Monday August 4 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Like a regular Friday night date - (www.themessthatgreenspanmade.blogspot.com) Let's see. It's Friday, what bank(s) is the FDIC taking over this weekend? According to this report in CNN/Money, it's Florida's First Priority Bank whose first priority apparently wasn't solvency. This is the eighth bank failure of the year and the fourth in the last month."

FHA Personal Accounts - (calculatedrisk.blogspot.com) It took approximately twelve minutes for some of the bigger economic illiterates in Congress to sponsor a bill to reauthorize FHA DAPs--a form of money-laundering in which property sellers can inflate their sales prices by funneling money to a "non profit" which then "gifts" the funds to the buyer of the property."

New Rules at Freddie Mac Likely to Backfire - (globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) - Pressure to raise servicer spreads may have just gotten a little more intense on Thursday, with Freddie Mac (FRE) announcing a huge, mixed bag of changes to its servicing guidelines — including doubling the amount of money it pays for each workout alternative, and lengthening foreclosure timelines in key states. The GSE also said it would start reimbursing servicers for the cost of door-to-door outreach programs, and make administrative changes intended to streamline the workout process. Perhaps the boldest move by Freddie Mac on Thursday — and one that won’t get much press attention — was its decision to eliminate foreclosure timeline compensation altogether for servicers, effective immediately. In other words, servicers will no longer earn a bonus based on how quickly they can foreclose. Doubling the length of time to do a workout is just begging freeloaders to take advantage.Those who have made up their minds to walk away, may now be able to live rent free for 10 months before the foreclosure proceedings start.

The Echelon In Las Vegas Becomes “Ghost Casino” - (www.housingdoom.com) Analysts said that the delay of Echelon could forestall a complete housing recovery in the local market. Housing observers had long relied on the 2009 opening of CityCenter, combined with the 2009 start of hiring for Echelon, to lift prices and sales of local homes by next summer. With financial markets questioning the number of new jobs the megaresorts will create, and with staffing delayed, prospects for improvement in housing are cloudy

Less Stringent Ethics - ((globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com) Ken Wilson, the Goldman Sachs banker who is joining the US Treasury to help the country through the financial crisis, is expected to take a temporary post that will subject him to less stringent ethics rules than many other high-level officials. Mr Wilson was likely to be treated as a “special government employee”, making it unlikely he would have to sell assets or produce the detailed disclosure reports required of officials appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, legal experts said.

After the Bubble, Ghost Towns Across America - (online.wsj.com) Dennis Pflueger and his wife won a rent-free year in a nice new house in an expensive subdivision not far from the headquarters of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. As part of the prize, they then have the option to buy the four-bedroom home for $452,000. Mr. Pflueger, a telephone-cable installer who describes himself as an "old redneck," is in the middle of his free year. But the Pfluegers are a bit lonely. Just one other family lives in any of the 28 new or unfinished houses on Foxboro Court. Up the street, a sign announcing "Elegant Homes" sits on a lot choked with weeds. The block is as quiet as an old ghost town.

Small Florida bank is 8th U.S. failure this year - (www.reuters.com) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bank regulators closed a small Florida-based bank on Friday, the eighth U.S. bank to fail this year under pressure from a weak economy and a credit crisis precipitated by falling home prices. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said First Priority Bank had $259 million in assets and $227 million in deposits and its failure will cost the federal fund that insures deposits an estimated $72 million

Housing Lenders Fear Bigger Wave of Loan Defaults - (www.nytimes.com) The first wave of Americans to default on their home mortgages appears to be cresting, but a second, far larger one is quickly building. Homeowners with good credit are falling behind on their payments in growing numbers, even as the problems with mortgages made to people with weak, or subprime, credit are showing their first, tentative signs of leveling off after two years of spiraling defaults. The percentage of mortgages in arrears in the category of loans one rung above subprime, so-called alternative-A mortgages, quadrupled to 12 percent in April from a year earlier. Delinquencies among prime loans, which account for most of the $12 trillion market, doubled to 2.7 percent in that time.

