BofA Allows Some Homeowners to Rent, Avoid Foreclosure Bloomberg Bank of America Corp., the second- largest US bank, started a program this week to allow mortgage borrowers facing foreclosure to stay in their homes as renters while transferring title back to the lender. The pilot program, dubbed "Mortgage to Lease," ... and more »

by Nancy Welsh, Builders of Hope NHC invites guest blog posters to write on important housing topics. The views expressed by guest posters do not necessarily reflect those of NHC or its members. Vacant, foreclosed homes in the United States have been abandoned and left to languish. At the same time a dearth of affordable housing has left Americans-many of whom are college-educated, working-class people-struggling to put roofs over their heads. More than a third of Americans spend more than 30 percent of their pre-tax household income on housing related expenses including rent or mortgage payments, property taxes, utilities, insurance and homeowner association fees, and in 2009, 19.4 million American households spent more than half of their yearly incomes on housing. Facing a housing cost burden often forces families to make sacrifices when it comes to other necessities such as food, clothing, transportation and medical care. There is a serious misconception that affordable housing is just for people who are destitute or living below the poverty line. Prior to the housing market's collapse, there was already downward pressure on affordable housing. However, the housing crisis has exacerbated the situation and the situation continues to get worse. According to recent Census data, from 2000 to 2010 the nation's median income fell by 7 percent to $49,445. In addition, in the third quarter of 2011, the national median market-rate rent was reportedly $1,004, up from $981 a year earlier, while the national rental vacancy rate declined to 9.8 percent, down from 10.3 percent in 2010. We have millions of people in need of affordable housing and millions of units of vacant housing available. Policymakers fantasize about tearing down as many as 3 million vacant and foreclosed homes in an effort to jump-start the housing market, but it's imperative that we recognize these homes as valuable assets. It would be a critical mistake to tear them down. Instead, it's time...

Bernanke Tells Students Fed Not Responsible for Housing Bubble Bloomberg Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the central bank's policies last decade weren't responsible for the housing price bubble that led to the recession. "Some have argued that the Fed's low interest rate monetary policy in the early 2000s ...

Press Release

Two mortgage brokers in Georgia became instant millionaires after successfully suing banks for defrauding military veterans in Veterans administration home loans by hiding unallowable fees in mortgage documents.

Acting Comptroller of the Currency John Walsh today discussed efforts underway to harmonize U.S. regulatory requirements with international standards during testimony before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

Insurance Upstart Signals U.S. Housing Rebound: Mortgages Bloomberg Reports of the US mortgage- insurance industry's demise have been greatly exaggerated. NMI Holdings, a new home-loan guarantor, has hired investment bank FBR & Co. (FBRC) to help it raise $550 million after record homeowner defaults felled three ... and more »

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit accusing it of defrauding investors by selling risky debt linked to subprime mortgages that it planned to bet against.

The housing market in the United States is set to hit a low if monetary policy in the country is tightened, according to the CEO of Savills, John Lyons.