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The Mortgage Bankers Association released a grim report today revealing that nearly one in seven households with mortgages is behind on payments or already in foreclosure. Last year, only one in 10 were behind. Two years ago, the number was just 7.3%. We’re now in what is clearly the second leg downward of the mortgage mess. While the early days of the mortgage crisis were driven largely by people saddled with complex mortgages they couldn’t afford to pay, now even homeowners with relatively sane mortgages are running into trouble as unemployment soars into the double digits. In a rising housing...

The housing market is so bad you can't even give away homes these days. Officials in suburban Barrington put three homes up for a sale at just a dollar a piece - a dollar! - and didn't get a single bidder. A dollar! Let's review: For less than the price of a CTA ride, a Starbuck's coffee, or the typical tip slipped under a stripper's G-string, you could have bought a home in Barrington. Sure, buying a house means assuming the future costs of upkeep, but a dollar! "Even if you're offering a house for a dollar, sometimes all...

Thousands At Cow Palace Seeking Mortgage HelpA Carolyn Said, Chronicle Staff Writer Saturday, October 17, 2009 Armed with sleeping bags or folding chairs, many spent a chilly night on the pavement outside the Daly City event center. "I'm just trying to keep my house," said Gerasim Karapetian of Yorba Linda (Orange County), as he waited in the bleachers to meet with a loan counselor. "I drove eight hours, got here at 2 a.m., and waited outside all night. The line wrapped around the whole parking lot." He was among more than 4,000 people from around California and neighboring states who...

Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) introduced legislation Tuesday that would expand an $8,000 tax credit to most homebuyers. The idea already has the support of Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and could be embraced by Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). Dodd and Reid are in two of the toughest reelection campaigns of the 2010 cycle, and the populist idea of expanding a tax credit currently available only to new homebuyers could give them a boost at the polls. “It’s probably of interest to any senator running for reelection,” said Brian Gardner, an analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. He...

Image: Jim MerithewAfter the end of World War Two, tension and mistrust continuously grew between the USSR and its satellite states versus a western coalition led by the USA. A game of one-upmanship, lasting almost 50 years, developed with each group inventing stronger and more deadly weapons in an attempt to hold a military advantage.Alongside this military might developed a deep-seated fear of what would happen if there ever was an enemy strike. As a result, both nations went on a massive building campaign of bomb shelters, nuclear fallout sites and bunkers. Not to mention all the missile sites and...

JERUSALEM – President Obama is "fed up" with Israel while his administration has given the Palestinians guarantees they will eventually take over Jewish homes and buildings throughout most of the West Bank, a top Palestinian Authority official claimed to WND. "We heard from the U.S. that no matter what Israel is building in the West Bank, it will not affect a final status agreement to create a Palestinian state," said the PA official, who spoke on condition his name be withheld. "The Americans told us (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu might construct in the West Bank for now but we (Palestinians)...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will soon approve the construction of hundreds of new housing units in West Bank settlements before he declares a moratorium on building in those locales, according to a senior government source. The source from the prime minister's bureau said last night that Netanyahu informed U.S. officials of his decision to authorize the construction a few weeks ago.

CAMP ATTERBURY JOINT MANEUVER TRAINING CENTER, Ind., Aug. 20, 2009 – Many programs help military members’ families during a deployment, but what about their four-legged friends? Guardian Angels for Soldier’s Pet, a nonprofit volunteer group, arranges foster care for the pets of deploying servicemembers. U.S. Army photo  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Guardian Angels for Soldiers' Pet, a nonprofit organization made up of all volunteers, locates foster homes for the pets of servicemembers who are deployed, training or experiencing an emergency or financial hardship. Linda Spurlin-Dominik, the group’s chief executive officer, said the group was formed in January 2005...

GARY – Gary officials are seeking nearly $25 million in federal money to tear down more than 900 abandoned houses and 200 empty commercial buildings.......

Robert and Kay Lynn lay in bed shortly after closing on their new home in the Blue Oaks subdivision in Rancho Murieta, Calif., abutting an 18-hole golf course. They were listening to the “pop, pop, pop” of what they thought were acorns falling onto the roof. The Lynns soon realized those were not acorns dropping on the roof. “Little did we know it was the house cracking,” says Mrs. Lynn, 67 years old. Mr. Lynn, 68, says they bought the property in 2002 for $357,000 as a weekend home and an investment. The stucco house was moving and shifting, with...

