January
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- Defaults Rise at Mortgage LenderCountrywide Financial, the nation’s largest home loan lender, reported yesterday that foreclosures and late payments on mortgages in December soared to their highest levels in five years. The large number of the bad loans alarmed mortgage analysts who follow the company. Several said the Countrywide report showed that housing market conditions were unraveling at an unexpectedly rapid pace. Lehman Brothers analyst Bruce W. Harting wrote in a report yesterday that “the extent of the deterioration is a surprise.” Steven Persky, chief executive of Dalton Investments, a Los Angeles investment adviser, said: “People are recognizing that foreclosures are skyrocketing beyond expectations.” January 10, 2008
- Beyond the Mortgage Crisis, a Persistent Problem of CostThere’s a growing problem in this region that we don’t hear enough about: the continuously shrinking supply of affordable housing. The problem is also worsening in other metropolitan areas with stable economies, escalating land and construction costs, and climbing real estate values. The supply and affordability problem affects more than those at the bottom of the income pyramid. In Washington and elsewhere, it’s increasingly difficult for middle-income households to find, buy and keep a home. February 19, 2008
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