Happy New Year! It’s been a busy week, and not just in mortgage/real estate news. Probably the largest news of the week broke late Friday, which means you’ll likely be reading about it on other mortgage media and other major outlets on Tuesday — Fannie Mae’s overhaul of its servicing requirements is very big news [...]

Southwest Florida’s Herald-Tribune looks at the incentives being offered by builders, including a new Lexus.

Part of our mission here at Housing Wire is to bridge the gaps that exist between traditional and emerging media. With that in mind, we’ve decided to sponsor an annual awards series highlighting the best in real estate blogging. We’re calling our awards the REBAs — Real Estate Blogging Awards, and we’re asking HW readers [...]

Welcome to the Kitchen Sink for this long New Year’s weekend! In each weekend’s Kitchen Sink, HW highlights key housing coverage and opinions from media outlets throughout the U.S., as well as key insight from housing blogs across the Web. Check this post throughout the weekend.

A Rueters story looks at Florida’s fizzling condo market.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce said it recently adopted regulatory guidelines for state-licensed mortgage originators regarding the risks associated with nontraditional mortgage products. The guidelines are intended to protect consumers from taking on high-risk mortgage loans without having a full understanding of the terms of those loans, according to the state agency.

A Star-Telegram article looks at foreclosure trends for 2007.

Capital Alliance Income Trust Ltd., a residential mortgage REIT, today announced it has unanimously approved its transition to a “Self Advisedâ€? REIT and the unanimous appointment of Richard J. Wrensen as President and Chief Executive Officer. “CAIT needs to focus on reversing its losses, creating earnings, restoring the dividend and enhancing shareholder value,” Wrenson said. [...]

Broadway Partners, a national private real estate investment and management firm headquartered in New York announced Thursday that the company has acquired a 10-building national portfolio with an acquisition price over $3.3 billion from Beacon Capital Partners, LLC, a national private real estate and investment firm headquartered in Boston. The portfolio was purchased by Broadway’s [...]

Fannie Mae announced today that it has amended core requirements for servicers managing both its fixed and adjustable rate loans, including new requirements for default management and loan administration. Key among the changes are new requirements for approved custodial depositories, including a revised set of guidelines covering which institutions will be considered eligible for servicers’ [...]