Monday June 9 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Banks can't find their borrowers - (www.dailybusinessreview.com) - As home foreclosure cases piled up in his court, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge David C. Miller began to notice more affidavits from mortgage lenders stating they couldn’t locate the borrowers. “The ones that caught my attention very early on were the ones that said they didn’t have driver’s license information or they didn’t have employment information for the borrower,” the judge said in an interview. “Did someone just walk in off the street and say, ‘Gimme money?’ ” the judge asked sarcastically. “I don’t think that’s possible.”

Fed to pick your pocket again, this time for Lehman - (www.rfdoc.com) - If you missed how your pockets were picked in April, get ready for round two. Lehman is next. Lehman was reportedly exploring options with the Fed. Read the saga of the BS bailout and give me one good reason we should bail out another brokerage firm.

Hard lessons on getting house loans with no money down - (www.latimes.com) Prado tells her story without a trace of self-pity and only a bit of blame for the mortgage broker who she says gave her a hard sell. She acknowledged that she stated her monthly income as $7,500 on the loan application -- nearly double what she was actually earning in her job as a clerk at a food processing company and a second part-time job. Still, she was confident the payments would not be a problem. At the time, her husband (who declined to be interviewed for this story) was earning $20 an hour as a carpenter as builders turned the area's broccoli fields into housing developments.

Overdue loans to Florida banks quadruple - (www.tampabay.com) - The housing downturn continues to crush Florida bankers: Overdue loans, mostly real estate related, have nearly quadrupled the past year in the Sunshine State.

If that were not enough, the state's lenders have unusually low cash reserves to protect against mortgage defaults. And 41 percent of Florida-chartered banks were unprofitable the first three months of this year. That's twice the number of banks that bled red ink last year.

Did Rep. Richardson fraudulently overstate her income? - (www.blownmortgage.com) - A big question to ask out of this Richardson specuvestor mess is how far did the Congresswoman push the envelope to qualify for this second, foreclosed home in Sacramento? Did she falsify her income on a loan statement to qualify for the 100% loan that financed the now-defaulted home? Specuvestor Casey Serin is under investigation by the FBI for loan fraud tied to falsifying his income on loan documents after his much-publicized real estate speculating ‘career’ fell apart in the early days of the housing slowdown. Did the Representative do the same to acquire the Sacramento home?

Mortgage non-disclosure is trouble for Richardson - (www.thehill.com)

Rep. Laura Richardson (D-Calif.) could face fines for leaving a heavily indebted mortgage off her financial disclosure statement, according to campaign finance experts. A review of Richardson’s 2007 financial disclosure shows that she failed to report her Sacramento home mortgage as a liability even though she owed $40,000 more than she paid for the home, which was purchased in January of that year. By the end of 2007, Richardson had accumulated $575,000 in total debt after failing to make payments on her original $535,000 mortgage, according to Sacramento County records. Her office did not return repeated calls seeking comment for this story. It also has not responded to questions about how Richardson was able to loan her congressional campaign $77,500 while continuing to default on several properties.

Still waiting - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Physical signs of Kara Homes Inc. are fading as other builders construct homes in its former developments. But many prospective buyers who lost tens of thousands of dollars have yet to see any money from the bankruptcy case."

Other Stories:

Analysts Stink...Listen to Bloggers - (www.ml-implode.com) - I read several bloggers each day along with the mainstream media. Many bloggers have nailed specific stocks for well over a year...

Real-Estate Woes of Banks Mount - (www.ml-implode.com) - Lenders Dumping Bad Loans at Discount; Regulators See Losses Continuing Federal regulators warned Thursday that banking-industr...

Pressure Points in the Bank Bust – (www.ml-implode.com) - ``The Texas Ratio is calculated by dividing non-performing loans at a bank, including those 90 days delinquent, by their tangibl...

