US Mortgage Markets Mid-August 2008

Foreclosures Climb in Second Quarter
[Builder Magazine: Special Report: Industry In Crisis]
Final approval of the housing bill by the Senate and President George W. Bush can't come fast enough for homeowners desperate to keep their houses and builders struggling to compete against distressed property pricing. According to data released today by RealtyTrac, foreclosure filings occurred on nearly 740,000 properties in 2008's second quarter, a rise of 14 percent compared to the previous quarter. Year-over-year, such activity stands 121% higher than the second quarter of 2007.

Q2 Foreclosures Double
[The Big Picture]

A Primer On The Mortgage Bailout Bill
[Dealbreaker]

Fannie Mae Ends Alt-A

Fannie Mae loses $2.3 billion in quarter as defaults rise
[Local News from San Jose Mercury News via Yahoo! News]
Fannie Mae swung to a second-quarter loss that was more than triple what Wall Street expected as conditions in the housing market continued to deteriorate, forcing the mortgage finance giant to make bold cutbacks that will send shock waves through the mortgage market.

Housing Wire: A Firestorm for Freddie
One day before mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac (FRE: 5.94 +7.03%) is scheduled to report second quarter earnings, a Tuesday report at the New York Times has managed to stir up the latest controversy surrounding the GSE, suggesting that CEO Richard Syron ignored advice from internal advisors regarding financing risky loans.

Housing Wire: Almost Half of 2006 Vintage Now Underwater

Calculated Risk: Freddie: Alt-A and Default by Year

“Subprime Was The Tip Of The Iceberg”.... “Prime Will Be Far Bigger In Its Impact.”

Mortgage Markets I

Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac: End of Illusions
[The Economist]
A series of articles on the crisis gripping the world economy and global markets starts where it all began—with America’s deeply flawed system of housing finance

Housing Package Deal Reached
[WSJ.com: What's News US]

House and Senate leaders have largely hammered out a compromise deal on a mammoth housing package that would permit the government to bolster Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in an emergency, overhaul supervision of the housing-finance giants and allow the government to insure up to $300 billion in refinanced mortgages.