US lawmakers discuss retirement poverty - (www.ft.com) US lawmakers last month began efforts to revitalise corporate defined benefit plans, amid worries that Americans are not saving enough for retirement. The effort comes as numerous companies are closingDB pensions and offering new employees defined contribution plans, which provide much less in retirement. A joint economic committee hearing on the issue in early July followed two years after the Pension Protection Act was introduced to ensure companies' pension plans had enough money to pay retirees - a law many say has backfired and helped fuel DB scheme closures. The act took effect this year and, among other things, requires companies to maintain a higher funded status to cover their liabilities. Lawmakers and the experts they interviewed at the hearing said those closures could undermine the economy.


Other Stories:

Speculators don't create commodity bubbles - (www.ml-implode.com) - The evidence does not support the claim that speculation has been the source of, or has exacerbated, the price increases. Indee...
Housing bill - A hair of the dog - (www.ml-implode.com) - It is not entirely clear why the core business of the enterprises—providing guarantees for mainstream (not subprime) mortgages—n...
Greedy bankers, lousy government led to housing mess - (www.ml-implode.com) - "In Washington," the New York Times reports, "Fannie and Freddie’s sprawling lobbying machine hired family and friends of polit...
Spain's Inflated Home Values Infect Mortgage Bonds - (www.ml-implode.com) - `` The Spanish market is not the U.S. property market,'' Bertoni says. ``We don't have the famous subprime. Generally speaking, the collateral for each loan is always quite high.''
That hasn't prevented Kutxa's bond from losing 8 percent since it was issued in February last year. That contributed to the Pioneer fund underperforming the JPMorgan EMU Bond Index by 2.7 percentage points over the past 12 months.”
U.S. May Be in `Very Long' Recession, Harvard's Feldstein Says - (www.ml-implode.com)
Henry Paulson has lost Control over US Finance, Economy - (www.ml-implode.com)
Revisions matter. So do levels - (www.ml-implode.com)
Doscientos Mes - (www.ml-implode.com)
America's Smartest Banker - (www.ml-implode.com)

Rich begin feeling the pain in down economy - (www.ap.com)
Fed Session to Confront Trio of Economic Threats - (online.wsj.com)
Only luck can save America's economy - (www.ft.com)
U.S. Vehicle Sales Fall 13.2% Amid High Gas Prices and Tight Credit - (www.nytimes.com)

Finance Has Become the Business of America - (online.barrons.com)
Graduates' Job Hunts: Majorly Frustrating - (www.washingtonpost.com)

The big freeze: A year that shook faith in finance - (www.ft.com)

Hedge-Fund Sluggers Strike Out - (online.wsj.com)
Derivatives put equities in the shade - (www.ft.com)
Fewest Treasury Traders Since 1960 Hit Taxpayers - (www.bloomberg.com)
S&P Email: 'We Should Not Be Rating It' - (online.wsj.com)
Van Wagoner to Step Down As Manager of Growth Fund - (online.wsj.com)
New York to File Charges Against Citigroup Over Securities - (www.nytimes.com)

Highland to Pay in Stages - (online.wsj.com)
Finance Unit of Chrysler Fails to Renew Some Funding - (online.wsj.com)
Disney raises ticket prices at US theme parks - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Fannie faces glut of unsold homes - (www.chicagotribune.com)
RV sales fall as families stay home - (www.ft.com)
Fannie, Freddie Push Aims to Contain Defaults - (online.wsj.com)
Chrysler offers 72-month finance deals as it tries to attract customers after ending leasing - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Clorox to raise prices further to offset commodity costs that contributed to profit drop - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Automakers Race Time as Their Cash Runs Low - (www.nytimes.com)
The Chips Are Down in Vegas but Steve Wynn Is Betting Big - (www.nytimes.com)

Japan close to declaring recession - (www.ft.com)
European companies braced for slowdown - (www.ft.com)
High-rise plans stalled as gloom grows - (www.ft.com)
Bank Tries to Allay Fears of Instability in Venezuela - (www.nytimes.com)
Shipping Costs Start to Crimp Globalization - (www.nytimes.com)
Growing inflation pressures point to more pain - (www.ft.com)
China's economic miracle at a crossroads as Olympics start - (www.telegraph.co.uk)

Up, Up and Away ... - (www.newsweek.com)
An S.B.A. Lender, Uncensored - (www.nytimes.com)
Three Strikes Against Consumers - (www.nytimes.com)
Wave Goodbye to the Invisible Hand - (www.washingtonpost.com)

