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Economy

Blogs

Back To Reality, Foreclosure Moratorium Ends

by Richard Warren | April 20, 2009

I had been hearing a lot of talk lately about how home foreclosures were down. Real estate agents were pointing to this and saying that the market was going to turn around soon. Even the talking heads on the late night news were reporting that foreclosure filings were down and things were going to get better. Could [...]

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Economy

Heads I Win, Tails you Lose: This Week’s Housing Data and Mortgage Markets

by Steve Heideman | April 13, 2009

Last week mortgage rates were exactly flat confirming my forecast that rates may not rise for the third week in a row. The week started off strong but ended with a whimper for 2 main reasons:

Wells Fargo’s announcement of record $ 3 Billion in earnings
Mike Mayo’s downgrade of the banking sector. Mike has a history [...]

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Economy

A Different Take on this Week’s Mortgage Market Data

by Steve Heideman | April 6, 2009

A little bit of a different take on this week’s mortgage market data. Gotta change it up sometimes ya know?

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Economy

Mortgage Rates May Be at Bottom

by Steve Heideman | March 30, 2009

From an economic standpoint, last week was an interesting one. The stock markets made strong gains last week but the mortgage markets barely moved in the wake of the Treasury’s “toxic asset” plan.
Amongst the other news from last week:

Existing home sales showed unexpected strength
New home sales showed unexpected strength
Data showed home prices [...]

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Economy

Latest Real Estate Market Data Showing a Whisper of a Bottom

by Steve Heideman | March 23, 2009

Existing home sales rose 5.1%  in Feburary to a stronger than expected pace of 4.72 million units.  This is the latest in a series of tiny whispers or as Larry Kudlow calls them “mustard seeds”  that we may indeed be in a bottoming process. The other signs include:

Homebuilders are breaking ground on new homes again
First-time jobless [...]

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Blogs

When Does A Recession Become A Depression?

by Richard Warren | March 16, 2009

 Are we in a really bad recession or a “mild” depression? Does it matter? At what point do we go from being in a somewhat normal recession to a full-blown depression? Where is that line and how do we know when we’ve crossed it? What is a depression anyway? Does anyone really know?
Recessions are pretty [...]

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Commentary

February Foreclosures Up 30% from 2008; Does Obama Own the Crisis Yet?

by Joshua Dorkin | March 12, 2009

Almost 291,000 homes across the US received at least one foreclosure-related notice last month, up 6 percent from January, says RealtyTrac.com, a compiler of foreclosure data.

The big question in the minds of pundits is when the Obama administration is going to officially own the economic and housing crisis. Fifty days into his administration, the [...]

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Economy

Who’ll Save Our Real Estate Market? Would You Believe, The Chinese!!!!

by Charles Feldman | March 10, 2009

Here they come.

Whether it is in New York or L.A. or Boston or a neighborhood near you, the Chinese are on a shopping spree in this country…a shopping spree for real estate.
According to an ABC News report, more and more wealthy Chinese are coming to America in search of real estate investment opportunities..and they are [...]

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Blogs

Bring Back Those Cute “WIN” Buttons!

by Richard Warren | March 9, 2009

The Federal Reserve, Treasury and two Presidents have been throwing everything at the current economic downturn in the hope that something might actually work. Despite interest rates reduced to near 0% levels, $700 Billion thrown at banks, the $168 Billion stimulus (remember those checks?), various rescue schemes to save major corporations, the economy continues to [...]

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Economy

Mortgage Interest Deduction in Jeopardy

by Steve Heideman | March 2, 2009

The  mortgage interest deduction, which has long been an untouchable pillar of the tax code for homeowners, is on the chopping block in President Obama’s 2010 budget proposal. The President wants to reform our healthcare system here in America and is proposing the mortgage interest deduction be capped at 28%. This would affect homeowners making [...]

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Blogs

Another Financial Crisis Looming?

by Richard Warren | March 2, 2009

Could anything be worse than the foreclosure crisis? People who purchased more expensive homes than they could afford or used risky mortgages to obtain them are losing their homes in record numbers. Banks who aggressively pushed loans on poorly qualified borrowers are suffering the consequences. The economy has been dragged down by the crisis. Will [...]

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Economy

Economic Forecasting And Astrology

by Tom Koziol | February 27, 2009

Probably the most succinct to the point explanation of the difference between economic forecasting and astrology was summed up when John Kenneth Galbraith said:
“The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.”
Since, of late, I’ve been propounding one be an expert in one’s local economics if one wants to be successful [...]

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Commentary

Hotel Industry Ravaged by Fear Stoked by Government, Pleads to Congress

by Joshua Dorkin | February 27, 2009

I just found the advertisement above while reading a political news/opinion website, and thought it was important to share. Read the letter and make your own judgment. I know that there is a feeling that Wall Street is the enemy, and that public companies need to pinch pennies, but as the letter says, the [...]

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Commentary

Obama’s Not-State of the Union Speech; Comes As Home Prices Plunge; Consumer Confidence Falls Off Cliff

by Charles Feldman | February 25, 2009

It was a State of the Union speech–even though it wasn’t a State of the Union speech.

It just looked, sounded and felt like a State of the Union speech. That’s probably because it was in all but name only a State of the Union speech, even though the Constitution requires a State of the Union [...]

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Economy

Real Estate Investing Returns May Trump Stock Dividends

by Ted Karsch | February 25, 2009

Many investors have been questioning lately how they can afford to invest in real estate right now, while the economy is on the skids and the stock market is tanking.
My answer is how can you afford NOT to be investing in real estate right now?
The Federal Reserve is flooding the market with greenbacks! The Feds [...]

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