Why mortgage rates are stuck at 6.2% - and might stay there
For weeks now, mortgage rates have barely budged. There's a good chance they won't move much in the new year either. Mortgage rates have hovered in a remarkably narrow range of 6.2% to 6.3%, roughly year-to-date lows, since mid-September. Those levels have been enticing enough to spark some gains in refinancing activity and homebuying in the fall, but are still elevated enough to keep many aspiring buyers priced out of the market.
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Compass-Anywhere brokerage deal would hurt homebuyers, US Senators say
U.S. antitrust enforcers should consider blocking a bid by Compass, opens new tab, the nation's largest residential real estate broker, to acquire rival Anywhere Real Estate, opens new tab, amid a housing shortage, two Democratic U.S. Senators said. Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Ron Wyden of Oregon said in a letter to antitrust officials at the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday that the deal could contribute to high broker fees and limit access to home listings, hurting homebuyers who already face high costs.
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DOJ weighs in on another commissions lawsuit
The federal government continues to weigh in on real estate commissions lawsuits in a reminder to the industry that the current rules are still subject to antitrust scrutiny. The latest development came in the form of a Statement of Interest filing by the U.S. Department of Justice. It was filed on Dec. 19 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in a case known as Davis et al. v. Hanna Holdings Inc.
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8 Things You Should Know Before 'Locking' Your Home Title
"Home title theft is real," fraud-fighting California attorney David Fleck tells Money Talks News; however, it's not likely to happen to you. "But when it happens, it's the worst form of ID theft, and it's a pain in the neck to unwind it." Read on to learn what title monitoring services do and don't do, how home title thieves operate, how to protect yourself for free and how, even if someone does steal your house, you're likely covered already.
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Advocates called Nevada corporate homebuying cap a 'glimmer of hope.' Here's how it died.
Though the factors behind high housing costs are complex, corporations have become one of the top scapegoats. Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV), for example, has frequently argued that buyups by Wall Street "speculators" are disproportionately hurting single mothers and minority communities. "Companies with no interest or connection to our communities then manipulate the market and impact hard-working, prospective homeowners or renters who are trying to afford a home for themselves and their families," he said.
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