Thursday June 5 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Ed McMahon Faces Foreclosure - (globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) – Now it has gone too far!!! Ed McMahon, the longtime sidekick to television star Johnny Carson, faces the possible loss of his Beverly Hills home to a foreclosure action initiated by a unit of Countrywide Financial Corp. Why should an 85 year old former TV star of Johnny Carson show need to work at 85? Something went very wrong here. McMahon should have been set for life. Perhaps there are some medical or personal problems I am not aware of but this should be enough to give everyone pause to think. Where will you be at 85?
Calif. congresswoman defaulted on houses six times - (realestate.aol.com) - Rep. Laura Richardson, whose Sacramento home was recently sold into foreclosure, has two other homes in Southern California that have fallen into default six times, according to a published report. During much of that time, Richardson used $177,500 to finance her campaigns for Congress and the California Assembly, the newspaper said. The worst part is this complete TWIT is trying to use her experiences to help other homeowners by legislating changes. Let’s face it LAURA, you are a complete irresponsible TWIT and should not be creating legislation to address foreclosures as all your problems are caused by your own STUPIDITY. I have several large lines of credit. If I borrow against those and default, I should not create legislation against those who provided the lines of credit to me.
Richardson attempted to link her situation to the plight of others facing foreclosure, and said the experience would help make her a better advocate on foreclosure issues.
"I think this is what many Americans are unfortunately facing right now," she said. "I am concerned that I can take what I have learned from this to help somebody else. - Many people are one step away from issues that are life-changing moments. When a person moves across the country, that is a life-changing moment."
Foreclosures lead Merced's downturn - (mobile.latimes.com) - Homes are left partially constructed last month in Merced, Calif., after developers halted projects amid low demand. Some areas look like ghost towns, and in others, houses abandoned by owners in foreclosure become eyesores. It wasn't long ago that Andy Krotik was selling houses to out-of-town investors who would sometimes buy two at a time. Now, Krotik spends his days warily entering abandoned houses, checking for angry holdouts or startled squatters. He wants to make sure the properties are empty and secure so he can sell them for the banks that have repossessed them. "We're experiencing a tsunami of bank-owned properties," said Krotik, who has been selling real estate in this Central Valley town since 1989.
House flipping now can draw fines - (www.spokesmanreview.com) - The Washington state law requires flippers planning to make $500 or more in home improvements to either be a registered contractor, which requires thousands of dollars in collateral, or to own a property for more than a year before selling. It places the same requirement on people who build new houses speculatively, or without a specific buyer in mind.
Mortgage Applications Hit 6-Year Low as Rates Surge: MBA - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Applications for mortgages stumbled to their lowest level in six years last week as rates on fixed-rate mortgages surged, accor...
Lehman loses $600m on hedging position - (www.ft.com)
Banks fear new $5,000bn balance burden - (www.ft.com)
Lehman Is Seeking Overseas Capital - (online.wsj.com)
S&P rating cuts could cost banks billions - (www.ft.com)
Airlines' situation is called 'desperate' - (www.chicagotribune.com)


Other Stories:

Buying debt at deep discount - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Investors are making an end-run around owners, buying mortgages on well-located commercial and residential properties, foreclos...
Massachusetts AG Sues Option One, H&R Block - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Option One may be gone from H&R Block’s books, but the ghost of the subprime lender continues to haunt the tax preparers presen...
More Grim Words on the State of the UK Housing Market - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Jeepers. What a way to start a week. Any remaining doubt that the housing market is in freefall was blown away by figures showi...
Ratings Agencies Near Deal with NY AG - (www.ml-implode.com)
Massachusetts sues H&R Block over mortgages to minorities - (www.ml-implode.com)
Bernanke Blames Saving Glut For Housing Bubble - (www.ml-implode.com)
Goodbye Hummer - (globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) - Can someone tell me why GM even exists? The scale of their folly is so colossal it defies comprehension. I guess this is what you get when public bailouts are expected.

State Cutbacks Will Deepen Recession - (globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)
CA Housing Stats: 4.25 Years Supply? - (mrmortgage.ml-implode.com)
Could 50% of All Houses End Up in Foreclosure? - (Charles Hugh Smith)
Credit card debt became more-toxic mortgage debt - (www.salon.com)
Las Vegas called 'mortgage fraud ground zero' - (www.usatoday.com)
Bernanke Blames Saving Glut For Housing Bubble - (Mish)
British Bank Must Buy $4.1 Billion GMAC Crap Loans - (www.bloomberg.com)
Soros Says Record Oil Prices Result of Bubble - (www.bloomberg.com)
The Oil-Price Bubble - (www.mises.org)
Did Wall Street Wreck The Economy? - (www.consumeraffairs.com)
Foreclosure Mess Heading into Suburbs - (www.housingwire.com)
Slowdown not sparing many Vegas locales - (www.lasvegassun.com)
LI houseowners find house equity lines cut by lenders - (www.newsday.com)
Foreclosures taking Hamptons by surprise - (www.newsday.com)
A megabubble will pop in 2011 - (www.marketwatch.com)

Crude Oil Falls to Three-Week Low as Prices Reduce Fuel Demand - (www.bloomberg.com)
U.S. First-Quarter Productivity Rose More Than First Estimated - (www.bloomberg.com)
Bernanke Puts the Dollar on Fed's Radar - (www.bloomberg.com)
Rising Prices, Falling Dollar Stoke Memories of the '70s - (www.washingtonpost.com)
Mortgage application volume slips as rates rise - (www.ap.com)
State bankruptcy filings jump 27.2 percent in first quarter - (www.chicagotribune.com)

Rating agencies agree to change charges - (www.ft.com)
Overused Hybrid Securities Threatened - (online.wsj.com)
Admit to your losses, FSF chief tells banks - (www.ft.com)
LI homeowners find home equity lines cut by lenders - (www.newsday.com)

GM, Ford Sales Plunge As Truck Demand Wanes - (online.wsj.com)
Homebuilders offer bleak outlook and post losses - (www.chicagotribune.com)
S.D. voters OK plan for first new U.S. refinery in 30 years - (www.chron.com)
Lehman Puts, Default Swaps Show Investors Bet on Further Drop - (www.bloomberg.com)
Bennigan's Owner In Crucial Credit Talks - (online.wsj.com)
Lehman Battles an Insurgent Investor - (www.nytimes.com)
Fliers in for pain as airlines pack it in - (www.usatoday.com)

Nordic banks warn of credit crisis threat - (www.ft.com)
Europe Retail Sales Drop by Record on Gas, Food Costs - (www.bloomberg.com)
Sub-prime fallout extends to banks in eastern Germany - (www.latimes.com)
U.K. Services Unexpectedly Contract, Consumer Confidence Drops - (www.bloomberg.com)
Malaysia raises fuel prices 40% - (www.iht.com)