Thursday's Personal Finance Stories - MarketWatch

Thursday's Personal Finance Stories MarketWatch By MarketWatch We have a lot of real estate news and analysis for you today on MarketWatch, from mortgage rates and the bank foreclosure settlement to a report on what older Americans are doing with their home equity. (Hint: They're not letting it just ... and more »

Fed chair: Housing market impedes economic recovery - Philadelphia Inquirer

Globe and Mail

Fed chair: Housing market impedes economic recovery Philadelphia Inquirer What's worse, Bernanke said, two million distressed homes have been entering the market each year, and "that high rate will continue for awhile," he said. What has been constraining demand is lower household formation, high unemployment, the shortage ... Bernanke: Housing At The Heart Of Sluggish U.S. RecoveryNASDAQ Bernanke's speech to home buildersBaltimore Sun Bernanke: Weak housing lingersAppleton Post Crescent all 444 news articles »

BofA Said to Put Off Refinancing Clients as US Spurs Deman - Bloomberg

Bloomberg

BofA Said to Put Off Refinancing Clients as US Spurs Deman Bloomberg The delays may push borrowers to other lenders or discourage them from taking advantage of record low interest rates. The government's Home Affordable Refinance Program, which helps homeowners lower payments, has increased refinance applications and ... HARP Refi May Delay PMI CancellationNASDAQ As Mortgage Refinancings Surge, Banks StruggleCNBC.com New HARP Could Help Up to 6.7 MillionMortgageLoan.com Exec Digital (press release) -MyFox Memphis all 54 news articles »

Boomers turn home equity into 401(k) funds - MarketWatch

Boomers turn home equity into 401(k) funds MarketWatch They are borrowing against the equity in their homes at low rates and then investing the money in tax-deferred accounts, according to the co-authors of a new study, “Financial Sophistication and Housing Leverage among Older Households,” scheduled to be ... and more »

ANZ and Westpac defy Wayne Swan with lift in interest rates - The Australian

Bloomberg

ANZ and Westpac defy Wayne Swan with lift in interest rates The Australian In a move that fundamentally breaks the nexus between interest rate decisions by the Reserve Bank and the banks, Westpac last night joined the ANZ in lifting standard variable home loan rates. While the actions will increase the repayments for average ... Banks tipped to follow ANZ on rates hikeABC Online Westpac, ANZ break ranks and hike ratesYahoo!7 News Will ANZ burst the dam of public anger?Sydney Morning Herald all 595 news articles »