The toughest part of buying a house isn’t finding the ideal place or locking down financing. It’s actually making the offer – not just the monetary part, mind you, but deciding what to include and what to leave out.

A recent Federal Reserve report showed that banks raised their lending standards for business and consumer loans in the aftermath of three large bank failures and expect to lift them more this year, a trend that could slow the economy in coming months and increases the risk of a recession. 

After industry opposition to a fee that would have levied an upfront fee on borrowers with debt-to-income ratios greater than 40 percent, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced it’s dropping the plan. 

With the Portsmouth City Council having passed on acquiring the former Thomas J. McIntyre federal building last month, its owners have launched an auction to sell the property.

Everyone from members of Congress to federal housing officials to industry leaders to ordinary Realtors and mortgage brokers see different sides of the story.