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A little more than half of American renters believe owning a home is a more sensible choice than living in rental housing, according to a research study from Fannie Mae's Economic & Strategic Research Group. At 57 percent, young renters (ages 18-34) were more likely to answer that owning is the better choice. Out of those who would prefer to own, many find themselves blocked by a number of hurdles. The most commonly cited problem was a lack of assets; 67 percent of aspiring owners have less than $10,000 in assets.

In the Obama administration's overall assessment on housing, the market was described as showing ""important progress across many key indicators"" but the millions of underwater homeowners still call for a need to provide homeowner assistance, according to the May housing scorecard released jointly by Treasury and HUD. For example, homeowners' equity grew by more than $815 billion in the first quarter of 2013. ""Despite the positive news, we have important work ahead since there are so many families and individuals still ‘underwater' with mortgage balances higher than their home's value,"" said Kurt Usowski, HUD deputy assistant secretary for economic affairs.

The Oregon Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. can commit certain actions on behalf of a lender when granted the authority to do so. The landmark ruling also allows for non-judicial foreclosures in the state. The court released these decisions in its final rulings in Niday v GMAC Mortgage, LLC and Brandrup v Recontrust Company, N.A.

After falling in April and May, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI) resumed its upward trend in June, NAHB reported. According to the association, the number of U.S. housing markets showing sustained growth in housing permits, home prices, and employment rose to 263 in June, five more than May's total. The index grew for several months to a record high of 274 in March before falling to 273 in April and then 258 in May.

Massachusetts foreclosure starts and completions plummeted over the last year in April, the Warren Group reported. For the month, the number of foreclosure petitions, which mark the first step in the foreclosure process in the Bay State, stood at 370, down 79 percent from April 2012 when there were 1,750 foreclosure petitions.

Asking prices are rising at an especially fast pace in the least affordable housing markets, according to Trulia. Nationally, asking prices increased 9.5 percent year-over-year in May, but in the ten least affordable metros, asking prices spiked 16.3 percent during the same time period. Among the least affordable markets, seven were in California. Honolulu was found to be the least affordable metro, where 74 percent of monthly household income is used to pay a mortgage.

The economy added 175,000 jobs in May, and the unemployment rate ticked up to 7.6.percent, the first month-over-month increase since January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Economists had forecast payrolls would grow by 170,000, and that the unemployment rate would remain at 7.5 percent. The increase in the unemployment rate came from an increase in the labor force as more people looked for work. As a result, the number of persons meeting the government definition of unemployed went up.

According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.91 percent (0.7 point) for the week ending June 6, up 10 basis points over last week. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.67 percent. Meanwhile, Bankrate's weekly national survey had the 30-year fixed rising to 4.1 percent, its highest level since April 2012. The 15-year fixed increased to 3.28 percent, while the 5/1 ARM rose 12 basis points to 2.93 percent.

Fixer-upper homes might be the solution for potential buyers who are having trouble with snagging a good deal in this low-inventory environment. According RealtyTrac's estimate, there are more than 51,000 of these discounted properties. To help buyers narrow down their search, RealtyTrac ranked the top 15 cities for fixer-uppers. Detroit, Michigan reigned as the best city to buy a fixer-upper. In the Motor City, RealtyTrac found there are 3,773 banked-owned properties built before 1960 that cost under $100,000.

National Mortgage Settlement checks for about $1,480 will be sent starting June 10, with a completion date of June 17. According to releases from different state attorneys general offices, Rust Consulting, the settlement administrator, will mail payments associated with 962,278 loans. According to the mortgage settlement website, about $1.5 billion from the $25 billion settlement will be used to compensate eligible borrowers. In order to be considered for payment relief, borrowers had to submit a valid foreclosure claim.