Wednesday July 2 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Conspiracy theory? Congress Secret Session March 13, 2008 and Imminent Collapse of the US Economy - (www.dailypaul.com). I am usually not a conspiracy theorist but this one is very interesting and the question is posed to Ron Paul on the Ron Paul website. The March 13, 2008 Closed Door Session was only the 4th time in 176 years that Congress has closed its doors to the public. Word has begun leaking from the special, closed-door session of the United States House of Representatives. Not only did members discuss new surveillance provisions as was the publicly stated reason for the closed door session, they also discussed:
- The imminent collapse of the U.S. economy to occur by September 2008,
- The imminent collapse of US federal government finances by February 2009,
- The possibility of Civil War inside the USA as a result of the collapse,
- Advance round-ups of "insurgent U.S. citizens" likely to move against the government,
- The detention of those rounded-up at "REX 84" camps constructed throughout the USA,
- The possibility of retaliation against members of Congress for the collapses,
- The location of "safe facilities" for members of Congress and their families to reside during expected massive civil unrest
- The necessary and unavoidable merger of the United States with Canada (for its natural resources) and with Mexico (for its cheap labor pool),
- The issuance of a new currency - THE AMERO - for all three nations as the proposed solution to the coming economic armageddon.
Members of Congress were FORBIDDEN to reveal what was discussed. Several are so furious and concerned about the future of the country, they have begun leaking info.

Fortis Bank Predicts Meltdown Of U.S. Financial Markets In Coming Weeks - (www.dft.nl ) – TRANSLATED FROM DUTCH: Fortis expects a complete collapse of the US financial markets within a few days to weeks. That explains, according to Fortis, the series of interventions of last Thursday to retrieve € 8 billion. “We have been saved just in time. The situation in the US is much worse than we thought”, says Fortis chairman Maurice Lippens. Fortis expects bankruptcies amongst 6000 American banks which have a small coverage currently. But also Citigroup, General Motors, there is starting a complete meltdown in the US”

Barclays warns of a financial storm - (www.telegraph.co.uk) - Barclays Capital has advised clients to batten down the hatches for a worldwide financial storm, warning that the US Federal Reserve has allowed the inflation genie out of the bottle and let its credibility fall "below zero". "We're in a nasty environment," said Tim Bond, the bank's chief equity strategist. "There is an inflation shock underway. This is going to be very negative for financial assets. We are going into tortoise mood and are retreating into our shell. Investors will do well if they can preserve their wealth."

Ron Paul Speaks Out Forcefully Against War with Iran - (www.dailypaul.com ) Another Ron Paul must watch video.
MUST SEE: Startling Images from Iran You Don't See Every Day - (www.lucasgray.com)
Preparing the Battlefield: The Bush Administration steps up its secret moves against Iran - (www.newyorker.com) Late last year, Congress agreed to a request from President Bush to fund a major escalation of covert operations against Iran, according to current and former military, intelligence, and congressional sources. These operations, for which the President sought up to four hundred million dollars, were described in a Presidential Finding signed by Bush, and are designed to destabilize the country’s religious leadership.The Joint Chiefs of Staff, whose chairman is Admiral Mike Mullen, were “pushing back very hard” against White House pressure to undertake a military strike against Iran, the person familiar with the Finding told me. Similarly, a Pentagon consultant who is involved in the war on terror said that “at least ten senior flag and general officers, including combatant commanders”—the four-star officers who direct military operations around the world—“have weighed in on that issue.”
What War With Iran Would Mean - (www.globalresearch.ca) We bring to the attention of our readers David DeBatto's scenario as to what might occur if one of the several contingency plans to attack Iran, with the participation of Israel and NATO, were to be carried out. While one may disagree with certain elements of detail of the author's text, the thrust of this analysis must be taken seriously. It’s no secret that the U.S. is currently putting the finishing touches on several contingency plans for attacking Iranian nuclear and military facilities. With our ground forces stretched to the breaking point in Iraq and Afghanistan, none of the most likely scenarios involve a ground invasion. Not that this administration wouldn’t prefer to march into the seat of Shiite Islam behind a solid, moving line of M1 Abrams tanks and proclaim the country for democracy. The fact is that even the President knows we can’t pull that off any more so he and the neo-cons will have to settle for Shock and Awe Lite. If we invade Iran this year it will be done using hundreds of sorties by carrier based aircraft already stationed in the Persian Gulf and from land based aircraft located in Iraq and Qatar. They will strike the known nuclear facilities located in and around Tehran and the rest of the country as well as bases containing major units of the Iranian military, anti-aircraft installations and units of the Revolutionary Guard (a separate and potent Iranian para-military organization).

