Home builder stocks take a hit

Home builders have had a rough week on Wall Street, with stocks diving toward the lowest level in two years for several major companies.

A Standard & Poor's index that tracks stock performance at 16 home-building companies sank 10.4 percent from June 1 to June 6, and 8.4 percent so far this week. The index peaked in January 2006, reaching 983.9 on Jan. 11. Since that date it has fallen about 38.1 percent.  more...

Bankers trade group agrees with NAR

In a move that puts banks and real estate on the same side of a debate, the American Bankers Association opposes the Home Depot's application to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to acquire EnerBank USA, an industrial loan corporation, the association said Tuesday in a comment letter.

In early May, the Atlanta-based retailer announced it was buying EnerBank USA, which has a Utah-based industrial loan charter that allows it to make loans and offer other banking services.

"As with the application of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.  more...

Report rates top markets for relocating families

Louisville, Ky.; Evansville, Ind.; and Athens, Ga., are among the best metro areas for relocating families, according to a report released this week.

Worldwide ERC, an association for global employee relocation, and Primacy Relocation, a relocation provider, worked with Bert Sperling of Sperling's BestPlaces in developing the list.

Louisvil  more...

Lawmakers criticize Fannie Mae in hearing

Lawmakers and a federal regulator criticized the ousted former chief executive of mortgage giant Fannie Mae Tuesday as a House panel aired government allegations of a six-year accounting fraud at the mortgage giant, media reports said today.

The regulator who oversees Fannie Mae blamed Franklin Raines and other senior company officials for the massive accounting failures and alleged manipulations designed to enrich executives, reports said.

And the chairman of the subcommittee holding the hearing, Rep.  more...

Real estate refinancings hit 4-year low

Overall mortgage applications tumbled 1.4 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis from the week before, as refinancings fell for the third consecutive week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported today.

The seasonally adjusted purchase index increased slightly to 395.6 from 395.5 the previous week whereas the refinance index decreased by 3.8 percent to 1,356 from 1,409 one week earlier.  more...

WaMu sued for allegedly not paying overtime

Three former mortgage brokers of Washington Mutual Inc., the largest U.S. savings and loan, have sued the company for allegedly shortchanging them out of overtime and paying them less than the federal minimum wage, media accounts said Tuesday.

The lawsuit, filed on Monday in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, New York, seeks class action status, according to reports.

"Because we have not yet seen the complaint, it would be inappropriate for us to comment on the specifics.  more...

Overnight real estate rates shoot higher

Long-term mortgage interest rates increased Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield dipped to 5 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average gained to 6.19 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate rose to 5.88 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up at 5.28 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield slid to 5.08 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. Points on these mortgages range from zero to 3.5.  more...