Improvements on homes reach spending high - 2005-01-15
Homeowners spent a new high of $138.1 billion on home improvements in 2003, a jump driven by affluent consumers, according to a new study by Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies.

According to builders and contractors, many home improvement projects have been fueled by home equity loans and mortgage refinancings, which allow consumers to take advantage of sharply rising home values.
Read the full story at Omaha World-Herald

Mortgage broker sentenced for defrauding lenders - 2005-01-15
A mortgage broker was sentenced to 21/2 years in federal prison Friday for scamming four lenders out of more than $1 million by filing fraudulent mortgage applications.

Todd D. Breninghouse, 39, of Lower Burrell, executed the mail fraud through his home-based business, Platinum Financial Services, between February 2000 and July 2002.
Read the full story at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette