FREDDIE MAC

Republican frontrunner Mitt Romney maintains double-digit lead in most polls in Florida and hits out at 'sad' rival Newt Gingrich.

On Monday, NPR and ProPublica published a report revealing that Freddie Mac, the government-owned mortgage giant, had purchased $3.4 billion in mortgage securities that became more profitable if homeowners were unable to refinance at lower rates.for homeowners to pay off their mortgages. It's the latest public blow to a firm that has been blamed for its role in the housing crisis, even as it continues to deal with the fallout of the toxic mortgages that it continues to hold

State and federal officials are close to a settlement with the largest U.S. banks over mortgage abuses, with states facing an end-of-the-week deadline to decide whether they will sign on, people close to the talks said.

Top Republican lawmakers on Sunday said they expect to forge a deal with Democrats to extend the payroll tax cut before it expires at the end of February but offered no specifics on how they would pay for it.

The U.S. administration on Friday expanded its main foreclosure-prevention program and pushed to open it to those with loans backed by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a move that could meet resistance from their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The Justice Department issued civil subpoenas to 11 financial institutions as part of a new effort to investigate misconduct in the packaging and sale of home loans to investors, Attorney General Eric Holder said on Friday.

Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum tackled a broad range of foreign, domestic and social issues during last night's debate, from immigration law and foreign policy to Romney's link to Obamacare and whose wife would make the best first lady. Relive the highlights of the CNN Florida Republican debate, and get a rundown of the top quotes and biggest arguments of the night.

Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum faced off last night in the final GOP debate in Florida before the Jan. 31 primary. Here, find out what statements from the primary debate were true and which got the facts wrong, from Santorum on Latin America to Mitt Romney's involvement in Freddie Mac.

Thursday's Republican debate, which would be the last before Florida goes to polls on Jan. 31, failed to produce any spark.

The Florida GOP debate that aired on CNN Thursday, marked the 19th debate in the Republican presidential contest, and was the last before the critical Florida primary scheduled for next Tuesday.

Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney are in a dead heat in Florida. Charles Zelden, a historian at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and an expert on elections, outlined who has the edge and what factors will determine the outcome of next Tuesday's primary.

U.S. 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rates in the week ending Jan. 26, from 3.88 percent in the previous week, according to Freddie Mac.

Wanted: Skilled executives willing to take over large, failing U.S. financial firms at a moment's notice.

President Barack Obama's proposal to allow millions of homeowners to reduce mortgage payments is the latest in a series of federal efforts to aid the housing market, but it faces a number of obstacles.

Are Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney the same? Vice President Joe Biden thinks so, and a side-by-side comparison of their positions shows more similarities than differences.

Even before U.S. President Barack Obama made his State of the Union speech on Tuesday, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney released a pre-buttal to his speech, warning the President would use the platform to divide the nation with a biased speech targeting the general elections. As it turned out, Obama did use the platform to deliver a speech aimed at November's general elections and although he never singled out or named his Republican opponents, he did take several jabs at M...

Looks like the South Carolina Republican verdict has taught some good lessons to Mitt Romney. The NBC-Florida debate saw a different version of Romney, who was at his aggressive best.

Mitt Romney was desperate for a strong debate performance in Florida's Republican debate Monday night to restore momentum for his campaign, and delivered repeated sharp attacks on rising rival Newt Gingrich.

Following a big win in South Carolina and momentum building in Florida, Newt Gingrich suddenly seems poised to be a strong contender as the Republican Presidential Candidate.

The regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac told lawmakers that forcing the government-controlled mortgage firms to write down the principal on underwater home loans would require more than $100 billion in fresh taxpayer funds.

In an attempt to deflect attention over his involvement with Freddie Mac, Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich's former consulting firm on Monday released a contract he had with the troubled mortgage firm.