By: PAUL JACKSON
July 23, 2008

in part:

"The strain of increased debt and falling home prices is pushing the U.S. economy to a breaking point, setting up consumers and investors for a nasty fall later this year, according to new research published Wednesday by Moody’s Economy.com."

“Household credit quality is rapidly eroding, and overleveraged households are at the heart of the economy’s problems,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Economy.com. “The mounting losses on household debt are straining financial institutions and will keep the economy struggling to grow for the remainder of this year and well into 2009.”

"While some are projecting a quick turnaround out of the current doldrums, Moody’s is clearly not nearly as sanguine on the prospects for either housing or the economy. The company said it expects household credit conditions to continue weakening through much of the remainder of the decade, with another 5 million homeowners at significant risk of default during this period — a total that includes about one-half of the current 10.5 million borrowers with subprime, Alt-A or jumbo option ARM mortgages that are in significant negative equity positions.

In other words: strap yourself in. It could be a very long ride.

http://www.housingwire.com/2008/07/23/moodys-warns-on-weakening-credit-quality/