Auto, Mortgage Delinquencies Climb in Energy Regions

Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2016–Zumbrun, Josh
Delinquencies on auto loans have spiked in the U.S. counties that had the highest employment in the oil-and-gas industry, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s quarterly report on household debt and credit. Mortgage delinquencies have also climbed, though not as dramatically.

Paradise, Hawaiian Style in Oahu Development

Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2016–Kirkham, Chris
Between Waikiki and downtown Honolulu, one of the last available parcels for coastal redevelopment in urban Oahu is undergoing a transformation.

Low Housing Inventory Forcing Rise in Prices

National Mortgage Professional, May 24, 2016
Home values are appreciating faster than experts expected, rising almost five percent over the past year, according to the April Zillow Real Estate Market Reports, which found that there are 3.4 percent fewer homes for sale in the U.S. than there were 12 months ago.

A Mortgage for Millennials with Big Student Debts

National Mortgage News, May 24, 2016–Sichelman, Lew
The extent to which student debt is keeping Millennials from buying homes is debatable. But for high-earning young professionals who are saddled with such loans, a Florida investment advisor says he has devised a path to homeownership.

Federal Reserve: Mortgage Debt Rises to 4-Year High

HousingWire, May 24, 2016–Lane, Ben
The amount of money that Americans owe to mortgage lenders rose to the highest level in more than four years during the first quarter, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Urban Living Becomes a Luxury Good

Bloomberg, May 24, 2016–Fox, Justin
The study found that Americans in the top income deciles were much more likely to live in urban neighborhoods in 2014 than in 2000, while those in the bottom income deciles were much less likely to. The shift toward urban living was also most pronounced among whites, the highly educated and the 34 to 49 age cohort.

Why the Law Failed to Punish Wrongdoers in the Financial Crisis

Bloomberg, May 24, 2016–Feldman, Noah
Historians of the future will want to know why almost no one went to jail in connection with the collapse of mortgage-backed securities that triggered the 2007-8 financial crisis.

Who’s Afraid of TRID Risk? It’s Not Who You Think

National Mortgage News, May 24, 2016–Bisby, Allison
Liquidity has dried up since the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s disclosure rule took effect in October. With the exception of a few deals backed by loans issued before the financial crisis, private-label securitization has ground to a halt.

CFPB: Mortgage Complaints Down to Third Place

HousingWire, May 24, 2016–Ramirez, Kelsey
In March, for the first time since the start of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2011, mortgage complaints were not the number one complaint.