1. Ira Rennert Mansion Is Largest Home In The U.S. [Zillow]
Many complain that McMansions are unreasonably large for a single-family home, but McMansions have nothing on what is reportedly the largest home in the U.S. Located in Sagaponack, NY, this massive waterfront compound was built on 63 acres. Construction began in 1998 and was completed in 2003, but not without an outcry from the local community, many of whom believed it would be used as a hotel, business retreat or religious center.

2. Matt Lauer, 'Today' Co-Host, Buys In Hamptons [Wall Street Journal]
Matt Lauer, co-host of NBC's "Today" show, has bought a waterfront cottage in Southampton, N.Y., for its full asking price of $2.15 million. The 1,500-square-foot Cape Cod was on the market for about three months before Mr. Lauer made his offer. Set on about 0.7 acres, the home has three bedrooms, two baths, a country kitchen and wraparound deck overlooking the lawn and a large pond connected to Little Peconic Bay. The property, which also features a boat dock, includes 85 feet of pond frontage.

3. Is Now The Time To Buy? Manhattan Apartment Sales Jump 45% Over Last Quarter As Prices Fall [New York Daily News]
A fall of more than 10 percent in the average apartment price in Manhattan in the third quarter from a year earlier attracted buyers who pushed up the number of sales by over 45 percent in just one quarter, industry reports showed Friday. Still, experts said it was too early to say the market had bottomed out.

4. Worried About A Mortgage Rate Spike? You Have Options [Wall Street Journal]
Good news for prospective home buyers: You can find 30-year mortgages for less than 5% again. But those rates may not last . And these days it's almost impossible to lock in a rate while you hunt for a home. Banks—for understandable reasons—now want to evaluate a property before pre-approving borrowers.

5. Two "Sky Garage" Sales Tied To Dolce [TheRealDeal.com]
While it was widely expected that designer Domenico Dolce of Dolce & Gabbana would buy one penthouse apartment at the Chelsea condominium tower nicknamed the Sky Garage, there was no hint that he might buy two. But in public records posted today, an entity called Cinquantotto LLC is listed as the purchaser for two penthouse units in the building at 200 11th Avenue at 24th Street, for a combined $29 million.

6. The Island's Changing Face [New York Times]
EARLIER this month, after looking at more than 130 houses, Harmeet and Meenakshi Bherara of Roslyn paid $1.55 million for a 6,200-square-foot six-bedroom house in Woodbury with an in-ground pool. What the Bheraras found in their new gated community, and in the Syosset schools that their children will attend, is a blend of ethnicities that reflects the increasingly diverse face of Long Island. The Bheraras are the fifth Asian Indian family to move into their 34-home development. There are also a handful of Chinese and Korean residents.

7. Alec Baldwin To Stay At The El Dorado? [New York Magazine]
Has Alec Baldwin changed his mind about selling his apartment at the El Dorado? His three-bedroom, three-bath co-op in one of the famed building's towers, which had been listed at $7.5 million, hit the market on August 13, per StreetEasy, but was pulled on September 11. A one-bedroom unit on the first floor, billed as "an ideal guest/service quarters or magnificent home office and library," was also available for purchase, but that was yanked off the databases, too.

8. Turbulence Seen For Reverse Mortgages [Inman]
The reverse mortgage, which has proven very popular with the retirement-age crowd, has come under assault from two diverse groups: the government and scam artists.

9. The Power of Good Schools: For Many Buyers, Education Rules -- And It Shows In Area Home Prices [Washington Post]
Under the Fair Housing Act, real estate agents aren't allowed to recommend schools or steer families into certain neighborhoods. Instead, they recommend that parents comb through the reams of data (from SAT scores to absenteeism rates) available on local school district Web sites and check out independent sources, such as GreatSchools.net.

10. 2008 Mortgage Data Illustrates 31% Drop In Originations [HousingWire.com]
Mortgage lending data from 8,388 US financial institutions covered by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) showed a decline in both lenders and originations in 2008 from levels seen in 2007. The data, released this week by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), illustrate a 3% decrease in the number of reporting institutions and loans, primarily reflecting a large decline in the number of independent mortgage companies.