Ken Harney
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The nation’s housing: Case of the walking homebuyersJul 29, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Are homebuyers walking away in droves from the contracts they’ve signed? Or are they essentially fouling out of the game, unable to close deals because of f...
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The nation’s housing: Referrals under scrutinyJul 22, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — You probably know federal law prohibits kickbacks among brokers and others in home real estate deals. That sounds pretty straightforward: You can’t give mon...
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The nation’s housing: Seeking to break a deep freezeJul 15, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Picture this nightmare financial scenario: You’ve taken out a $150,000 home-equity credit line to remodel your house, you’ve already pulled out thousands to...
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The nation’s housing: Banks ready for jumbo loan switchJul 08, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — How big a deal is the upcoming cutback in mortgage limits for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration? Will buyers and sellers who de...
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The nation’s housing: Be cautious about home warranty policiesJul 01, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — The settlement of a major class-action suit is shedding new light on a controversial real estate practice that homebuyers and sellers typically know little ...
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The nation’s housing: Fannie, Freddie open foreclosure websitesJun 24, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Looking for a deal where the home seller pledges in advance to contribute potentially thousands of dollars to your closing costs? If so, check out the summe...
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The nation’s housing: How medical bill errors lead to higher mortgage costsJun 17, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Are medical bill collection accounts buried away inside millions of consumers’ credit files — even bills that were fully paid or settled years ago — functio...
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The nation’s housing: Lenders face a family matterJun 10, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Should being pregnant and taking maternity leave ever constitute reasons to be turned down for a home mortgage or having your loan closing postponed? You mi...
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The nation’s housing: A short way to fraudJun 03, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Are banks and sellers of distressed homes getting rooked on a massive scale in the booming short-sale arena — leaving hundreds of millions of dollars on the...
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The nation’s housing: Turning green over tax creditsMay 27, 2011 12:00 am - WASHINGTON — Can the Internal Revenue Service handle tax credit programs that pump out billions of dollars to homeowners and buyers? A new federal investigation on home ...