Mortgage Bankers Association “Walks Away” from HQ

CoStar Group buys downtown Washington building for $41.3 million, far below the $79 million the trade group said it paid in 2007.

...

In an interview late last year, Mr. Courson said he believed mortgage borrowers should keep paying their loans even if that no longer seemed to be in their economic interest. He said paying off a mortgage isn't only a matter of personal interest. Defaults hurt neighborhoods by lowering property values, Mr. Courson said. "What about the message they will send to their family and their kids and their friends?" he asked.

...

The MBA will move out of the building and rent elsewhere in Washington, the spokeswoman said. She added that a new space hadn't yet been found.