FDIC sees bigger bank failures - (news.yahoo.com)

Mortgage Distress Shifts to Prime Borrowers - (www.housingwire.com)

Northern CA From Subprime to Negative Equity Epicenter - (mrmortgage.ml-implode.com)

The Great Risk Dispersion that Wasn't - (optionarmageddon.ml-implode.com)

Wall St layoffs bite New York real estate - (www.reuters.com)

Fed Governors Openly Question Bernanke's Competence - (Mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)

Job Losses and Surge in Oil Spread Gloom on Economy - (www.nytimes.com)

Housing downturn is a boon for some renters - (msnbc.msn.com)

Foreclosure glut helps Habitat for Humanity in Michigan - (www.mlive.com)

Foreclosures hit a record high -- more coming - (biz.yahoo.com)

House foreclosures set record in first quarter - (money.aol.com)

Recession Fears Reignited - (online.wsj.com)

Household Real Estate Assets Declined $431 Billion in Q1 - (calculatedrisk.blogspot.com)

Household net worth drops by $1.7 trillion - (money.cnn.com)

Equity in Americans houses falls to historic low - (msnbc.msn.com)

Regulators give bleak forecast for banks - (money.cnn.com)

Crude Leaps Nearly $11, In Fresh Hit to Economy - (online.wsj.com)

Oil Prices Raise Cost of Making a Range of Goods - (www.nytimes.com)

Americans' net worth took a dive in the first quarter - (www.latimes.com)

Two Fed Bank Presidents Warn About Lending to Securities Firms - (www.nytimes.com)

Equity in Americans’ homes falls to historic low - (www.ap.com)

U.S. Payrolls Fall, Unemployment Rate Climbs to 5.5% - (www.bloomberg.com)

Equity in Americans’ homes falls to historic low - (www.msnbc.msn.com)

U.S. Slowdown Frustrates Teens Seeking Summer Jobs - (www.bloomberg.com)

More dip early into funds for retirement - (www.boston.com)

Despite Interest Rate Cuts, Foreclosures Hit Record High - (www.washingtonpost.com)

(www.economist.com) sees 95 percent chance of US recession - (www.businessweek.com)

Oil Rises to Record on Weakening Dollar, Morgan Stanley Outlook - (www.bloomberg.com)

Stocks Signal That Crisis Isn't Over - (online.wsj.com)

Oil Rises to Record on Weakening Dollar, Morgan Stanley Outlook - (www.bloomberg.com)

Moody's, S & P and Fitch agree to deal on fees - (www.latimes.com)

Lenders and mortgage insurers pull back - (www.bankrate.com)

More dip early into funds for retirement - (www.boston.com)

Banks Say Auction-Rate Investors Can't Have Their Money Back - (www.bloomberg.com)

Wealthy Americans Under Scrutiny in UBS Case - (www.nytimes.com)

Chilly May for Puget Sound-area real estate; prices keep sliding - (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

Countrywide Friends Got Good Loans - (online.wsj.com)

Countrywide’s Buyer Isn’t Blinking - (www.nytimes.com)

National City Is Under U.S. Scrutiny - (online.wsj.com)

A.I.G. Falls Under S.E.C. Scrutiny - (www.nytimes.com)

Lehman May Raise $5 Billion of Capital, Person Says - (www.bloomberg.com)

MBIA, Ambac Lose Top Bond Ratings - (online.wsj.com)

Real-Estate Woes of Banks Mount - (online.wsj.com)

Continental will eliminate jobs, reduce capacity - (www.latimes.com)

Ford to cut white-collar salary costs by 15% - (www.chicagotribune.com)

Airlines Rush to Go Small - (www.nytimes.com)

Owner of Philly's 2 dailies misses debt payment - (www.ap.com)

Medvedev Raises Specter of Depression, Faults U.S. - (www.bloomberg.com)

Australian House Prices Fall Most in Five Years on Higher Rates - (www.bloomberg.com)

Russia Takes Critical Tone on Economy - (www.nytimes.com)

Medvedev puts blame on US for financial crisis - (www.ft.com)

Bundesbank raises inflation forecast sharply - (www.ft.com)

Asia powers, US voice 'serious concern' on oil spike - (news.yahoo.com/s/afp)

China Lifts Banks' Reserve Requirements Up to 17.5% - (www.bloomberg.com)

Trichet Leads Shift From Growth to Beating Inflation - (www.bloomberg.com)

India's Inflation Jumps to 8.24%; Fastest Since 2004 - (www.bloomberg.com)

Asian banks faced with inflation dilemma - (www.ft.com)

Big trouble for Philippine economy as prices surge - analysts - (www.cnbc.com)

Japan estimates subprime losses at $8 billion - (www.chicagotribune.com)

Pay It Back if You Didn’t Earn It - (www.nytimes.com)

Oil price crisis: world powers trade blame, skirt responsibility - (news.yahoo.com/s/afp)

