Below are the latest real estate news headlines for buyers and sellers.

The Custom McMansion
Many mass-market home builders are getting into the custom-home game -- once almost entirely the province of boutique builders. The reason is simple: Custom-home building is more profitable for builders and the big attraction for home buyers is the cheaper price.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:36:00 EDT

Battling Beetles in the Garden
Infestations of Japanese beetles have spread to more than 30 states, wreaking havoc on the foliage of trees and crops. Gardener Steve Stecklow is waging a biological war against these predators.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:15:00 EDT

Mortgage Rates Near a Year High
Mortgage rates are nearing their highest levels in a year, adding to pressures on the weakened housing market.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 10:06:00 EDT

Housing Package Deal Reached
House and Senate leaders have largely hammered out a compromise deal on a mammoth housing package that would permit the government to bolster Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in an emergency, overhaul supervision of the housing-finance giants and allow the government to insure up to $300 billion in refinanced mortgages.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 07:23:00 EDT

Rich Londoners Finally Feel Pain
The credit crunch caught up with the top end of London's home market in the second quarter, when the price per square meter of residential space in the capital's prime locations fell more sharply than in the U.K. as a whole.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 09:07:00 EDT

Mortgage-Lobby Chief Resigns
The chief of the mortgage industry's most powerful lobby group, Jonathan Kempner, resigned Tuesday, just as the industry is defending itself from a hostile Congress and a punishing housing slump.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 04:33:00 EDT

Fannie, Freddie Books Under Scrutiny
Bank examiners from the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency are looking at the books of mortgage investors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.Read Article
Tue, 22 Jul 2008 04:29:00 EDT

How to Buy a Foreclosed Home
Buyers must be willing to do more sleuthing on their own to find the best deals. Here are some tips to get started.Read Article
Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:21:00 EDT

FDIC Faces Mortgage Mess
The FDIC was among lenders giving out high-interest, subprime mortgages, some of them predatory, according to federal documents.Read Article
Mon, 21 Jul 2008 05:28:00 EDT

The Custom McMansion
Many mass-market home builders are getting into the custom-home game -- once almost entirely the province of boutique builders. The reason is simple: Custom-home building is more profitable for builders and the big attraction for home buyers is the cheaper price.Read Article
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 22:36:00 EDT