IndyMac denies that it's close to collapse - (www.latimes.com ) Battling rumors that it may collapse, Pasadena-based IndyMac Bancorp (whose stock is down 90% this year) acknowledged Monday that its financial position had deteriorated but described the fears as overblown and said it was working with regulators to improve its "safety and soundness." IndyMac, a national home lender burned by the mortgage meltdown, went public after depositors lined up at San Gabriel Valley branches starting Friday to pull out their money. Striving to reassure them, the thrift said nearly all their deposits were insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Nonetheless, Elizabeth Brown closed four accounts totaling $200,000 Monday at an Arcadia branch where about 20 customers were lined up at noon, saying: "The only reason I'm panicking is if anything happens, my money is tied up.

Lehman speculation blamed on short-sellers - (www.ft.com ) – As usual, the banks are blaming everything. Maybe it has something to do with Lehman being leveraged to the hilt (over 50 to 1 ratio) on mortgage garbage and are now trying to get bailed out by the Fed???? According to Lehman, “the problem for Lehman is that similar rumours circulated about Bear Stearns (NYSE:BSC) in the weeks leading to the investment bank's collapse and emergency sale to JPMorgan Chase. Those rumours, mainly that the bank had run out of cash, were also untrue until they became a self-fulfilling prophecy. People close to Lehman say the bank is now convinced that it is the target of an orchestrated campaign by short-sellers attempting to force it into sharing the same fate as befell Bear. “

A Cringing Quarter for Venture Capitalists - (www.nytimes.com ) venture capitalists experienced a very poor second quarter. The industry’s trade association said Tuesday that for the first time since 1978, not a single venture-backed company went public in the quarter. From the perspective of the venture capital industry, it turns out that the news was worse than I reported. The other bad news was the industry’s disclosure early Monday morning that acquisitions of venture-backed companies are down sharply, too. In the second quarter, 50 mergers or acquisitions of venture-backed companies were completed. That’s down from 70 in the first quarter. In the first half of 2008, there were 120 such deals altogether, down 28 percent from the 169 in the first half of 2007.

Slowdown Squeezes Vegas Casinos - (online.wsj.com) The gambling slowdown that began early this year is taking a serious toll on Las Vegas, with banks, investors and private-equity funds growing as tightfisted as the consumers who are gambling less in the slumping economy. Once believed to be recession-proof, casinos are proving to be highly vulnerable to the economic downturn, which is striking the industry at a bad time. Several casino companies have defaulted on debt or have sought bankruptcy protection, tripped up by costly land acquisitions and ambitious new development. Kentucky-based Tropicana Entertainment LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May, defaulting on $2.67 billion in bank and bond debt. Greektown Holdings LLC of Detroit and Illinois-based Legends Gaming, which has casinos in Louisiana and Mississippi, have also sought bankruptcy protection. Shares of several gambling companies have tumbled dramatically this year, washing out billions of dollars in market valuation. Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming Corp. has fallen to about $12 a share, a five-year low, from a high of $54 last summer. After topping $98 last fall, shares of casino giant MGM Mirage now trade below $35. The public debt of Harrah's, which is highly leveraged after a $17 billion private-equity buyout last year, has traded as low as 52 cents on the dollar. Mr. Loveman, the chief executive, says Harrah's is profitable and is not in danger of default or a bankruptcy filing. The company, he says, is spending money to expand and improve existing properties, and is boosting visits to its regional casinos by chartering airplanes to fly in loyal customers.

PIMCO bond guru Bill Gross, a Republican, writes an open letter to President Barack Obama - "You have inherited a mess" - (housingpanic.blogspot.com) “You have inherited a mess. Your predecessor, fixated on emulating a former Republican icon from a far different economic era, chose to emphasize tax cuts for the rich and excessive consumption for all Americans. He promoted deregulation and free markets when, in fact, the markets and their institutions needed tough love. Over eight years, he failed to put forth a coherent energy policy. He needlessly invaded Iraq and lowered worldwide esteem for this nation as a symbol of freedom and benevolence."