Trail of Bad Loans Leads to the Couple Next Door - (www.nytimes.com)

Famous in foreclosure, too - (www.sfgate.com)

Dollar dilemmas - (www.economist.com)

Tuesday May 6 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

India considers ban on trading in food futures - (www.ft.com)
India is considering a blanket ban on trading in food futures, underlying growing concerns in Asia over the role of hedge funds and financial market traders in the surge in commodities prices - 12:10
BofA to Walk Away from Countrywide? - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Bank of America Corp is likely to renegotiate its deal to buy Countrywide Financial Corp down to the $0 to $2 level or completely walk away from it, said Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, [analyst Paul Miller] ..."
Oil moves above $120 mark - (www.ft.com)
Fed action brings cash for student loan market - (www.signonsandiego.com) – Fed now bailing out student loan industry prompted by Christopher “Free Money for Everyone” Dodd. In the move, the Fed is allowing investment firms and banks to use bonds backed by federally guaranteed student loans as collateral for the loans of safe Treasury securities that the central bank is making available.
“The Fed's decision...will help inject much-needed liquidity into the student loan market,” Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement.
Three Wall Street Giants Planning More Layoffs - (www.cnbc.com) -Wall Street is being hit by another wave layoffs, with Morgan Stanley, Lehman Brothers and JPMorgan Chase all set to axe staff in the near future. Morgan Stanley is planning another round of layoffs in the coming days, finalizing a plan to slash another 5 percent from its securities-firm workforce, or 1,500 employees, CNBC has learned. And Lehman will announce another round of cuts in addition to those already begun as early as next week.
'Dated' Vegas mansions flooding market - (www.sltrib.com)
No Buyers, No Bidders - (blog.washingtonpost.com)
Orange County: It's not like what you see on TV - (www.ml-implode.com) - ``"Orange County is in recession," says Adibi. "It began with the mortgage industry, spilled over into construction, and now it'...
Second local high-end builder is bankrupt - (www.ml-implode.com) - "A local builder of multimillion-dollar mansions has filed for bankruptcy, the second casualty in the high-end homebuilder indus...
Countrywide Shares Worthless? - (www.ml-implode.com) - "At least two analysts said Bank of America Corp (BAC) will likely lower its purchase price for Countrywide Financial Corp (CFC)...
Fed Says `Historical Highs' of Banks Tighten Lending Standards - (www.bloomberg.com)
What Uncle Sam Gives in Rebates, OPEC Takes, Stalling Economy - (www.bloomberg.com)
AZ schools making deep cuts - (www.azcentral.com)
Las Vegas used to be a recession-proof oasis. Not anymore - (www.newsweek.com)
It's Newer Houses That Stand Empty - (www.nytimes.com)
Fed "Rogue Operation" Spurs Further Bailout Calls - (www.bloomberg.com)
Asia Getting Fed Up With Bernanke's Rate Cuts - (www.bloomberg.com)


Other Stories:

It will take till 2011 for housing to stop falling - (www.modbee.com)
Builders' pricing at 2002 levels - (lansner.freedomblogging.com)
How Low Will Real Estate Go? - (promo.realestate.yahoo.com)
Pimco star says Fed was too late - (lansner.freedomblogging.com)
Fast and Easy Fannie - (seekingalpha.com)
Ben's bind - (economist.com)
Greenspan Caused the Current Economic Crisis - (www.currencytrading.net)

Cleaning House - (www.tnr.com)
Best Loan Rate? Don't Bank On It - (online.wsj.com)

U.S. Stocks Retreat on Record Oil, M&A Concern; Yahoo Tumbles - (www.bloomberg.com)
Oil Rises to Record After Report Shows Service Industries Grew - (www.bloomberg.com)
Gold Rises in N.Y. as Dollar Falls Against Euro; Silver Gains - (www.bloomberg.com)
Housing crash creates more winners than losers - (www.fool.co.uk)
Hooray! House prices are falling again - (www.independent.co.uk)

U.S. Economy: ISM Services Index Unexpectedly Climbed – (www.bloomberg.com)
Economy May Face Prolonged Pain, History Suggests - (online.wsj.com)
Central bankers doubt they can act on food prices - (www.reuters.com)
Rule Clouds American Capital - (online.wsj.com)
Auto dealers face tough road for second-quarter sales - (www.dallasnews.com)
Much Blood-Letting to Come - (www.moneymorning.com)
Rebuttal To Housing Bottom Call - (Mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)
English house prices sliding 500 pounds a week - (www.guardian.co.uk)
Robert Shiller - (biz.yahoo.com)

