Copyright (c) 2009 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. http://news.yahoo.com/i/1204 business Personal Finance News en-us Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:57:34 GMT 5 142 18 http://news.yahoo.com/i/1204 http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/nws/th/main_142b.gif http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090701/bs_nm/us_financial_housing nm/20090701/us_financial_housing Reuters business Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:57:34 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090701/bs_nm/us_financial_housing"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090701/i/r1082864800.jpg?x=130&y=89&q=85&sig=71taunt5Wh8xuOmFM5AJOw--" align="left" height="89" width="130" alt="The headquarters of mortgage lender Fannie Mae is shown in Washington September 8, 2008. REUTERS/Jason Reed" border="0" /></a>Reuters - The Obama administration on Wednesday expanded its foreclosure prevention efforts to help a greater number of underwater homeowners refinance their mortgages.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090701/bs_nm/us_financial_housing"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090701/i/r1082864800.jpg?x=130&y=89&q=85&sig=71taunt5Wh8xuOmFM5AJOw--" align="left" height="89" width="130" alt="photo" title="The headquarters of mortgage lender Fannie Mae is shown in Washington September 8, 2008. REUTERS/Jason Reed" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090701/ap_on_bi_ge/us_aig_asset_sale ap/20090701/us_aig_asset_sale AP business Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:10:28 GMT AP - American International Group Inc. on Wednesday said it agreed to sell all of its ownership interests in its consumer finance operations in Colombia, the latest in a recent string of asset sales by the embattled insurer to bolster its finances. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090701/ap_on_bi_ge/us_freddie_mac_treasury ap/20090701/us_freddie_mac_treasury AP business Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:32:43 GMT AP - Battered mortgage giant Freddie Mac received $6.1 billion in new funds from the Treasury Department to help offset its mounting liabilities, according to a regulatory filing submitted Wednesday. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090701/bs_nm/us_mortgage_applications nm/20090701/us_mortgage_applications Reuters business Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:54:22 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090701/bs_nm/us_mortgage_applications"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090619/i/r2414032304.jpg?x=130&y=86&q=85&sig=qCp3Ry2WgojfEpYyID7qsA--" align="left" height="86" width="130" alt="A real estate sales sign sits outside of a house for sale in Phoenix, Arizona in this June 2, 2009 file photo. REUTERS/Joshua Lott" border="0" /></a>Reuters - U.S. mortgage applications plunged to a seven-month low last week as demand for home refinancing loans tumbled 30 percent, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090701/bs_nm/us_mortgage_applications"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090619/i/r2414032304.jpg?x=130&y=86&q=85&sig=qCp3Ry2WgojfEpYyID7qsA--" align="left" height="86" width="130" alt="photo" title="A real estate sales sign sits outside of a house for sale in Phoenix, Arizona in this June 2, 2009 file photo. REUTERS/Joshua Lott" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/bw/20090701/bs_bw/0927b4138058215500 bw/20090701/0927b4138058215500 BusinessWeek Online business Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:08:43 GMT BusinessWeek Online - You've got a dirty little secret. During long lunch breaks, or after work when everyone else heads home to their families, you're sneaking out to a secret rendezvous. You know what you're doing is perfectly justified, but you still feel a little bad afterwards. You never thought it would come to this. But here you are -- cheating on your financial planner. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/bw/20090701/bs_bw/jun2009db20090624114262 bw/20090701/jun2009db20090624114262 BusinessWeek Online business Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:08:43 GMT BusinessWeek Online - With signs the economy is improving but still fragile, Federal Reserve policymakers held the Fed funds rate steady -- at zero to 0.25% -- on June 24, and maintained its pace of purchases of government debt at mortgage-backed securities. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_bi_ge/us_financial_overhaul ap/20090630/us_financial_overhaul AP business Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:29:59 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_bi_ge/us_financial_overhaul"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20090630/capt.4df40fd828ad4a21b3b8116ba90744be.aptopix_obama_dcpm103.jpg?x=130&y=88&q=85&sig=ZMEOvD98P7GP1OxXwSvNfg--" align="left" height="88" width="130" alt="President Barack Obama walks away from the podium after delivering remarks highlighting innovative non profits programs, Tuesday, June 30, 2009, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)" border="0" /></a>AP - President Barack Obama asked Congress on Tuesday to create a new agency to police the fine print on credit card bills and mortgage documents and determine what fees, penalties and interest rates are fair.