With interest rates in America near a two-decade high, some people are turning to old tricks in their efforts to buy a house. Our article explains how potential homeowners are using creative financing techniques to obtain mortgages as low as 2%. But these tactics have snags.

Singapore and Penang were once twin cities. These days the differences are stark. Singapore gleams with steel and glass skyscrapers, while the narrow streets of Penang are lined with colonial-era shophouses. But looks can be deceiving. Read this Banyan column to learn how Penang carved out a lucrative niche in the high-tech world of semiconductors.