As part of Quixtar Randy Haugen's Top Business News today I'm bringing you news from Reuters about how U.S. mortgage "roadkill" is "fresh and ripe for the picking."

The article cites Countrywide Financial Corp demonstrating this when it announced plans to buy five retail mortgage braches from HomeBanc Corp, which is exiting the business after its stock was delisted last week for trading around 30 cents a share.

"Countrywide, the largest U.S. mortgage lender, said it was not paying a cash premium for the HomeBanc assets. Meanwhile, HomeBanc of Atlanta said it was no longer funding loans or taking mortgage applications."

"Fresh casualties in the mortgage industry continue to pile up amid a rising wave of late payments and foreclosures. Banks around the world are feeling the reverberations as they scramble to reduce exposure to U.S. residential borrowers and tighten lending standards."

To read this article for more info, click on Mortgage mess creates bargains. Or to read about other business-related headlines, click on Randy Haugen's Top Business News.