AP - The Federal Reserve has approved Bank of America Corp.'s purchase of distressed mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp.

Reuters - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether American International Group Inc overstated the value of contracts linked to subprime mortgages, the Wall Street Journal said on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

AFP - British house prices tumbled 3.8 percent in May for the largest annual drop since April 1993, home loans provider Halifax said on Thursday.

AP - Home foreclosures and late payments set records over the first three months of the year and are expected to keep rising, stark signs of the housing crisis' mounting damage to homeowners and the economy.

AFP - The big three credit rating agencies have agreed to reform their practices relating to complex mortgage-backed securities, New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo announced Thursday.

Reuters - U.S. mortgage applications fell for a third consecutive week, reaching its lowest level in over six years as demand for home refinancing loans plunged, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Reuters - A "credit recession" sparked by the U.S. housing market downturn and excesses in structured finance may last more than two years, and the financial sector will undergo "massive consolidation," leading Wall Street strategists said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Massachusetts authorities sued H&R Block Inc on Tuesday, charging that its mortgage unit discriminated against black and Latino borrowers and escalated a crisis over property foreclosures in the state.

Reuters - Massachusetts authorities sued H&R Block Inc on Tuesday, charging that its mortgage unit discriminated against black and Latino borrowers and escalated a crisis over property foreclosures in the state.

Reuters - Wachovia Corp ousted its chief executive, sending the bank's shares lower on speculation that loan losses tied to the purchase of a big mortgage lender could widen.