BIS slams central banks, warns of worse crunch to come - (www.telegraph.co.uk) The central bankers' bank renews fear of second depression, writes Ambrose Evans-Pritchard. A year ago, the Bank for International Settlements startled the financial world by warning that we might soon face challenges last seen during the onset of the Great Depression. This has proved frighteningly accurate.



Other Stories:

GM Shares Near 54 Year Low - (money.cnn.com) Will GM survive this downturn without filing for bankruptcy? Shares of General Motors fell Monday, at one point trading at their lowest level since 1954, on the eve of what's expected to be a dismal report on June vehicle sales. GM stock ended down 5 cents to $11.50 a share after hitting a low of $10.57 earlier in the session. That was the lowest level for the company's stock since Sept. 22, 1954, when it traded at $10.49 on a split-adjusted basis, according to data from the University of Chicago's Center for Research in Security Prices.
Chrysler to Close Another Plant, Reduce Output - (www.nytimes.com) Both plants affected by the announcement are in Fenton, Mo., 20 miles southwest of St. Louis. About 2,400 of the company’s 3,500 hourly jobs in Fenton will be eliminated within four months, Chrysler said. Thomas W. LaSorda, one of Chrysler’s two presidents and vice chairmen, said in a conference call that the minivan plant, which opened in 1959 and was closed for several years in the early 1990s, would be idled “indefinitely,” meaning there was no expectation that it would reopen.
Detroit's Mood Grim as Automakers Face the Brink - (ww.reuters.com) Martinez, 50, must choose between retiring and making a long and expensive commute across state lines to stay with General Motors Corp (GM.N). Any future he can imagine is going to be costly and tough. "My whole family is under stress," he said. With four kids, retirement is not an option for Martinez. But driving more than 100 miles daily between home in the Detroit suburb of Lincoln Park and Toledo, Ohio -- where GM has a job for him -- is going to hurt with gas over $4 a gallon. Moving from Detroit, one of the markets hit hardest by the ongoing housing slump, could prove impossible.
"I can't probably sell my home for what it's worth," said Martinez. "I will owe more than I sell it for." When Martinez joined GM in the late 1970s, it controlled 46 percent of the U.S. vehicle market. A union job in the U.S. auto industry was seen as steady work with good wages and rock-solid benefits -- for life.

Ron Paul on Federal Reserve and Inflation - (www.youtube.com)
Crash not be an altogether bad thing - (www.atimes.com)
Next Victim of Real Estate Bubble: Government - (www.businessweek.com)
Who owns my mortgage? - (msnbc.msn.com)
OPEC pres sees oil at $170 this year, blames Fed - (www.marketwatch.com)

Whodathunk - (www.wallstreetexaminer.com) - In the Whodathink Department we now see bank credit quantity in a major free fall. The reason for this is straightforward, the bank system as a whole simply does not meet capital requirements even with all the fictitious capital accounting and lack or proper reserving being employed. And they know it, so loans are being called, and new ones capped. The latest report from the Fed of assets and liabilities of commercial banks in the U.S. showed the sharpest 13-week contraction in bank credit - loans and investments - in the history of the series, which dates back to January 3, 1973. In the 13 weeks ended June 18, bank credit contracted at an annualized rate of 9.14%.
Fitch: Non-Agency REO Volume Jumps 441 Percent - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Unprecedented growth of U.S. real estate-owned property volumes and the costs needed to maintain these assets are hindering rec...
IndyMac: Mini Bank Run, Thanks to Schumer - (www.ml-implode.com) - "IndyMac Bancorp, Inc. felt the pain of a mini bank run this past week, thanks to a leaked letter from New York Senator Charles ...
MBA Says Home Construction Loan Delinquency Rate Misleading - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Constructions loans for single and multi family projects in the United States are incorrectly included in commercial real estat...
Subprime, Alt-A Bonds to Extend Drop as Banks Retreat - (www.ml-implode.com)
Same As It Ever Was - (www.ml-implode.com)
Lender Clears Out Possessions Of Home Not In Foreclosure - (www.ml-implode.com)
Australia Home Lending At Lowest Level Since 1991 - (www.ml-implode.com)

BIS: Global economy could face deeper downturn - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Manufacturing in U.S. Unexpectedly Expanded in June - (www.bloomberg.com)
Global slowdown could be the next crisis for business - (www.financialweek.com)
Broad Says U.S. Economy in Worst Recession Since World War II - (www.bloomberg.com)
At Midyear, the Economic Pain Persists - (www.nytimes.com)

