Government leaders and lenders are working together to help to all homeowners at risk of foreclosure, not just those with subprime loans.

A program called Project Lifeline would allow seriously overdue homeowners to suspend foreclosures for 30 days while lenders try to work out more affordable loan terms.

Six of the largest lenders will participate in the plan.

The same banks are taking part in the Hope Now program which was initiated late last year. That plan freezes rates on some high-cost subprime mortgages for five years. Read the story

The Bush administration has offered a hold on foreclosures to stem the widening housing crisis, with the help of several major lenders, including Wells Fargo. But the latest figures from 2007 show foreclosures in major urban areas increased nearly 80 percent last year, and local foreclosures continue to rise.

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The six-county Lexington metro area saw a sharp increase in foreclosures in 2007, but the local problem remains small when compared with larger metro areas. RealtyTrac, a California firm that tracks foreclosures nationwide, said 464 properties in the Lexington area were in some stage of foreclosure in 2007, compared with 210 in 2006. The increase was 121 percent. About one-fourth of 1 percent of …Read the story

The Stockton branch of the NAACP is going to stay on the forefront of attacking predatory lending and will host a discussion on home foreclosures at its meeting Saturday.

Dwayne Kirkwood of the NID-Housing Counseling Agency will speak on how to save a home in a foreclosure situation. Read More

Despite the downturn in the housing market, many believe real estate sites are strong. Many investors use real estate sites to to pick up a bargain or determine how the market affects their home’s value.

For example, Realtor.com is a great place to find a house. Realtor.com is the National Association of Realtor’s official site and can provide access to multiple listing service (MLS) for free. Many homebuyers and investors use this site to see what homes are listed for sale in their area.

For real estate investors, Foreclosure.com is a great place to find extensive data on foreclosed homes. You can try their service free for 7-days.

Homeowners facing foreclosure could have a hard time defending themselves.  A federal judge has refused to temporarily block many Hennepin County foreclosures.Judge Joan Ericksen on Wednesday denied a request for a temporary restraining order against foreclosures initiated by a national electronic mortgage registry. The case is being closely watched by the real estate financing industry because the registry initiates an estimated 40 percent of metro-area foreclosures.

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Indianapolis civic leaders and Housing Agency officials want the city to buy hundreds of empty homes and resell them to low- and moderate-income families in an effort to revive neighborhoods dragged down by a long wave of foreclosures. Read More