Internet marketer seeks help with condo purchase

Zack Preble, the Internet marketing specialist who created CondoFiasco.com, wants some help to pay for a condo unit in Miami that he says he never should have bought.

An online marketing specialist for Foreclosure.com, a site that offers information about foreclosure properties, Preble has conjured up a marketing campaign to call attention to his plight. "I've got to do what I know how to do," he said.  more...

Bill would tighten rules for mortgage servicers, appraisers

A new bill aimed at cracking down on deceptive practices in mortgage servicing and coercion of appraisers has the support of consumer groups and a group representing appraisers.

Introduced Tuesday by Rep. Paul Kanjorski, HR 3837 -- the Escrow, Appraisal, and Mortgage Servicing Improvements Act -- would update the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) to create new requirements for mortgage servicers.  more...

Building permits, starts fall to lowest rates in over a decade

The rate of housing starts in September dropped to a 15-year low while the rate of building permits for home construction hit a 13-year low, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today.  more...

Home loan apps rise in latest survey

A key measure of mortgage application volume rose last week as growth in interest rates slowed, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported today.

The MBA's market composite index edged up 0.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from the first week of October, and includes an adjustment to account for the Columbus Day holiday.

The index component that tracks purchase loans gained 2.1 percent between the first and second weeks of the month, while the refinance index actually declined 1.1 percent during the period, according to MBA.  more...

Overnight real estate rates down

Long-term mortgage interest rates were lower Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield fell to 4.65 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 6.1 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate sank to 5.72 percent. The 1-year adjustable, however, rose to 5.77 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield stayed at 4.91 percent.

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

DOJ announces proposed settlement with MLS

The U.S. Department of Justice has reached an agreement with the broker-owned Multiple Listing Service of Hilton Head Island Inc. to settle charges that the MLS sought to regulate the price of brokerage services and passed rules that restricted competition.

Justice Department officials announced Tuesday that the department has filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in South Carolina's U.S. District Court against the Multiple Listing Service of Hilton Head Island Inc.  more...