Friday, August 10, 2012 / WSJ

Watchdog Offers Mortgage Rules
A federal consumer regulator is expected to propose Friday the first set of national standards for the mortgage-servicing industry, which has been riddled with problems in the wake of the housing bust.
 

Under the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's proposal, loan servicers would be required to evaluate homeowners' applications for loan-assistance within 30 days of receiving an application and would be barred from going ahead with a foreclosure until a final decision has been reached on a borrower's application for help.


U.S. Won't Pursue Goldman Sachs Charges
After a year-long investigation, the Justice Department said Thursday that it will not bring charges against Goldman Sachs Group or any of its employees for financial fraud related to the mortgage crisis.
 

In a statement released Thursday, the Justice Department said “the burden of proof” couldn’t be met to prosecute Goldman criminally based on claims made in an extensive report prepared by a U.S. Senate panel that investigated the financial crisis.