One man was ticketed today possibly in connection with a fire that started near S.C. 90 and spread through Horry County. The man was ticketed for failure to notify the S.C. Forestry Commission about an outdoor burn and letting the fire spread to another's property, said Scott Hawkins, forestry spokesman. ''Were they the cause of the fire? We don't know that yet,'' Hawkins said. ''There is further investigation needed. Yes that burn caused a fire, but it doesn't mean it caused the [S.C.] 31 fire we are here to discuss today.'' The man's name was not immediately available. Forestry Commission...

Considering the nation's predicament, it's hard to imagine a more ill-advised federal policy than one that would make it harder for Americans to remain in the homes they own. Yet that is exactly what President Obama is proposing with his plan to limit the amount of mortgage interest that homeowners could deduct from their federal taxes. Prudent homeowners determined how much house they could afford by including the amount of mortgage interest they could deduct from their federal and state taxes. To suddenly change the rules of the game would be to invite hardship - and the prospect of foreclosure...

The "For Sale" signs are just starting to sprout, but already experts worry that this spring home-buying season in the United States will be even grimmer than the last. Despite tentative signs of recovery in hard-hit areas like California and Florida, the broader housing market is far from hitting bottom, economists said. Across much of America, prices are likely to keep falling through 2010. So the March-to-June season, when most homes are bought and sold, will be bad this year - perhaps the worst since the market began to spiral down in 2006. Across the nation, 19 million houses and...

The cluster of special federal tax benefits and subsidies for homeowners has long seemed politically untouchable. Those include deductions for mortgage interest, local property taxes and capital gains exclusions on up to $500,000 in sale profits. Is the Obama administration serious about beginning to limit at least some of these subsidies?

Kids Party in Foreclosed Homes, Leave Wake of VandalismParty-Throwing Minors, Criminals Make Themselves at Home in Vacant Houses By RUSSELL GOLDMAN March 4, 2009 By the time the cops arrived, the house was in total shambles. Windows were smashed, beer cans were strewn across the lawn, light fixtures were pulled out of the ceiling, the drywall was kicked out exposing the studs in the walls, and on nearly every available surface, spray paint indicated what that section of the house was to be used for, from the "liquor wall" to the "sex room." The Ft. Myers, Fla., party ended late...

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- It's getting more rewarding to be a home buyer. There's the $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time home buyers. ....There's just one hitch: You have to buy a newly-constructed home that's never been lived in. (And later in the story) There are some other limitations: The credit is available for just one year. Also, the state allocated $100 million to the credit -- once the funds run out, so does the tax break. And taxpayers must live in the home for two years or pay the credit back, Morris said. The state tax agency will pay...

Thomas the Tank's supple and shiny black Labrador coat is his most stunning feature. It's also his greatest curse. The 5-year-old bundle of sweet canine joy unwittingly suffers from "black dog syndrome," a term describing how large, black dogs often linger the longest on the adoption block at animal shelters. While scientific evidence of this malady is scarce, the phenomenon is real and also applies to black cats, those working in shelters say. Thomas is one of six large, black dogs up for adoption at PAWS Chicago, the largest transfer agency out of the Chicago city pound. Paula Fasseas, chairman...

A Dobson High School Advanced Placement government class with strong opinions about Barack Obama watched the president's speech Wednesday on a small, grainy TV in the corner of their classroom. Principal, student talk hoops with Obama Obama lays out plan amid hundreds at Dobson Some of the students attentively watched the speech, giving questioning looks and comments, shaking their heads and laughing at some of Obama's words. Other students listened, occasionally glancing up to watch, while texting on their cell phones, reading a book or finishing school work. The gymnasium's events were shown simultaneously in rooms throughout the Mesa school,...

Some owners of foreclosed homes are stealing appliances and leaving the houses damaged and in disarray, MyFOXOrlando.com reported. Realtors complain the trashed houses are harder to sell. Homeowners upset at banks that are forcing them out have been hauling items from their houses and selling them, the station said. They're also damaging walls and floors.

Case 1: "They want to stay in the house; they've lived there for 15 years and, well, it's home. They're way underwater, owing about $510,000 on a property not worth much more than $350,000 right now..." Case 2: "She has been in the home for 23 years, but family health problems, divorce and economic factors have conspired against her and she's never been able to substantially pay down the loan."

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2009 – Army Spc. Sergio Trejo always dreamed of owning his own home. US Army Spc. Sergio Trejo and his family stand outside their new home in Houston. The Helping a Hero troop support group presented the home to the family, December 2008. Courtesy photo   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. But after he was injured by a homemade bomb during his second tour of duty in Iraq, he said he felt his dream was out of reach. The explosion left him with a broken back, traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder. “My [Veterans...

