tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53201061104583826042012-01-17T12:05:47.744-05:00It's not just a Housing Recession anymore.Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.comBlogger3281100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-3902832935558665002010-12-15T09:33:00.003-05:002010-12-15T09:36:35.155-05:00

David Stockman is one of the voice of honesty. Should be a required video for anyone in Washington DC.Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-1106511437842033152010-11-18T11:27:00.006-05:002010-11-18T13:58:27.261-05:00

Dear Uncle Warren,Thank you for the thank you letter to Uncle Sam. Thank you for acknowledging generosity of Uncle Sam - unlike other financial firms who have stolen received billions.Here are some suggestions/comments I have on the letter.First you forgot to mention how much you and the banks have benefited from Uncle Sam's generosity. It would have been great if you mentioned the Goldman

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-30173741606857312032009-03-30T13:59:00.001-04:002009-03-30T13:59:02.792-04:00

Just when you thought you had seen ennough shoes had dropped, here comes another big one.  From boston.com Just months before the start of last year's stock market collapse, the federal agency that insures the retirement funds of 44 million Americans departed from its conservative investment strategy and decided to put much of its $64 billion insurance fund into stocks. The agency refused to say

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-79310984703056973322009-03-30T09:37:00.001-04:002009-03-30T09:37:39.819-04:00

Oama administration has forced out GM CEO Rick Wagoner.  From WSJ: The Obama administration used the threat of withholding more bailout money to force out General Motors Corp. Chief Executive Rick Wagoner and administer harsh medicine to Chrysler LLC, marking one of the most dramatic government interventions in private industry since the economic crisis began last year. The administration's auto

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-44933877443847342442009-03-26T09:58:00.001-04:002009-03-26T09:58:02.885-04:00

We wrote about the lack of demand for British bonds yesterday.  No sooner did we write the article, US auction for 5-year treasuries yields were higher than expected.  Today, we will be watching the 7-year auction very closely.  The 10-year yield, which was down to almost 2.50%, is now back up to 2.82% today.    The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-24238024952024680042009-03-25T11:57:00.001-04:002009-03-25T11:57:38.819-04:00

In an earlier post, we had written about Quantative Easing and governemnt keeping rates artificially low.  We had worried whether the there will be ennough investors out there to buy the bonds. The 40-year UK auction did not have ennough demand.  Bank of England Governor Mervyn King told a U.K. parliamentary committee Tuesday that the government needs to be "cautious" about further fiscal

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-59447705242064987502009-03-18T15:43:00.001-04:002009-03-18T15:43:39.430-04:00

The fed is buying upto $750 billion in mortgage-backed securities and upto $300 billion in longer term treasuries.  They are putting additional 1.05 Trillion to buy bonds and further expanding their balance sheets. With fed being about 25% of the mortgage market, how is there going to be price discovery?  This will keep the bond yields artificially low.  It's going to be interesting how China

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-90113667112730649282009-03-05T11:38:00.001-05:002009-03-05T11:38:58.183-05:00

This is a hillarious video from the Daily SHow about CNBC giving financial advice.  I like Rick Santelli who has been against every bailout and been honest every step of the way. The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10cCNBC Gives Financial AdviceDaily Show Full EpisodesImportant Things With Demetri MartinPolitical HumorJoke of the DayThe content contained in this blog represents the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-20164005202339381052009-03-05T11:10:00.001-05:002009-03-05T11:10:30.147-05:00

While we are fighting over couple of billions, the fed has loaned $1.9 TRILLION.  That's trillion with a capital T!And we do not even know who that money went to and what they are buying.  The Fed refused yesterday to disclose the names of the borrowers and the loans, alleging that it would cast “a stigma” on recipients of more than $1.9 trillion of emergency credit from U.S. taxpayers and the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-5080610147420621232009-02-26T10:40:00.001-05:002009-02-26T10:40:56.676-05:00

New home sales in January fell 48.2% from January 2008.  This is the slowest rate Census Bureau has recorded. Seasonally adjusted, there were 309K new homes sold compared to 597K last year.  With the jobs report like the one this morning, it's going to be harder for families to buy a new home. Meanwhile, the inventory for new homes rose to a record 13.3 monts from 12.2 months last month and 9.8

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-25446538892512582592009-02-26T08:03:00.001-05:002009-02-26T08:06:53.315-05:00

Fed Creating Another Japan? From WSJ: Research papers by Douglas Diamond and Raghuram Rajan of the University of Chicago show that the fed may be making the same mistakes Japan had.  Japan kept it's zombie banks running instead of taking the losses, which elongated the downturn.  Fed seems intent on doing the same thing.  To me, the only right decision they made was to let Lehman Brothers go

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-37003950236984621532009-02-20T09:29:00.001-05:002009-02-20T09:29:02.181-05:00

Gold Futures Hit $999From WSJ:April gold futures are expected to open floor trading in New York around $16 an ounce higher Friday, based on electronic activity ahead of the pit session at the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. March silver is expected to be up 40 cents an ounce. Gold seems to be going through the roof.  I wonder if gold is going to be last year's oil.  I have

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-52731206750108242512009-02-12T08:32:00.001-05:002009-02-12T08:32:12.631-05:00

The give aways from the government are ennough to drive the tax payers angry.  But add things like this and you realize why there is so much outrage over all the bailouts. Merrill Lynch gave 700 employees bonuses of $1 million.  This while the company was losing $27 billion.  They paid the bonus in December - much earlier than it's usually paid - so they can get away with it before the Bank of

