While recent statistics reveal that the pace of home foreclosure activity is on the decline, the lengthy foreclosure crisis has had a long-lasting effect on the nation’s children, according to a recent report from the Wall Street Journal.
In addition, the foreclosure of more than five million homes since 2007 has had a negative impact on [...]

American churches are facing foreclosure at a record pace this year, as hundreds of churches continue to experience the consequences of the burst of the housing bubble in 2008.
According to a report from Slate.com, the number of churches that have had to close their doors due to an inability to pay their mortgages has risen [...]

The housing settlement recently announced by the federal government should make it easier some homeowners to modify their mortgages and escape home foreclosure, but consumer advocates say it won’t help everyone recover their losses.
The settlement will provide payments of between $1,500 and $2,000 to people who have already lost their homes due to foreclosure, but [...]

19 of 20 major U.S. cities saw their home prices drop last month, as the largest American metropolitan areas continue to feel the strains of record foreclosure filings.
So, while the high rate of foreclosure pushes many struggling consumers into bankruptcy to solve their debt woes, the constant home turnover is also having a strain on [...]

After years of settlement discussions behind the scenes between big banks and several states, one state has decided to file a lawsuit against major banks for their alleged use of “robo-signing” tactics in home foreclosure actions.
The state of Massachusetts filed a landmark lawsuit against major U.S. banks for their alleged role in foreclosure fraud, which [...]

Homeowners who have been victimized by predatory lending, robo-signing, and other foreclosure problems may soon have an alternative source of help besides filing bankruptcy.
According to the Los Angeles Times, U.S. bank regulators have created a review process aimed at helping homeowners settle their foreclosure disputes.
Regulators hope that the foreclosure reviews will help some consumers keep [...]

The Federal Trade Commission announced this month that it has taken significant steps to redress the mortgage lending abuses of Countrywide Home Loans, Inc. Starting in late July, the FTC is mailing refund checks (totaling nearly $108 million) to homeowners who paid too much for their Countrywide mortgages.
Who Gets the Refund Money?
The consumer refund is [...]

As far too many Americans know, having an underwater home is not a problem reserved for residents of Atlantis. The good news is that, because the problem of owing more than a home’s current value is so widespread, there’s plenty of information available about how to fix it.
Here’s a look at how filing for bankruptcy [...]

In this period of housing market turmoil, it’s rare to find a homeowner who wants her lender to foreclose on her house. But, according to the Associated Press, that’s exactly what happened to one Tennessee woman.
Here’s a look at her case and what it might mean for other bankruptcy filers.
When A Bankruptcy Filer Wants the [...]

The Department of Justice has issued a statement indicating that it has filed and settled a number of lawsuits against Morgan Stanley and Bank of America for improperly foreclosing on properties owned by active members of the military.
A total of $22 million was apparently secured as compensatory funding for the service members whose homes were [...]

A recent article in the Huffington Post reports that budget cuts in Florida will likely mean that the state’s notorious “rocket docket” courts devoted solely to foreclosure cases will have to close for business. Here’s a look at some background and why the cut might be good news for struggling homeowners.

Creation of foreclosure-only courts: To [...]

United States bankruptcy laws specifically prohibit modifications of primary mortgages for those in bankruptcy court, even when filers are in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure. Despite those restrictions, some news sources have reported that judges in certain parts of the country (primarily California, Louisiana and Texas) have been doing just that for filers.
What [...]

Fallout from the housing bust is still rocking the U.S. economy, but a recent survey conducted by Zillow.com, a mortgage and real estate database, suggests that more than half of the country (57 percent) still doesn’t understand how adjustable-rate mortgages work.
This is problematic for anyone hoping to eventually buy a home and avoid foreclosure.
Mortgage Basics: [...]

As the unemployment rate creeps downward, it’s beginning to feel like financial recovery might actually be on the horizon for the country’s economy. But among individuals and families, other indicators suggest that many people are still struggling mightily with money.
According to information from various online sources, falling credit card debt levels could indicate bad news [...]

If you filed for personal bankruptcy and/or had your house foreclosed on in 2010, you may be wondering how those actions will affect your taxes (due April 18th). Here’s an overview of what you might be able to expect, depending on what specifically happened in your finances during the last 12 months.
Surrendered Property & Canceled [...]

A recent story in The New York Times details the struggles of a number of families who have been victimized by overly aggressive banks engaging in foreclosure-related actions. It seems that, in a number of cases, the foreclosure action taken by the bank was either unwarranted or illegal.
Here’s what you need to know to protect [...]

With news of health care rulings and the debate over extension of tax cuts, it may be unsurprising that there’s been less reporting in the media about a recent report from the Congressional Oversight Panel on HAMP (Home Affordable Modification Program), the Obama administration’s program designed to help Americans avoid foreclosure.
But recent foreclosure modification numbers [...]

According to the New York Times, an alarming discovery about foreclosure filings has led to the halt of many pending foreclosures with mortgages through JPMorgan Chase and GMAC.
Sources note that the problem was uncovered when several foreclosure victims and their lawyers looked into the paperwork behind the foreclosure process and found that some of the [...]

The New York Times recently ran a piece on the potential for our country’s high foreclosure rates to cause trouble on election day this fall. Basically, the problem is that most states tie voter registration and eligibility to a residence and people whose homes have been foreclosed may not be able to prove where they [...]

In the early days of the foreclosure crisis, the hardest-hit states were ones where building booms had been the biggest—California, Nevada and Florida topped most foreclosure lists. But now, according to some recent information, it seems that the worst foreclosure woes are no longer restricted to these area of the country.
In fact, the latest figures [...]