Bush is urged to appoint 'mortgage czar' (USA Today)
Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan defended the U.S. subprime mortgage market, arguing the repackaging and sale to investors of risky home loans not the loans themselves was to blame for the current global credit crisis.

Number of minority home buyers down in 2006 (Market Watch)
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- The total number of minority home buyers who took out a mortgage dropped 7.1% in 2006, led by a 21.5% decrease in the number of Asian-American buyers. But the number of African-American home buyers actually rose slightly last year, reflecting a 0.6% increase over 2005, according to a study released on Thursday.

More mortgage layoffs: Bear Stearns firing 310 workers (USA Today)
Bear Stearns said Wednesday it is laying off 310 workers and fusing its two mortgage businesses, after turmoil in the home loan industry contributed to a dramatic slide in the investment bank's profit this summer.

Home loan demand falls despite interest rate dip (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
U.S. mortgage applications fell for a second straight week, largely reflecting a drop in demand for home refinancing loans, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Why You Should Refinance Now If You Have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage (Benton Evening News)
(ARA) - If you took out a mortgage on your home between 2002 and 2005, chances are good you ended up going with an adjustable rate mortgage or ARM. Back then, it was just too good of a deal to pass up.