MetLife CEO says insurers need voice in Washington (Reuters)

Reuters - MetLife Inc Chief Executive Robert Henrikson on Friday said the economic crisis has made it imperative that the life insurance industry be given a voice in Washington.

U.S. FHA to apply $8,000 credit to home buying costs (Reuters)

Reuters - The Federal Housing Administration will allow the new $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit to be applied directly toward home purchase costs when using an FHA-insured mortgage, the Department of Housing and Urban Development said on Friday.

Borrowers with good credit fuel foreclosures in 1Q (AP)

AP - The mortgage crisis is spreading and hitting new heights: Borrowers with good credit now make up the largest share of foreclosures as job losses and pay cuts exact their toll.

Mortgage rates rise, remain below 5 pct (AP)

AP - Rates on 30-year home loans rose this week and were poised to go higher as investors demanded higher rates for long-term government debt, which is closely tied to mortgage rates.

About 12 percent of U.S. homeowners late paying or foreclosed (Reuters)

Reuters - One of eight U.S. households with a mortgage ended the first quarter late on loan payments or in the foreclosure process in a crisis that will persist for at least another year until unemployment peaks, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Thursday.

Good News on the Mortgage Mess (BusinessWeek Online)

BusinessWeek Online - Smart shoppers for used cars know how to avoid lemons. Now buyers of residential mortgage-backed securities are likewise learning how to distinguish the bad from the good. That bodes well for healing housing finance.

Citi, SEC in talks to settle asset disclosure probe: report (Reuters)

Reuters - Citigroup Inc is in early negotiations with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to settle a probe into whether it misled investors by not properly disclosing the amount of troubled mortgage assets it held as the markets started to fall in 2007, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

U.S. could take 17 years to exit GMAC after an IPO (Reuters)

Reuters - GMAC LLC, which is giving the U.S. Treasury Department a 35.4 percent equity stake, said on Friday it might take 17 years for the government to shed its investment if the auto and mortgage lender were to go public.

Fed mulled increasing debt purchases in April (Reuters)

Reuters - The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday it saw modest improvements in the U.S. economy last month, but it still saw big risks and left open the possibility of increasing its purchases of mortgage-related and government debt to keep credit flowing and spur recovery.

Obama signs mortgage bill into law (AP)

AP - President Barack Obama said homeowners facing foreclosure would have a second chance under a measure he signed into law on Wednesday, but he added consumers still must live within their means.

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