Employment Outlook Affects the Fed’s Bond Buyup

Over $3 trillion and counting. That’s the total so far of the Federal Reserve’s buyup of mortgage security bonds – a number that, as we discussed in a recent post, is raising alarms among senior representatives of regional Federal Reserve banks. Now, in another twist...

Rising Home Prices: Setting the Stage for Another Crash?

For every positive sign of a housing comeback, there seems to be a chorus of anxious market watchers ready to find ominous signs of a new collapse looming on the horizon. Those gloomy predictions may be overstating the concerns, but a number of financial analysts and...

Mortgage Shopping Can Lower Your Credit Score

Mortgage debt is good debt. But in the arcane world of credit scoring, even the process of applying for a mortgage can raise red flags on an applicant’s credit report and lower scores. Careful time management, say financial advisers, can help borrowers avoid taking a...

Mortgage Brokers — Another Kind of Scam?

For most prospective investors or residential buyers, the route to a mortgage loan typically begins with a bank or credit union – the tried and true way to finance a property purchase. But as the loan process becomes more complex and buyers with iffy credit remain...

Banks Tighten Standards — And Harm the Housing Recovery?

After the housing crash of a few years ago exposed the shifty underbelly of lending practices at the nation’s major banks, those institutions have been – albeit reluctantly – cleaning up their act with greater accountability and tighter lending standards aimed at...