A Down Payment Anomaly
Despite home buyers being advised to issue down payments of at least 20 percent, many home buyers are finding that smaller down payments result in better interest rates—but also higher payments.

A borrower who put down 25 percent for a $400,000 home would make a monthly mortgage payment of $1,680, while the borrower who put 15 percent down would pay $1,906 — or $1,799 in principal and interest, plus another $107 monthly in mortgage insurance. (The mortgage insurance is tax deductible, however, so depending on a borrower’s financial circumstances, the net mortgage liability would probably be less.)
Source: New York Times

Obama’s mortgage relief program growing
The Obama administration’s $50 billion mortgage relief program is finally picking up speed after a sluggish and disappointing start: Nearly one in five eligible homeowners has been offered help so far, the Treasury Dept. said Wednesday.

Only 19% of the 3 million homeowners that are eligible have received offers to modify their mortgage. Still that is a l lot, over 500,000. 12%, or 360,000 homeowners have signed up for the 3 month trial loan modification that is offered.

Source: SFGate

Behind FHA Strains, a Push to Lift Housing
As it tried to help shore up the ailing housing market during the past year, the Federal Housing Administration increased its exposure, particularly to mortgages in high-cost states that have also seen some of the sharpest price declines.
Source: Wall Street Journal

New normal for home sales: Buyers have the power
Following the downturn in the housing market, lenders started requiring more money up front, higher credit scores, proof of income, and all paperwork in order—quite different than earlier this decade when subprime mortgages were rampant and buyers purchased homes deemed unaffordable by today’s standards.
Source: SFGate

Home price increases depend on foreclosure sales
Where will home prices head this fall?  It depends, in large part, on how many more foreclosures are made available for sale, as a new study by LP Applied Analytics, a real-estate research firm, makes clear.
Source: Wall Street Journal

Beware of foreclosure prevention scams
How’s this for a business plan?  A company buys or rents lists of recent default filings from across the country—thousands of people who have been notified by lenders that if they don’t get their mortgage payments back on track, the next step will be foreclosure.
Source: LA Times

Housing market may be nearing equilibrium, latest price numbers indicate
Nationwide, the average price of both new and existing homes sold in the second quarter fell 1percent from the same quarter a year ago, according to the latest government figures.
Source: LA Times