The Meeting of the Federal Reserver Board will adjourn at 2:15pm today, and as is customary, Fed officials will speak. Normally, we have waited to see if the Fed will lower (or raise) interest rates, and both stock and bond investors respond accordingly. They cannot ...
Monthly Archives: January 2009
100% Financing? How about Laid-back, Country Living.
I wrote a recent post about the possible return of Down Payment Assistance for FHA loans, with a bill that has been proposed in Congress. The Down Payment Assistance programs, administered through non-profits such as Nehemiah or Ameridream, allowed for the equivalent of 100% financing for home purchases. But, if you are looking for a ...
Inflation is Coming. Do You Know What to Do?
I have been saying for several months on this blog that Big Inflation is coming. And even several readers have commented back that everything seems deflationary, and wonder if I am seeing the same economy that they are. And I am, but I am looking ...
The Sun Has Set on Sunshine
As many of you know, I had a stint at Sunshine Mortgage, after the other company I was with for years, Amtrust, closed it's doors. Well, Sunshine also closed it's doors a couple weeks ago. And, several of my colleagues have been hired by ...
The Rate Roller Coaster
Rates have been rising somewhat dramitically over the past 7 days. But then, every time rates hit the lows, they have quickly shot up like a rocket, and tend to then float down like a feather. Be ready for a dip over the next few ...
The Bailout Plan May Change – Or Revert Back to the Original Intent
This article in the NY Times quotes Obama's new Treasure Secretary, Timothy Geithner as saying the bailout plan "favored big financial institutions over small businesses and struggling families" and needs reform. I couldn't agree more. The original intent of the bailout plan, if coupled with ...
Could Down Payment Assistance Make a Comeback?
I recently posted this on a national blog: Down Payment Assistance for years made FHA loans into 100% financing for lots of buyers. The 3% down payment requirement (now 3.5%) was paid by the seller instead of the buyer. The seller would pay it to a 3rd party non-profit, along with a processing fee, and ...
Reduce or Consolidate Debt
In England, some credit cards are now charging 46% interest. Wow. I will have to research to be certain, or maybe a reader knows and wants to post a comment, but I think in the US there are limits on the amount of interest that credit card companies can charge. But it is somewhere in ...
The 2009 Forecast
The folks at iTulip have come up with a very interesting recap to last year and an attempt at a forecast for 2009. As any armchair economist can foretell, 2009 will not be a banner year for the economy, neither macro nor for a lot ...
GM: Carmaker or Bank?
On Christmas Eve, GMAC - the finance arm of General Motors - was given a $6B bailout. Nice. What was not as widely reported is that it was also given the status of a "Bank holding company". Remember that American Express, the credit card ...