Category: Top National News

Orange County Register (Calif.), Oct. 5, 2017–Jordan GrahamBrian Fraser, 39, of La Palma, California, was surrounded by family and friends, having the time of his life, and walking toward the stage to hear his favorite Jason Aldean song, Dirt Road Anthem, when he was shot and killed at a Las Vegas country music festival Sunday.

Wall Street Journal, Oct. 5, 2017–Katy Stech Ferek (subscription)The bankruptcy judge handling a dispute between Bank of America Corp. and a California couple who were mistakenly foreclosed on refused to approve a settlement that would end their lawsuit on Wednesday.

Wall Street Journal, Oct. 5, 2017–Richard Rubin (subscription)Senate Republicans are running into internal resistance to their proposed repeal of the estate tax, making it a potential casualty of the trade-offs the GOP faces in its effort to overhaul the tax code.

Bloomberg, Oct. 5, 2017–Patrick ClarkFollowing the Great Recession, the cost of rental housing took a growing bite out of U.S. household budgets, as increasing demand for rental units pushed up prices. Now the share of households considered burdened by high rents is falling, according to a report from New York University’s Furman Center for Real Estate & Urban Policy.

Reuters, Oct. 6, 2017–Jessica DiNapoli, Tracy RucinskiAn unexpected helping hand from creditors, landlords and vendors is allowing more U.S. retailers to stay in business following bankruptcy with most of their stores and employees in the fold.

CNBC, Oct. 4, 2017–Diana OlickMortgage application volume slipped 0.4 percent last week, the Mortgage Bankers Association said. Volume now stands 24 percent lower than a year ago.

Mortgage Orb, Oct. 4, 2017–Chris BackeBetween 2014 and 2024, the industry is expected to add more than 24,000 loan officers. For most of these mortgage sales rookies, the biggest challenge will be getting business and learning how to communicate with borrowers.

Los Angeles Times, Oct. 4, 2017–Lauren RaabAs it looks to win back trust after a scandal over its sales practices, the San Francisco bank said it will reach out to customers who paid so-called “rate-lock extension” fees from Sept. 16, 2013, through Feb. 28, 2017, and give refunds to customers who don’t think they should have paid.

Wall Street Journal, Oct. 4, 2017–AnnaMaria Andriotis, Michael Rapoport, Christina Rexrode (subscription)Senators questioning Equifax Inc.’s former chief on Wednesday attacked the business model of the credit-reporting industry, asking why consumers shouldn’t have power over the data that the companies collect on them.

National Mortgage News, Oct. 4, 2017–Elina Tarkazikis (subscription)In housing markets dominated by young borrowers, millennials took an even bigger share of overall mortgage activity in August.