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Raju Chebium | Gannett Washington Bureau | “California’s hard-hit housing market has improved considerably since the crisis of 2008 but Congress should pass President Barack Obama’s latest proposals to keep that recovery on track, Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan said Monday. The White House released a raft of evidence touting California’s housing recovery due to policies adopted since ObamaRead more

By Christine DeGangi | AOL Real Estate | “Maryland’s foreclosure starts in July increased 275 percent from last year, according to RealtyTrac’s July 2013 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report. Overall Maryland foreclosure activity — including default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions — saw a 148 percent increase since July 2012 with one in every 598 housing units inRead more

PRWeb.com | Digital Journal | HARP Mortgage Lender (http://harpmortgagelender.com) , a national network of mortgage professionals who are approved for the Home Affordable Refinance Program, reported that Florida HARP applications have dropped in the second quarter of 2013 as mortgage rates continue to rise. The Florida Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) was revised in late 2011Read more

Drew Harwell | Tampa Bay Times | “Tampa Bay home prices last month made their highest year-over-year jump since the housing boom, soaring 27 percent over July 2012 and reenergizing worries about a new bubble. The typical single-family home here sold last month for $172,000, the highest median price in five years, as buyers clawedRead more

Jeff Harrington | Tampa Bay Times |  “The latest job cuts will be split between two Chase locations near Tampa International Airport and are effective Oct. 11. JPMorgan Chase is closing several business units in Tampa set up to help distressed homeowners, a decision that signifies an improving economy even as it triggers more than 600Read more

Wayne T. Price and Lee Nessel | Florida Today | “Many area Realtors, and others involved in the housing market, say changes probably are needed with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac but the key will be moving slowly and cautiously. “This is a very forward-looking notion,” said Geoffrey K. Turnbull, a professor of real estate atRead more

ASSOCIATED PRESS | “President Barack Obama says the housing market is healing, but it’s time to turn the page on the “bubble-and-bust mentality” that led to the market’s collapse. In his weekly radio and Internet address, Obama calls on Congress to let all Americans refinance at current low rates. He wants more help for first-time homebuyers andRead more

Ashlyn Nelson | “U.S. housing markets may be emerging from the foreclosure crisis, but for many children, problems caused by the slide in home values haven’t ended. Foreclosure can have a lasting impact on children’s academic performance, says Ashlyn Aiko Nelson, an associate professor in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at IU Bloomington. “WeRead more

by Reuters |   “NEW YORK — U.S. home foreclosure filings tumbled in June to a 6½-year low, a further sign the housing market is getting back on better footing, a report from RealtyTrac showed Thursday. Overall, 127,790 properties had foreclosure filings last month, down 14 percent from May, and down 35 percent from a year earlier. ItRead more

by Kim Miller | “The goliath air conditioning system in the Palm Beach County courthouse is chugging full tilt as the temperature nears 90-degrees outside and, up on the fourth floor, the foreclosure court sign-in line grows. It’s been more than five years since Florida was rocked by the housing crisis, three years since theRead more