foreclosures

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1 in 5 Homeowners Underwater
 1 in 5 Homeowners Underwater 
Mar 4, 2009 10:17 AM CST

1 in 5 Homeowners Underwater

(Newser) - More than 20% of Americans with home mortgages owe more to their lenders than their homes are worth, a 2% rise since September, the Washington Post reports. The hardest-hit state was Nevada, where 55% of homeowners with mortgages have negative equity. These 8.3 million homeowners nationwide are much more...

Foreclosure-Relief Bill Stalls Before House Vote

(Newser) - Legislation that would allow bankruptcy judges to reduce the principal on mortgages of homes in danger of foreclosure will not come up for its scheduled House vote today because Democratic infighting has broken out, endangering its passage, CQ Politics reports. The “cramdown” provision was a red flag for fiscal...

Blago Gave Burris' Son Job
Blago Gave Burris' Son Job
Feb 26, 2009 12:34 PM CST

Blago Gave Burris' Son Job

Facing foreclosure, Burris II gets housing gig; 'reeks of hypocrisy,' state rep charges

(Newser) - Sen. Roland Burris’ son, Roland W. Burris II, got a job with the Illinois housing authority last year, weeks after the IRS imposed a tax lien and his home entered foreclosure, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The appointment came as his father lobbied for Barack Obama’s Senate seat, and Gov....

Tough Job Selling Mortgage Bailout to Bill-Paying Public

Even Democrats are wary of bailout

(Newser) - President Obama may be facing a mutiny on his mortgage bailout plan. After CNBC reporter Rick Santelli’s on-air rant about the bailout "promoting bad behavior" by rewarding losers, Obama’s spokesman swatted the criticism away. But, Politico reports, public opinion is leaning in Santelli's direction—even 49% of...

Octu-Mom, Grandma Face Off in New Vid

Mom rips daughter for irresponsibility

(Newser) - Octuplet mom Nadya Suleman and her own mother, Angela, have been sniping at each other in interviews—and now a video from Radar captures their first face-off. The bizarre sit-down includes an argument over how Nadya could have dealt with her frozen embryos and Angela’s apparent suggestion that she...

Mortgage Plan Relies on Incentives, Lacks Muscle
Mortgage Plan Relies on Incentives, Lacks Muscle
ANALYSIS
Feb 19, 2009 9:14 AM CST

Mortgage Plan Relies on Incentives, Lacks Muscle

Proposal does does little to address securitized mortgages

(Newser) - The Obama administration’s foreclosure-prevention plan contains more carrots than sticks, relying heavily on incentives designed to prod mortgage servicers to modify at-risk loans, the Wall Street Journal reports. The plan offers monetary rewards to mortgage companies that lower interest rates on delinquent mortgages, and reduces principal for borrowers who...

Octuplets' Home in Danger of Foreclosure

Octu-grandma in loan default; Octu-grandpa talking to Oprah

(Newser) - Nadya Suleman acknowledges that her 3-bedroom home is too small for her brood of 14, but the family is in danger of losing even that, the Los Angeles Times reports. Records show that the suburban California home, which is owned by the octuplets' grandmother, is in pre-foreclosure, with a projected...

Obama Unveils 3-Part, $275B Mortgage Plan

(Newser) - Barack Obama announced in Mesa, Ariz., today a three-pronged plan to revamp the mortgage market, the Wall Street Journal reports. The plan offers opportunities for 9  million homeowners to refinance or rework their mortgages. Five million borrowers facing foreclosure will have access to a $75 billion fund, and another 4...

Bernanke's Childhood Home Foreclosed On

Fed chief hails from one of America's hardest-hit towns

(Newser) - “This is where it all happened,” says the new owner of a modest ranch house in Dillon, SC. This is the house Ben Bernanke grew up in, and though his family sold it long ago, it’s a tad ironic that it was just bought in a foreclosure...

Banks Halt Foreclosures Ahead of Obama Plan

Citigroup, Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase suspend proceedings until next month

(Newser) - Major US banks agreed today to halt foreclosure proceedings against homeowners until the White House foreclosure prevention plan is in place, the Washington Post reports. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America will suspend foreclosures until early March, when the foreclosure plan is expected to be operational. President Obama is...

