Author: Diana Olick

A potential $25 billion settlement between the nation’s four largest banks and the 50 state attorneys general over faulty foreclosure processing is imminent.    Read More

While homeownership may be a tenet of the “American Dream,” renting is today’s actuality for a growing number of Americans.   Read More

It will go through the government mortgage insurer, the Federal Housing Administration and could cost between 5 and 10 billion dollars, according to senior administration officials.    Read More

Anyone with any cash in hand should be buying a house right now. That’s what any real estate agent will tell you, obviously, but that’s also what many investors now believe. Unfortunately, the potential home-buying public…isn’t buying it.    Read More

Late Friday the U.S. Treasury Department announced a major expansion of its Home Affordable Modification Program. Now taxpayers will pony up the cash, as Treasury is tripling the financial incentives to lenders and opening the program up to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and investors in rental properties.   Read More

The number of new foreclosures in 2011 dropped nearly 40 percent, according to year-end numbers just released by Lender Processing Services; there is, however, little cause for celebration.    Read More

President Obama announced he was ordering the U.S. Attorney General to create a “Financial Crimes Unit,” its number one task being to go after the banks for faulty mortgage originations and securitizations.   Read More

After several largely ineffective programs to help troubled borrowers and after fruitless attempts at budging the hard-line conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, President Obama is proposing a brand new refinance program for borrowers who are current on their mortgages, regardless of who owns their loan; the catch is that this one has to go through Congress.   Read More

If the theme of tonight’s State of the Union address is fairness, then President Obama would be wise to steer clear of housing; most of the proposals to fix the nation’s still struggling real estate market are intrinsically unfair to a large majority of Americans.   Read More

The best and most expeditious way to clear the vast inventory of foreclosed properties weighing down today’s housing market is to get more investors in and sell them these properties at bulk discounts.    Read More