For an elderly person with few assets, a reverse mortgage can be a lifesaver: It enables cash-poor retirees to tap equity in their house for living expenses, home repairs or health care needs. If you’re 62 or older, reverse mortgages allow you to borrow against the value of your home and not repay the loan until you sell the house, move out or die.

Mortgage shopping has never been more confusing. The secret is knowing whom to talk to, and when.

The post-bubble spin-mongering continues. New lending standards now mandated by Freddie and Fannie as a result of a settlement between New York State and the mortgage giants to settle charges that pressure from lenders had produced inflated appraisals requires that lenders get a second appraisal on 10% of the loans they sell to the mortgage giants.

If President Barack Obama gets his way, consumers who take out mortgages would automatically get a "plain vanilla" loan — such as a traditional 30-year fixed-rate mortgage — unless they opted for a riskier variety.

U.S. mortgage applications fell for a fourth consecutive week, with overall demand plunging to its lowest level in nearly seven months, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.