Some home builders already struggling in Florida's dismal housing market are facing another headache: The Chinese-made drywall they used is causing unpleasant odors and possibly leading to electric problems in dozens of homes constructed during the housing boom.

BAGHDAD, Dec. 28, 2008 – Iraqi officials recently reported that more than 2,000 Iraqi families have returned to their homes in eastern Baghdad this year. The 2,084 returning families left their homes in the districts of Rusafa, Karadah and 9 Nissan due to security concerns. Categorized as Internally Displaced Persons, they have returned to a more secure and safe environment. The number of returnees in the area is a sign of vastly improved security conditions, said Army Lt. Col. Eric Holliday, deputy team leader of Baghdad-2 embedded Provincial Reconstruction Team. "The more returnees we get back into the neighborhoods from...

BAGHDAD — Iraqi officials recently reported that more than 2,000 Iraqi families have returned to their homes in eastern Baghdad this year. The 2,084 returning families left their homes in the districts of Rusafa, Karadah and 9 Nissan due to security concerns. Categorized as Internally Displaced Persons (IDP), they have returned to a more secure and safe environment. The number of returnees in the area is a sign of vastly improved security conditions, said Lt. Col. Eric Holliday, deputy team leader of Baghdad-2 embedded Provincial Reconstruction Team. “The more returnees we get back into the neighborhoods from where they were...

In order to prevent another disastrous wave of foreclosures and stem the decline in home prices, America should allow in more immigrants and give them incentives to buy homes, says Gary Shilling, president of A. Gary Shilling & Co.A smaller version of this plan was successful in Canada and Shilling notes it could be combined with an expansion of the H1-B visas that Silicon Valley says are in such short supply.If "letting in more immigrants to buy houses" sounds like a drastic step, that's because drastic action is needed.Because there's too much inventory of unsold homes and not enough qualified...

In a move that provides relief to thousands of renters who face eviction but draws the federal government even deeper into the housing market, the loan giant Fannie Mae said Sunday that it would sign new leases with renters living in foreclosed properties owned by the company. It is the first nationwide effort to provide widespread relief to renters ensnared by the unfolding mortgage crisis, and it will effectively transform Fannie Mae —a government-controlled mortgage finance company — into a national landlord.It may also increase pressure on private lenders to establish similar programs and on lawmakers to pass renter relief....

When Diana Higley received her September utility statement from Sheffield Utilities, she thought it was a mistake. It showed a $6.30 credit. But there was no mistake, the Tennessee Valley Authority's Sheffield affiliate assured her. Advertisement "I was shocked, amazed and thrilled," said Higley, who adopted her three grandchildren, ages 9, 8 and 4, to raise as a single mom. "I couldn't believe it. I never dreamed they would owe me money." Higley's dream came courtesy of Habitat for Humanity. In August she moved into a newly built 1,200-square-foot Habitat house in Tuscumbia. It is the first zero-energy, solar-powered Habitat...

Extremists are threatening an environmental disaster by sparking a series of catastrophic wild fires. We first posted on this last year. Western intelligence agencies fear that Al Qaeda terrorists are planning a “global fireball” in a new departure in its war on the West. Deliberately lighting forest blazes in Europe, the US and Australia would not only stretch emergency services but leave insurance companies facing multi-billion pound damage bills as the credit crunch bites. The fires would also create a pollution disaster, with billions tons of climate change gases escaping into the atmosphere. The so-called “forest jihad” is being championed...

The plan is part of an economic stimulus package the governor expects to put before lawmakers to spur loan workouts. Reporting from Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday proposed a 90-day freeze in pending home foreclosures to give California's financially pinched homeowners more time to get new or more affordable loans. The governor unveiled a foreclosure relief and long-term mortgage reform initiative as part of an economic stimulus package that he plans to put before lawmakers in a special session of the Legislature scheduled to begin today. "The single most powerful action our state can take to shore up...

President Nicolas Sarkozy, grappling with the global financial crisis, has decided to directly support the French construction industry by buying 30,000 homes waiting to be built, the presidential palace said Wednesday. "So that current property programs can be successfully concluded, the president...has decided to intervene directly, ordering the purchase at discounted prices of houses on which building work has not yet begun," a statement said. This move will initially cover 30,000 homes, and by ensuring that they will be built, the decision will support the homebuilding industry, it said. The decision was taken at a meeting on the financial crisis...

