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Climateer Investing (Free subscription) | yesterday
Regular readers know we are long term bearish on the common equity of the former GSE's. It is a lock that mortgages will continue to be originated and securitized, less so that Fannie and Freddie will survive in their current form and almost inconceivable that common shareholders will realize more than book value (a negative number). The companies currently have negative cash flows and if and when...
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The Business Insider (Free subscription) | 8 hours ago
In "normal times" a Fed rate hike would be seen as counter-cyclical, and a drag on the economy. But sure as heck aren't normal times, in part evidenced by the disparity between GDP growth and job creation (of which there remains virtually none, with very little on the horizon). A point we've highlighted over and over and over again is the lack of credit availability to small businesses ,...
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Vulcan's Hammer (Free subscription) | 11 hours ago
Barney Frank is one of those politicians that always makes my head shake in disbelief when I hear him speak on T.V. This guy spent years pimping government subsidized home loans and protecting Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. "Now Frank has the audacity to tell us "the Poor Should Rent, Not Own." ARRRGGGHHHH!
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The Lonely Conservative (Free subscription) | 15 hours ago
Politicians sure are good at spending other people’s money. The Wall Street Journal: When Charles E. Haldeman Jr. became Freddie Mac’s chief executive officer in August, the ailing housing-finance giant had already consumed $51 billion of government money to stay afloat. It’s likely to need even more. Freddie’s federal overseers nevertheless have instructed Mr. Haldeman to focus...
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The Business Insider (Free subscription) | 18 hours ago
Now that the Treasury has removed any cap on the amount of money taxpayers will shovel down the Fannie and Freddie rat holes , the companies have stopped making any bones about the business they're in. And what business is that? The "foreclosure-prevention" business. (a.k.a., modify mortgages so homeowners can stay in houses they should never have bought and keep buying mortgages so mortgage...
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Climateer Investing (Free subscription) | yesterday
Is it just me or does that seem like a big number? From the Los Angeles Times' Money & Co. blog: People who hold jumbo loans on pricey U.S. properties continued to struggle in January as more Americans lose their jobs and property values have plummeted, according to a report released Monday. Jumbo loans were popular -- and often necessary to afford homes in pricey areas like Southern California...
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Mac Beach (Free subscription) | yesterday
HUD's Web visitors learn that in 1999 "Secretary Cuomo established new Affordable Housing Goals requiring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac—two government sponsored enterprises involved in housing finance—to buy $2.4 trillion in mortgages in the next 10 years. This will mean new affordable housing for about 28.1 million low- and moderate-income families. The historic action raised the required...
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ForeclosurePulse Blog (Free subscription) | yesterday
Mortgage giants GSEs in limbo: In housing, a dangerous policy vacuum grows. Feb. 7, 2010 — The Washington Post THERE IS NO END in sight to the federal bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. President Obama's fiscal 2011 budget proposal said...( read more )
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davos (Free subscription) | yesterday
China's financial system Red mist Who matters in the world’s second-largest financial system is barely understood FROM being a rounding error a decade ago, the financial clout of China now trails only that of America. By market capitalisation, it has three of the four largest banks, the two largest insurance companies, the second-largest stockmarket and a lengthening list of investment funds....
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Wash Park Prophet (Free subscription) | yesterday
Spending is out. Thrift is in. After a long period in which economists bemoans rising consumer debt levels and near zero or negative consumer savings (a measure that includes payments of principal on loans), consumers are saving again and consumer debt levels are rapidly declining. Cash In Mortgages The biggest ticket consumer debt for most families is their mortgage. People are still refinancing mortgages....
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San Diego Union (Free subscription) | yesterday
Michael Lea came to San Diego State University’s newly established Corky McMillin Center for Real Estate with a résumé full of casualties he witnessed firsthand: Imperial Savings, a San Diego thrift that went belly-up in the ’80s; Freddie Mac, the secondary lender where he served as chief economist long before it went into receivership; and Countrywide Financial, taken over...
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Rantburg (Free subscription) | yesterday
Just as we saw in the last 21/2 years of the Bush administration, the Obama administration obviously has listened to respond, rather than listening to hear. The president dismisses his lack of success by claiming he has not communicated his message enough. Really? I don't care how many news conferences you have, how many speeches you give, or how much money you spend on public relations, if the dog...
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Calculated Risk (Free subscription) | 07/02/2010
From Kenneth Harney in the LA Times: 'Cash-in' refis growing in popularity In Freddie Mac's latest quarterly survey of refinancings, 33% of homeowners put cash into the deal to lower their mortgage balances, the highest percentage ever. By contrast, only 27% of refinancers took cash out -- the lowest percentage on record. ... there has been a steady rise since the fourth quarter of 2007, when cash-ins...
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Rantburg (Free subscription) | 07/02/2010
h/t: Doug Ross @ Journal (via Business Insider) 20 reasons we're in for a world of economic hurt. The most significant? Unemployment: businesses retract in fear over health tax mandates, cap-and-trade, card check, and heaven knows what else. In December, 6,130,000 workers had been unemployed for 27 weeks or more -- another Obama record. That's the highest total since they started keeping track in 1948....
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Boston Gal's Open Wallet (Free subscription) | 06/02/2010
The Washington Post article: Cash-in refinancing could help homeowners save reports that more people are taking money out of savings and using it to lower their mortgage principal balance when refinancing their loan. A bit shocking after so many years of Cash-out financing being so popular. "It almost sounds un-American," jokes Frank Nothaft, chief economist for mortgage giant Freddie Mac....
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neilsamsung | 09/11/2009
There is one word to describe the current housing market: optimistic. Despite months of hearing about a housing bubble and rising mortgage rates , the outlook for real estate is good. The worries of a bursting real estate bubble actually seem to be low among homeowners. In a national survey conducted by ING Direct, most individuals experienced some growth in their home value in the past 12 months....
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