The wheels are in motion for homebuyers to obtain a little larger mortgage at a little lower interest rate next year.

That is, it is now possible for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to boost the limit on loans they can purchase or securitize. The exact amount is anybody's guess right now, as is when it would happen, exactly. But one calculation puts the new ceiling at $422,000 for 2017 -- a bump of $5,000.

Over the last eight years or so, the two government-sponsored enterprises' regulator and conservator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has put the kibosh on hikes in the so-called conforming loan limit because of complaints that doing so would crowd out private investors in home loans. But right now, there is little to no private investment in the mortgage market. And with many would-be borrowers facing big-time affordability issues, it is believed that the FHFA may change its mind.

Under the FHFA's rule, Fannie and Freddie cannot raise their loan limit -- now $417,000 in most places, but higher in about 30 high-cost markets -- until indices show that housing prices have reached the level they were at prior to the Great Recession.

In the second quarter, all three of the agency's housing price measures hit the high-water mark set in the third quarter of 2007. The loan limit hasn't seen an increase since 2006.

This is important because the loans touched by Fannie and Freddie are often one-eighth to one-quarter percent less expensive than other loans. And with the Fed poised to kick interest rates a tad higher, an increase in the Fannie-Freddie limit looms even more significant.

Fannie and Freddie don't originate mortgages. Rather, they buy them from lenders on the secondary market and wrap them into securities for sale to investors worldwide.

Because of their implicit government guarantee that they will be paid whether borrowers make their payments or not -- and almost all do -- investors in Fannie's and Freddie's bonds are willing to take a slightly smaller yield. In other words, knowing your investment is safe is worth a few less shekels.

If the ceiling is raised, it will mean homebuyers will be able to borrow more money at a lower rate. Again, how much more, and at what rate, remains to be seen -- if there is indeed a change at all.

Typically, the move, if there is one, is announced over the Thanksgiving weekend. Stay tuned.

If you think housing prices here are too high, wait until you get a load of what's going on in other countries.

In China, house prices were up nearly 21 percent in the second quarter, according to the Global Property Report. Prices in New Zealand rose by only half that much, but that's still an incredible 10 percent.

Other high-flyers include Romania, Germany and Turkey, all three around the 10-percent mark.

But all is not so well everywhere. Values fell 12.5 percent in Russia and 11 percent in Egypt, Hong Kong, Mongolia and Montenegro.

It's a rocky world out there. Prices rose in 30 out of the 46 housing markets that have published statistics so far, the report said. But only 27 are showing market momentum in which prices are rising faster than they were at the same time a year ago.

Worthy of note: Europe's house-price boom continues unabated. Six of the 10 strongest housing markets in the global survey were in Europe. Prices rose in 17 of the 22 European housing markets for which figures were available.

To help mortgage lenders more accurately identify and potentially reward responsible credit behavior, credit reports now include so-called "trended data," which is up to the last two years of your debt repayment and credit balance histories.

Traditionally, mortgage lenders had access to a would-be borrower's outstanding credit balances, how he or she used credit and the overall availability of that credit. In other words, how much credit did your creditors extend to you, what percentage did you use, and did you make on-time payments?

While certainly helpful in assessing your ability to make mortgage payments, that information did not provide details on whether payments serviced all or part of your debt, and it did not show the pattern in which you used your credit.

Now, updated credit reports will provide a more comprehensive view of a borrower's debt-management practices, such as whether you paid off your credit card debt every month or whether you made just the minimum payment and incurred interest penalties.

Research by Fannie Mae found that, all else being equal, those who paid in full every month were 60 percent less likely to become delinquent on a mortgage than those who made only the minimum monthly payment.

When Vince Barnaba discovered water had flooded his vacation apartment in Ocean City, Maryland, this spring, he did what any homeowner would have done: He had his plumber shut off the water to his unit. Then he called his insurance company to file a claim.

But the insurer said he should file a claim with the company that insured the building, which has a central water supply. So he did. And when the second insurer refused to cover the damages because the refrigerator water line had been leaking for more than 14 days -- even though he hadn't visited the place in the previous six months -- Barnaba was befuddled. Neither company wanted to cover his damages, which were substantial.

The 80-year-old Barnaba was thinking about hiring a lawyer to help him with his predicament when someone suggested he hire a public adjuster: an insurance professional who works on behalf of the insured rather than the insurance company.

Fast-forward a few months, and after some dickering back and forth between his adjuster and the two insurers, Barnaba is now in receipt of checks totaling nearly $54,000.

Moreover, his adjuster has put the insurers on notice that he expects them to compensate his client because he was unable to use his apartment this summer -- they had dragged their feet so long that the repairs didn't start until mid-August.

"I'm overjoyed; we were getting nothing," says Barnaba. "If I didn't have this guy, I wouldn't have been able to get anything. I was lost; I didn't have the energy to fight them."

The public adjuster's cut: 10 percent. And even that surprised Barnaba. "It has been worth every dollar," he says. "I thought I was going to have to pay 30 percent, and I would have been happy to pay that."

Like Barnaba, most people don't know public adjusters even exist. But they do, and despite being bad-mouthed by the insurance companies, they do good work.

"They don't like us," says Bob Rodriguez of the Reliable Adjustment Co. in Cinnaminson, New Jersey. "Doesn't that tell you something?"

