Congress passed the extension of the tax credit for first time home buyers and for buyers who have been in their homes for 5 years or more, and are buying anew. Originally, one needed to be under contract to buy a home by the past April 30, and close yesterday, June 30, in order ...
Category Archives: Bailout Plan
Keynes vs Austrian School Economics
With the stimulus bills and all the talk of a 'double dip' in the economy these days, there has been a lot of talk even among non-economists of the right or wrong ways to get us out of this recession and into a thriving economy again. And, you may or may not have heard of the ...
Loan Modifications Hard to Come By: The Reason
I recently met these two guys who are doing some very interesting and innovative video marketing in the mortgage industry. So HERE is a link to the video that they put out today. It explains how banks are making money on the mortgage loans transferred from all the banks that the FDIC shut down. In a ...
89% of MBS Funding Used
Since January, 2009 the Fed has been buying Mortgage Backed Securities - those bonds that determine mortgage rates. And we have seen a year with the lowest mortgage rates in literally decades as a result. The goal of the Federal Reserve's agency MBS program is to provide support to mortgage and housing markets and to foster improved conditions ...
Funding Caps Removed for Fannie and Freddie
You may recall that back in September '08 the federal government essentially nationalized the mortgage buying giants and backing them with $200 billion in guarantees against losses. Two days ago, on Christmas Eve, they got another federal gift: a removal of the caps to fund losses at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Now, they are ...
$8000 Tax Credit Extended, Expanded
The Senate voted this evening to extend the first time home buyer tax credit of $8000 to April 30, 2010. And, the income limits are increased from the current $75K for individuals, $150K for couples to $125K for individuals, $250K for couples. Good news for first time home buyers, and good news for the ...
Bonds Rally A Bit On Feds Announcement
Good news for those looking for a home to purchase, and a mortgage on that home. The Federal Reserve released the minutes from their last meeting today, and discussed the importance of EXPANDING asset purchases should outlook worsen. GOOD news for us, since the Fed's purchasing of Mortgage Backed Securities is the ONLY thing keeping mortgage rates ...
A Little Fun with the Housing Market – And the Guy Charged with Fixing It
The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
The Fed vs. Inflation
I saw this article on the Reuters Blog, by Rolfe Winkler. He chronicles quite succinctly the difficulty that the Fed has in trying to pump the economy up, while trying their best to stave off inflation, and potentially hyper-inflation that many economists fear is ...
Whitney Is Right On, Again.
Merideth Whitney was one of a small handfull of people - people with a microphone that Wall Street listens to - who accurately predicted the fall of the financial industry back in 2007. In my book, that's a feather in her cap. Another kudos goes out to her for this call, made yesterday. She is right ...