Europe Price Surge Persuades Politicians to Back ECB - (www.bloomberg.com)
Trichet Warns of Global Inflation, Says Central Banks Be Vigilant - (www.nytimes.com)
Moody’s Cuts Lehman To ALT-A - (www.ml-implode.com) - "The ALT-A crisis may make the subprime crisis look like a bump in the road when all is said and done. Below is the Moody’s/LEH ...
Tea With Greenspan Plunges 65% - (www.ml-implode.com)
Countrywide Top Mortgage Originator in First Quarter - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Despite all the uncertainty continuing to swirl around the proposed Bank of America/Countrywide merger, the nation’s top lender still turned in the largest origination volume during the first quarter, according to an analysis from MortgageDaily.com."
Bank of America Should Skip Countrywide, Analyst Says - (www.ml-implode.com) - ``Bank of America should completely walk away from the Countrywide deal, as Countrywide's loan portfolio will prove a drag on earnings and could force Bank of America to raise additional capital,'' Miller wrote.
ResCap Says It May Not Be Able to Meet Debt Obligations in June - (www.ml-implode.com) - " ``There is a significant risk that we will not be able to meet our debt service obligations, be unable to meet certain financial covenants in our credit facilities, and be in a negative liquidity position in June 2008,'' ResCap said in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission today. "
Buffett Castigates Wall Street, Bankers on Blunders - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Billionaire Warren Buffett castigated investment bankers, home lenders and regulators for letting the financial system spin out of control and causing a run on Bear Stearns Cos. that almost brought down more of the biggest banks."
CountryFried Whodathunk - (www.ml-implode.com) - "In the whodathunk department Standard and Poor downgraded CountryFried Financial’s (CFC) bond debt because, drum roll please, Bankamerica (BAC) is suggesting that they will have nothing to do with it."
Economic Stimulus Not a Silver Bullet - (www.ml-implode.com)
Countrywide Toxic Mortgage investigations by the FBI, IRS and SEC heating up - (www.ml-implode.com)

Monday May 5 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Is the credit crisis over, as many are saying? Not according to Martin D. Weiss, Ph.D., founder and president of Weiss Research, Inc. and a leading advocate for investor safety, is a nationally recognized expert on domestic and international financial markets
Wall Street pundits would have you believe that the Fed has saved the day, that the worst of the credit crisis is behind us, and that there's nothing more to worry about. My view: They're full of baloney! And for the evidence, look at what's just hit the fan on Friday:

· First, Standard & Poor's downgraded America's largest mortgage lender — Countrywide Financial — to "junk." The reason: Bank of America, which was supposed to be gung-ho about saving Countrywide from bankruptcy, is getting cold feet. In its latest filing with the SEC, Bank of America says it may not want to back up all of Countrywide's debts after all. Instead, it may decide to put $31.8 billion of Countrywide's debts in a separate corporation. And analysts now suspect Bank of America may later take that corporation into bankruptcy, stiffing Countrywide's bondholders. So you can easily see why even S&P, typically slow to act, promptly downgraded Countrywide's bonds to junk! But I ask you: Is this a sign that the credit crisis is behind us?

· Second, the Fed just announced that it's greatly expanding its Term Auction Facility (TAF). This is the new facility the Fed inaugurated last December to funnel money to big banks in exchange for shakier-than-normal collateral. At the time, they made it sound like a temporary, emergency measure, with biweekly auctions of up to $20 billion. Then, earlier this year, they expanded this facility to $50 billion. And on Friday, they've just bumped it up — again — to $75 billion per auction, or nearly FOUR times the original level. So I ask again: If the credit crisis were truly behind us, why would the Fed need to be dishing out so much more money to the banks? It makes no sense.

· Third, the Fed also announced on Friday that it's expanding its Term Securities Lending Facility (TSLF). This is the newer, more radical, program whereby the Fed gives big brokers its high-quality Treasury securities in exchange for inferior quality, toxic paper. Until now, the Fed was accepting only securities based on home and commercial mortgages. And given the sorry state of U.S. real estate, that was bad enough. However, the Fed's new rules, effective immediately, make it possible to take in a lot of other garbage, including securities backed by credit cards and student loans that may be going sour. Is this the type of thing the Fed does when credit conditions are improving? Or is this the sign of a Fed with its back against the wall, still desperately searching for ways to put the crisis behind us?