This was not the first thing I wanted to hear this morning, yet perhaps I don't understand the context of President Bush's speech nor his intentions back then. What I heard this morning reminded me of President Johnson's Great Society programs. Again, and hopefully I have misunderstood the background on this. The following is my partial transcription of audio clips aired 7:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. on 790 KABC Talk Radio September 30, 2008. I also found the text of President Bush's 2002 speech and I posted it following my partial transcript of the audio segments. President Bush's 2002...

1. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates to as low as 1% so that after inflation we had negative interest rates.

I believe the “how many homes doe John McCain own?” issue being harped on by Democrats is patently ridiculous. The McCain campaign should throw the issue right back at the Democrats! Here is my suggestion: Create a campaign ad using a number of ordinary yet entrepreneurial American citizens who also own multiple homes and who are McCain supporters. Paint the ad in terms of hard-working Americans who through saving, investing, personal labor, etc. have managed to acquire multiple properties to the betterment of their way of life, their family, and other Americans. They could be house-flippers who help revitalize communities,...

Here is video of John McCain talking with CBS News' Katie Couric today. He discussed the pick of Joe Biden to be Barack Obama's running mate, and also answered questions on the issue of how many houses he owns. McCain very effectively explains that he is grateful for the success and blessings he has received from this great nation. He also shared that he knows what it is to "not have a home" and "not have a kitchen table." Rather than not being able to sympathize with those in need and want in America, John McCain's experience uniquely positions him...

DENVER - Here in the Big Tent of the Democratic Party, they're having no end of fun counting the homes of Republican Sen. John McCain. The morning news brings word that the count is up: Eight. Politico.com, which is where this conversation started - when McCain was asked how many homes he owns and he couldn't say - reports that initially it found seven when it made its own count. But now it has found a third condominium owned by the McCains in Phoenix, so that makes eight. "I'll have my staff get to you,'' McCain had told Politico last...

We’re trapped in the Obama campaign’s Cone of Stupidity and we can’t get out. The latest Obama ad razzes McCain for not remembering how many houses he has. (But at least he knows how many states there are.) Wealthy elitist Senator mauls wealthy elitist Senator. Snooze. Yahoo! News is featuring the moronic gotcha story from Politico. And VP hopeful Tim Kaine is dutifully attacking McCain’s mental competence. You want gaffes that call into question mental competence, Gov. Kaine? Hello, Sunshine. Thank you, Sioux City. I see dead people. Iran poses no serious threat. 57 states. 10,000 killed. Etc, etc. etc....

Republican candidate Senator John McCain scored perhaps the biggest own goal of the US presidential campaign so far when he admitted that he did not know how many houses he owned. For a candidate who portrays himself as a man of the people the blunder was potentially hugely damaging, coming at a time when many Americans are struggling with rising inflation, energy costs and unemployment. Asked about his properties on the campaign trail, Mr McCain told Politico.com: "I think - I'll have my staff get to you. It's condominiums where - I'll have them get to you." The senator and...

You might have thought the demented Americans with Disabilities Act — a bonanza for lawyers that requires any public facility to be designed with handicappers in mind or be sued out of existence — would be the last word in otherly-abled totalitarianism. Not so. Visitability is a concept that makes the ADA downright libertarian by comparison. The initial objective of Visitability proponents is to impose on every home a zero-step entrance, interior doors at least 32" wide, and at least one wheelchair-accessible bathroom on the ground floor. Once they've managed to have this mandated, we'll see where they go from...

Latest News and Updates Iraq vet's home takes shape A three-day Build Brigade event to build a home for a disabled veteran here with Homes for Our Troops continued Friday as a completed framework was erected by the end of the day. A warrior's reward: His own accessible home Yesterday, amid the din of banging hammers and whining saws, he and his wife, Sara, caught a glimpse of a brighter future as 100 volunteers held an old-fashioned house-raising in Florence. Bikers take to the road to provide Homes for Our Troops Over 225 motorcycles hit the road in support of...

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — A 22-gun British warship that sank during the American Revolution and has long been regarded as one of the "Holy Grail" shipwrecks in the Great Lakes has been discovered at the bottom of Lake Ontario, astonishingly well-preserved in the cold, deep water, explorers announced Friday.

