International Business News - mortgage http://www.ibtimes.com All articles are copyrighted by IBTimes.com 400 100 http://www.ibtimes.com/ http://www.ibtimes.com/images/top_logo_ibt2_3.gif Columbia Bancorp, the holding company of Columbia River Bank, said Friday it plans to exit the mortgage business and eliminate nearly 75 jobs in response to the uncertain banking environment. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080905/columbia-bancorp-shuts-mortgage-business.htm Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:03:18 EDT Rates on 30-year mortgages fell for a third straight week, dropping to the lowest level since mid-July. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dipped to 6.35 percent this week, down from 6.40 percent, the previous week. It marked the third consecutive decline and left rates at the lowest level since July 17 when they stood at 6.26 percent. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080904/30-year-mortgages-dip-slightly-to-6-35-percent.htm Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:59:48 EDT A new wave of adjustable-rate home loans taken out in the final years of the housing boom will reset to higher monthly payments sooner than expected, causing another spike in mortgage defaults beginning next year, Fitch Ratings said Tuesday. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080902/fitch-forecasts-new-wave-of-home-loan-defaults.htm Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:18:47 EDT Rates on 30-year mortgages fell for the second straight week, declining to the lowest level in more than a month. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dropped to 6.40 percent this week, down from 6.47 percent last week. The new rate was the lowest since the week of July 17 when 30-year mortgages stood at 6.26 percent. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080828/30-year-mortgages-fall-to-lowest-level-in-6-weeks.htm Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:03:09 EDT Rates on 30-year mortgages fell for the second straight week, declining to the lowest level in more than a month. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dropped to 6.40 percent this week, down from 6.47 percent last week. The new rate was the lowest since the week of July 17 when 30-year mortgages stood at 6.26 percent. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080828/30-year-mortgages-fall-to-lowest-level-in-6-weeks.htm Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:10:29 EDT The pace of the mortgage industry's efforts to assist troubled borrowers increased last month, an industry group said Wednesday. Hope Now, a group backed by the Bush administration to help stem the mortgage crisis, said Wednesday that about 192,000 borrowers received some form of loan workout in July, up 6 percent from 181,000 a month earlier. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080827/pace-of-mortgage-aid-by-industry-rose-in-july.htm Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:26:52 EDT Mortgage application volume rose less than 1 percent during the week ended Aug. 22, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly application survey. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080827/mortgage-application-volume-rises-slightly.htm Wed, 27 Aug 2008 07:18:32 EDT Troubled mortgage lender Thornburg Mortgage Inc. said late Monday that its profit increased by more than five times in the second quarter, due to big one-time gains from the sale of assets and decreases in the fair value of certain items. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080826/thornburg-mortgage-2nd-quarter-profit-jumps.htm Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:26:00 EDT Reported incidents of mortgage fraud jumped 42 percent nationwide, with Florida reporting the highest number of cases, according to industry data released Monday. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080825/florida-tops-1q-mortgage-fraud-list.htm Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:58:25 EDT THE DATA: Sales of existing homes rose 3.1 percent in July to an annual rate of 5 million units, surpassing expectations. Prices, meanwhile, fell 7.1 percent from last year's levels to a national median of $212,400, according to the National Association of Realtors. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080825/summary-box-existing-home-sales.htm Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:23:33 EDT Shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soared Monday in a respite from their battering in recent days, while some regional banks saw their stocks sink on worries they could be swept up in the turmoil surrounding the mortgage finance giants. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080825/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-shares-rise.htm Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:14:20 EDT Freddie Mac talked to investors this week about possibly buying its stock to raise much-needed capital but billionaire investor Warren Buffett said he passed on an opportunity to help the troubled mortgage giant. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/113970-freddie-mac.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080822/fannie-freddie-rescue-plans-leave-many-anxious.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080822/fannie-freddie-rescue-plans-leave-many-anxious.htm Fri, 22 Aug 2008 18:11:15 EDT THE PROBLEM: Mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are gushing red ink, and the government may wind up rescuing one or both companies, wiping out some investors in the process. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080821/summary-box-fears-over-fannie-freddie-bailouts.htm Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:19:52 EDT Rates on 30-year mortgages fell slightly this week to the lowest level since mid-July. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages dipped to 6.47 percent this week, down from 6.52 percent, which had been the rate for the previous three weeks. The new rate was the lowest since the week of July 17 when 30-year mortgages stood at 6.26 percent. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080821/30-year-mortgages-dip-slightly-to-6-47-percent.htm Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:28:36 EDT Illinois officials said a task force has conducted a sweep of more than 200 mortgage companies to make sure they're complying with a new law designed to combat predatory lending. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080821/ill-sweeps-lending-companies-for-law-compliance.htm Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:10:44 EDT A government rescue of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could be costly for scores of investment, banking and insurance companies that hold billions of dollars in preferred shares in the mortgage finance giants. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080821/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-shares-plummet.htm Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:19:51 EDT Four national associations of real estate appraisers have asked Congress for major regulatory reforms in the wake of an Associated Press investigation that identified key failings within the existing system. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080820/following-ap-report-appraisers-calls-for-reform.htm Wed, 20 Aug 2008 18:27:33 EDT Four people have pleaded guilty to an elaborate mortgage fraud scheme that involved millions of dollars in illegally obtained loan proceeds, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080820/4-convicted-in-15-million-loan-scheme-in-houston.htm Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:39:31 EDT Mortgage lender Thornburg Mortgage Inc. on Wednesday extended its exchange offer for four classes of its preferred stock, as part of its efforts to remain in business. http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080820/thornburg-mortgage-extends-stock-exchange-offer.htm Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:11:40 EDT Investors are betting that time is running out for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Shares of the mortgage finance companies lost more than a fifth of their value on Wednesday as fears mounted that the companies will soon need government support and any bailout would hang stockholders out to dry. http://www.ibtimes.com/data/articleimgs/112739-freddie-mac.jpg http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080820/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-shares-plummet.htm http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20080820/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-shares-plummet.htm Wed, 20 Aug 2008 17:03:41 EDT