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-51399553113147011212009-02-11T09:31:00.001-05:002009-02-11T09:31:16.648-05:00

From Marketwatch.com:   The mortgage applications were down 24.5% from last week.  Overall, application volume for the week ended Feb. 6 contracted by an unadjusted 43.9% from the same week in 2008, the MBA said. That's half the mortages from last year.  The fed and everyone else in the government seems to be concerned about mortgage rates.  But until the debt-to-income ratio improves,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-62684527639090457762009-02-10T10:33:00.001-05:002009-02-10T10:33:43.233-05:00

 Rep. Paul Kanjorski C-Span tells us why there was a need for the TARP and why they could not tell what the "abyss" that they kept referring to.  Here is an excerpt from the video.On Thursday at about 11:00 am, the federal reserve notead a tremendous draw down of money market account to the tune of $550 billion was drawn out in a matter of hour or two.  The treasury opened it's window to help. 

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-73390361924299448652009-02-06T09:52:00.001-05:002009-02-06T09:52:55.325-05:00

Jobless rates rose to 7.6 from 7.2 in December.  There were 598,000 jobs lost.  But this is only half of the story.  To see the real story, we need to look at U6 number and beyond.  U6 includes persons "discouraged" from working.  i.e. People so discouraged by not finding a job, that they have stopped looking.The U6 number (not seasonally adjusted) is 15.4 and seasonally adjusted to 13.9.  That

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-46229379592348887322008-11-21T18:08:00.001-05:002008-11-21T18:08:51.914-05:00

Obama picks Geithner as Treasury Secretary.  I was hoping it was going to be Paul Volcker.  It looks like we are going to continue more of the same policy.I know he is a smart guy.  But he wanted to save Lehman.  I want a guy who is not worried about letting something fail.   The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-24918595680663130742008-11-20T09:19:00.001-05:002008-11-20T09:19:52.116-05:00

Weekly Jobless claims rose by 27,000 to 542,000 from a revised 515,000 previous week.  The four week moving average rose to 506,500 from 490,750. It is about to get worse for the job market.  Especially with Citi laying off 50,000 and other financials laying off more people.  Equity futures were off on the news.  Two year bonds declined below 1 percent for the first time.  The three month bill is

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-24752169378564345772008-11-18T09:31:00.001-05:002008-11-18T09:31:00.434-05:00

Deflation?The headline PPI fell by a record 2.8 percent last month.  The core rate which excludes oil and food prices rose by .4 percent in October.  The headline inflation fell along with energy prices.  It looks like deflation is showing up in the (headline) numbers.  The only question now is, are we going to jump to the other side of hyper-inflation - especially with the fed pumping all the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-49770912863788697802008-11-17T09:41:00.001-05:002008-11-17T09:41:58.902-05:00

Citi is planningto cut another 50,000 jobs.  That would be on top of the 23,000 jobs it has cut already.   The banking giant, Citigroup, which a decade ago set out to rewrite the rules of American finance, announced Monday morning that it would cut 50,000 jobs in the coming quarters, largely by selling assets.In addition, the bank said that it would trim expenses by 16 percent to 19 percent to

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-10377824086051424282008-11-13T09:29:00.001-05:002008-11-13T09:29:17.648-05:00

This was yet another grim jobs report.  From Bloomberg: Initial jobless claims increased by 32,000 to a larger- than-forecast 516,000 in the week ended Nov. 8, from a revised 484,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said today in Washington. The total number of people on benefit rolls jumped to the highest level since 1983. ``The labor market is only reinforcing a very pessimistic picture,''

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-47489501122299201352008-11-12T18:55:00.001-05:002008-11-12T18:55:08.288-05:00

Where does all this stop?  We have American Exress becoming a bank holding company so they can borrow from the Fed.  We have GM begging for aid.  AIG borrowing some couple of billion more.  Now, the government will guarantee GE debt.  WSJ is reporting that GE will paticipate in FDIC's (Not so) Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program.The company says the U.S. Government will now guarantee all

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-59676769962600055012008-11-07T09:31:00.001-05:002008-11-07T09:31:55.177-05:00

Employers cut 240,000 jobs in October.  And August and Septemeber job loss were revised up by 179,000!  That's loss off 419,000 in this job report!  The unemployment rate rose to 6.5 percent.  That's highest since 1994.  Despite the job loss the 10 year bond yield (as of now) rose .02 or .54%.  You have to wonder if we will have a slowdown and an increase in interest rates.  We have been telling

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-42189950458480857022008-10-09T09:01:00.001-04:002008-10-09T09:01:54.315-04:00

Jobless claims dropped by 20,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 478,000.  The four-week moving average is at 482,000.  That is the highest since October 2001.  And the numbers are going to get worse as the downturn begins.  All this does not bode well for consumer spending, who are already strapped with lower home prices (although I never understood why your home price should effect spending

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-25307013197247926992008-10-07T09:10:00.003-04:002008-10-07T09:10:48.525-04:00

 From WSJ:The Fed announced a plan to purchase commercial paper directly from issuers. The Treasury Department will make a special deposit at the Fed to back the facility.Looks like yet more expansion of feds authority.  The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice. It should never be relied on in making an

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-68194525957313785562008-10-07T09:10:00.001-04:002008-10-07T09:10:47.252-04:00

