WASHINGTON - U.S. home prices posted their sharpest first-quarter decline since the government began tracking the data 17 years ago.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fannie Mae, the largest U.S. home funding source, is setting a single national standard for down payments on mortgages it buys, including areas where home prices are falling, in an effort to stimulate the housing market.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Freddie Mac (FRE.N) posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss on Wednesday and the second-biggest U.S. home-finance company said it would raise capital to expand, sparking a rally in its shares.

NEW YORK - An industry group said today that pending U.S. home sales dropped to a new low in March, signaling the housing slump has yet to bottom out even as the spring sell season gets under way.

WASHINGTON - A reading of U.S. home builders' sentiment remained unchanged in April, just shy of its record low for the third consecutive month as the housing market failed to recover.

WASHINGTON - U.S. home prices are unlikely to recover until at least 2010, one of the nation's top housing economists said, adding that home building this year is likely to post its worst year in five decades.

If you are buying or refinancing a U.S. home with an above-average price tag, you may be able to breathe easier and secure a guaranteed mortgage.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. home foreclosures hit a record late last year amid a shakedown in the subprime mortgage market that is taking its toll on the broader economy, and the net wealth of U.S. households fell for the first time in five years, data on Thursday showed.

WASHINGTON - Industry data released Thursday show January pending U.S. home sales were below analysts' expectations and remained at the second-lowest reading on record.

NEW YORK - U.S. home prices dropped 8.9 percent in the final quarter of 2007 compared with a year ago, Standard & Poor's said Tuesday, the steepest decline in the 20-year history of its housing index.