S&P cuts Countrywide to junk status after BofA filing Markets ... - (www.reuters.com)
Bernanke Answers S.O.S. Call - (Mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) – Another crisis created by US Fed and US politicians. Now Bernanke answers Senator Dodd's request to bailout the Student Loan Program.
No Assets? No Problem. Crap loans continue. - (www.forbes.com) - many Americans can still buy homes with nothing down thanks in large part to the federal government and a legal loophole that lets builders and bankers ensure a steady stream of asset-challenged borrowers for taxpayer-insured loans. With quietly expanded powers, the Federal Housing Administration is already offering the next-best thing to nothing down on a house: a payment of just 3.0% will get practically any American with a pulse and a job a mortgage of up to $729,000, at least until the end of this year.
Baseball star Canseco loses house to foreclosure - (news.yahoo.com) – The latest athlete/celebrity to lose their home or walk-away.
Bush vs Olbermann - (www.ml-implode.com) - Bush, world’s most famous failed oilman and the dumbest guy in the room, tries to spin his way out of the housing crash and high gas prices. Olbermann is there to smack him down.''
What do you do when you're the most tasteless and tactless person in the world? - (www.ml-implode.com) – Mukesh Ambani net worth is estimated at $43 billion by Forbes in March. Reliance Industries was founded by Mukesh's father, Dhirubhai Ambani, in 1966, and is India's most valuable firm by market capitalization. The couple, who have three children, currently live in a 22-story Mumbai tower that the family has spent years remodeling to meet its needs, at a cost of $2B.
Credit crunch expands to cash-out refinancing, investment properties and vacation homes - (www.latimes.com)
Fed Moves to Loosen Tight Credit - (www.nytimes.com)
Government Intensifies Mortgage Investigation - (www.nytimes.com)
Desperate house sellers start swapping - (www.9news.com)
Arab States May Drop Fixed Dollar Exchange Rates - (www.bloomberg.com)
Financial Crisis Protest - New York, April 25, 2008 - (www.ml-implode.com) - Love some of the posters.
U.S. Sees First Sales Tax Revenue Drop in 6 Years - (www.ml-implode.com)


Other Stories:

Condo Flipper Rental Woes - (www.ml-implode.com) - "The Washington Post finds two fresh victims of the RE bust, condo owners whose mean, nasty condo boards won't let them rent out...
Waking Up From The American Dream - (www.ml-implode.com)
Is the Credit Crisis Really Over? Minsky Would Say No - (www.ml-implode.com)
Accelerating Housing Declines - (www.ml-implode.com)
3 Aides Ousted; AG Admits Affair - (www.ml-implode.com)
Slowly I Turned - Foreign Financing of US Faltering - (www.ml-implode.com)

Credit Crunch Sends More Consumers To the Sidelines - (online.wsj.com)
Americans cutting back for Mother's Day - (www.latimes.com)
Downgrades Show Storm Isn't Over - (online.wsj.com)
Say goodbye to the specialized mortgage options - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Buffett Says Bond Insurers Don't Deserve AAA Rating - (www.bloomberg.com)
US art market beginning to feel strain - (www.ft.com)
Weaker confidence in retirement savings a good thing - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Precious-Coin Market May Lose Its Luster - (online.wsj.com)
What difference will +$1,200 make up against -$100,000 - (www.ml-implode.com) - "With home price in parts of the country dropping by $100,000 per year or more, is $1,200 in rebates from the government going t...
Housing Bust Duration - (www.ml-implode.com) - "This is an update to a previous post using the February Case-Shiller Price Indices."