 From WSJ:The Fed announced a plan to purchase commercial paper directly from issuers. The Treasury Department will make a special deposit at the Fed to back the facility.Looks like yet more expansion of feds authority.  The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice. It should never be relied on in making an

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-83732685447648473282008-10-03T10:00:00.001-04:002008-10-03T14:26:39.383-04:00

Nonfarm payrolls tumbled by 159,000 in September.  That was the fastest pace in five years.   The unemployment rate was unchanged at 6.1%.  Once again, there were 42,000 jobs created by the birth/death model.  The model has 12,000 jobs created in construction.  Not only is the next president going to inherit a horrible economy, but watch out when those adjustments come in January!So now everyone

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-77186210447964974032008-10-02T09:08:00.001-04:002008-10-02T09:08:42.358-04:00

From WSJ: Even accounting for the roughly 45,000 claims that the government said were related to Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, the trend remains very weak for labor markets at a time when the crisis on Wall Street threatens to pull consumer spending and the overall economy into a deeper downturn. Initial claims for jobless benefits rose 1,000 on a seasonally-adjusted basis to 497,000 in the week

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-39112328920271479582008-10-01T17:36:00.001-04:002008-10-01T17:36:36.556-04:00

Nothing bothers me more than lying analysts.  I am probably not as smart as most analysts, but one thing I promise is honesty.  That is the whole purpose of this blog.  GE is raising $12 billion in common shares to public, and raising another $3 billion by selling preferred shares to Warren Buffett at 10% interest rate!  Yet Jim cramer claims there is no problem.  Hello?  That's $3 billion at 10%

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-5148277679178296912008-10-01T14:10:00.001-04:002008-10-01T14:10:01.236-04:00

Ford sales dropped 35% despite customer incentives.  WOW!  35% drop.  As credit crunch spreads, this is going to effect more people.  "Consumers and businesses are in a very fragile place," Ford marketing executive Jim Farley said in the company's press release. "An already weak economy compounded by very tight credit conditions has created an atmosphere of caution."......"February 1993 was the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-81224273203077092952008-10-01T11:04:00.001-04:002008-10-01T11:04:51.429-04:00

WSJ is reporting that many companies like GE, Verizon, and Microsoft are lobbying congress to pass the bailout package.Corporate-bond issuance in the quarter plunged to $76.7 billion from $337.3 billion in the second quarter, according to figures from Thomson Reuters. Companies overall were forced to reduce their borrowings on the short-term commercial paper market by $212 billion between the end

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-17800743455964395002008-09-30T10:12:00.001-04:002008-09-30T10:12:36.358-04:00

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index dropped 16.3 % compared to a year earlier.  The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index dropped 16.3 percent from a year earlier, more than forecast, after a 15.9 percent decline in June. The gauge has fallen every month since January 2007, and year-over-year records began in 2001. ....``While some cities did show some marginal improvement over last month's data,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-48072883106684840882008-09-25T19:00:00.001-04:002008-09-25T19:00:58.980-04:00

WSJ is reporting that government has brokered a deal for JP Morgan to acquire deposits and some branches of Washington Mutual.  It said this won't effect the FDIC insurance fund.  I wonder what JP Morgan is taking here...especially without the backing of the fed. The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-3979068743598806832008-09-25T15:20:00.001-04:002008-09-25T15:20:28.822-04:00

No that's not a Typo.  Prices in California dropped 41% from August 2007!  Here it is from Bloomberg California home prices tumbled a record 41 percent in August from a year earlier as foreclosure sales pushed down values in the biggest U.S. state. The median price of an existing, single-family detached home fell to $350,140 and will likely fall further, the Los Angeles- based California

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-91228301912348594772008-09-25T09:37:00.001-04:002008-09-25T09:37:58.146-04:00

Filings for first time benefits increased by 32,000 to 493,000.  Last weeks numbers were revised to 461,000.  This is the highest since September 2001.  Some of the increase probably had to do with the hurricanes. But we have been saying look for the job markets to get weaker. And now with the bailout plan, the treasury yields should go higher.  This will mean a higher interest rate. Durable

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-43679455967209904362008-09-24T17:52:00.001-04:002008-09-24T17:52:38.733-04:00

I have been meaning to write about Warren Buffet and the MOAB (Mother of All Bailouts).  It seems that Buffet supports the bailout.  He was on CNBC today saying there will be major consequences if there is no bailout.  But he also said the securities bought should be bought at market price.  So in a sense, he was not supporting Ben B's plan.  They want to OVERPAY for the assets.  They don't want

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-2955834875837497062008-09-24T11:53:00.001-04:002008-09-24T11:53:11.877-04:00

Ron Paul was as good as ever.  Here is a summary of what he said (Note: They are not exact quotes but my estimation of what he was saying).Where does the money come from?  Out of thin air?  Finally, someone talking about where the money is coming from.  More inflation. House prices need to comedown.  Price fixing is not a solution.  The fed is trying to price fix by buying securities. Finally,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-9811041501119901932008-09-24T10:46:00.001-04:002008-09-24T10:46:28.263-04:00

Existing home sales dropped 10.7% from last year and 2.2% from a revised July 2008.  Prices for homes dropped a record 9.5% from last year.  Regionally, the price drop in the West was 23.9%!With lower prices, the inventory dropped to 10.4 months which was at 11.1 just two months ago.“However, home sales will be constrained without a freer flow of credit into the mortgage market. The faster that

