We talk a lot about yielding big results with simple Web tools here on Lenderama.com. I thought I would take the message to an even bigger audience in my latest article in The Scotsman Guide . Look Inside > > August 2009 … Read More

Each Monday, The Simple Dollar opens up the reader mailbags and answers ten to twenty simple questions offered up by the readers on personal finance topics and many other things. Got a question? Ask it in the comments. You might … Read More

Here is a collection of real estate and economic graphs for data released in July … Note: Click on graphs for larger image in new window. For more info, click on link below graph to original post. ******************** New Home … Read More

First, lifted from the comments on Corus: “Too toxic to fail.” by Rob Dawg On shadow inventory from Reuters: “Shadow” inventory lurks over U.S. housing recovery (ht Denny) [A] massive supply of unsold homes is waiting in the wings and … Read More

From Becky Yerak at the Chicago Tribune: Corus Bankshares Inc. on cusp of crisis (ht Walt) [A] major hurdle for the [FDIC] is that $7.07 billion-asset Corus, with only 14 offices in the Chicago area, has operated more like a … Read More

Santa Ana-based First American Corp. reported today that requests for title insurance policies increased 9 percent in the second quarter of the year, but that payments per policy fell. The change reflects the housing market overall, which saw home sales … Read More

The Wall Street Journal reports Bank of America Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis told investors last week he plans to reduce the company’s 6,100-nationwide branch network by about 10%. It’s not clear how many branch cuts would be in Orange County. … Read More

Steve Thomas at Altera Real Estate in Aliso Viejo reports that the number of O.C. distressed properties (homes listed by agents as foreclosures or short sales) was 2,616 last week, -150 vs. two weeks earlier or a -5% change. Some … Read More

The Federal Reserve is considering a restriction on how mortgage brokers are paid, National Mortgage News reported yesterday. The rule would not allow banks to pay brokers differently based upon the rate or term of a loan — pay would … Read More

I define frugality as getting the maximum value for your dollar while living squarely within your means, which is a pretty reasonable definition. I wouldn’t expect someone making $15,000 a year that doesn’t sweat what they eat to make the … Read More