mortgages
Banks Bounce Back from the Dead
Bank shares are back in style. Even after staggering losses were announced by the likes of Wachovia, which registered a $8.9 billion loss in the second quarter, and Washington Mutual, which posted a $3.3 billion stain of red ink in the same period, their shares traded up by 27 percent and 6 percent, respectively.
The share [...]
AIG Needs $12.5 Billion - Time to Pay Attention, Wall Street!
The stock market rumbled ahead on greased rails of delusion cheered by the glimmer of light perhaps flickering at the end of the credit crisis tunnel. But, the news Thursday afternoon signaled that the frail twinkling they thought meant hope may be an oncoming freight train instead.
After the closing bell Thursday, American International Group, the [...]
Get out the Bubbly?- by Greg Strid
Sales of existing homes and condos increased 2.9 percent
to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.03 million,
crawling past the 4.85 million low-ball concensus estimate
from America’s practitioners of the dismal science- sometimes
known as economists. So, is it time to bring out the bubbly?
This marks the strongest showing for existing home sales
since last October. But, sales are [...]
The credit bubble blew up in ‘05
Sales of new homes fell 2.8 percent from December’s levels, and the median price of an American castle dipped to $215,000, which amounts to a 15 percent decline from year ago levels. I am actually tired of writing about the continuing dismal saga that is this nation’s housing market.
I wrote a rather long-winded essay in [...]
2007: Naughty Banks Spanked- by Greg Strid
The meltdown in the market for subprime mortgage
securities is fast unraveling into a banking crisis that
threatens to drag the American economy into recession.
During the final stretch of the greatest housing bubble
in American history, financial institutions were tripping
over themselves to extend excessive amounts of credit
to prospective buyers that were lacking in both
qualification and responsibility.
No document loans, [...]
Banana Nation- by Greg Strid
Apparently, the United States is bent on achieving
third world investment grade status. This nation
already sports a trade deficit that would normally
cause the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to
handcuff the government’s fiscal policy. If we were
not a founding member of this institution, it would
probably force our inept leaders to increase taxes
and reduce spending (we might even have [...]
Deal of the Century- By Greg Strid
I read a distressing tale in the Star Ledger yesterday.
The article discussed the price-slashing that Red Bank,
New Jersey-based homebuilder Hovnanian engaged in
during its “Deal of the Century†blow-out sale in October.
It is common knowledge that the real estate market is
in a slump, and Hovnanian slashed prices on its cavernous
homes by as much as $100,000 to [...]
Citigroup smacked by reckless bets
Citigroup reported a 57% decline in profits for the third quarter of 2007. Apparently it received some nasty wounds from souring fixed-income investments and sinking consumer loans. This sad quarter reflected approximately $5.9 billion of write-offs; once light was shed upon faltering securities prices and proprietary trades gone terribly wrong.
Much of the damage inflicted upon [...]
Pending Home Sales Plunge- by Greg Strid
More bad news emerged on Wednesday from the
beleaguered housing market. The National Association
of Realtors reported that pending sales of existing
homes collapsed by 12.2 percent in July. The Pending
Home Sales Index, as it is known, is based on actual
contracts signed, and it swooned to register 89.9- the
lowest level since September 2001. To make matters
worse, interest rates [...]
The State of Housing- by Greg Strid
Housing starts clocked in at an annual rate of
1.474 million in May, down from 1.506 million
in April. And, this compares to a rate of 2.292
million at the peak of the construction boom in
January of 2006. That equates to a drop of 36%.
But, many in the investment community still
cling to the belief that the worst news [...]
