U.S. MBA Mortgage Applications Index Rose 0.5% Last Week (Bloomberg) March 10 (Bloomberg) -- Mortgage applications in the U.S. rose for a second week, led by an increase in purchases that may indicate the renewal of a homebuyer tax credit is starting to invigorate demand.

Club Kalua owners charged with mortgage fraud (AP via Yahoo! Finance) The mother and son owners of the defunct strip club made infamous by the shooting of Sean Bell have been charged in a mortgage fraud case in Queens.

Airport watch for former mortgage broker (The Australian) AN airport alert has been issued after one of the nation's biggest former mortgage brokers, who is under investigation, left the country.

Former Rock pitchman launches mortgage company of his own (Detroit Free Press) Best known for years as the pitchman of Rock Financial before a falling-out with his boss, Dan Gilbert, David Hall has launched a mortgage company in Birmingham called Hall Financial.

U.S. indicts Md. man in mortgage fraud (UPI) GREENBELT, Md., March 9 (UPI) -- Authorities Tuesday arrested a Maryland man in what the Department of Justice called a massive mortgage fraud scheme that left victims homeless.

Firm starts mortgage reward scheme (Channel 4) Property services group Countrywide has launched a new reward scheme for mortgage customers. The group believes it is the first company in the property industry to give people who take out a mortgage or insurance policy loyalty points that can then be exchanged for discounts and vouchers.

Mortgage 'Half' Payments: How Much Do They Save? (The Christian Science Monitor) One frequent question I’m often asked is whether or not paying half of a mortgage payment twice a month versus paying a full mortgage payment once a month is actually worthwhile.

Owners of strip club where Sean Bell was killed nabbed in $2M mortgage fraud scam (New York Daily News) THE MOTHER-AND-SON owners of the strip club where Sean Bell was killed were nabbed yesterday in a $2 million mortgage fraud scam.

Fannie Mae Mortgage-Bond Spreads Fall to Record: Credit Markets (Bloomberg) March 9 (Bloomberg) -- Yields on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage securities that guide U.S. home-loan rates fell to the lowest relative to Treasuries on record, even as the scheduled end of Federal Reserve purchases approaches.

Bay State Mortgage Rates Decline From A Week Ago (Banker & Tradesman) The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage in the state dropped to 4.79 percent last week, down from 4.9 percent the prior week, according to online mortgage tracker Zillow.