Bigger may not always be better, some local bankers think. Smaller community banks have weathered the economic storm better than many of the giant banking institutions, Patriot Bank Chief Executive Officer Stephen G. Zahorian argues. The Trinity-based bank has five branches in West Pasco and North Pinellas ...more

August 13, 2008

A federal grand jury is investigating mortgage lenders Countrywide Financial Corp., New Century Financial Corp. and IndyMac Bancorp Inc., a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Thursday. ...more

July 25, 2008

Where politicians and bankers see vexing liabilities in defaulted mortgages and foreclosures, Robert Lee sees opportunities as he picks up the pieces of the housing bust. ...more

July 15, 2008

With a foreclosure rescue bill facing an uncertain fate in Congress, federal regulators are putting the final touches on new rules designed to curb irresponsible mortgage lending and help some struggling homeowners refinance into more affordable loans. ...more

July 9, 2008

Federal authorities, responding to the subprime-mortgage crisis, have formed a task force to determine whether lenders or Wall Street firms participated in fraud. ...more

May 6, 2008

The Federal Reserve reported Monday that more banks are tightening lending standards on home mortgages, other types of consumer loans and business loans in response to a spreading credit crisis. ...more

May 6, 2008

At the center of the housing crisis, we're told, is someone called the "predatory lender." Such is the myth driving the housing debate in Washington, where both Democrats and Republicans are rushing toward a mortgage bailout. ...more

May 3, 2008

Regulators are trying to punish Wall Street for mortgage finance practices that not only expanded home ownership and spread risk among a host of new players - but also may have duped borrowers and investors who supplied cash to fuel a housing boom that has turned bust. ...more

February 19, 2008

As we spend this month celebrating the achievements of black Americans, I'm saddened by a report that concludes that the subprime mortgage crisis has caused the largest loss of wealth in modern U.S. history for black and Latino homeowners. ...more

February 17, 2008

Countrywide Financial Corp. said Friday that home loan delinquencies and foreclosures rose in January as more borrowers struggled to make their mortgage payments. ...more

February 16, 2008