States Seek to Restrict Employer Credit Checks

Lawmakers want employers to prove credit reports are necessary

(Newser) - Several states and Obama administration officials are seeking restrictions on employers that unfairly screen out job applicants using credit checks, USA Today reports. Spiking unemployment and mortgage foreclosures brought on by the financial crisis have hurt many, and lawmakers say trustworthy people are being shut out of good jobs. Some...

US May Subsidize Lenders Who Cut Mortgage Rates

(Newser) - Details are emerging on the Obama administration's plan to help homeowners: One idea is to give strapped borrowers a lower interest rate, then have the federal government chip in to defray the lenders' loss, the Washington Post reports. The Treasury Department is expected to outline its overall plan in the...

Farmers Plucked by Chicken Slump

Foreclosures loom as chicken company cuts contracts

(Newser) - Hundreds of poultry farmers face foreclosures on their pricey chicken houses after poultry giant Pilgrim's Pride dropped their contracts. Some are suing in return, claiming the company encouraged them to take on hefty mortgages and vowed to keep their grandkids in business, the Wall Street Journal reports. Most farmers own...

Obama Rallies Support in Hard-Hit Fort Myers

'You have seen hardship,' Obama tells supporters

(Newser) - President Obama headed to Fort Myers, Fla., today to rally support for his economic stimulus plan, telling residents “when the town is burning, you don't check party labels. Everybody needs to grab a hose,” the Miami Herald reports. Obama picked Fort Myers because its county has the highest...

Obama Visit Shines Light on Florida's Gloomy Outlook

Prez follows long tradition of bemoaning Florida's unsustainability

(Newser) - When President Obama chose Fort Myers, Fla., to plug his stimulus plan, he magnified an already intense media glare on the state’s disastrous real estate market, reports the Miami Herald. The scrutiny continues in a long article in the current New Yorker—titled “Ponzi State”—and a...

New Bailout Plan Hinges on Private Investors

Treasury will set 'floor price' on distressed assets to lure buyers

(Newser) - The Treasury's latest plan to rescue the banking industry relies heavily on private-sector investors, the New York Times reports. The government will guarantee a floor price on the toxic assets weighing down banks’ balance sheets, encouraging hedge funds, private equity groups, and even insurers to buy them. The plan should...

Don't Be Afraid of the 'F' Word
 Don't Be Afraid of the 'F' Word 
OPINION
Jan 31, 2009 10:07 AM CST

Don't Be Afraid of the 'F' Word

(Newser) - Foreclosures have gotten a bad rap lately, with politicians desperate to prevent them. But foreclosures actually represent one of the best paths to recovery, writes real-estate consultant Ramsey Su in the Wall Street Journal. The people facing foreclosure would be much better served walking away from the negative-equity McMansions destroying...

Freddie Mac to Let People Stay in Foreclosed Houses

Rental program aims to stop evictions

(Newser) - Freddie Mac has forged a first-of-its-kind plan to allow homeowners and tenants to remain in foreclosed homes, USA Today reports. Residents will be charged a market rental rate on leases renewable monthly after their homes have been acquired by the lender. Freddie Mac expects the program to save thousands of...

Jumbo Mortgage Defaults Soar
 Jumbo Mortgage Defaults Soar 
Jan 28, 2009 8:33 AM CST

Jumbo Mortgage Defaults Soar

Banks and investors brace for a new wave of defaults as jumbo loans default

(Newser) - Jumbo mortgages are now going south at an alarming rate, reports the Wall Street Journal, as affluent Americans face mounting layoffs and see their stock portfolios shrivel. Nearly 7% of prime jumbo loans—which average $750,000—were at least 90 days delinquent at the end of 2008, up from...

All Options on Table in Fight to Halt Foreclosure
All Options on Table in Fight to Halt Foreclosure
ANALYSIS
Jan 26, 2009 8:54 AM CST

All Options on Table in Fight to Halt Foreclosure

Obama considering moratorium, gov't-sponsored refinancing

(Newser) - The Obama administration is considering plans to stem the tide of foreclosures ranging from doubling the mortgage interest deduction to a six-month foreclosure moratorium to government-sponsored refinancing, reports the Los Angeles Times. But a strategy is still at least several weeks away and, regardless of what bandages are applied, “...

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