Thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 5.98 percent this week, their lowest level in five weeks and down 0.03 percent from last week, Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday
Mortgage applications filed last week dropped a seasonally adjusted 7.8%, compared with the previous week, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported on Wednesday. Compared with the same week in 2007, applications were down 9.4%, the MBA said.
WASHINGTON, May 20 (Reuters) - A Senate plan to help U.S. homeowners avoid foreclosures would also crack down on mortgage brokers by requiring them to be fingerprinted by the FBI and licensed by state regulators.
Critics say mortgage originators contributed to the U.S. housing crisis by crafting so-called "liars' loans" in recent years that required little money down and no verification of a consumer's income.