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-13775415844280104952008-09-23T17:54:00.001-04:002008-09-23T17:54:25.092-04:00

Wells Fargo Mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is 9.00%! We have been telling you to watch the jobs market and the mortgage rate to see how far down housing goes.  We were worried about the mortgage rate, but with the government bailing out Freddie and Fannie, the rates eased - at least temporarily. The 30-year fixed is still low.     The content contained in this blog

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-44810688147387673132008-09-23T15:46:00.001-04:002008-09-23T15:46:45.973-04:00

THEY WANT MAMA TO MAKE IT ALL BETTER! Rep Kapture Marcy Kaptur Let's them have it.    The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice. It should never be relied on in making an investment decision, ever. Nor are these comments meant to be a solicitation of business in any way - such inquiries will not be

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-73271153834938516722008-09-23T09:19:00.001-04:002008-09-23T09:19:49.123-04:00

We have been telling about the risks to the economy and the housing market.  We've been saying it's pretty bad out there.  Now Pointon's Nitingale says Global 'Depression' is possible.  It looks like we are starting to hear analysts on MSM talk about depression.  Another point on the current crisis is that most people compare this to Japan's housing bubble.  And most think America can recover

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-79151079314281419382008-09-17T18:55:00.001-04:002008-09-17T18:55:41.409-04:00

Senator Dodd says the fed has the autority to set up a debt fund.  As if they haven't ruined their balance sheet ennough, you have a senator asking to take on more junk.  ``Debating whether or not you're going to set up some new agency or bureaucracy in government is a nice point, but I don't think we have the luxury of waiting another year,'' Dodd said. It's great.  Instead of telling the fed to

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-26367781036337557502008-09-17T16:53:00.001-04:002008-09-17T16:53:12.925-04:00

NYT is reporting Morgan Stanely got a call from Wachovia expressing interest.WSJ is reporting both Citigroup and Wells Fargo are interested in Washington Mutual.  Doesn't Citigroup have ennough of it's own problem?  It's kind of stunning to see Citi interested in Wamu.  The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-38018086632597945132008-09-17T11:57:00.001-04:002008-09-17T11:57:14.439-04:00

Today's Cliff diving candidates are Morgan Stanely which was down to 16.10 (more than 42%) and has recovered to 19.00.  The other cliff diver is Wachovia which was down 25% and is down 22% right now.The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice. It should never be relied on in making an investment decision,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-48252312101744385582008-09-17T11:22:00.001-04:002008-09-17T11:22:16.469-04:00

With all the bailouts - not to mention the junk that the fed is holding - the fed is running out of money.  So they are going to issue more TBills to bridge the gap. ``The Treasury Department announced today the initiation of a temporary Supplementary Financing Program at the request of the Federal Reserve,'' the department said in a statement today. ``The program will consist of a series of

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-55858874508701309872008-09-16T22:42:00.001-04:002008-09-16T22:42:14.018-04:00

Fed Invokes 'Unusual and Exigent' Clause to bailout AIG.  Just days after Treasury secretary said no to bailing out AIG, the fed is providing AIG with $85 billion of "loans".  It's a dramatic turnabout for the federal government, which has strongly resisted overtures from AIG for an emergency loan or some intervention that would prevent the insurer from falling into bankruptcy. Just last weekend,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-61616076015976953652008-09-16T18:41:00.001-04:002008-09-16T18:41:27.826-04:00

We are truly getting into scary stuff.According to NYT, AIG is hiring a law firm to draw up bankruptcy papers.  It is not known whether the Fed would now change course and agree to provide an emergency infusion of capital to the cash-starved insurance giant, or what form such aid would take. If the Fed decides not to intervene, A.I.G. will probably file for bankruptcy by Wednesday, these people

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-59383107683335977542008-09-16T14:17:00.001-04:002008-09-16T14:17:17.537-04:00

Federal Reserve leaves rates unchanged...more to come. The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice. It should never be relied on in making an investment decision, ever. Nor are these comments meant to be a solicitation of business in any way - such inquiries will not be responded to. This content is

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-43130777726042344572008-09-15T10:51:00.001-04:002008-09-15T10:51:11.721-04:00

I had to read it twice to really believe if this was true.  People have been talking about PPT and Fed Manipulating the stock markets.  But now, the fed is expanding it's lending program to include Equities!  I am not making this up.The Federal Reserve will expand its lending facilities in the wake of the likely demise of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., taking a wider array of securities,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-22324396175460333392008-09-15T09:58:00.001-04:002008-09-15T09:58:20.894-04:00

Lehman Brothers is filing for Chapter 11.  It is with great sadness I say this as I have many friends who are employed at Lehman.  They seem to have gotten the worst possible deal as the fed did not help bail them out.  Bank of America is buying out Merrill for $50 billion.  BoA will pay $29 a share - 70% more than Sept 12 price.  I wonder if they needed to pay that kind of premium for Merrill.

