Mortgages

Gov. Jay Inslee has signed a law that will offer loans to minority borrowers to help cover down payments and closing costs. Supporters say it will benefit groups that were victimized by racially restrictive real estate covenants.

The Philadelphia-based company will eliminate an undisclosed number of jobs as part of a plan to refocus on core business lines and markets, CEO Thomas Geisel said.

The Cleveland-based bank says it will submit to a racial equity audit conducted by an outside law firm, as Citigroup and Wells Fargo have previously done. The bank's decision follows a request that regulators investigate Key's mortgage lending practices for alleged redlining.

A potential pause in the cycle by the Federal Open Market Committee is welcomed by housing industry observers, but inflation and inventory hinder activity.

Changes to loan-level price adjustments are perfectly consistent with the FHA's mission and with the safety and soundness of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Because the bank occupied a niche in serving ultra high-end consumers, experts question whether its receivership will make other depositories more reluctant to offer jumbo loans.

The troubled lender could fail, get rescued by the nation's largest banks or muddle through as a zombie bank. Federal regulators and the big banks will have to decide which is the least bad option.

The groups also want regulators to downgrade the Cleveland bank's rating under the Community Reinvestment Act. The demands represent an escalation of a dispute over whether Key fulfilled promises it made under a 2016 community benefits agreement.

Consumers are receiving demand letters on loans they have not had any communication about in at least 10 years, the regulator said.

The Charlotte, North Carolina, company plans to fold the online consumer lending platform LightStream into its broader consumer business. On top of a recent pullback in bond trading, it may also make further reductions in its mortgage business and occupied real estate.