Discusses how federal authorities have tried to establish accurate measures for housing costs over the years.  From the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Examines three options for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to use principal forgiveness for eligible borrowers who are “underwater” on their home mortgages. Also discusses how these options might affect the number of defaults and the federal budget.  From the Congressional Budget Office

Reports that consumer expenditures increased for the first time in 3 years.  Also covers breakdowns of expenditures by spending category such as food, transportation, and housing.  From the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Latest quarterly report of the Inspector General for TARP which gained headlines by reporting that 46% of homeowners with modified mortgages are redefaulting.  From the Office of the Special Inspector and the Treasury Department

This report provides an overview of the changing residential mortgage market, focusing on trends in housing prices, homeownership, mortgage characteristics, and financing.  It also examines legislation and regulations designed to promote the efficient functioning of the mortgage market.  From the Congressional Research Service, posted by the Federation of American Scientists

Presents statistics on basic physical and structural characteristics of the housing inventory at the national level and for metro areas.  Examines types of housing structures, newer and older houses, and the size of the houses measured by the number of rooms.  From the Census Bureau

Looks at four measures of rental market conditions and their changes between2009 and 2011: housing costs, housing cost burdens, rental vacancy rates, and renter share of total households.  From the Census Bureau

Finds that mental disorders accounted for the largest number of inpatient hospital stays and emergency treatment visits by homeless people.  This report compares patient characteristics, insurance coverage, and conditions treated during hospital stays and visits by racial/ethnic groups for homeless and non-homeless patients.  From the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Describes the differences between the primary and secondary markets, provides an overview of how the housing finance system works, and provides context  for housing finance-related policy issues that Congress might choose to consider. From the Congressional Research Service, posted by the Federation of American Scientists

Evaluates regional progress across a range of categories including the economy, transportation, housing, demographics, and quality of life.  Also offers locality profiles for each of the region’s 16 jurisdictions.  From the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission

Examines the characteristics of vacant housing units which are vacant for “other” than the usual reasons: currently for rent or for sale, usual residence elsewhere, etc.  Examines these other reasons for vacancy, how the reasons have changed per region, and what the characteristics of these structures are.  From the Census Bureau

Examines  the impact of non-occupant–owner mortgages and speculation on investment homes contributed to the housing crisis.  From the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank

This report examines homeownership and renter status among foreign-born households.  Also covers housing tenure by place of birth and year of entry to the U.S. for foreign-born household heads.  While 66% of naturalized U.S. citizen households were owner occupied, 34% of noncitizen households were owner occupied.  From the Census Bureau

Examines the reasons for weakness in the U.S. housing market and describes three policy approaches that could help improve the housing market and therefore the economy.  From the Federal  Reserve Board

Charts and statistics on recent economic trends in the Hampton Roads region and the short term outlook for the local economy.     From the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission

Summary of the regulation that requires mortgage lenders to consider consumers’ ability to repay home loans before extending credit.  The rule also protects consumers from certain risky lending practices.  From the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Examines the condition and status of nonmortgage-related TARP programs and TARP-funded mortgage programs.   From the Government Accountability Office

Discusses the Federal Housing Administration’s role in the mortgage market, the financial status of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund, and recent FHA policy changes.  From the Congressional Research Service, posted by the Federation of American Scientists

Tourism promotion site which encourages visits to and celebrates historic homes in Virginia.  From the Office of the Governor

Estimates there were 633,000 homeless people on a selected night in January 2012.  Also provides estimates of homelessness for families and trends in homelessness.  Also provides estimates of homelessness by state and major cities.  From the Department of Housing and Urban Development

Analyzes the retirement planning behavior of small business owners who earn a high percentage of their income and have a high percentage of their net worth in business income and assets.  Also analyzes the retirement assets of business owners and private sector employees who have underwater residential mortgages and compares them with those who have positive mortgage equity.  From the Small Business Administration

Explores the growth in shared households from 2007 to 2011 and whether household sharing is influenced by economic circumstances by comparing three different poverty estimates.  From the Census Bureau

Traces a sluggish economic recovery to cutbacks in purchases of goods and services by governments and slowdowns in the construction of new homes.  From the Congressional Budget Office

Reports on the state’s seven programs of support for the estimated  33,000 to 40,000 who experience homelessness at some point during the year.  From the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development

This paper illustrates how the different tax treatments of owner-occupied and rented houses affect the relative costs of owning and renting.  Tax advantages make owning more advantageous for higher-income households but limiting or eliminating certain tax advantages would change the cost of owning relative to renting.  From the Congressional Budget Office

Examines the characteristics of households with three or more generations living together.  This brief provides information by state on three types of multigenerational households.  From the Census Bureau

Press release which announces the availability of the latest statistics on population and housing for the 2009-2011 period for localities of 20,000 or more people via the American Fact Finder web tool.  From the Census Bureau.

Current information on a wide range of housing subjects including size and physical condition of housing units, mortgages and other housing costs, and indicators of neighborhood quality.  From the Census Bureau

Shows changes in major categories of expenses for owners and renters from 1986 to 2010.  From the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Provides information about trends and characteristics of people who work from their homes,  Including the percentage of workers who are at home and the occupational fields most likely to have home-based workers.  From the Census Bureau