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-44414029949621906842008-09-11T17:46:00.001-04:002008-09-11T17:47:02.509-04:00

According to the latest report, Fed and Treasury are arranging sale of Lehman through a consortium of private investors according to Washington Post.  Before this report, there were rumors of Bank of America.  But like JP Morgan & Bear Stearns deal, BoA wanted a government money.I wonder how much tax payer dollar they are using this time for Lehman sale.The content contained in this blog

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-23455873493677981782008-09-10T18:15:00.001-04:002008-09-10T18:15:39.987-04:00

Just when you thought you had heard it all.  Here are more tax dollars going to waste.Fannie Mae has recieved consent from FHA and US Treasury to pay Q3 dividend that was announced earlier but was unpaid.  Going forward the dividend will be eliminated.Why pay the third quarter dividend?  You are paying dividend to preferred shareholders from tax payer dollars.  http://www.marketwatch.com/news/

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-62402834383120989782008-09-10T10:44:00.001-04:002008-09-10T10:44:49.257-04:00

Washington Mutual stock's cliff diving continues this morning.  The stock is down another 16% today.  That is on top of the 20% drop yesterday.  Since Monday's F&F Boost, the stock has gone from $5.03 to $2.75.   The content contained in this blog represents the opinions of HousingDepression.This commentary in no way constitutes investment advice. It should never be relied on in making an

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-4273240341171020162008-09-10T09:50:00.001-04:002008-09-10T09:50:56.311-04:00

Lehman reports a bigger loss.  Plans real estate spinoff.Lehman reported a $3.9 billion third-quarter loss on $5.6 billion of writedowns.  It will also spinoff it's real estate which is expected to be completed in Q1 2009.This is one of the things we have been warning about.  Remember that Lehman had a chance to raise capital earlier.  But instead of raising capital, we heard Fuld saying we don't

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-36546264852168676912008-09-09T10:47:00.001-04:002008-09-09T10:47:02.063-04:00

July pending home sales fell 3.2 percent to 86.5.  June pending home sales were revised upward to 89.4.  July numbers are down 6.8 percent from a year earlier.Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said home sales continue to edge up and down. “Pending home sales are oscillating month-to-month, with the long-term trend essentially flat,” he said. “Overly stringent lending criteria imposed by Fannie

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-90651473864448189962008-09-05T16:43:00.001-04:002008-09-05T16:43:48.690-04:00

WSJ is reporting that the Treasury is close to finalizing plan to backstop Fannie and Freddie.  Remember Paulson just "needed" to show the bazooka.  Now, he is using it.  Congress wrote  a blank check so they are all (those who voted for the bill) are responsible for this.More of our tax dollars at work.The markets rebounded today - especially the financials.  Do you think someone had a word on

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-87429438165871282962008-09-05T10:52:00.001-04:002008-09-05T10:54:30.217-04:00

The US unemployment rate climbed to the highest in five years to 6.1%.  Payrolls fell by 84,000 in August.  And remember when I thought the last one was going to be the big bad one.  Well, a revision added 58,000 more job losses to prior two(not just one) months.  With more layoffs and hurricane effecting job losses, this number will get worse. ``It certainly increases the probability that

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-39658455262614401262008-09-04T09:12:00.001-04:002008-09-04T09:12:01.478-04:00

The jobless claims for last week unexpectadly turn higher.  New claims jumped higher by 15,000 last week.  It climbed to a seasonally adjusted 444,000.  The prior weeks were revised higher from 425,000 to 429,000.  In a seprate report, US private employers cut 33,000 jobs in August.  So tomorrows job numbers is going to be critical.  The jobs markets seems to be barely staying above water.  I've

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-22502443872974662912008-08-27T09:22:00.001-04:002008-08-27T09:22:03.711-04:00

In yet another waste of tax payers money, the FDIC may have to tap treasury for more funds.  According to Sheila Bair, FDIC Chairwoman, it is to cover "short-term cash-flow" pressures.  As we have seen, short-term becomes permanent pretty fast. The last time the FDIC borrowed funds from Treasury came at the tail end of the savings-and-loan crisis in the early 1990s after thousands of banks were

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-77136153239508772012008-08-25T10:18:00.001-04:002008-08-25T10:18:47.829-04:00

Existing home sales increased by 3.1% from last month.  Year over year, the sales dropped 13.2%.  Inventories rose by 17.9% to 11.2 months supply.  That is the highest level since April 2008.  Prices dropped by 7.1% compared to last year.  June 2008 data was revised lower by 10,000 to 4,850,000.The drop in price seems to have helped home sales.  But with the inventories still rising, it's going

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-56835764526770960522008-08-25T10:07:00.001-04:002008-08-25T10:07:24.223-04:00

This is yet another example of what is wrong with Corporate America and Politicians.  US Automakers have doubled their initial request to $50 billion to develop and build more "fuel-efficient" vehicles.  Looks like they did not need help to build gas guzzling SUVs.  But now want to use tax payer dollars to build "fuel-efficient" vehicles.  But if all this is not ennough, here is the real kicker:

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-78274715305019097232008-08-21T09:18:00.001-04:002008-08-21T09:18:40.254-04:00

Jobless claims fell by 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 432,000.  While the jobless claims fell for the week, 432,000 is still very high.  The four week moving average moved up to 445,750.  This is the highest moving average since Dec. 2001.   For those who are still arguing whether we are in a recession, everyday it seems more and more likely we are in a recession. This and problems with Fannie

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-5455652841053196252008-08-20T09:24:00.001-04:002008-08-20T09:24:55.207-04:00

Mortgage Applications at Lowest level since 2000.  The mortgage applications declined 1.5 percent to 419.3.  This despite the mortgage rate declining to 6.47 percent from 6.57 percent.The index for loan purchases was also near historic lows at 314.  This is only one week of data.  But it shows you how bad the housing market is.  You are always going to find trolls trying to create a bottom. 

