Calif. title insurance rate cap expected to gain approval

The California Office of Administrative Law has published a decision outlining the mostly minor issues that prevented its legal experts from signing off last month on a proposal to cap title insurance rates and escrow fees.  more...

House-price growth steadies

The rate of home-price appreciation in the U.S. remained steady in the fourth quarter of 2006, extending a general trend of deceleration begun earlier in the year.

Home prices, based on repeat sales and refinancings, were 1.1 percent higher in the fourth quarter than they were in the third quarter of 2006, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight's latest survey.  more...

Mapwing.com users wing it with free virtual tours

Go ahead -- take a virtual tour of Aunt Crystal's birthday party, complete with a hand-drawn map of the table and seating arrangement, and photos of the celebrants, the cake and a sleeping cat. Or take a walk with Charlie, a "slightly overweight Corgi," on a virtual tour past some "magical old trees" and Mr. Hitchens' house.  more...

Subprime delinquencies approach 20% at Countrywide

Delinquencies on subprime home loans that Countrywide Financial owns or services for other investors rose to 19 percent by the end of 2006, up from 15.2 percent at the end of 2005 and 11.3 percent at the end of 2004.

Subprime loans pending foreclosure also rose to 3.53 percent, compared with 2.03 percent at the end of 2005 and 1.74 percent at the close of 2004, Countrywide said in its annual report to investors.  more...

First American reports lower Q4 earnings

The First American Corp., which owns title and other specialty insurance businesses, today reported lower fourth-quarter earnings.

Fourth-quarter profits in 2006 were $104 million, down 11 percent from $116 million during the same quarter in 2005. Revenues were $2.2 billion, a 2 percent decline from the same quarter a year earlier.

Net income fell 40 percent to $287.7 million in 2006 from $480.4 million in 2005. Revenues were up 5 percent for the full year at $8.5 billion.  more...

Mortgage rates slide

Another week of disappointing economic reports caused mortgage rates to drop again, according to surveys conducted this week by Freddie Mac and Bankrate.com. From a sharp stock sell-off to slumping new-home sales to weaker gross domestic product growth, the news suggests a slower economy and lower inflation are in the works.

As a result, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage fell to an average 6.18 percent from 6.22 percent last week, according to Freddie Mac's survey, while the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage slid from 5.97 percent to 5.92 percent.  more...

Residential construction spending falls 13% in January

Construction spending for residential projects reached an adjusted annual rate of $575.4 billion in January, down 13 percent compared to January 2006 and down 1.8 percent from December, the U.S. Census Bureau reported today.

For all types of construction, spending reached an adjusted annual rate of $1.18 trillion in January, which is about 0.8 percent below the revised December estimate and 1.2 percent below the January 2006 estimate.  more...

Poizner keeps Democrat as top lawyer at California Dept. of Insurance

Saying consumer protection is "neither a Democratic nor Republican issue," California's new Insurance Commissioner, Republican Steve Poizner, has named a 14-member executive staff that includes Democrat Gary Cohen as general counsel and deputy commissioner.

Poizner had previously been criticized for naming as his special counsel former insurance industry lobbyist William Gausewitz.  more...

Real estate rates down overnight

Long-term mortgage interest rates fell further Wednesday and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield gained to 4.57 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average dipped to 5.7 percent, and the 15-year fixed rate was down at 5.45 percent. The 1-year adjustable slid to 5.33 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.68 percent.

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