CNN - "The trick to getting a mortgage fixed" (6-7-08)

"what's best for a borrower isn't always best for the lenders, who weigh the cost of every workout against the cost of foreclosure. Whether or not a homeowner gets help boils down to the numbers. If keeping an at-risk borrower in their home is going to cost the lender more than a foreclosure will, that homeowner is usually out of luck. The good news is that foreclosures are expensive - at least $50,000 according to the Center for Responsible Lending."

Orange County Register - "Insider QA hears housing to be ‘healthy’ by ’09’s end" (6-7-08)

"I foresee that by Q1 2009, the market will have improved a good deal. It will still be somewhat rocky in various areas, but it will be healthier overall. By the end of 2009 we will have a truly healthy market — no longer rocky; it will be fully stable and equitable for both buyers and sellers."

Orange County Register - "Psst… Want to sell your home equity? Ex-Lending Tree exec will buy." (6-7-08)

"Hsieh said his new plan is a revolution in the mortgage business. He is offering to give a homeowner cash up to 15 percent of the home’s appraised value today — the home must be worth at least $500,000 and the owner must live in the home. Hsieh gets nothing back until the home is sold. His investment is sort of like a second mortgage, expect without those annoying monthly payments."

Los Angeles Times - "Santa Barbara County home prices" (6-8-08)

-this article provides sales information for housing in Santa Barbara

Orange County Register - "Big Calif. landowner seeks bankruptcy" (6-8-08)

"LandSource Communities Development — major owner of housing sites north of L.A. that’s funded in part with state pension dollars — late Sunday announced that it is seeking bankruptcy protection"

Orange County Register - "Tustin company hopes to lead lenders down the right path, this time" (6-8-08)

"In 2006, a study by the Mortgage Brokers Association for Responsible Lending compared a sample of 100 stated-income mortgage applications to IRS records, and found that 90 percent of the sampled loans had overstated their income by more than 5 percent. Almost 60 percent exaggerated their income by more than 50 percent!"