Microsoft Walks Away From Yahoo After Fight on Price - (www.bloomberg.com)
UBS May Cut 8,000 Jobs After SF12 Billion First-Quarter Loss - (www.bloomberg.com)
Corn Ethanol Loses More Support - (online.wsj.com)
Asia fears lost decade, unrest from food price shock - (www.reuters.com)
How to Clear a Road to Redemption - (www.nytimes.com)
US art market beginning to feel strain - (www.ft.com)

The Fed and you: don't bet on cheaper mortgages - (www.schwabinsights.com)
Fed running out of room - (www.nypost.com)
Fed Rate Cuts Won't Stop Housing Plunge - (www.bloomberg.com)
Is The Bottom Really In? No! - (Charles Hugh Smith)
Another Full Year Of Housing Pain? - (online.wsj.com)
FED Up - (www.fedupusa.org)
Discounted Houses, Going, Going - (promo.realestate.yahoo.com)
12 Observations on Residential Housing - (www.seekingalpha.com)
House Rabies - (www.oxfordamericanmag.com)

Monday April 21 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Libor's Rise May Sock Many Borrowers - (online.wsj.com)
Traders Braced For Fresh Libor Reading - (www.fxstreet.com) - The British Bankers' Association said Wednesday it had brought forward a review of the Libor setting process and was investigating whether banks had misquoted Libor in recent months. The investigation comes in response to concerns that some banks may have been giving artificially low Libor quotes over recent months in an effort to mask their funding problems.
LIBOR Rate Apparently Rising In Response To BBA Investigation ... – (www.bumpzee.com)
Florida has a 5-year Condo Glut - (www.ml-implode.com) - ''A great article in Builder highlights Jack McCabe’s research report which calculates that the Florida condo market has a whopp...
Fed Officials May Be Nearing Rate Pause as Inflation Quickens - (www.ml-implode.com) - ''Federal Reserve policy makers, sensing both renewed inflation dangers and a possible economic boost from government rebate che...
Gas prices push closer to $3.50 a gallon, oil hits $117 - (ap.google.cm)
Speculator Nightmare as Losses Mount in England - (www.bloomberg.com)
Foreclosure future grim for Utahns - (www.deseretnews.com)
Auction-Bond Probes Widen as Cuomo Subpoenas 18 Firms - (www.ml-implode.com)
Citigroup Has Second Straight Loss After $12 Billion Writedown - (www.bloomberg.com)
BOE Prepares 50 Billion-Pound Mortgage Plan, BBC Says - (www.bloomberg.com)
Britain Said to Consider Shoring Up Debt Market - (www.nytimes.com)
Another record low for Bay Area home sales - (www.sfgate.com)
Wall St. braces for thousands of pink slips - (www.reuters.com)
1 Man, 1 Year: $3.7 Billion Payout - (www.washingtonpost.com)
San Francisco Area median price tumbles 16.1% - (www.sfgate.com)
San Francisco area prices plunge - (www.insidebayarea.com)
Buiter Says U.K. Banks Need $200 Billion Aid From BOE - (www.ml-implode.com) - ''Former Bank of England policy maker Willem Buiter said the central bank will need to offer loan swaps to financial institution...
Public opinion about the economy erodes rapidly - (www.ml-implode.com)


Other Stories:

The Economist's Cheery View of Credit Default Swaps - (www.ml-implode.com) - It's remarkable how attending an industry love-fest can distort one's perception. The Economist seems to have fallen hook, lin...
Wilmington Finance: "We're still here..." - (www.ml-implode.com) - In a conference call today announcing yet more layoffs, the speaker ended by saying "We are still here, no matter what they say ...
Bush Taps Preston as New Chief at HUD - (www.ml-implode.com)
How do you recognize a credit-card fueled city with a fake economy full of $30k millionaires? - (www.ml-implode.com)
Barratt Cut by UBS as Homebuilding Profit Nears Brink - (www.ml-implode.com)
Are South Florida foreclosure numbers misleading? - (www.ml-implode.com)

Beach communities not immune from crash - (lansner.freedomblogging.com)
Dallas foreclosures rise 40% - (www.dallasnews.com)
Condo Glut In Florida - (www.builderonline.com)
Paying for College Without the Home Equity Option - (www.nytimes.com)
Trapped in the Middle - (online.wsj.com)
Video from Mr. Mortgage: Fannie/Freddie 'Con' Jumbos a Bust - (www.ml-implode.com)
Fed hawks Lacker, Fisher warn on inflation - (www.reuters.com)
Fed's Kohn says banks' caution an economic threat - (www.signonsandiego.com)
Mortgage plan could cost taxpayers $6bn - (www.ft.com)
San Diego median price keeps falling - (www.signonsandiego.com)
California house prices plummet 26 percent - (www.sfgate.com)
Financial CEOs sees 88 pct chance of US recession - (www.forbes.com)
Latest Economic Tea Leaves Point to Recession - (www.nytimes.com)
Fannie and Freddie Are Risk to US Credit Rating - (nalert.blogspot.com)
Be wary of federal housing "help" - (www.wickedlocal.com)
Your House Is Worth Less? Good - (from 2007) - (www.time.com)
Bear Robbed By Insiders, Loss Paid By Taxpayers - (www.badcyclopedia.com)
Workers Get Fewer Hours, Deepening the Downturn - (www.nytimes.com)
Fuel prices fatten up airfares again - (www.usatoday.com)
Clearing the fog - (www.economist.com)
Why Russia should help America - (english.pravda.ru)
House Price Divided By Income, Over 20 Years - (PDF - comstockfunds.com)

