Bottom's Up: This Real-Estate Rout May Be Short-Lived
[Barron’s Online]
Nearly Half-Million Foreclosures in First Half of 2008: Report
[Housing Wire]
Almost a half-million Americans lost their homes to foreclosure in the first half of the year, nearly double the same time a year ago. That’s six of every 1,000 households nationwide repossessed by the bank following foreclosure so far in 2008, according to a real estate information service…
It starts with the oversupply of homes, which is causing prices to plummet. Falling prices are leading to more foreclosures, as homeowners have difficulty refinancing their mortgages or selling their houses. Banks are reluctant to lend freely at a time when home values keep sinking and defaults keep rising. That is crimping housing demand further and leading to more price drops and defaults.
Foreclosures Up 53% Since June 2007
[The Big Picture]
Will Paulson's Proposal Revitalize Subprime Lending?
[Dealbreaker]
It's often said that regulators are always solving the last problem while the next one creeps up on the markets unaware. That notion was certainly tempting yesterday as everyone who's anyone in market regulation gathered at that conference near Washington, DC. But we couldn't help thinking that despite speeches from the Fed's Ben Bernanke, Treasury's Hank Paulson and JP Morgan's Jamie Dimon, the folks there didn't even get as far as addressing what led us to the current financial crisis.
