Business - Real Estate

BALTIMORE - A federal judge suggested Monday that he might restrict the scope of a first-of-its kind lawsuit filed by the city of Baltimore against mortgage giant Wells Fargo Bank N.A. Full Story »

NEW YORK - Real estate investment trust SL Green Realty Corp. on Monday declared a fourth-quarter dividend of 10 cents. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a win for the banking industry, the U.S. House of Representatives voted on Friday to reject a measure that would have allowed bankruptcy judges to change the terms of mortgages for distressed homeowners. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - The House passed the most ambitious restructuring of federal financial regulations since the New Deal on Friday, aiming to head off any replay of last year's Wall Street failures that plunged the nation deep into recession. Full Story »

LAS VEGAS - The Nevada Supreme Court is swearing in 75 more mediators to the Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program. Full Story »

TEMPE, Ariz. - An Arizona State University professor is predicting another wave of home foreclosures early next year in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Full Story »

Foreclosures fell almost 8% in Nov., the 4th straight drop from July's record high, RealtyTrac said. "Loan modifications and other foreclosure prevention efforts, along with the recently extended and expanded homebuyer tax credit, are keeping a lid on" foreclosures, said RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio. But default notices, scheduled foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions rose 18% vs. a year ago to 306,627. California, Florida, Illinois and Michigan accounted for 52% of filings. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration's embattled mortgage relief plan has provided permanent help to only 4 percent of borrowers who have signed up, weak results that could threaten the housing market's recovery. Full Story »

McLEAN, Va. - Mortgage rates rose this week but still remained below 5 percent, Freddie Mac said Thursday. Full Story »

MODESTO, Calif. - A Northern California mortuary has offered to cover the funeral costs for a 5-year-old Modesto boy crushed by furniture as his family moved out of their foreclosed house. Full Story »

HONOLULU - A real estate research firm counted 875 foreclosure-related filings throughout Hawaii in November. Full Story »

The real estate slump sucked nearly $500 billion in value from American homes through the first 11 months of the year--a notable improvement from the $3.6 trillion of housing wealth that evaporated in 2008, according to new data from real estate firm Zillow. The figures, which come on top of firming home sales and dwindling inventories, represent further encouragement for a housing market that's been in retreat since its 2006 peak. "Home values stabilized significantly during the second half of 2009, with the total dollar value of U.S. ... Full Story »

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - The state of Illinois is putting up for auction the President Abraham Lincoln Hotel and Conference Center in Springfield. Full Story »

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. fixed home loan rates edged above record lows in the past week, tracking bond yields higher following surprise improvement in November employment, home funding company Freddie Mac said on Thursday. Full Story »

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Treasury Department said on Thursday that losses from the government's $700 billion financial rescue fund are likely to rise as disbursements to battle mortgage foreclosures increase. Full Story »

PHOENIX - Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard will be in Washington on Thursday to meet with executives from some of the nation's largest banks. Full Story »

WASHINGTON - The number of homeowners on the brink of foreclosure fell in November, the fourth straight monthly decline, as mortgage companies evaluated whether borrowers were eligible for help. Full Story »

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. - Three men were under arrest and two other suspects were at large Wednesday after a violent robbery at an Orange County mansion owned by the founder of a collapsed subprime mortgage lender. Full Story »