reading Mortgages Biggest Spike in 3 Months

Spring Home Sales Decline

By Mike Colpitts Hindered by financing problems and weak consumer confidence, existing home sales declined in May, falling 3.8% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.81 million units, and are more than 15% behind last year’s pace, according to the National Association of Realtors. The slowdown in sales comes at a time when growing… Continue reading Spring Home Sales Decline

Mortgage Interest Rates Suddenly Jump

By Kevin Chiu Pushed by weakening economic data, mortgage interest rates, already near historic lows, jumped slightly for the week to 4.50% on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, according to Freddie Mac. The jump of only 0.01 came after rates dropped for eight straight weeks. But rates declined slightly on other loans for the week.… Continue reading Mortgage Interest Rates Suddenly Jump

Mortgage Rates Drop with Applications

By Ryan Rodriguez Mortgage applications dropped for the second week in a row even as interest rates fell, demonstrating economic turbulence persists in the housing market and the greater  U.S. economy, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. However, the drop in application activity was by only a slim margin. The mortgage market composite index dropped 0.4%… Continue reading Mortgage Rates Drop with Applications