refinancing

With interest rates dipping to historic lows, many homeowners are refinancing their mortgages to shorten either the terms of their loans or their monthly payments. Here's what you need to know to decide whether refinancing now is right for you.

For nearly two years, economists and real estate experts have been on the lookout for the bottom of the housing market. That time is here, says Russell Price, a senior economist with Ameriprise Financial, a financial services company.

Is America headed for the Great Recession, part two? The talking heads are still in heated debate on the issue. But for those of us who aren't pundits, there's a more important question: What should we be doing now, just in case economic lightning does strike twice?

The Fed recently reported that Americans lost over 60% of their home equity between 2007 and 2009. So it's no surprise that millions of homeowners also lost the ability to borrow against the home equity they once had. In the states hardest hit by the foreclosure tsunami, like California, Nevada and...

Mortgage applications slowed down in the week before Christmas and increased the week after, while interest rates rose to a seven-month high, then retreated again, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday. Shifts in refinancing were the key factor.

The foreclosure crisis continues to pummel millions of Americans, and it has given rise to new con artists offering false assistance that leaves homeowners even deeper in debt. If you don't want to get kicked when you're already down, here are a few things to remember.

The number of applications for mortgages to buy homes rose to its highest level in six months last week. The Mortgage Bankers Association Purchase Index rose 14.4% from a week earlier, the association said. No adjustment was made for Veteran's Day, which occurred in the previous week. The index...

As a real estate and mortgage market commentator, I've had to say the phrase "interest rates are at historic lows" so many times, it would be my choice of tattoo text if I were into that sort of thing. (A temporary tattoo, of course.) But last week, mortgage rates went up! And, as a result, the...

The Mortgage Bankers Association said they tumbled 10.5% last week, the biggest fall-off in four months. While the foreclosure crisis may be playing a role in the decline, rising interest rates are also partly to blame.

The owner of New Day Financial Solutions Inc. agreed to pay New Jersey up to $805,000 to settle allegations that he defrauded homeowners trying to avoid foreclosures, said state Attorney General Paula T. Dow. The state claimed New Day and other companies owned by Stephen Pasch of Somerset County...