Friday January 25 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Security Capital Downgraded by Fitch; Second Insurer to Lose AAA Rating - Fitch is certainly cruisin' to get kicked out of the "PigMan Protection" club with this kind of behavior. - (www.ml-implode.com)
Debt Backlog Isn't Shrinking, Bank of America Says - (www.bloomberg.com)
Pelosi and Frank try to keep prices out of reach by increasing Fannie Mae limit to $700,000. Tell them we need lower prices, not more Fannie Mae scams!
Monoline Insurance Bailout: Where's the Justice in That? - (www.ml-implode.com)
New York is Trying to Aid Ambac and MBIA by Arranging a Bail-Out - (www.ml-implode.com)
Impact of Fed panic rate cut may be limited - (msnbc.msn.com)
A year later, foreclosure news 10 times worse (in CA central valley) - (www.modbee.com)
US housebuilder Lennar takes $1.25bn loss - (www.ft.com)
Bank of America Cuts 25% of Its Analysts, People Say - (www.bloomberg.com)
E-Trade posts $1.7B loss - (www.ap.com)

Builder Lennar loss swells to $1.25 billion - (www.miamiherald.com)
Housing Slump Starts to Hit Stronger Cities - (online.wsj.com)
Deal Reached To Force More Debt On Public - (www.breitbart.com)


Other Stories:

Mortgage bond insurers 'need $200bn boost' - Sounds more realistic to us. We're sure the banks exposed have that sort of money just sitting around, right? Oh, sorry, we f... - (www.ml-implode.com)
E-Trade Posts $1.7 Billion Loss for 4Q - ``In an illustration of how the mortgage industry crisis has spread to other types of companies, the New York-based brokerage in... - (www.ml-implode.com)
Bank United Non-Performing Loans Doubled in Fourth Quarter - ``BankUnited was a big option-ARM lender. Notice how more and more of their interest, and income, are coming in the form of non-... - (www.ml-implode.com)
Banks Attempt To Freeze Balance Sheets - (mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)
Noyer Knew of Societe Generale Trades `In Real Time' - (www.ml-implode.com)

How Low Should the Fed Go When Cutting Rates? - (online.wsj.com)
U.S. Existing Home Sales Fell More Than Forecast - (www.bloomberg.com)
Dodd seeks 'ambitious' financial rescue plan - (www.ft.com)
Soros accuses Fed of panic rate cut - (www.ft.com)
How Real Was the Prosperity? - (www.businessweek.com)
Deal for economic rescue package closer - (www.rockymountainnews.com)

California defaults soar in 4Q - (www.businessweek.com)
48% Off In Winsconsin - (www.patrick.net)
Fed Risks Fueling More Bubbles - (www.bloomberg.com)
Rate cuts alone unlikely to provide fix - (www.nytimes.com)
Faith In The Fed: The Last Bubble To Pop - (Mish)
Robert Reich: The Politics of an Economic Nightmare - (robertreich.blogspot.com)
Where is the government? - (optionarmageddon.blogspot.com)
Bought a house in Vegas - (wcvarones.blogspot.com)
Downey Financial's Non-performing Loans Skyrocketing - (www.creditbubblestocks.com)
Indicators Show this Recession to be Led by Housing - (www.mybudget360.com)
Echoes of tech crash in U.S. housing slump - (www.nationalpost.com)
A Serious Pessimist - (www.newstarget.com)
Patent sought for extra fee attached to transactions - (Humor?) - (www.dailybusinessreview.com)

Housing prices to free fall in 2008 - (money.cnn.com)
U.S. nationwide house prices may fall 30% - (www.marketwatch.com)
Worries That the Good Times Were Mostly a Mirage - (www.nytimes.com)
Bill would let judges alter mortgage terms - (www.lvrj.com)
New York Regulator Pushes for Banks to Rescue Bond Insurers - (www.bloomberg.com)
Next on the Worry List: Shaky Insurers of Bonds - (www.nytimes.com)
Be wary of rebound - (www.nypost.com)
Where Have Buybacks Gone? - (online.wsj.com)
Housing Slump Starts to Hit Stronger Cities - (online.wsj.com)
Money market funds wait to see where the buck will stop - (www.ft.com)


Citi Prunes Its Branch Expansion - (online.wsj.com)
Dark cloud hangs over banks - (www.ft.com)
Ryland Posts Big Loss - (www.thestreet.com)
Ford to offer buyouts to all U.S. hourly workers - (www.signonsandiego.com)
Enron Creditors Seek $18B From Citi - (www.nypost.com)

SocGen News Turns Asia Lower - (www.thestreet.com)
Societe Generale Reports Record Trading Loss of EU4.9 Billion - (www.bloomberg.com)
SocGen uncovers €5bn fraud - (www.ft.com)
Fed cuts pose new policy dilemmas for Asia - (www.iht.com)
ECB's Weber Says Interest Rates `Accommodative' - (www.bloomberg.com)
Fed's Panicked Rate Cut Puts Spotlight on BOJ: William Pesek - (www.bloomberg.com)
Forbes Says U.S. Dollar Policy Amounts to `Zimbabwe Economics' - (www.bloomberg.com)