WASHINGTON, June 2, 2008 – Building or remodeling homes to accommodate the needs of severely wounded warriors returning from Iraq and Afghanistan is the way Kirt Rebello and everyone else involved with “Homes for Our Troops” have chosen to thank servicemembers for their sacrifice. “A wounded servicemember’s life is forever changed,” Rebello -- vice president and projects director for Homes for Our Troops – said during an interview on “ASY Live,” a program on BlogTalkRadio.com that’s part of the Defense Department’s America Supports You program. America Supports You connects citizens and companies with servicemembers and their families serving at...

LOS ANGELES, (AP) -- Rep. Laura Richardson, whose Sacramento home was recently sold into foreclosure, has two other homes in Southern California that have fallen into default six times, according to a published report. Five of the defaults totaling nearly $71,000 occurred in the last 13 months for the homes the Democrat still owns in San Pedro and Long Beach, according to county documents obtained by the Los Angeles Times. During much of that time, Richardson used $177,500 to finance her campaigns for Congress and the California Assembly, the newspaper said. A call to Richardson, who will face two challengers...

Metal pipes worth more than some US homes By Catherine Elsworth in Los Angeles Last Updated: 2:19am BST 02/04/2008 Copper pipes and wiring found in many of America's repossessed homes are now more valuable than the properties themselves. Across the country thieves are stripping empty houses of the copper, aluminium, and brass in their plumbing and heating systems to take advantage of the crashing property market and the soaring price of scrap metal, much of which is sold to China and India. The trend has accelerated as the glut of unwanted properties clog the market, dragging down house prices. "Houses...

Imagine listing your home for sale, but there are no buyers. You drop the price. Again. And again. The house across the street's now for sale. And the one two doors down, plus a dozen others in a two-block radius. Nothing's selling, and every time one home is reduced, all are affected. This property used to represent wealth. Now it's a wealth trap. Most of what you have is here, and with each day passed, it diminishes. Imagine your first home - a dream in granite and stainless. You bought it from the region's largest builder, for 1.5 per cent...

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel announced plans Monday for 1,400 new homes on land the Palestinians claim for a future state — just hours after U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ended a peacekeeping mission to the region. Jerusalem's city hall announced it would build 600 new apartments in Pisgat Zeev, a Jewish neighborhood in the eastern sector of the city. Soon after, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish party said Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised to build 800 additional homes in one of Israel's largest West Bank settlements, Betar Illit. Palestinian officials weren't immediately available for comment. Past Israeli construction projects in the...

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - The white bus rumbles into the quiet suburban neighborhood, heading toward a foreclosed home that sits empty. Neighbors, young and old, cock their heads in curiosity or point at the slow-moving coach. Once the vehicle stops, about 20 potential buyers file out and become detectives, opening and closing cabinets and drawers, knocking on walls and asking about the price, the previous owners and what repairs may be needed. Welcome to the Foreclosure Bus Tour, a six-hour expedition to show Orlando-area homes and educate potential buyers on the vagaries of snatching foreclosures in a state where the...

Foreclosed Homes Occupied by HomelessBy THOMAS J. SHEERAN – 1 day ago A sign hangs above a row of beds at a shelter, Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008, in Cleveland. The nation's foreclosure crisis has led to a painful irony for homeless people: they are outnumbered in some cities by vacant houses, and some street people are taking advantage of the opportunity. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak) CLEVELAND (AP) — The nation's foreclosure crisis has led to a painful irony for homeless people: On any given night they are outnumbered in some cities by vacant houses, and some street people are taking advantage...

Taxazona?: Legislature should permanently repeal County Equalization Tax Byron Schlomach, Goldwater Institute Daily Email, January 28, 2008 Arizona's Senate Finance Committee could prevent a record property tax hike next year by making permanent the repeal of the County Equalization Tax (CET). That tax, if it goes back into effect, will cost Arizonans $225 million in new property taxes. Every Arizonan will pay, including homeowners, business owners, and renters through their rent payments. Twenty-three states, including all of Arizona's neighbors, have lower property tax burdens than Arizona when taxes are compared to personal income. Still, some may think another $10 per...

The real estate auction business is booming. Real Estate Disposition Corp is auctioning 2,000 homes in California and 575 in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. More states are coming up.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2008 – A recent study that estimates nearly 200,000 veterans are homeless on any given night has spurred Operation Homefront, a national troop-support group, to action. Through its Wounded Warrior Housing Project, Operation Homefront is helping wounded veterans become homeowners. The group is working with home builders and mortgage lenders to make homes like this one in Glendale, Ariz., affordable through price reductions and lower mortgage rates. Photo courtesy of Operation Homefront  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The study, titled “Vital Mission: Ending Homelessness Among Veterans,” estimated that on any given night in 2006, 195,827...