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-69268365859140499812008-08-19T08:52:00.001-04:002008-08-19T08:53:34.511-04:00

From MarketWatch.com:U.S. producer prices increased by a bigger-than-expected 1.2% in July, the Labor Department reported Tuesday, driven higher by prices for energy, cars, food and other products. .....Producer prices are up 9.8% over the past 12 months, which is the most since June 1981. It looks like food and energy inflation is being passed to wholesale. Housing starts drop11%.Separately, the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-84447191275032827522008-08-19T08:40:00.001-04:002008-08-19T08:40:12.375-04:00

From WSJ:Home Depot Inc. posted a 24% decline in fiscal second-quarter net income as Chief Executive Frank Blake said the company is continuing "to see pressure on our market and the consumer."Still, the nation's largest home-improvement retailer refrained from cutting its fiscal-year outlook again, as Mr. Blake noted, "Despite the macroeconomic conditions, we saw improved execution in our

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-49883850100114920772008-08-13T09:43:00.001-04:002008-08-13T09:43:24.249-04:00

U.S. Retail Sales Fall From Bloomberg:Sales at U.S. retailers dropped in July for the first time in five months as record gasoline prices and tighter credit reduced automobile purchases. The 0.1 percent drop followed a 0.3 percent gain the prior month that was larger than previously reported, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Sales excluding automobiles rose 0.4 percent, less than

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-89409596443783355972008-08-12T15:21:00.001-04:002008-08-12T15:21:52.998-04:00

From Reuters:U.S. economic growth is expected to slow more sharply in the coming months than previously forecast with employers shedding staff into next year, according to a Philadelphia Federal Reserve survey released on Tuesday...."Growth in U.S. real output over the next few quarters looks slower now than it did just three months ago," the Philadelphia Fed said on its Web site.....The current

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-36871858111364302442008-08-12T10:59:00.001-04:002008-08-12T10:59:23.518-04:00

JP Morgan Chase & Co. has had losses of $1.5 billion.From Bloomberg:JPMorgan Chase & Co. has had losses of $1.5 billion on mortgage-backed assets so far this quarter as the U.S. housing slump deepened amid turmoil in credit markets.....``The global credit market hasn't much improved,'' said Tim Leung, who helps manage about $1.5 billion at IG Investment Ltd. in Hong Kong. ``The risk aversion to

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-77390500464479893382008-08-08T08:54:00.001-04:002008-08-08T08:54:40.826-04:00

Fannie Mae posted its fourth straight quarterly loss.  It lost $2.3 billion during the last quarter.  The dividend will be cut from 25 cents to 5 cents.  Why are they not cutting the dividend to 0?  Right now, with the explicit backing, tax payers could be paying the dividend.  The explicit guarantee is the worst of both worlds.  Tax payers are taking the risk and share holders (who should have

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-39701170143497111322008-08-07T10:52:00.001-04:002008-08-07T10:53:50.231-04:00

June pending home sales rose by 5.3%  while the May number was revised lower to 4.9% from 4.7%.  While the number may look good, remeber that this is a 12.3% drop from last year.  This still does not mean housing has bottomed, although that won't stop most analysts from calling a bottom in housing. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said sales have been in a pattern of rising and falling within a

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-65022541818089849842008-08-07T09:56:00.001-04:002008-08-07T09:56:00.201-04:00

Jobless claims hits six year high.  Applications for unemployment insurance rose by a seasonally adjusted 7,000 to 455,000 for the week ending Aug. 2.  This should put an end to people expecting a second half recovery.  We still have a long way to go before things bottom out.The number of people continuing to collect unemployment benefits went up by 31,000 to 3.3 million for the week ending July

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-73843978588211272822008-08-06T15:16:00.002-04:002008-08-06T15:18:05.922-04:00

How screwed up are the Ratings Agencies?  Look at their email and you'll know the answer to that question.  Here are exceprts from Housing Wire:In one email, an S&P staffer emailed another that an RMBS deal being rated was “ridiculous” and that “we should not be rating it,” according to the report. They reply came back saying that “we rate every deal,” and that “it could be structured by cows and

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-46876229688278310412008-08-06T10:44:00.001-04:002008-08-06T10:44:44.994-04:00

I was looking into writing about Freddie and Fannies Political contributions today.  And lo and behold there is this article in WSJ.If the government is not fully backing these institutions, why are they allowed to make political donations?  By extension, aren't tax payers dollar being used to lobby?  ...But an underreported part of this story is that Majority Leader Harry Reid refused to

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-44046250892446346242008-08-06T09:45:00.001-04:002008-08-06T09:46:26.383-04:00

 Freddie Mac, the nation’s second-largest mortgage finance giant, reported its fourth consecutive quarterly loss on Wednesday and said it would cut its dividend as it struggled through a housing crisis that had cost Wall Street tens of billions of dollars so far.  The company revealed $2.5 billion in credit losses associated with increased delinquency and foreclosure rates, and said the value of

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-31139249732898001532008-08-05T17:12:00.001-04:002008-08-05T17:13:12.367-04:00

FOMC keeps the rates at 2%.   Here is the press release. The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to keep its target for the federal funds rate at 2 percent. There weren't any suckers who knew the dovish fed would raise rates. Economic activity expanded in the second quarter, partly reflecting growth in consumer spending and exports. However, labor markets have softened further

