Housing

So, consumer confidence is down and home prices are still sliding. Maybe it's time for some counterintuitive behavior -- like thinking about getting into the housing market. Kai Ryssdal checks out that notion with Dan McGinn of Newsweek.

The slide in real estate was punctuated today by a report that home prices were down more than 11% in January from a year earlier -- the steepest drop in more than 20 years. Nancy Marshall Genzer has the story.

Sales of existing homes saw their first increase in six months, some analysts say lower housing prices had something to do with it. Alisa Roth reports how the softening price effect could seep into other markets.

Realtor Martha Ann Wishnev normally sells about $7.5 million worth of real estate a year, but she hasn't cut many deals since home sales dropped 22 percent nationwide. Rachel Dornhelm reports in the first of a new housing series.

Former Countrywide executives are launching a new company that hopes to profit from the whole subprime mess. Despite the old company's bad rep, Amy Scott reports the connection might not damage the new firm.

The good news: the commercial real estate market is in better shape than the residential one. The bad news: it's a rough road ahead. Lisa talks to Susan Smith about what's to come.

Question: My husband and I recently attended a workshop on optimizing real estate assets. The program presented information on how to create a debt...

With 96-gallon tanks to fill, some Winnebago owners are driving a lot less lately. But Alisa Roth reports despite the various Winnie costs and RV sales beginning to slump in 2006, there's still hope for the industry.

Though the Fed cut interest rates dramatically, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate has gone up since the beginning of January. Jeremy Hobson reports why banks aren't interested in dropping rates for long-term loans.

The federal government already raised the limit on loans mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can underwrite. Today's move to relax capital requirements on loans is designed to quickly free up $200 billion in more financing. John Dimsdale reports.