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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: mortgage defaults

mortgage defaults stories: 35 news summaries

1 - 20 of 35 Stories | 1 2 Next >>

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 Goldman Seizes Homes 
 as Securities Sour 




Just getting them to admit they hold your mortgage can be an ordeal

Nov 2, 09 8:21 AM CST
(Newser) - Imagine finding yourself in a foreclosure battle and discovering that your opponent isn't the obscure lender who wrote your insane mortgage, but the formidable Goldman Sachs. It seems that after years of buying subprime mortgages and packaging them into bonds, at a handsome profit, Goldman is now in the business... More »

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housing market • Goldman Sachs • subprime mortgages • Henry Paulson • foreclosure • subprime crisis • mortgage defaults

 Foreclosures on Pricey 
 Properties Pick Up 

Well-to-do buyers weren't immune to wacky loans, and they're coming due

Oct 12, 09 9:19 AM CDT
(Newser) - The country's most expensive homes are now making up a larger segment of foreclosures in the most recent spike of mortgage defaults. An analysis of recent data shows that 30% of June foreclosures involved homes valued in the top third based on location; that’s up from just 16% at... More »

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housing market • foreclosure • credit crisis • homeownership • mortgage defaults • home mortgage • exotic loans • expensive

(Newser) - There’s a big problem with government efforts to keep delinquents in their homes by modifying mortgages: Banks would usually rather foreclose, economists tell the Washington Post. Lenders are only interested in modification for the small group of borrowers who will keep paying only if they get help. For those... More »

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foreclosure • mortgage • default • mortgage defaults • Obama administration • banking industry • mortgage modification

(Newser) - As many as 26% of mortgage defaults are deliberate moves by homeowners who owe more than their house is worth, finds a new study that asked 1000 people if they knew anyone who had defaulted even though they could still make payments. Researchers caution that the study isn’t precise,... More »

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study • foreclosure • mortgage • mortgage defaults • Obama administration

 Mortgage Rates 
 Hit 3-Month High 

Housing and consumer-spending rebound hopes endangered

May 29, 09 7:28 AM CDT
(Newser) - Mortgage rates jumped to a three-month high yesterday, putting hopes for a rebound in the housing market and consumer spending at risk, the Wall Street Journal reports. The average 30-year fixed rate hit 5.44% from 5.29% the day before and 5.03% Tuesday. The rates make it tougher... More »

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housing market • consumer spending • mortgage rates • mortgage defaults • mortgage delinquency

Feds Seize Florida
Bank in $4.9B Bust

BankUnited sold off to private equity consortium

May 22, 09 5:05 AM CDT
(Newser) - Florida's BankUnited went bust yesterday as the FDIC seized the critically undercapitalized bank and sold it off to a private-equity team including Blackstone, reports the Wall Street Journal. BankUnited's troubles stemmed from overeager moves in the housing market. It specialized in loans for foreigners wanting to buy Florida property. After... More »

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Florida • Blackstone • FDIC • bank failure • mortgage defaults • financial crisis • BankUnited

Perspective

 Credit Crisis Traps 
 NYT Economics Scribe 


May 16, 09 6:55 PM CDT
(Newser) - New York Times economics reporter Edmund Andrews was smart enough to avoid a financial disaster like the mortgage crisis. But “I had two utterly compelling reasons for taking the plunge,” he writes: “The money was there and I was in love.” With a new fiancée—... More »

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New York Times • subprime mortgages • mortgage • mortgage defaults • mortgage delinquency • financial crisis

(Newser) - New England’s tallest building has a new owner today, the Boston Herald reports—and the John Hancock Tower proved a steal, going at foreclosure auction for about half what it sold for in 2006. A pair of firms bid $660.6 million for the 60-story building in Boston’s... More »

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Boston • foreclosure • auction • mortgage defaults • commercial real estate • John Hancock Tower • landmark

ANALYSIS

Most Foreclosures Come From a Few Counties

Crisis affects former boom areas the most

Mar 6, 09 12:05 PM CST
(Newser) - The majority of US home foreclosures last year happened in just 35 counties, USA Today reports. Though the effects of the mortgage crisis have been felt nationwide, foreclosures have been from the start clustered in formerly booming areas in Florida, California, Nevada, Arizona, and around Washington DC. The 35 most-affected... More »

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Florida • California • Las Vegas • foreclosure • default • housing crisis • mortgage defaults

Obama Housing Rescue Plan Leaves Many Out in Cold

Criteria keep many who need help from refinancing under the plan

Mar 5, 09 8:40 AM CST
(Newser) - A large swath of Americans will see no help under the Obama administration’s housing rescue plan, the New York Times reports. While designed to prevent 3 million to 4 million foreclosures through loan modifications, the plan doesn't cover those whose loans aren’t backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie... More »

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housing market • foreclosure • Freddie Mac • Fannie Mae • mortgage debt • mortgage lender • underwater • mortgage defaults • Obama administration • financial crisis • President Obama