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_bi_ge/us_financial_overhaul"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20090630/capt.4df40fd828ad4a21b3b8116ba90744be.aptopix_obama_dcpm103.jpg?x=130&y=88&q=85&sig=ZMEOvD98P7GP1OxXwSvNfg--" align="left" height="88" width="130" alt="photo" title="President Barack Obama walks away from the podium after delivering remarks highlighting innovative non profits programs, Tuesday, June 30, 2009, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_bi_ge/us_bailout_fund ap/20090630/us_bailout_fund AP business Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:11:41 GMT AP - The Treasury Department said Tuesday that it has approved three more firms for its mortgage relief program. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090630/pl_nm/us_financial_regulation nm/20090630/us_financial_regulation Reuters politics Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:55:44 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090630/pl_nm/us_financial_regulation"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090630/i/r834028464.jpg?x=130&y=88&q=85&sig=WSCUxAv1FBFbJLMucpuQMA--" align="left" height="88" width="130" alt="Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner walks on the roof of The Point, in New York June 29, 2009. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton" border="0" /></a>Reuters - The Obama administration sent Congress a draft bill on Tuesday to create a new agency with sweeping powers to impose tough consumer protection rules for banks, mortgage lenders and other financial firms, setting up a summer-long political brawl over the plan.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090630/pl_nm/us_financial_regulation"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090630/i/r834028464.jpg?x=130&y=88&q=85&sig=WSCUxAv1FBFbJLMucpuQMA--" align="left" height="88" width="130" alt="photo" title="Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner walks on the roof of The Point, in New York June 29, 2009. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_bi_ge/us_chase_mortgage_modified ap/20090630/us_chase_mortgage_modified AP business Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:17:34 GMT AP - Chase said Tuesday it has approved 138,000 trial mortgage modifications for struggling homeowners in the past three months. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090630/ap_on_bi_ge/us_mortgage_protests ap/20090630/us_mortgage_protests AP business Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:51:57 GMT AP - Protests are planned in more than a dozen cities across the country to demand that a group of mortgage companies who benefited from federal bailout money participate in a government program designed to prevent foreclosures. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090629/ap_on_bi_ge/us_student_loan_relief ap/20090629/us_student_loan_relief AP business Mon, 29 Jun 2009 01:28:30 GMT AP - Repaying a student loan could soon be a little less painful. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_aig_alico nm/20090626/us_aig_alico Reuters business Fri, 26 Jun 2009 15:10:18 GMT Reuters - AIG's American Life Insurance Company (Alico) will restructure its western European businesses in order to generate cost savings, according to an internal document obtained by Reuters. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_freddie_portfolio nm/20090626/us_freddie_portfolio Reuters business Fri, 26 Jun 2009 13:24:18 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_freddie_portfolio"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090626/i/r2230954905.jpg?x=130&y=89&q=85&sig=FOrNcwelbHuXY4202FT8Mg--" align="left" height="89" width="130" alt="The headquarters of mortgage lender Freddie Mac is seen in Mclean, Virginia, near Washington, in this September 8, 2008 file photo. REUTERS/Jason Reed/Files" border="0" /></a>Reuters - Freddie Mac , the second-largest U.S. home funding company, on Friday said its mortgage investment portfolio shrank by an annualized 9.9 percent rate in May, while delinquencies on loans it guarantees accelerated.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_freddie_portfolio"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090626/i/r2230954905.jpg?x=130&y=89&q=85&sig=FOrNcwelbHuXY4202FT8Mg--" align="left" height="89" width="130" alt="photo" title="The headquarters of mortgage lender Freddie Mac is seen in Mclean, Virginia, near Washington, in this September 8, 2008 file photo. REUTERS/Jason Reed/Files" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_spending nm/20090626/us_usa_economy_spending Reuters business Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:23:13 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_spending"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090626/i/r2964099091.jpg?x=130&y=90&q=85&sig=r.70Qpdc4nbi846QNSxCBg--" align="left" height="90" width="130" alt="A woman shops at a Sam's Club store, a division of Wal-Mart Stores, in Bentonville, Arkansas June 4, 2009. REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi" border="0" /></a>Reuters - U.S. consumer spending rose last month for the first time since February as government stimulus pushed incomes sharply higher, the Commerce Department said on Friday, supporting the view the economy was close to pulling out of recession.