Minnesota and federal housing officials have launched a crackdown on affiliated business arrangements in which real estate brokerages, lenders or builders own a share of companies that provide title insurance.

Affiliated business arrangements, or ABAs, are legal in many states unless they are determined to be sham businesses created to generate illegal payments and kickbacks in exchange for referrals.

That’s how the Minnesota Commissioner of Commerce and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development have characterized Five Star Title, a partnership between a mortgage lender and title company.

Mortgage rates declined for the second straight week as the continuing slowdown in home construction helped alleviate inflation concerns, Freddie Mac reported today in its weekly survey.

“Housing starts in October were down more than expected, which the market saw as an indication housing would be a bigger drag on the economy than had previously been thought,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “Slower growth usually means less inflation and less inflation means lower interest rates. Hence, the drop in mortgage rates this week.”

NEW ORLEANS — Arthur Sterbcow has dealt with a lot of flat tires in the past year — 17 at last count. It’s not surprising given the countless roofing nails, broken bits of glass and other debris that still litter the streets around the flood-ravaged neighborhoods of New Orleans. Curb appeal is not a high priority in the area’s real estate market these days.

There are bigger worries, like when and if the insurance proceeds are going to come through, how much insurance will cost, when and if residents will choose to return to the city or sell off their homes, and what types of repairs are necessary to make the homes livable again while complying with building codes.

Sales of existing homes dropped in 38 states during the summer, with Virginia showing the sixth-sharpest decline.

Sales were down 24.4 percent here in the third quarter from the same period a year ago, according to figures released Monday by the National Association of Realtors.

Nevada led the country with the sharpest decline, with sales falling 38 percent, followed by Arizona, down 36 percent; Florida, 34 percent; California 28.6 percent; and Hawaii, 25.8 percent.

Nationally, existing home sales fell 12.7 percent compared with the same period a year ago.

Homeowners in San Antonio are selling their homes in about two months. In Detroit, by contrast, homes are sitting on the shelf for more than a year, and anxious sellers are having to cut prices to draw buyers. The National Association of Realtors released home-price data for 148 metro areas Monday, showing that the median price for a single-family home fell in 45 metro areas, and that nationally, the median price fell 1.2% from last year.

Whether your own area has a glut of homes for sale or is posting double-digit price gains, if you’re looking to buy or sell a home these days, you need to do all you can to compete.