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-56195735059695106272008-08-04T11:42:00.002-04:002008-08-04T11:43:30.429-04:00

Here is Nouriel Roubini in a Barron's Magazine interview.  It is a must see for those who think we are closer to the end of our troubles.   We have heard CEOs of financial companies telling us we are in the ninth inning.  We've got Jim Cramers of the world telling us, as recently as last week, the worst of the crisis is over. Prof. Roubini crashes their party. Some highlights from the video: "

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-21034175607401474302008-08-01T09:49:00.001-04:002008-08-01T09:49:51.947-04:00

Jobless rate rose to 5.7% but only 51,000 jobs were lost.  I say "only" becuase we were expecting numbers to be even worse.  The BLS adjustments were -1,458 in July.  But "Seasonly Adjustment" seems to have saved the day here. Of course, the numbers are grim.  Look at the Not in labor force details and you see why.  There is a 25% increase (From July 2007) of people who are not in labor force

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-51235697136926643222008-07-31T10:32:00.001-04:002008-07-31T10:34:44.521-04:00

GDP And Employment Reports The GDP in Q2 grew at 1.9% rate after expanding .9% in first quarter.  The recession probably beganin 2007 Q4 as "revised" data showed contraction. The world's largest economy contracted at a 0.2 percent annual pace in the fourth quarter of last year compared with a previously reported 0.6 percent gain, the Commerce Department said today in Washington. Growth for the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-87630592250975142012008-07-30T09:52:00.003-04:002008-07-30T09:56:56.760-04:00

Merrill CDO worth less than 22 cents on the DollarWhen Merrill sold the 22 cents on the dollar, shills (so called analysts) started calling this the bottom (YAB - Yet Another Bottom).  But looking at the details, we have seen this kind of deals before.  Nouriel Roubini exposes the truth.Merrill is financing 75% of the transaction.  Merrill has not announced the terms of the agreement.  We have

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-3811258213550908342008-07-28T11:07:00.001-04:002008-07-28T11:09:48.055-04:00

Record U.S. Deficit in 2009The U.S. budget deficit will widen to a record of about $490 billion next year, an administration official said, leaving a deep budget hole for the next president. The projected deficit for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 is far higher than the $407 billion forecast by President George W. Bush in February. The official also confirmed a report in USA Today that the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-67093515602493013322008-07-24T17:27:00.002-04:002008-07-24T17:28:47.277-04:00

NAR Press Release on Existing Home Sales Any time you want to have a laugh, just go and read any NAR press release. NAR President Richard F. Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in Long Beach, Calif., said there is something of a quandary in the current market. “A recent online survey of Realtors® shows nearly a quarter of potential home buyers are waiting on the

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-3138222630259298002008-07-24T16:24:00.001-04:002008-07-24T16:25:00.701-04:00

Bloggers Causing Bank Run? I was flabbergasted when I read the following story. Sheila Bair is accusing bloggers of being a "bit out of countrol." The federal agency insuring bank deposits learned that it can't afford to ignore the blogs following its seizure this month of IndyMac Bank, the largest bank failure since the 1980s. "The blogs were a bit out of control," Sheila Bair,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-47119159555295061052008-07-24T10:29:00.001-04:002008-07-24T10:30:59.904-04:00

Homes Sales Down 15.5% YOY and down 2.6% from last Month The existing home sales report was yet another blow to those who think housing is bottoming out. Home sales dropped 2.6 percent from last month and 15.5 percent from June 2007. Prices dropped 6.1 percent. And yet the worst news of all? Inventory rose to 11.1 months. That is an increase of 2.8% from last month and 22 percent from

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-78247826030886023592008-07-24T09:30:00.001-04:002008-07-24T09:30:31.265-04:00

Weekly Jobless claims jumped by 34,000 The weekly jobless claims jumped by 34,000 to 406,000 last week. The numbers match a three-year high. And next Friday we get the jobs report with the BLS adjustment. Let's wait and see if that is another bomb for the labor markets. Expect the labor markets to remain weaker. And you can forget about the fed tightening. We already know they talk

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-87694524556350147272008-07-23T14:56:00.001-04:002008-07-23T14:56:38.421-04:00

Fed's Beige Book : STAGFLATION! WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The U.S. economy has slowed over the past month while price pressures intensified, according to the latest report of economic conditions compiled by the Federal Reserve released Wednesday. Consumer spending was sluggish despite the tax rebates, according to the survey. Bottom line...weaker car sales, housing slump continues.... As

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-9687234078347611722008-07-23T14:13:00.002-04:002008-07-23T14:14:56.645-04:00

Bush talks about the finacial mess and life after presidency. The president was speaking to a private group and he thought all the cameras were off. "There is no question about it. Wall st got druunk...that's one reason I asked you to turn off TV cameras. He's got drunk and now it's got a hangover..... The question is how long will it sober up and not try to do all these fancy financial

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-59798989932549332362008-07-23T09:31:00.001-04:002008-07-23T09:32:02.550-04:00

We have been saying here on HD about housing is a long way from bottoming out. We have record inventory. The economy is about to get worse, jobs numbers have been bad and July numbers are going to be even worse with a revision for mid-year coming. And we have been saying the mortgage rates are going to go up with all the foreclosures and rising inflation. Last week's mortgage applications

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-14404730443888077662008-07-17T18:26:00.000-04:002008-07-23T09:31:42.163-04:00