U.S. housing bust not so special - (www.financialpost.com)
FBI sees surge in mortgage fraud investigations - (www.sfgate.com)
"Home buyers go wild over zero down" - (from 2004) - (eastbay.bizjournals.com)
Citigroup Records a Loss and Plans 9,000 Layoffs - (www.nytimes.com)
Harley-Davidson cuts shipments, jobs at quarterly profit skids - (www.latimes.com)
Pfizer quarterly profit falls on buyout charges, patent losses - (www.latimes.com)
Fannie Regulator May Settle With Raines, Person Says - (www.bloomberg.com)
At Merrill, Write-Downs and More Layoffs - (www.nytimes.com)
OFHEO Plans Settlement With Raines - (www.washingtonpost.com)
Earnings Reveal Economic Split - (online.wsj.com)

Iceland, a Tiny Dynamo, Loses Steam - (www.nytimes.com)
Booming Brazil could be world power soon - (www.ap.com)
Let Britain’s housing bubble burst - (www.ft.com)
U.K. Budget Deficit Widens to Record on Investment - (www.bloomberg.com)
Russia's Richest: Why a Billion Won't Cut It Now - (www.cnbc.com)


Looking Up, but From a Deep Hole - (www.nytimes.com)
Authorities lose patience with collapsing dollar - (www.telegraph.co.uk)
Behind the Food-Price Riots - (online.wsj.com)

Friday April 18 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Review of Libor brought forward as closely watched rate spikes - (www.marketwatch.com)
"Who to Blame When the Next Bubble Bursts" - from 2003! - (www.commondreams.org) – Good analysis predicting Greenspan’s next bubble in 2003.
Fed Accepts Dodgy Collateral in Race to Bottom - (www.bloomberg.com)
Big Tax Breaks for Businesses in Housing Bill - (www.nytimes.com) – Yes, this story has been a top story for 3 days running, but I think it is important to know how the big business lobbying powers are making a killing here.
Vacant Homes in U.K. Prove Speculator Nightmare as Losses Mount - (www.ml-implode.com) - ``The unraveling buy-to-rent investment market contributed to a 2.5 percent drop in home prices last month, the biggest since 19...
Sinking housing market maroons homeowners - (www.ml-implode.com) - 'As America's housing market has foundered, homeowners who bought into newly rising projects at just the wrong time have found t...
FHA's Risky Business - (www.forbes.com)
The worst spring in San Diego's history! - (www.californiahousingforecast.com)
Court Case Is Lost in Cauldron of Muni Market Woes: Joe Mysak - (www.bloomberg.com)
Feds to Collect DNA from Everyone They Arrest - (news.yahoo.com) – Yes, we now live in a pseudo-police state
Libor's accuracy questioned - Fraud? - (www.theaustralian.news.com.au)
JPMorgan's Dimon Says Real Estate Is Getting Worse - (bloomberg.com)
Appraisers say WaMu cut corners - (businessvoip.tmcnet.com)
Copper Jumps to Record as Strike in Chile May Disrupt Output - (www.bloomberg.com) – Expect more copper theft in abandoned houses and industrial parks.
Walking Away: The Next Mortgage Crisis - (Mish at globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com)
Art dealers brace for a bust - (money.cnn.com)
Merrill Reports Loss on $6.5 Billion of Writedowns - (www.bloomberg.com)
Sallie Mae Sounds the Alarm - (online.wsj.com)
NYT: "US Inflation Appears to Be Retreating" (What are they smoking?) - (www.nytimes.com)
Mobius: Credit Crisis Near End. Time to Buy! - (www.bloomberg.com)


Other Stories:

