Home prices

Conforming loan limits for mortgages bought by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will increase for the second consecutive year in response to the rapid rise in home prices, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.

Here's a look at the 12 housing markets with the largest percentages of mortgages over $500,000 — the new threshold House Republicans have proposed for the mortgage interest deduction in their tax plan.

More FHA homeowners than expected are refinancing out of the program and into conventional mortgages, despite an increase in mortgage rates over the past year.

A House Republican tax proposal that infuriated housing groups and sent homebuilder stocks sliding would only have a modest impact on the market for new homes and could end up being a net positive for the industry, according to Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analysts.

The CFPB's practice of "regulation by enforcement" forces mortgage companies to develop compliance standards based on the mistakes of their peers, rather than clear guidance from the enforcement agency, said David Motley, the new chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Despite rising home prices and a market where many older homeowners are loath to sell, home equity line of credit lending remains muted in all but one corner of the industry: credit unions.