The Kalamazoo Gazette reports from Michigan. "Home sales in the Kalamazoo area will remain fairly stable this year compared to other parts of the state and country, a seasoned real estate professional and statistician says. 'Even by my worst projections we will do better this year than in 2002 (when 4,443 units sold), and that was a really good year,' said associate broker Woody King."

"King said he hears multiple complaints from sellers that their homes aren't selling quickly enough and their listings aren't generating enough potential buyers. That's reflected in turnover analyses showing that current listings in the $100,000 to $200,000 range represent close to a year's inventory."

"'The average buyer has twice as many houses to look at as he did two years ago,' King said. 'The problem is, they're not looking at as many houses.'"

The Star Tribune from Minnesota. "The rapid rise in foreclosure rates in Minnesota has lawmakers looking for ways to crack down on abusive lending practices. But some mortgage brokers argue that the proposed new guidelines, expected to be introduced in the Legislature in several weeks, are overly restrictive."

"Minnesota has the nation's highest home ownership rate, 78 percent, but its foreclosure rate jumped 46 percent last year, according to RealtyTrac. More than 2,000 homes in Minneapolis and St. Paul went into foreclosure last year, according to sheriff's records. Cities and counties across the state are seeing record increases. Much of the concern centers on subprime loans."

"'State officials ought to step up,' said state Rep. Karen Clark. 'You look at abuses and fraud we've seen in Minnesota and what it does to individual people involved, what it does to the communities involved, and what it does to people's confidence in the integrity of the market. A destabilization of the mortgage market can have a huge impact on our economy.'"

"Pat Martyn of the Minnesota Association of Mortgage Brokers, and others say foreclosures are costly to their industry, about $50,000 per home by some estimates, and that market forces eventually will make it too expensive for inappropriate products to be sold to inappropriate borrowers."

KARE 11 from Minnesota. "Last month alone 436 Hennepin County homes were sold at sheriff's sales, a modern day record, and more than three times as many foreclosures as in January two years ago. Ramsey County's 172 foreclosures also set a monthly high."

"That comes as no surprise to John McEnaney, who nearly added to the statistics himself. John purchased his home in Mound with an adjustable rate mortgage. He thought it made sense at the time."

"'By getting the ARM I got the better interest rate,' he said."

"But when interest rates rose his mortgage started adjusting. Over three years his initial interest rate of less than 8 percent rose to nearly 12 percent. The increase in John's monthly house payment: nearly $900."

"He had planned to refinance; but then lost his job. Without help from a friend and a community agency John would have lost his house too. 'Once it started adjusting it's like a snowball going downhill, it just gets worse and worse and worse,' McEnaney."

"Credit counselors place much of the blame for rising foreclosure rates with non-traditional mortgage products. 'Consumers really have to watch out because there's a financial incentive to sell them loans,' said (credit counselor) Darryl Dahlheimer."

MyFox Twin Cities. "Jon Falk's Falk's $400,000 condo in downtown Minneapolis has been stripped clean. It had once been the building's showcase model, upgraded with designer furnishings, art and a home theater worth tens of thousands. Now, all of it's gone. Video from a security camera shows a man carting it away on the freight elevator."

"'I met a realtor out partying,' Falk said. 'She goes, 'There's a deal I got if you're interested'.'"

"That realtor is Mickey Wong. It sounded like a very sweet deal. He'd get $4,000 just for signing his name. Falk says Wong arranged for him to buy the Minneapolis condo in his name and then transfer the property to a man who would actually pay the mortgage. That man calls himself Jesse James Holliday. Holliday is a loan officer and licensed real estate agent.'"

"'All of a sudden I'm a half-million dollars in debt, like that,' Falk said."

"A lot of things happened that Falk says he never expected. The property never was transferred out of his name. Someone lied on his mortgage application, claiming his income was three times what it really is. And they didn't mention that he already has a mortgage on a home."

"'There's no way I should have been approved,' Falk said. 'Someone fixed this. Someone had to. This isn't my signature.' Falk says that someone had to be Jesse Holliday."

"After the deal closed, Holliday moved into the condo, but he never made any of the monthly payments. Now, the bank is going after Jon Falk to the tune of $400,000."

"Holliday was convicted last March for using stolen identities to open up credit card accounts and buy a car. He got his victims' financial information while working at a mortgage company. Holliday eventually did talk to FOX 9 by phone. We wanted to know how John Falk, with his modest income, ever got approved to buy a luxury condominium."

"'We didn't verify anything,' Holliday said. 'He's on a stated asset, income verification program. He stated to us what he made annually, we write that on the application. We're not police officers.'"

"Both Holliday and Mickey Wong say the condo deal was legit. So what was in it for them besides a place for Holliday to stay? As real estate agent and loan officer they were in line to collect thousands of dollars for putting the deal together."

"So who was the man on the security camera moving furniture out of the condo? Holliday says he took the stuff because it was his. He claims Falk sold him tens of thousands of dollars worth of furnishings for just $4,000. He says he won't give it back unless ordered by a judge."

"This FOX 9 investigation got the attention of the state commerce department. Jesse Holiday is now barred from ever working as a loan officer again, but he is also a licensed real estate agent."