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By Toluse Olorunnipa, Times/Herald Tallahassee Bureau | “The forms used by property insurers across the state to calculate insurance discounts for homeowners are seriously flawed and must be completely thrown out, an administrative judge has found in a potentially groundbreaking ruling. The decision could have far-reaching implications for homeowners who receive wind-mitigation discounts for hurricane-resistant measuresRead more

By Jeff Harrington, Times Staff Writer “Eli Munoz-Soto and Marcial Solorzano held ownership stakes in more than 40 homes that got tangled up in Florida’s epic housing meltdown. For nearly three years, their cases crawled through bankruptcy court, as they sought modified mortgages with lower payments to avoid foreclosure. Finally, in a hearing this month, theirRead more

By Les Christie @CNNMoney “The clock is ticking on a tax break that saves struggling homeowners from paying thousands of dollars to the IRS. If the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007 does not get extended by Congress by the end of the year, homeowners will have to start paying income taxes on the portion ofRead more

By Jeff Kearns | Bloomberg.com   “Federal Reserve Governor Elizabeth Duke said pending bank regulations may “seriously” impair mortgage lending by community banks, which play a “significant” role in the market for home loans. Duke, a former community bank executive, said she and other Fed governors, including Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, are concerned about the potential harm from several rules mandatedRead more

Reuters | “Applications for U.S. home mortgages fell last week as Superstorm Sandy battered the East Coast and disrupted normal business activity for millions of people, an industry group said on Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity fell 5 percent in the week ended Nov. 2. TheRead more

By CHRISTINA REXRODE | The Associated Press | “The latest federal lawsuit over alleged mortgage fraud paints an unflattering picture of a doomed lender: Executives at Countrywide Financial urged workers to churn out loans, accepted fudged applications and tried to hide ballooning defaults. The suit, filed Wednesday by the top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, also underscored how BankRead more

By: Diana Olick CNBC Real Estate Reporter Watch:  Where ReFi Money is Going (Video)  “U.S. home owners are refinancing their mortgages at the fastest clip since 2005, but the difference now is they are putting cash in, not taking it out. At the going rate, 25 percent of all first-lien U.S. mortgages will be refinanced thisRead more

By Reuters | “The American Civil Liberties Union sued Morgan Stanley on Monday, in what the group said is the first lawsuit against an investment bank alleging racial discrimination over packaging subprime mortgage loans into securities. The lawsuit alleges Morgan Stanley encouraged a unit of now-bankrupt New Century Financial Corp to target black borrowers disproportionatelyRead more

By Jody Shenn, Clea Benson and Heather Perlberg | “Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Ginnie Mae are seeking to protect taxpayers as a flood of new lenders apply to do business with them. That’s also helping big banks’ profit and blunting Federal Reserve efforts to boost housing. Fannie Mae, the government-supported mortgage financier, has begun limiting howRead more

By The Miami Herald “Florida is ranked No. 1 in the nation for the number of homes in foreclosure and the number of people on the verge of losing their homes. But the Sunshine State is last in the nation when it comes to using the billions of dollars in available housing aid from a nationalRead more