ANALYSIS

Mortgage Plan Relies on Incentives, Lacks Muscle

Proposal does does little to address securitized mortgages

Feb 19, 09 9:14 AM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • foreclosure • mortgage backed securities • housing crisis • mortgage defaults • mortgage delinquency • Obama administration • financial crisis • President Obama

OPINION

 Don't Be Afraid of the 'F' Word 


Jan 31, 09 10:07 AM CST
(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... More »

MORE ABOUT:
housing market • foreclosure • mortgage • credit market • mortgage defaults

Spiritually Sound, But Many Churches Literally Bankrupt

Donation lifeline dries up as recession bites, forcing many into Chapter 11

Dec 23, 08 12:16 PM CST
(Newser) - In trying times, many turn to the church to ease anxieties, but even houses of God haven’t been spared the wrath of recession, the Wall Street Journal reports. A church building boom begun in the 1990s has left many congregations overextended, and with the economic slowdown taking a sizable... More »

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religion • foreclosure • church • mortgage defaults • churches • financial crisis

 Fannie Mae: Tenants Can Stay 

Fannie Mae won't evict tenants after  foreclosures

Dec 15, 08 4:22 AM CST
(Newser) - Fannie Mae is offering to sign new leases with renters living in properties that have been foreclosed and are now owned by the the government-controlled mortgage company. The move brings relief to thousands of people caught in the mortgage crisis, but it turns the insitution into a huge national landlord... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Bank of America • subprime mortgages • foreclosure • Freddie Mac • Fannie Mae • mortgage defaults • JPMorgan Chase • evictions • tenants • renters • National Community Reinvestment Coalition • Federal Housing Finance Agency

Bernanke Plugs More Help
for US Homeowners

Fed chief outlines ideas for public, private sector to slow foreclosures

Dec 4, 08 4:54 PM CST
(Newser) - Ben Bernanke says more must be done to halt record US home-foreclosure rates, the New York Times reports. The Federal Reserve chief suggested several options today, including the government buying bad mortgages en masse and refinancing them through a government-insured program, and strengthening a scheme aimed at lowering homeowners’ monthly... More »

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Ben Bernanke • Federal Reserve • foreclosure • mortgage • mortgage rates • mortgage debt • housing bubble • mortgage defaults • mortgage delinquency • financial crisis

Shoppers Can't Halt Commercial Mortgage Crisis

Retailers will default, no matter how many sweaters you buy today

Nov 28, 08 9:02 AM CST
(AP) - Black Friday shoppers hunting for holiday bargains won't be enough to stave off what's likely to become the next economic crisis. Malls from Michigan to Georgia are entering foreclosure, commercial victims of the same events poisoning the housing market. Hotels in Tucson, Ariz., and Hilton Head, SC, also are about... More »

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foreclosure • credit crisis • mall • retail sales • holiday shopping • commercialism • mortgage defaults • financial crisis

FDIC Pushes Plan to Ease Mortgage Payments

Bush camp opposes using bailout funds

Nov 14, 08 8:42 AM CST
(Newser) - Officials at the FDIC are butting heads with the Bush administration over the bailout once again, yesterday outlining a plan to prevent 1.5 million foreclosures in the coming year by having banks sharply reduce monthly payments on mortgages, the Washington Post reports. The government would guarantee half the losses... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Henry Paulson • foreclosure • Treasury Department • FDIC • subprime crisis • mortgage defaults • financial crisis • Sheila Bair

Citi to Aid Homeowners by Modifying $20B in Mortgages

The bank will amend mortgages to assist 130,000 borrowers

Nov 11, 08 7:31 AM CST
(Newser) - Citigroup will modify up to $20 billion in mortgages for borrowers current on their payments but at risk of falling behind, the bank announced this morning, mirroring similar moves by Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase. Citi will reach out to half a million borrowers, ultimately reducing monthly payments for... More »

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Citigroup • Bank of America • subprime crisis • mortgage defaults • mortgage delinquency • JPMorgan Chase • credit market chaos • financial crisis

JPMorgan Plans Relief for $110B in Mortgages

WaMu customers included in measure to avoid foreclosures

Oct 31, 08 2:22 PM CDT
(Newser) - JPMorgan Chase will help distressed homeowners by reducing interest rates or principal balances for $110 billion in mortgages, Bloomberg reports. The restructuring applies to clients of Washington Mutual, which JPMorgan agreed to buy last month. Foreclosures will be suspended on all loans for the next 90 days while the relief... More »

MORE ABOUT:
mortgage • Washington Mutual • WaMu • refinanced mortgages • subprime crisis • mortgage defaults • JPMorgan Chase • financial crisis

 Rescue Plan  
 Rankles Prudent 
 Homeowners 

Those who can pay mortgages feel cheated as neighbors get aid

Oct 31, 08 7:43 AM CDT
(Newser) - As the feds move ahead with a plan to help homeowners on the brink of foreclosure, others are questioning the scheme's fairness and wondering if it's ripe for abuse, the New York Times reports. “I am beginning to think I would have rocks in my head if I keep... More »

MORE ABOUT:
housing market • abuse • refinanced mortgages • subprime crisis • bailout • mortgage defaults • financial crisis

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