Down in the Drynachan Valley, the current Thane of Cawdor and his intrepid wife have refurbished their neglected family estate so it is once again fit for kings—and visiting shooting parties.

A reader wants to know how to evict a serpent that’s taken up residence in the basement.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.01% in the latest week, down from 4.09% the previous week.

Hoboken officials are hoping to salvage the sale of one of New Jersey’s oldest hospitals to avoid shuttering the 350-bed facility and being left holding $52 million in debt.

The index of pending home sales, which reflects contracts signed but deals not yet closed, fell to 88.6 from 89.7 in July.

The Central Bank said today that the pace of contraction of loans to Irish business and to households slightly increased in August.

The Decemberists’ lead singer and his illustrator wife draw inspiration from their wooded environs.

Eurozone annual inflation is
expected to be 3.0% in September 2011 according to a flash estimate issued by
Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. It was 2.5% in August.  In another report, Eurostat said unemployment in the single currency area, was stable at 10% in August.

Markets news on stocks, currencies and commodities; German retail sales fell the most in more than 4 years in August; New Zealand hit by double ratings downgrades.

Markets news on stocks, currencies and commodities; German retail sales fell the most in more than 4 years in August; New Zealand hit by double ratings downgrades.