Microsoft results dissapoints stock down 6.4% After-Hours Microsoft posted fourth-quarter profit that missed analysts expectations and also gave a dissapointing forecast. Microsoft's net income increased 42% to $4.3 billion from $3.04 billion a year earlier. For those who do not think the credit crunch is going to effect technology spending: The deepening credit crunch and increase in

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-38025165790456097782008-07-17T18:16:00.000-04:002008-07-23T09:31:42.171-04:00

Google shares tumble as results are diappointed investors. Analysts were expecting earnings of $4.74 a share instead they came in at $4.63. Investors are used to google results blowing past estimates. As as result, google stocks were down more than 10% at one point. They have recovered to $492 (-7.77%) as of 6:00 pm. Despite the disappointing second-quarter report, Citigroup remains

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-72143454364690013102008-07-17T18:10:00.000-04:002008-07-23T09:31:42.180-04:00

From WSJ - Merrill Posts its fourth consecutive loss (Emphasis added) Merrill Lynch lost Merrill Lynch & Co. posted its fourth consecutive quarterly loss Thursday amid $9.75 billion in additional write-downs on troubled assets. .... Revenue was negative $2.12 billion, compared with revenue of $9.46 billion a year earlier, amid $3.5 billion in write-downs on collateralized debt obligations, a

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-58158104415616640762008-07-16T09:20:00.001-04:002008-07-16T09:21:38.913-04:00

The CPI is so bad that even the manipulated CPI is getting out of control. The Consumer Price Index rose 1.1 percent in June. That's twice the rate of May when inflation grew at .6 percent. That is the biggest gain since Jun 1982. In the last year, the cpi has risen 5%. Core inflation is up 2.4 percent. Of course the bright spot in the inflation report is that your wages are not going up

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-34724030892527585242008-07-14T09:47:00.001-04:002008-07-14T09:49:22.794-04:00

So while people are debating whether the PPT exists or not, here is our government with a plan to buy equity directly into Fannie and Freddie. If you are shorting either one of this stock, get out! First, the governemnt bought about $30 billion worth of securities from Bear Stearns. Now, a plan to directly buy equities in Fannie and Freddie. Your tax dollars at work. How about lending a few

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-29000830293163065422008-07-11T18:50:00.002-04:002008-07-11T18:56:51.975-04:00

Indymac taken over by FDIC Indymac is the biggest bank to fail. The FDIC will take over the operation. Who is next? Wamu? Wachovia? This thing just keeps getting uglier! Would it have been a good idea to open a CD that earns over 4% interest?

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-51950971616338867632008-07-08T11:15:00.001-04:002008-07-08T11:15:59.845-04:00

Pending Homesales down 14% from Last Year Pending home sales were down 14% from last year and down 4.7% from last month. Modest near-term movement is expected in existing-home sales, with a recovery in sales seen during the second half of the year, according to the latest forecast by the National Association of Realtors®..... Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said some pullback after a

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-69213450048804320022008-07-07T16:41:00.001-04:002008-07-07T16:43:40.262-04:00

Indymac - Major Layoffs and ending Wholesale and Retail Lending In addition to needing to shrink our assets to improve our capital ratios, we also need to do so to ensure that we maintain prudent operating liquidity. A consequence of falling below well-capitalized is that we are no longer permitted to accept new brokered deposits or renew or roll over existing ones, unless we get a waiver from

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-44532581874791021442008-07-03T09:19:00.000-04:002008-07-07T16:43:28.512-04:00

US Loses 62,000 Jobs in June US Lost 62,000 jobs in June. This is the sixth straight decline in job numbers. Numbers for May were revised downward from 49,000 jobs lost to 62,000 jobs lost. The birth and death model once again came to the rescue by adding 241,000 jobs. July is when BLS model give back some of it's gain. So look for July number to be a fugly number (July 2008 number will

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-47551628899966337792008-07-02T15:25:00.000-04:002008-07-07T16:43:28.517-04:00

Lehman bonuses equal to 20% of compensation: report Huh? Is this the last hurrah? Should they not be conserving capital? Just too weird!

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-19132459911349085242008-07-02T09:09:00.000-04:002008-07-07T16:43:28.522-04:00

Morning Briefs - More Job Losses U.S. private employers slashed 79,000 jobs in June, the largest drop since November 2002, according to a private report by ADP Employer Services released Wednesday. Meanwhile, a separate private survey showed planned layoffs at U.S. companies fell 21 percent in June from May's 29-month high, but were 47 percent above June 2007, while second-quarter cuts

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-52752659589418776982008-06-26T10:50:00.000-04:002008-07-07T16:43:28.545-04:00

Existing-home sales rise 2% in May Resales of U.S. houses and condos rose 2% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 4.99 million in May from 4.89 million in April. It's the highest sales pace since February. No kidding, it's spring selling season. Resales are down 15.9% in the past year. About a third of total sales are distressed sales, such as foreclosures or short sales, said Paul

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5320106110458382604.post-24090507061941887462008-06-26T09:31:00.001-04:002008-06-26T09:31:34.599-04:00

The Q1 GDP was revised to 1% from .9%. "Upward revisions to exports, to consumer spending, and to business fixed investment were partly offset by an upward revision to imports and a downward revision to inventory investment," the Commerce Department said. Inflation gauges for personal consumption expenditures, chain-weighted prices and domestic purchases were all revised slightly higher,

Housing Depressionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18371948772032955202noreply@blogger.com1