Mortgages

The possibility of moving stalled housing bills forward combined with promises of down payment assistance is offering hope to housing advocates.

The Phoenix-based school's debt was rated a notch above junk — to BBB-minus by Fitch Ratings ahead of a refinancing of bonds from a 2021 issue.

The plan would raise about $100 million a year to create and preserve affordable housing.

Undersubscribed funding opportunities are blocked by regulation.

"The shortage of accountants is not a brand new-issue, but it seems to be more thematic this year," said Richard Ciccarone, president emeritus of Merritt Research Services.

St. John's Lutheran Church in Madison is redeveloping its property to build affordable housing blocks from the Capitol in the booming East Washington corridor.

Signature Bank owned nearly $15 billion of mortgages across four of New York's five boroughs, making it the largest lender to rent-regulated housing in the city.

"The Maryland SmartBuy program is designed to help first-time home buyers who have student loan obligations qualify for acquisition financing under the Maryland Mortgage Program," said the CFO of the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. 

Steven Mahr moved to Chicago two years ago, and in March, he moved from Stifel to the city's finance department, where he's now happily tackling tough problems.

The bond plan, a key priority for Mayor Brandon Johnson, will be paid for with revenue gained by letting tax increment financing districts expire.