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YouWalkAWay.com, a national foreclosure agency, recently released a June 2013 survey of its customers and found 54 percent are in pre-foreclosure, meaning they have defaulted on their mortgage but have not received an official foreclosure notice. The share is down from 2012, when 85 percent of YouWalkAWay clients reported they were in pre-foreclosure. The share is down from 2012, when 85 percent of YouWalkAWay clients reported they were in pre-foreclosure.

The First Title Radio Show debuted on May 31 and has aired seven episodes so far. In that time, host Doug Dennison--a radio, real estate, and government auction expert--has interviewed more than 15 real estate professionals, including representatives from Sperry Van Ness, Florida Keys Real Estate, Rowell Auctions, Inc., and the Five Star Institute.

According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the average 30-year fixed rate was 4.37 percent (0.7 point) for the week ending July 18, down from 4.51 percent last week. Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.53 percent. ""Fixed mortgage rates fell as Federal Reserve (Fed) Chairman Bernanke helped ease market concerns about the Fed reducing its bond purchases,"" said Freddie Mac chief economist Frank Nothaft, referencing remarks Bernanke made earlier in the month.

For several markets across the country, strong home price growth is also attached to a double-digit unemployment rate, leading Fitch Ratings to view the strong price appreciation as unsustainable. In a recent report, Fitch highlighted seven metro areas where high unemployment rates were in the backdrop of annual double-digit home price gains. The top two were Detroit and Las Vegas, while the remaining five were in California: Sacramento, Stockton, Los Angeles, Bakersfield, and Riverside.

At $193,750, the median price of a home in June sat 12.6 percent above the year-ago level and increased 5 percent from May. At $193,750, the median price of a home in June sat 12.6 percent above the year-ago level and increased 5 percent from May. Out of the 52 metros tracked, Albuquerque, New Mexico, was the only market to experience a yearly decrease after prices fell 4.2 percent. Home sales also stood higher compared to last year, increasing 4.1 percent in June. The improvement marks the 24th month of consecutive gains.

One week after spiking to a two-month high, first-time claims for unemployment insurance dropped 24,000 to 334,000 for the week ending July 13--the lowest level in 10 weeks, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economists expected the number of claims to drop to 344,000 from the 360,000 originally reported for the week ending July 6. The number of filings for that week was revised down to 358,000.

Citing improvements in manufacturing, tourism, commercial and residential real estate and in the financial sector, the Federal Reserve Wednesday said the nation's economy ""continued to increase at a modest to moderate pace"" from late May through early July. The assessment in the periodic Beige Book was tempered by ""mixed"" conditions in the agricultural sector and the absence of improvement in labor markets. ""Hiring,"" the Beige Book said, ""held steady or increased at a measured pace.""

The Federal Reserve will continue its current policy of buying up $40 billion in agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and $45 billion in Treasuries per month as long as economic conditions warrant such measures, explained Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke during a testimony given Wednesday before the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services. ""I emphasize that, because our asset purchases depend on economic and financial developments, they are by no means on a preset course,"" Bernanke said.

According to its quarterly earnings report, BofA pulled in approximately $4.0 billion in Q2, an increase of 63 percent over the $2.5 billion recorded for Q2 2012. Last quarter's results ""were driven by year-over-year improvements in net interest income, investment and brokerage income, investment banking fees, sales and trading revenue, equity investment income and credit quality as well as expense reductions,"" the bank said.

With the sudden jump in mortgage rates, market spectators are wondering what the impact might be on the housing recovery. After analyzing previous instances when mortgage rates increased significantly, Mark Palim, VP of Fannie Mae's Economic and Strategic Research Group, determined history suggests rate increases won't stop the current recovery. Instead, a rapid rise in rates is ""more likely to contribute to a decrease in home purchase volume and an increase in the market share of adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs),"" wrote Palim in a recent commentary.