SAC's Bad News for Bankers - (online.wsj.com)
Regulators mull letting PE firms take stakes in U.S. banks - (www.financialweek.com)
IPOs Fall to Five-Year Low as Economy Slows, Loan Losses Climb - (www.bloomberg.com)
Fears for US disclosure rules after CSX ruling - (www.ft.com)
Few signs of deals returning to table - (www.ft.com)

Starbucks Plans to Close 600 U.S. Stores, Fire 12,000 - (www.bloomberg.com)
Chrysler to close 1 plant, cut production at 2nd - (www.chicagotribune.com)
Fortune Brands issues earnings warning - (www.chicagotribune.com)
CIT to sell home lending business for $1.5 billion, shares jump - (www.financialweek.com)
Honda, Hyundai Motor Avoid Slump as Asians Again Top U.S.-Based Automakers - (www.bloomberg.com)
Wachovia quits offering risky mortgage loan - (www.signonsandiego.com)
Airlines try to hedge against soaring fuel costs - (www.signonsandiego.com)
Promise of Biofuel Clouded by Weather Risks - (www.nytimes.com)
Doctors get temporary reprieve on Medicare cuts - (www.chicagotribune.com)

Stagflation grips Eurozone as interest rates look set to rise - UK (www.telegraph.co.uk)
Hot money floods China - (www.economist.com)
Soaring Asian commodity costs feed worldwide inflation - (www.iht.com)
Recession Clips Denmark - (online.wsj.com)
Subprime Losses Hit Japan - (online.wsj.com)
U.K. House Prices Drop Most Since 1992, Manufacturing Contracts - (www.bloomberg.com)
U.K. June Manufacturing Contracts Most Since 2001 - (www.bloomberg.com)
Japan's Tankan Sentiment Falls; Profits to Drop 7% - (www.bloomberg.com)

Wednesday April 23 Housing and Economic stories

Top Stories:

Starting over at 40 because of a foolish house purchase - (money.cnn.com) – Similar to Pip in Great Expectations starting, this story profiles 10-20 people who are starting over in their 30s and 40s.
The End of Shopping - (www.newsweek.com) - At the end of 2007, household borrowing was a dizzying $14 trillion.For the past quarter century, Americans have gone on an unprecedented consumption binge—for cars, TVs, longer vacations and just about anything. The consequences have been profound for both the United States and the rest of the world, and the passage to something different and unknown may not be an improvement.
Arson to avoid foreclosure? - (www.latimes.com)
Regulator fears wave of bank failures - (www.ft.com) US bank failures could rise above “historical norms” as a weakening economy puts pressure on badly underwritten loans, particularly in commercial real estate, according to a bank regulator - 23:52
The new underground currency - (www.startribune.com) - Thieves are ransacking house after house in search of copper they can sell to scrap dealers for as much as $20,000 a month.
Condos with absolutely zero value - (seekingalpha.com) - AIG, Fannie and Freddie Put the Crunch on Condo Mortgages. imagine a world where condos (outside of NYC, Boston, Chicago and LA) have absolutely no value. They are simply transferred between “owners” for the assumption of operating expenses. Don’t laugh. Operating expenses and taxes, without even considering a mortgage, can easily run over $3000 a month for a nice 2 bedroom/2 bath in southeast Florida. Few retirees could swing this. I do not know how real estate taxes would be calculated, but I would not doubt government’s creativity in collecting revenue.
California foreclosure "surge": Up 327% from '07 levels - (www.ml-implode.com) - "Sinking home values and the collapse of flimsy mortgages sent a record number of California homes into the foreclosure process ...
Housing slump may exceed Depression - (www.ml-implode.com) - ''An influential economist who long predicted the housing market bubble cautioned Tuesday that the slump in the U.S. housing mar...
Condo buyers had a lot to beware of - (www.floridatoday.com)
Oil nears $120 as market tightens - (www.ft.com) - Opec attempts to reassure on supplies
Call Goes Out to Rein In Grain Speculators - (online.wsj.com)
Lenders derail plan to let bankruptcy judges modify mortgages - (www.latimes.com) – Thank god someone derailed this idiotic law, even if it is the lenders. If we change 200 years of contract law in this country, we are all in trouble.
Shanghai down over 50% from peak - (www.ft.com) – Yes, I would call this a stealth crash.
Duesseldorfer Hypo Rescued by Bank Group After Crisis - (www.bloomberg.com)