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090626/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_spending"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090626/i/r2964099091.jpg?x=130&y=90&q=85&sig=r.70Qpdc4nbi846QNSxCBg--" align="left" height="90" width="130" alt="photo" title="A woman shops at a Sam's Club store, a division of Wal-Mart Stores, in Bentonville, Arkansas June 4, 2009. REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090625/ap_on_bi_ge/us_mortgage_rates ap/20090625/us_mortgage_rates AP business Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:37:02 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090625/ap_on_bi_ge/us_mortgage_rates"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20090625/capt.0215410f1c2a45c5bcde38437b30aa66.mortgage_rates_cars201.jpg?x=130&y=91&q=85&sig=porEUQERzmL7PoFNjKZX5w--" align="left" height="91" width="130" alt="In this June 23, 2009 photo, a 'reduced price' sign is seen on a home for sale in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles. Rates for 30-year home loans edged up this week, remaining above record lows reached over the spring. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)" border="0" /></a>AP - Rates for 30-year home loans edged up this week, remaining above record lows reached over the spring.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090625/ap_on_bi_ge/us_mortgage_rates"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20090625/capt.0215410f1c2a45c5bcde38437b30aa66.mortgage_rates_cars201.jpg?x=130&y=91&q=85&sig=porEUQERzmL7PoFNjKZX5w--" align="left" height="91" width="130" alt="photo" title="In this June 23, 2009 photo, a 'reduced price' sign is seen on a home for sale in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles. Rates for 30-year home loans edged up this week, remaining above record lows reached over the spring. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (AP) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090625/bs_nm/us_aig nm/20090625/us_aig Reuters business Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:45:30 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090625/bs_nm/us_aig"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090625/i/r1411736371.jpg?x=108&y=130&q=85&sig=zquu71T0FU_W2RAg__bfzw--" align="left" height="130" width="108" alt="The American International Group (AIG) building is seen in New York, March 24, 2009. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton" border="0" /></a>Reuters - The federal government has agreed to accept $25 billion of preferred stock in two American International Group Inc businesses as partial repayment of debt, the company said on Thursday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090625/bs_nm/us_aig"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090625/i/r1411736371.jpg?x=108&y=130&q=85&sig=zquu71T0FU_W2RAg__bfzw--" align="left" height="130" width="108" alt="photo" title="The American International Group (AIG) building is seen in New York, March 24, 2009. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_fed nm/20090624/us_usa_fed Reuters business Wed, 24 Jun 2009 22:52:14 GMT Reuters - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday stuck to its huge program of buying government and mortgage debt, which is designed to keep borrowing costs low and boost recovery, and said it saw signs that the deep U.S. recession was easing. http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_economy nm/20090624/us_usa_economy Reuters business Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:50:00 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_economy"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090624/i/r2666126054.jpg?x=130&y=83&q=85&sig=iOveLXjWRVyPXFd3osz3xA--" align="left" height="83" width="130" alt="Sparks fly as assembly line robots weld on the frame of a 2009 Dodge Ram pick-up truck at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant in Warren, Michigan September 12, 2008. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook" border="0" /></a>Reuters - An unexpected jump in U.S. durable goods orders last month backed hopes the economy was healing, a prospect cautiously supported by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_economy"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090624/i/r2666126054.jpg?x=130&y=83&q=85&sig=iOveLXjWRVyPXFd3osz3xA--" align="left" height="83" width="130" alt="photo" title="Sparks fly as assembly line robots weld on the frame of a 2009 Dodge Ram pick-up truck at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant in Warren, Michigan September 12, 2008. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters) http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_mortgages nm/20090624/us_usa_economy_mortgages Reuters business Wed, 24 Jun 2009 11:07:02 GMT <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_mortgages"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090624/i/r2902037528.jpg?x=130&y=86&q=85&sig=XoZChHKcC7KF8Z7s92dLpA--" align="left" height="86" width="130" alt="A newly sold home at a new housing subdivision is seen in San Marcos, California August 20, 2007. REUTERS/Mike Blake" border="0" /></a>Reuters - U.S. mortgage applications climbed last week from a seven-month low, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday, adding to emerging signs that the three-year housing market collapse may be abating.</p><br clear="all"/> <p><a href="http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090624/bs_nm/us_usa_economy_mortgages"><img src="http://d.yimg.com/a/p/rids/20090624/i/r2902037528.jpg?x=130&y=86&q=85&sig=XoZChHKcC7KF8Z7s92dLpA--" align="left" height="86" width="130" alt="photo" title="A newly sold home at a new housing subdivision is seen in San Marcos, California August 20, 2007. REUTERS/Mike Blake" border="0"/></a></p><br clear="all"/> (Reuters)