WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans shrugged off rising mortgage rates and bought existing homes in January at the fastest pace since 2007. That has set off bidding wars that have pushed up prices as the supply of available homes has dwindled to record lows. Home sales rose 3.3 percent in January from December to a seasonally [...]
Nate Lowenstein has been shopping for a home in Los Angeles, on and off, for more than a year. His search has been stymied by a stubbornly low roster of homes on the market and the hurdles that come with it: multiple competing bids and higher prices. “It’s not a great market, from a buyer’s [...]
Why worry about buying health insurance when President-elect Donald Trump plans to dump the requirement that most Americans get coverage? For the same reason you should always worry about health insurance: Little health problems can easily turn into big bills without it. “The real risk is something will happen to you, and you won’t be [...]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump inherits a much sturdier economy than the one Barack Obama carried into his second term four years ago. Back then, the scars of the Great Recession were still fresh. Joblessness was near 8 percent. Pay was flat. Europe faced a grave debt crisis that threatened to spread across the Atlantic. [...]
Mortgage rates are near all-time lows, and it might be hard to imagine them going even lower. And yet, some loan experts say, many banks aren’t giving borrowers the lowest rates they deserve. It’s a matter of how banks price mortgage loans: Loans must be attractive to potential investors who buy loans from the banks. [...]
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A vacation in Orlando is almost a rite of passage for some well-off Brazilians who often bring back suitcases filled with electronics and clothes that are cheaper in Florida than they are at home. But store manager Julio Martins has seen fewer of them this year at his Brazil Center Electronics [...]
A report recently released by Wells Fargo Private Bank’s Legal Specialty Group shows that demand for legal services are down but law firm rates keep rising. The firm’s midyear report on the financial health of the legal industry is based on a survey of 130 law firms of various sizes. According to the group’s findings, [...]