Other Stories:

Less leverage means smaller deals - (www.financialweek.com)
Renters can't escape housing foreclosure crisis - (www.ml-implode.com) - ''The most brutal real estate slump in decades is reverberating through the rental market. Renters in properties that are being ...
Too many people own houses - (www.tnr.com)
The Houseownership Ideologues - (www.truthout.org)
Government deaf to simple plea: less debt! - (patrick.net)
Falling San Diego house prices are a great thing - (www.signonsandiego.com)
Florida luxury house market shows signs of wear - (www.reuters.com)
Foreclosure Group Says Servicing Efforts Still Fall Short - (www.ml-implode.com) - The group noted that at-risk borrowers are receiving more help than in the past, but most are still not on track for any meanin...
If Lawrence Yun wanted to be more helpful... - (www.ml-implode.com) - ''NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun spun Greenspamisims not the truth of the facts
BofA, Countrywide to Curtail Risky Mortgage Lending - (www.ml-implode.com)
Black Swan song - (www.ml-implode.com)
Option ARM Specialist Downey Financial Loses $248 Million in Q1 - (www.ml-implode.com)
Most Home-Equity Line Delinquencies Keep Rising - (www.ml-implode.com)
SF Bay Area prices continue to fall - (eastbayhousingbubble.blogspot.com)
Graphs of CA Prices Crashing - (patrick.net)
What Ails American Economy? Everything, and Worse to Come - (www.nytimes.com)
The market's worst is yet to come - (articles.moneycentral.msn.com)
It’s Not What You Take, But How You Take It - (www.ml-implode.com)
The Ponzi Smokin’ Gun - (www.ml-implode.com)
The Credit Crunch is Dead! Long Live the Credit Crunch! - (www.ml-implode.com)
The Trillion Dollar Bailout - (www.ml-implode.com)
Concerns rising that Fannie and Freddie could need bailout - (money.cnn.com)
Quelle Surprise! National Association of Realtors Says Many Housing Markets Doing Well - (www.ml-implode.com)

Crude Oil Reaches All-Time High Above $119 on Record Euro - (www.bloomberg.com)
U.S. Stocks Retreat on Earnings Concern, Record Oil Prices - (www.bloomberg.com)
Euro Surpasses $1.60 for First Time on ECB's Inflation Outlook - (www.bloomberg.com)
U.S. Existing Home Sales Fell in March; Prices Lower - (www.bloomberg.com)
Corporate earnings about to take a tumble - (www.financialweek.com)
California foreclosure "surge": Up 327% from '07 levels - (www.latimes.com)
California's Home-Mortgage Defaults More Than Double - (www.bloomberg.com)
Arts institutions feeling impact of ailing economy - (www.azcentral.com)
With gas hitting record highs, drivers feeling squeezed - (www.ap.com)
Renters can't escape housing foreclosure crisis - (www.usatoday.com)

Loan Losses Pose Threat to Banks - (online.wsj.com)
Why stocks go up when they shouldn't - (www.nypost.com)
So Far, So Good on Bailouts, but How Long Will They Last? - (online.wsj.com)
Prices slashed on Chrysler loan sales - (www.ft.com)
Most Troubled Mortgage Borrowers Without Plan, Report Finds - (www.washingtonpost.com)
Rise in secret stock trading - (www.financialweek.com)

Florida luxury home market shows signs of wear - (www.signonsandiego.com)
New rules propose added scrutiny for sovereign wealth fund transactions - (www.financialweek.com)
Saudis warn on oil capacity - (www.ft.com)
Art market shrugs off credit crunch - (www.ft.com)
Gannett profit declines 9% on weaker ad sales - (www.marketwatch.com)
National City Follows Wachovia, WaMu, Taps `Abundance' of Cash - (www.bloomberg.com)
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Warned on Accounting - (www.washingtonpost.com)
SunTrust Quarterly Profit Falls 45% on Provisions for Bad Loans - (www.bloomberg.com)
Bank of America to alter loan practices - (www.chicagotribune.com)
RBS to Sell $24 Billion in Shares After Markdowns - (www.bloomberg.com)
Triple-A Failure - (www.nytimes.com)
The new face of hunger - (www.economist.com)