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2. Washington News
3. What We're Hearing
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From the Grapevine

The Grapevine takes sides about the future of downpayment assistance.
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Quote of the Week

We are profoundly concerned that HUD's proposed RESPA rule will hinder rather than help the recovery of the housing market.

Reps. Ruben Hinojosa, D-Texas, and Judy Biggert, R-Ill., in a "dear colleague" letter arguing that HUD should withdraw its proposed Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act rule and work with the Federal Reserve Board in developing "more simplified mortgage and real estate settlement cost disclosure forms."

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The House has passed a landmark housing bill that includes a financial backstop for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by a 272-152 vote, and the measure now goes to the Senate, where a few Republican stalwarts might delay final passage for a few days.

FHA Provisions Stir Anger Among Lenders

The Federal Housing Administration section of a massive housing bill is causing heartburn for lenders because they will have to abandon a newly implemented risk-based pricing structure.

RealtyTrac: Foreclosures Rise 14% in 2Q

Nearly 740,000 foreclosure filings were reported nationwide in the second quarter, up almost 14% from the level recorded in the previous quarter and 121% from that of a year earlier, according to RealtyTrac, an online foreclosure marketplace based in Irvine, Calif.

Single-family existing-home sales fell 3.2% in June after a bump up in May, but the Realtors say they expect the enactment of a homebuyer tax credit to bring more first-time buyers into the market.

Mortgage Stocks Dive on Resales #s

Weaker-than-expected existing-home sales numbers were among the factors that sent mortgage stocks into a nosedive Thursday, led by a nearly 20% drop in Fannie Mae's stock price that helped spark a 283-point decline in the Dow Jones industrial average.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate jumped from 6.26% to 6.63% over the seven-day period ended July 24, according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey.

The Census Bureau has reported that the inventory of vacant homes listed for sale fell 3% in the second quarter to 2.17 million, and the homeownership rate rose from 67.8% in the first quarter to 68.1%.

National City Corp., Cleveland, lost $1.8 billion ($2.45 per share) in the second quarter, driven by a $1.6 billion loss provision related to broker-originated home equity, subprime mortgage, and construction loans to individuals.

Downey Financial Corp., one of the largest thrifts in California, lost $219 million in the second quarter and said it is looking at "strategic opportunities," a code phrase that means the company is for sale.

Old Republic International Corp., Chicago, has reported a net loss of $45.4 million ($0.20 per share) for the second quarter, compared with net income of $115.1 million ($0.49 per share) a year earlier.

Friedman, Billings, Ramsey Group Inc., Arlington, Va., reported a net loss of $25.1 million ($0.17 per share) for the second quarter, compared with net earnings of $10.2 million ($0.06 per share) a year earlier.

Credit Suisse has reported 1.2 billion Swiss francs ($1.16 billion) in net income during the second quarter, when its investment banking unit took a relatively small, partially mortgage-related writedown of 22 million Swiss francs ($21.2 million).

Nationalized UK Lender Names CEO

Nationalized United Kingdom mortgage lender Northern Rock has named Gary Hoffman, group vice chairman at Barclays PLC, as its new chief executive officer, effective Oct. 1.

First American Loan Production Solutions, Dallas, has announced the expansion of its borrower identification data and workout options to create a complete loan modification system designed to help servicers prevent foreclosures.

The Issuer Default Rating and outstanding debt ratings of iStar Financial Inc., a New York-based real estate investment trust, have been downgraded from BBB to BBB-minus by Fitch Ratings.

Seven classes of J.P. Morgan Chase Commercial Mortgage Securities Corp. pass-through certificates, series 2007-FL1, have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings and removed from Rating Watch Negative.

Class L of Commercial Mortgage Acceptance Corp. commercial mortgage pass-through certificates series 1998-C2 has been downgraded from CC/DR4 to C/DR5 by Fitch Ratings.

The Issuer Default Ratings of Associated Banc-Corp have been downgraded by Fitch Ratings, and the rating outlook of its subsidiaries has been revised to negative due to growth in nonperforming assets linked to residential land development and construction loans.