I haven’t seen much written lately about the state of mortgage insurance companies, the firms that provide lenders protection against loss when borrowers put down less than 20% to buy a home. So I noted with interest a news brief on National Mortgage News that reported on Freddie Mac…

Mickey writes in: In the last week, the Dow Jones Industrial average closed at a thirteen month high and, at the same time, unemployment hit double digits for the first time since the early eighties . I thought that the Dow Jones was supposed to represent how the economy…

From the NY Times: Paterson Paints Grim Picture of N.Y. Budget Crisis “We stand on the brink of a financial challenge of unprecedented magnitude in the history of this state,” Mr. Paterson told lawmakers as he warned that New York was rapidly running out of cash … While the state…

Bloomberg reports: Fewer U.S. banks tightened lending standards for companies and consumers in the third quarter as the economy grew for the first time in more than a year, a Federal Reserve survey showed. Demand for most types of loans weakened at a smaller number of banks than in…

From the Fed: The October 2009 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices In the October survey, domestic banks indicated that they continued to tighten standards and terms over the past three months on all major types of loans to businesses and households. However, the net percentages of…

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 also enjoy the archive of earlier reader mailbags .…

Every other Sunday, The Simple Dollar reviews a personal finance book. Over the years, I’ve professed a ton of admiration for Thomas Stanley and William Danko’s excellent personal finance book The Millionaire Next Door . It was the first book I reviewed on The Simple Dollar and it’s still…

Only a little over a week remains for Massachusetts FHA mortgage holders to take advantage of one of the most popular and easiest refinance programs available…the FHA Streamline Refinance. Effective with FHA case numbers assigned on or after November 18th, those seeking a MA FHA Streamline Refinance will face much more…

Many newer readers of The Simple Dollar haven’t been exposed to the hundreds of great articles in the archives of the site, so this is a weekly series that highlights the five best posts from one year ago this week, two years ago this week, and three years ago…

Great News !!!!! Idaho $8,000 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Extended into 2010! As Well As A New $6,500 Tax Credit for Certain Existing Home Owners! The $8,000 tax credit for First-Time Home Buyers has been extended into the first half of 2010. The program was scheduled to expire…