BOSTON -- When Fannie Mae, the government-sponsored mortgage company, announced a larger-than-expected quarterly loss and another planned cut to its dividend this week, the stock immediately had a nice little pop, picking up 9%.

WASHINGTON -- Despite veto threats, House lawmakers on Thursday passed far-reaching housing legislation in an effort to alleviate problems from a housing market turned sour.

Mortgage rates remain below their year-ago levels, though most were steady on a weekly basis.

In a week furnished with Buffett bookends, there was no shortage of news, and around that news swirled contradictions, confusion and a continuing come-down in consumer confidence.

Commonly cited measures of U.S. home prices are overstating the degree to which the vast majority of Americans’ home values have declined in the last year, producers of two of the most widely tracked indexes acknowledged this week.

The rise in foreclosures isn’t just affecting homeowners, it’s also putting pressure on renters, according to a report released Wednesday by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University.

WASHINGTON -- U.S. home prices rose 0.6% in February from the prior month, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight reported Tuesday.

Challenging real estate markets can be found across the U.S. as home prices decline, the volume of sales fall and foreclosures rise. But in some places the biggest challenge has been convincing would-be buyers and sellers that local conditions don’t resemble the national trends.

Five of the nation's biggest lenders explain the steps their customers can take to prevent foreclosure.

In the wake of the subprime crisis, homeowners are reporting problems with their lenders. The FDIC and state regulators can help.

Is now a good time to buy real estate? The size of your paycheck likely will play a big part in how you answer that question.

U.S. home builders remain discouraged about their industry, but attitudes didn't worsen in April, according to a monthly sentiment index.

No-down-payment mortgages have been scarce lately. But in the past several weeks they’ve become virtually non-existent. And it doesn’t appear they will return any time soon.

Adjustable-rate mortgages slip lower this week as fixed-rate loans hold steady, Freddie Mac says in its weekly rate survey.

Ongoing weakness in the market for previously owned U.S. homes is a signal the key spring sales season is off to a poor start and a reminder that softness in residential housing is still spreading, analysts said Thursday.

In a sign that the U.S. housing market may weaken further, an index of sales contracts on previously owned homes fell 1.9% in February from the prior month, the National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday.

U.S. homeowners aren’t alone in feeling the pain of a bursting housing bubble.

WASHINGTON -- For many people, filing for bankruptcy is seen as a scary, worst-case scenario, but consumer advocates say this last resort could be a real help for beleaguered homeowners.

LOS ANGELES -- With mortgage payments rising and home values falling, what's a homeowner to do? Rent out the home, or get roommates.

After hitting a record in 2006, sales of vacation homes declined last year as would-be buyers held off purchasing retreats, the National Association of Realtors said Friday.