Time may be running out for homeowners hoping to do a short sale on their home and not get hit with a big federal tax bill because they had time running out – short sale to walk away from their mortgage. The Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act approved by Congress is scheduled to expire at the end of the year.

The program could be extended by Congressional mandate, but many housing analysts feel the act, passed at the height of the financial crisis won’t be extended. The law eliminates any federal taxes on mortgage debt that lenders cancel or forgive up to $2-million, and currently applies to debt forgiven from 2007 through 2012.

Full story is available on Housing Predictor

They’ve been here before, but this time, they say it is for real. After a yearlong haul that has featured numerous false starts, federal and state officials aim to wrap up this week a multibillion-dollar agreement with five major banks to settle probes of alleged foreclosure abuses.

State attorneys general must indicate by Monday whether they are signing on to the deal, said one person familiar with the negotiations, a key test of whether banks and federal officials will be able to wrap up a deal.

Full story is available on The Wall Street Journal

When Donna Peterson bought her dream home in Helena in 2007, she didn’t know her purchase would turn into a nightmare.

After being diagnosed with stage four cervical cancer in 2009, she lost both of her home-based businesses while undergoing treatment.

It was then that she asked Bank of America for help.

Full story is available on kxlh.com

Foreclosure commonly represents the end of a struggle. A borrower can’t pay a mortgage, loses a home and moves on.

But Karen Mena, a 38-year-old county worker, never gave up. Mena fought even after her San Bernardino home, Calif., was no longer hers. And she won the three-bedroom house back — at least for now.

Full story is available on goerie.com

In my State of the Union address, I laid out a blueprint for an economy that’s built to last — an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers and a renewal of American values of fairness and responsibility.

President Obama pushed Saturday for mortgage reform — an issue central to his election-year focus on the middle class.

The President, utilizing the populist rhetoric that has become his trademark on the campaign trail, slammed lenders and banks who sold loans to families who couldn’t afford them.

Full story is available on NYDailyNews

Last summer, when Andy Armstrong and Jennifer Beattie put their Wyckoff house on the market, their yard was lush with shrubs and flowers, highlighting one of the home’s strongest features — its swimming pool, along with a handsome deck. When their first buyer was unable to get a mortgage, they relisted the house and learned about some of the many differences in selling a home in winter.

In fact, each season of the year has its advantages and disadvantages for both buyers and sellers, affecting sales strategies and purchase considerations.

Full story is available on NorthJersey

Almost three years after she last paid the mortgage, Linda Ganguzza remains in her New Milford home  one of thousands of troubled New Jersey homeowners caught in a drawn-out foreclosure process.

“I have no idea where I stand, how much longer I have,” said Ganguzza, a 58-year-old nurse, who says her divorce left her unable to afford the home where she raised three children. “Do I move, do I hang tough, do I talk to the bank?”

Full story is available on LoanSafe.org

President Obama lays out a new plan for tackling the housing crisis, but will it be more successful than prior efforts?

The president had only to cross the Potomac River to Falls Church, Va., to find plenty of foreclosures.

Full story is available on pbs.org

At first, it was just something they joked about.

Danbury residents Tosha and Michael Gordon needed a bigger house to raise their family, while neighbor Rachel Williams — who lived across the street — was looking to downsize. Williams’ realtor suggested the neighbors trade homes.

Full story is available on ctpost.com