Part lawyer and part accountant, public adjusters protect you from being taken advantage of, whether by mistake or intentionally.

In Barnaba's case, for example, the 14-day clause cited by his insurer reads that the insured is required to mitigate damages within two weeks after discovering a problem, not, as the insurance company's adjuster said, that the insured has two weeks once the leak starts. That's a big difference, especially in a vacation home that gets limited use.

Rodriguez says he almost always extracts "a better settlement" than what's initially offered by an insurer.

Like realty agents who work solely for buyers -- so-called buyer brokers -- public adjusters assist homeowners in settling property insurance claims. They work only for the insured, never for the insurance company, to make sure you receive all the benefits provided for in your policy.

The insurance company's adjuster is supposed to be fair, and they usually are. But they work for the company, and their job is to pay out as little as possible under the terms of your policy.

Public adjusters come in handy in the immediate aftermath of a loss, no matter how devastating and stressful. They are able to present your claim and back it up in order to obtain the most favorable outcome.

Not only are they familiar with the insurance business and its customs and practices, these experts understand a policy's language -- verbiage that seems like gibberish to the layman. Many public adjusters are also trained to identify covered damage and estimate appropriate repair or replacement costs.

Like any professional, there are good public adjusters and not-so-good ones, so you should do your homework before hiring one. In particular, beware of contractors who hold themselves out as public adjusters.

Find out how long he or she has been in business. Obtain references and check them out. You'll definitely want to talk to previous clients to find out how they fared. Make sure the adjuster is licensed in your state by calling the state insurance office. All but seven states currently require licenses. Also, find out if your state limits what public adjusters can charge. Texas, for example, limits their fees to 10 percent of the settlement claim.

You can find an adjuster at the National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters' website, napia.com, under the "Find an Adjuster" tab.

Everything is negotiable in real estate -- even when it comes to renting a place to live.

Most people don't realize that landlords are sometimes willing to bargain. That's particularly true of Mom and Pop property owners who have only one or two houses to rent. But even property managers at huge apartment complexes and skyscraper high-rises can be talked into cutting the rent a bit.

No one keeps statistics on how many renters actually go back and forth with their landlords about how much they'll have to pay every month. Nor does anyone know how much people usually save. But the folks at apartmentlist.com, a national apartment search engine, say that negotiating a savings of $200 a month -- that's $2,400 a year! -- isn't unheard of.

It's not always about money, though, at least not directly. And especially at a large complex where rents are set it stone.

Perhaps you can bargain for a free parking space, or place for your boat or RV. Or maybe the landlord might be willing to throw in free storage. How about asking the landlord to paint your unit, upgrade your appliances or pay for a gym membership, if your building is without such facilities? Remember, everything is negotiable, even the length of your lease.

If you think negotiating your rent is underhanded or even sordid, think again. "Negotiation on rent, or anything else in life, doesn't have to be sleazy if you handle it like a decent human being," says ApartmentList. "It's simply a conversation to work out a newly improved situation for both rent and landlord, and there's nothing to feel bad about."

Timing, of course, is everything. And the best time to ask your landlord to trim the rent is when you're about to extend your lease for another year. When you know you want to stay, your landlord might be willing to cut you a deal if he doesn't have to repaint the place, clean it up and look for another tenant.

It's expensive to find new tenants; the possibility of lost revenue, should the landlord not find someone to replace you right away, can be a powerful bargaining point on your side of the table.

Most leases require that tenants give their landlords at least 30 days written notice when they plan to leave. But if your lease has no such clause, a good time to try to strike a deal is just before the end of the month. This places added pressure on landlords, because the chances of finding another tenant quickly enough to not miss a month's rent are slim.

The dead of winter is also a good time to bargain. "This is the most difficult season for landlords to find renters, and you'll hold more bargaining power," says Andrew Woo, director of data science at the apartment site.

Woo suggests that before you sit down with your landlord, do some research. Find out what similar properties in the vicinity are renting for and what amenities they offer.

Another ploy: If you have the cash, offer to pay an entire year's rent in advance in exchange for a lower rent. Or maybe your landlord will be willing to cut you a deal if you pay just a few months' rent ahead of time.

Another possible bartering point is to offer to help out around the property. Maybe you can work in the office one day a week, or, if you have a particular trade, help the maintenance man. The idea here is to use whatever you have to trade for a better deal.

You also might be able to save a few bucks by offering to move to a less desirable unit, say one next to the trash dumpster, the noisy elevator or lobby, or even a smaller room or apartment that's difficult to lease. Every property has at least one unit that is a red herring.

Also, consider working with the landlord so that your new lease ends in the summer -- maybe signing a six-month or even an 18-month contract. Summer, ApartmentList points out, is when school's out, the weather's better and schedules are more flexible -- giving your landlord an easier time filling your unit after you do vacate.

When you have a good idea of what you want and may be willing to give up to get it, ask your landlord for a face-to-face meeting. Don't try to do this by email. Have your resources with you, including prices from other places, and your rental record that shows you always pay on time, if not early.

Finally, present your argument in a way that shows how it benefits your landlord as well as you.

"If you can pinpoint exactly how a new situation will be beneficial to both of you," says Woo, "it lessens any possible tension and is more likely to be successful."