FBI home mortgage probe now targets 19 firms - (www.ml-implode.com)
Germany is in shock as subprime gets worse - (www.ml-implode.com)
Flashback to 2005: NAR States "Foreclosure Risk Minimal" - (www.erica.biz)
The Pentagon's $1 Trillion Problem (Where's the money?) - (www.portfolio.com)
Oil Futures Jump to Record $115 - (biz.yahoo.com)
As Australia Dries, A Global Shortage of Rice - (www.iht.com)
Sickened Pork Workers Have New Neurological Disorder - (www.reuters.com)
Retailers Get Stingy With Data - (www.nytimes.com)
Housing Starts Slide ot Lowest Level in 17 Years – (www.bloomberg.com)
Jim Willie: Liars, Wall Street and Your Gold - (www.financialsense.com)

CA Foreclosure news nobody reporting - (mrmortgage.typepad.com)
Rate of foreclosures expected to get worse - (www.usatoday.com)
Treasuries Fall as Traders Bet Fed to Cut Rates Just Once More - (www.bloomberg.com)
Rice Rises to Record in Chicago, Leading Wheat, Soybean Gains - (www.bloomberg.com)
Oil steadies after hitting record over $115 - (www.reuters.com)
Most U.S. Stocks Retreat on Earnings; Pfizer Shares Decline - (www.bloomberg.com)
Fed causes inflation above 6% for 6 months running - (patrick.net)
The Fed Undermines Democracy - (robertreich.blogspot.com)
The Madness of Ben Bernanke - (www.spiegel.de)
My Foreclosure - (foreclosuremine.blogspot.com)

Philadelphia Fed Index Declines More Than Forecast - (www.bloomberg.com)
S.F. Federal Reserve chief sees long recovery - (www.latimes.com)
Big questions on collateral for Fed loans - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Fed favors loans over dividends - (www.boston.com)
Reports Offer Grim Picture of Economy - (www.washingtonpost.com)
U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Rise 17,000 to 372,000 - (www.bloomberg.com)
US mortgage clock ticking, Dodd warns - (www.ft.com)
Net widening in FBI probe of mortgage fraud - (www.financialweek.com)
Now is not the best time to buy - (patrick.net)
O'ahu rents dipped 1% last year - (www.honoluluadvertiser.com)
San Diego median price keeps falling - (www.signonsandiego.com)
Pace of O.C. foreclosures triples 90's slump - (mortgage.freedomblogging.com)

Hedge Funds Cut Risk, Wait for Opportunities - (online.wsj.com)
Are Credit Derivatives Next? - (online.wsj.com)
Soros urges regulation for hedge funds - (www.forbes.com)
Top hedge fund managers raked in billions - (www.usatoday.com)

Where are Google's clicks? - (www.nypost.com)
Slower American sales hit prescription market - (www.ft.com)
GM plant partially halts production due to strike - (money.cnn.com)
Retailers angling for your tax rebate - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Two banks to cut $265m in credit for struggling Talbots - (www.boston.com)
Capital Spending SeenFalling in Chip Market - (online.wsj.com)
Low Liquidity Plagues More Firms - (online.wsj.com)
Banking Watchdog Barks at Poor Disclosure - (www.cfo.com)
Harley-Davidson cuts back - (money.cnn.com)
Eli Lilly looks to cut 500 jobs - (money.cnn.com)
Freddie Mac to announce agreement with lenders: report - (www.reuters.com)
SLM Has Loss as Student Loan Business Looks `Broken' - (www.bloomberg.com)
Freddie Mac to Unveil Lenders' Pact - (online.wsj.com)
Harley cuts guidance; to slash output - (www.reuters.com)

China Cuts Fertilizer Sales; Philippine Tender Flops - (www.bloomberg.com)
Weber Says ECB to Assess Whether Rates High Enough - (www.bloomberg.com)
BOE Received Most Bids in Three Months at Auction - (www.bloomberg.com)
As Australia dries, a global shortage of rice - (www.iht.com)
India's Inflation Near Three-Year High on Food Prices - (www.bloomberg.com)
Brazil Seeks to Curb Prices by Raising Rate More Than Forecast - (www.bloomberg.com)
Samsung Group chairman indicted on tax-evasion charge - (www.iht.com)
'10% of GDP' - (online.wsj.com)
Goldman's Glass Brims, Lehman's Cracks: Mark Gilbert - (www.bloomberg.com)