Post Tagged with: "Housing"
Fed Beige Book Supports Cautious Optimism
This from today’s Fed Beige Book survey: Reports from the twelve Federal Reserve Districts suggest that economic activity continued to expand moderately from November through December. Conditions were said to be improving in the Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Richmond Districts. Activity increased modestly to moderately in the Cleveland, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City,
Cautiously Optimistic Into 2011
It’s high time I laid my cards on the table about 2011. I have hinted around my view in previous posts, promising to spell it out in detail. So, here it is: I am cautiously optimistic on the US and global economy for 2011. Let me explain both pieces of the puzzle – the cautious
Byron Wien’s Ten Surprises for 2011
I have just finished reviewing Byron Wien’s Ten Surprises for 2010. Now, I present you Byron Wien’s Ten Surprises for 2011. He is bullish again. Enjoy. -Byron R. Wien, Vice Chairman, Blackstone Advisory Partners, today issued his list of The Ten Surprises for 2011. This is the 26th year Byron has given his predictions
Dollar Ends the Year on a Whimper, UK House Prices Better Than Expected
from the BBH Currency Strategy Team The US dollar is softer on the last trading day of the year with position squaring likely the main driver. With the economic calendar light, the euro traded in narrow ranges throughout most of the session until early European interest saw it pop up to $1.3385 from $1.3300. Sterling
Housing Humbug
This marks the 4th month in a row of falling home prices, and the first negative year-over-year reading since January of 2010. Freddie Mac released their monthly volume summary for November which contained information on seriously delinquencies (90 days or more delinquent), which rose for the 2nd month in a row. As you can see below, this delinquency rate tends to move with unemployment, which crept back above 15 million people in November. Delinquencies had been on an improving trend throughout 2010, and the recent reversal is worth watching. The coming year could be an interesting one for the US housing market.
Housing Double Dip in Progress
The Case/Shiller Housing Index numbers were below expectations and confirmed that housing is dipping again after a brief respite. In the video below, Robert Shiller explains what this means for the economy.
Westwood’s Alpert Says US Home Prices Will Fall Further
Dan Alpert, managing partner at Westwood Capital, thinks that banks are under-reserving and that this will come back to haunt them when house prices fall in "the final leg down" of the housing crisis. That is the right view if you read between the lines of the last post from Annaly Capital Management. I am
MBS Putbacks Uncertain but Other U.S. Bank Problems Also Loom
Jonathan R. Laing reports in Barrons that the exposure of U.S. banks to liability for putbacks of defective MBS (mortgage backed securities) is greater than the $52 billion reported last week from the findings of the COP (Congressional Oversight Panel). The Laing article has a total potential liability of $86 billion for U.S. banks. What
Open Bank of America’s Books And Set the Record Straight
William K. Black is an Associate Professor of Economics and Law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He is a white-collar criminologist and was a senior financial regulator. He is the author of The Best Way to Rob a Bank is to Own One. L. Randall Wray is a Professor of Economics at the University
Not South Florida but Condo Problems in Raleigh, NC Too
by John Lounsbury It may not be South Florida, but there are condo problems in Raleigh, NC too. Sunday 32 condo units were auctioned off at an average price of $210 per square foot in the West condo unit in a downtown entertainment district known as Glenwood South. When the West condo building was finished
Mortgage default as economic stimulus
Early in the year, I posted a few times on a coming wave of mortgage defaults generally and the economic effect of living in defaulted accommodation specifically. My conclusion at the time was that, while the consumer spending due to the free rent defaulters received was large, it was not a major factor in the
What Goes Up…
by Edward Hugh Spain’s troubled banking sector is back in the news again. Despite the apparently successful stress tests carried out over the summer problems persist, and don’t seem likely to go away soon. Foremost among these is the steady rise in problem loans which have now risen to an all-time high, potentially endangering the