Transportation costs can exceed housing costs for working families

Transportation expenses exceed housing costs for low- to moderate-income working families in some major metro areas, according to a report by an affordable-housing research group.

The report by the Center for Housing Policy, a research affiliate of the National Housing Conference, an affordable-housing advocacy group, states that working families with annual incomes ranging from $20,000 to $50,000 pay more for transportation than they do for housing in 17 o  more...

Counties let public check property records online

In an attempt to thwart mortgage scams, Oakland County, Mich., is the latest to allow the public to check documents like quitclaim and warranty deeds online, to make sure they haven't been forged and illegally recorded.  more...

Inflation jitters jack up mortgage rates

Mortgage rates gained this week on investor speculation that the Federal Reserve will have to raise its target interest rate again to keep up with inflation, according to surveys conducted by Freddie Mac and Bankrate.com.

In Freddie Mac's survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to an average 6.37 percent, up from last week when it averaged 6.3 percent, while the 15-year fixed-rate loan climbed to 6.06 percent from 5.98 percent last week.

Points, which are fees charged by lenders for loan processing expressed as a percent of the loan, averaged 0.5 on the 30- and 15-year l  more...

Foreclosed homes go on auction block

Real estate auctioneer Hudson & Marshall is putting 400 single-family homes in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania on the auction block in the last week of October.

The auctions of foreclosed homes will take place between Oct. 23 and Nov.  more...

U.S. home sales, prices to fall in 2006

Sales of existing homes are expected to fall 8.9 percent nationwide to 6.45 million in 2006, and sales of new homes are forecast to plunge 17.3 percent to 1.06 million this year, according to a statement from an industry trade group this week.

Housing starts are expected to fall 10.9 percent to 1.84 million in 2006, the National Association of Realtors said in an announcement, and the national median existing-home price is likely to rise 1.6 percent to $223,000.

NAR said it expects prices to remain slightly below year-ago levels before gaining positive traction in the first  more...

Month 6 of Twin Cities real estate downturn

Home sales in the Twin Cities, Minn., area dropped for the sixth straight month in September, as prices held steady with year-ago levels, according to reports from three Twin Cities-area Realtor associations.

Realtors recorded 4,025 closed home sales last month, down 23.7 percent from 5,277 sales in September 2005.  more...

Real estate attitudes revealed in poll results

Nearly half of consumers responding to a national poll said they believe housing prices in their regions will rise in the next two years, a stark contrast to a housing report released last week by Moody's that predicts house prices are likely to decline more than 10 percent over the next few years in 20 metropolitan areas.

The survey, produced by the Associated Press and AOL Real Estate, asked 2,001 adults about attitudes towards home buying, and was conducted Sept.  more...

Bankrate to pay $3 milllion to settle lawsuit

Bankrate Inc. has agreed to pay a former client $3 million to settle allegations the company did little to prevent lenders that advertised on its Web site from engaging in bait-and-switch tactics.

Bankrate officials say they admit no "fault or liability of any kind" in the settlement with American Interbanc LLC, a former -- and apparently future -- Bankrate customer.  more...

More gains in overnight real estate rates

Long-term mortgage interest rates continued higher Wednesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield grew to 4.78 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average increased to 5.91 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate rose to 5.6 percent. The 1-year adjustable was down at 5.32 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield edged up to 4.91 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.

Mortgage rate figures are according to Bankrate.com, which publishes nightly averages based on its survey of 4,000 banks in 50 states.  more...

Regulatory fire may torch lending business

Fear of fraud is fueling a rush of new state laws intended to protect consumers.  more...