Mortgage rates edge down, still above record lows
Updated Oct. 9, 2013
Rates should stay low for another month or two as government efforts to keep them low remain effective, predicts Michael Larson, an interest rate and real estate analyst with Weiss Research.But it won't last forever. Rates will eventually trend upward, Larson said, as the economy starts to turn around and...

tax on real estate sales?
Updated Oct. 9, 2013
There is a buzz throughout various social media outlets that with the passage of HR 3200, The Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010 (the "Health Care Bill"), taxpayers will be paying a 3.8% sales tax when they sell real estate.. This is not exactly true. If you dig a little deeper,...

HUD Announces Pilot Program to Help Homeowners Pay for Energy Improvements to Their Homes
Updated Oct. 9, 2013
November 10, 2010--Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Shaun Donovan announced a new pilot program that will offer credit-worthy borrowers low-cost loans to make energy-saving improvements to their homes. Backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA),...

Taxpayers' bill on foreclosures: $2B
Updated Oct. 9, 2013
Taxpayer-funded Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have spent more than $2 billion this year on foreclosed property expenses after acquiring tens of thousands of homes through foreclosures.. The mortgage giants owned more than 240,000 foreclosed homes on Sept. 30, they reported last week. That's about 25 percent...