A report from the Washington Post. "For 13 years, Danny Catalanotto paid the more than $2,000 mortgage on his Bowie, Md., home on time every month. When work as a church organist dried up in mid-March, Catalanotto says, he expected his mortgage company to offer help. Instead, a large Texas-based mortgage-collection firm called Mr. Cooper said Catalanotto could defer his monthly payments temporarily but would have to pay it all back in one lump sum. 'It could be $8,000 to $10,000 by then. How do you come up with that if you’ve been out of work?' he said."

"Steve Irish, who owns 11 rental properties in four states, is preparing for the worst. While many tenants in North Carolina have been able to keep up, those in Michigan, one of the states hit hardest by the coronavirus, are struggling. Only one of his six renters in Michigan paid full rent last month. One made a partial payment, $160. He estimates he could carry the cost of the missed rent for a few months, including covering homeowner association fees and maintenance costs. But floating renters could become unaffordable this summer when he will have to pay property taxes in multiple states, Irish said."

"'I am trying to be as helpful as I can be and still recover over time. I understand this is a crisis,' Irish said. But 'this is my retirement money.'"

The Times Herald-Record in New York."Some landlords are relying on the rents to manage living expenses and mortgage payments, and they would likely face foreclosure if they fall behind for months, said Dickie Baxter, a real estate agent who represents approximately 20 landlords and 300 rental properties. One of his major concerns is some tenants use the moratorium as a reason to stop paying rents. 'The landlords have a portfolio to maintain because for a lot of them that’s their retirement. Their kids are still going to college and their family members also got laid off,' Baxter said. 'A lot of the rental owners are also small business owners in the area who have been hit from every end.'"

"Chris Miller, of Walden, who owns several properties and a cleaning business feels increasing pressure to keep up with the payments after two tenants have stopped paying rents since March. He is operating his business with a reduced level of service while draining his savings to offset the loss. 'It puts a lot of unwanted stress on me because I don’t want to fall behind on any bills. I can’t exhaust the fund that I have as I take care of my family,' Miller said."

From Realtor.com. "Amid the economic upheaval caused by the novel coronavirus, it's become significantly more difficult to get one of those loans. As more Americans are getting furloughed and pink-slipped, lenders—ever mindful of the housing bust of more than a decade ago—are requiring higher credit scores and larger down payments."

"Some have ceased making loans they consider riskier, such as those for self-employed borrowers and real estate investors; those that require lower credit scores and down payments; and those for larger amounts, such as jumbo mortgages. Or they may be jacking up fees to make the loans prohibitively expensive. The availability of mortgage credit dropped 16.1% in March—a clear indication that lending standards are tightening up, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Mortgage Credit Availability Index. That's the lowest level of the index since mid-2015."

"Fewer lenders are offering jumbo mortgages during this crisis. That's because for these larger loans, there's more money on the line if the borrowers go into forbearance or default on their payments. 'We did see a really rapid slowdown in that market,' says Joel Kan, an economist at the MBA. 'It's harder to get a jumbo loan, and rates are higher.'"

From News 3 Las Vegas in Nevada. "Call it the 'Covid Clause.' The official term is the 'coronavirus addendum.' It’s an invention by the Las Vegas Association of Realtors, and it has popped up in housing contracts. Realtor Alberto Saab told us that with lenders tightening their requirements and sellers hesitant to put homes on the market, the clause is one way realtors are hoping to instill confidence in the housing market. Saab says this might be the right time to look, since prices are low and steady. "

"'You’re not going to have as many overpriced listings out there,' Saab said “We’ve had a lot in the past and I think it’s come to a realistic price point. So, if you’re a buyer, that’s great. Take advantage of it.'"

The Norman Transcript in Oklahoma. "Bryan Waldenville, Realtor and owner of Meraki Real Estate in Norman, said so far, business has slowed down some due to COVID-19. 'The effects of the shelter-in-place order, as well as the crippled oil and gas industry, have diminished real estate activity, especially the luxury housing market,' Waldenville said."

"The biggest change for mortgage lenders, said Chris Doke, mortgage sales manager of Gateway Mortgage, is significant guideline changes for most programs, including adding flexibility to allow for safety precautions and changes in U.S. Federal Housing Administration loans. Doke said a lot of lenders stopped originating FHA loans or originated them at much higher interest rates because their capacity wouldn't allow for their entity to close those and/or the need or desire on the mortgage back security market for entities to buy those FHA loans wasn't there. This led to an increase in guidelines for those loans and increased credit scores due to lack of demand. That means borrowers are protected more."

The Anchorage Daily News in Alaska. "After months of waiting out the dark winter, Anchorage-area Airbnb hosts were ready to welcome thousands of tourists to the Alaska for weddings, vacations and cruises. But the tourist season hasn’t come. Instead, vacation rental owners were hit with a tsunami of cancellations. Over the past three years, real estate broker David Parks has built a mini Airbnb empire. It started with a unit in Bootlegger Cove and has grown to 19 properties. This spring, he’s remodeling seven more along Ship Creek. He, like others, cut his prices in hopes of getting some bookings. 'It’s been pretty bad,' he said. 'The other day we were counting just over 700 cancellations.'"

"Brad Allen, an Anchorage dentist who rents out a cabin in Girdwood, said he’s lost $6,000 in canceled bookings, and estimates another $10,000 in new bookings compared to business in 2019. Allen said he usually makes about $30,000 during the busy summer months, but he isn’t counting on that this year. To lure in some locals seeking a change of scenery during socially distant times, Allen slashed his rate in half. 'It’s been quite a ride. I pretty much lost every booking between March 15 to the end of May. My life, personally, has been affected tremendously. We’ve cut back on everything.'"

From Bloomberg on California. "Two Million Dollar Price Reduction! Known as the 'Crown Jewel of La Jolla.'" Privately gated Mid-Century Spanish oceanfront estate is a designated Historical Landmark by Architect, John Lloyd Wright. Breathtaking 180 degree whitewater ocean views from almost every room on 0.64 acres with a pool. Parking over 10 cars and easy walking distance to La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club & the Village. Enjoy watching beautiful bio-luminescent waves nightly. Rare opportunity to own a historic oceanfront property!"

The Houston Chronicle in Texas. "A New Orleans-style home originally designed by famous Houston architect John Staub is on the market after seeing a nearly $2 million price cut, according to a listing on the Houston Association of Realtors."

From Mansion Global on Florida. "A Fisher Island, Florida, property on the market for $23.9 million is now heading to auction without reserve. This ground-floor condo, which was built in 1992 and is being auctioned by Platinum Luxury Auctions. The property first hit the market in 2018, was taken off, and then returned in December 2019 for the current asking price, according to Trayor Lesnock, founder of Platinum Luxury Auctions. Fisher Island is a private and residential enclave just off Miami Beach. Residents can pay an upfront fee of $250,000 and annually $20,651 to be part of the Fisher Island Club."