3/05/10 | Jobless
rate holds steady, raising hope of recovery
The American
economy lost fewer jobs than expected last month and the unemployment
rate remained steady at 9.7 percent, the Labor Department reported
Friday, bolstering hopes that a still-tenuous recovery may be
starting to gain momentum.
NYTimes
news>
3/02/10 | Dodd
proposes consumer financial protections overseen by the Fed
In an effort
to secure Republican support for an overhaul of financial regulations,
the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee on Monday proposed
giving the Federal Reserve responsibility for protecting consumers
from abusive and deceptive financial products.
NYTimes
news>
3/02/10 | Deal
near on banking rules
Key senators
were close to a deal today on legislation to overhaul financial
regulations, people familiar with the matter said, bringing the
U.S. a step closer to sweeping changes to the way banks interact
with consumers and the markets alike.
WSJ
News >
3/01/10 | Vice
chair of Fed to retire
The vice
chairman of the Federal Reserve announced on Monday that he would
retire in June, giving President Obama an expanded opportunity
to put his stamp on the central bank as it faces a difficult balance
between heading off inflation and addressing high levels of unemployment.
NYTimes
news>
2/26/10 | TARP
stigma is curtailing bank lending, says Treasury
Assistant
Treasury Secretary Herbert Allison plans to tell lawmakers that
facilitating financial stability between banks and small businesses
will have to be done outside of the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
WSJ
news>
2/24/10 | Bernanke:
interest rates to remain low for an extended period
In presenting
the Fed’s semiannual monetary report to Congress, Mr. Bernanke
did not waver from the Jan. 27 statement of the central bank’s
key policy making board, or from a Feb. 10 statement in which
he explained to Congress the strategies for gradually reducing
the vast sums that banks hold in reserves at the Fed.
NYTimes
news>
2/23/10 | California
home sales down versus prior January; prices up 15%
Home sales
decreased 10.6 percent in January in California compared with
the same period a year ago, while the median price of an existing
home rose 15 percent, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
(C.A.R.) reported today.
CAR
press release>
2/22/10 | Already
challenged, FDIC braces for new wave of bank failures
The Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation is bracing for a new wave of bank
failures that could cost the agency many billions of dollars and
further strain its finances.
NYTimes
news>
2/19/10 | Foreclosures
slowing, says Mortgage Bankers Association
A smaller
percentage of mortgages were delinquent and the rate of those
entering the foreclosure process slowed in the fourth quarter,
possible signs that the foreclosure crisis that has gripped many
of the nation's housing markets is finally starting to ease, a
trade group reported on Friday.
Marketwatch
news>
2/19/10 | Landlords
catch a break
Because
real-estate prices have fallen much faster than rents, the math
of buying a rental has actually improved substantially in most
parts of the country.
WSJ
news>
2/18/10 | Fed
raises discount rate from .5% to .75%
The Federal
Reserve surprised financial markets Thursday by lifting the lending
rate it charges banks, one of the most potent signs yet that the
central bank is focused on dismantling the emergency policies
crafted to battle the financial crisis.
Marketwatch
news>
2/13/10 | Stock
market volatility persists due to Euro uncertainty
U.S. stocks
are likely to continue their choppy ride in the days ahead, as
investors maintain fixation on events overseas and fluctuations
in the currency markets amid the usual U.S. earnings reports and
economic data.
Marketwatch
news>
2/11/10 | Oversight
panel: commercial mortgage failures threaten system
Over the
next few years, a wave of commercial real-estate loan failures
could threaten America's financial system, and in the worst case
scenario, hundreds of additional community and midsize banks could
face insolvency, a congressional watchdog group said Thursday.
Marketwatch
news>
2/09/10 | New
definition of 'good faith' in mortgage lending
U.S. stocks
are likely to continue their choppy ride in the days ahead, as
investors maintain fixation on events overseas and fluctuations
in the currency markets amid the usual U.S. earnings reports and
economic data.
NYTimes
news>
2/06/10 | Odds
of being disabled? 80%, 31% or 10%, depending on who's calculating
Welcome
to the disability insurance funhouse, where the odds of an injury
or illness that would keep you out of work for more than three
months range wildly, depending on where you look for guidance.
NYTimes
news>
2/05/10 | Senator
Dodd says financial system overhaul talks have met an impasse
Senate
Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.) said he
had reached an "impasse" with Sen. Richard Shelby (R., Ala.) over
new financial regulations, and has told aides to begin drafting
their own version of legislation.
WSJ
news>
2/05/10 | Labor
market shows signs of reawakening in new data
The American
unemployment rate dipped from 10 percent to 9.7 percent in January,
the Labor Department reported Friday, buoying hopes that the worst
job market in at least a quarter-century is finally improving.
NYTimes
news>
2/03/10 | January
home-supply rise unexpectedly modest
The number
of homes for sale rose less than expected in January; analysts
had expected foreclosure activity to cause a greater increase
in the inventory of homes on the market.
WSJ
news>
2/02/10 | Contracts
to buy homes rose slightly in December
The number
of people preparing to buy a home rose slightly in December, a
sign that home sales could be stabilizing heading into the spring
buying season, according to the National Association of Realtors.
NYTimes
news>
2/02/10 | Asset-based
lending grows in popularity
'Last-Resort'
Finance Option Gains Ground as Traditional Sources of Capital
Dry Up; Cashing in on 'Crimson Tide'
WSJ
news>
2/01/10 | Curveball
alters talks on Wall Street reform
President
Obama’s proposals to tax and curb the activities of Wall Street
have thrown an unpredictable element into the debate over financial
regulatory reform. They also have touched off an intensive new
round of lobbying and raised questions in Congress over whether
his plan will add urgency or merely bog things down.
NYTimes
news>
1/29/10 | Some
see hints of a bottom in real estate
Home sales
activity improves in Western cities, with big government boost.
MSNBC
news>
1/29/10 | Economic
growth in last quarter fastest in six years
The United
States economy grew at its fastest pace in over six years at the
end of 2009, but a sluggish job market is still souring economists
on the sustainability of the recovery.
NY
Times news>
1/28/10 | FHA
tightens lending standards
SINCE lenders
started tightening underwriting standards in 2008, many people
have flocked to mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration,
which serves borrowers who have poor credit and little money for
down payments.
NYTimes
news>
1/28/10 | Bernanke
confirmed for second term
70-30 vote
is narrowest margin ever for a Fed chair.
Business
Week news>
1/28/10 | Papework
eased for loan modification program
The Obama
administration is trying to simplify the paperwork for people
seeking lower home-mortgage payments in an effort to avert more
foreclosures.
WSJ
news>
1/28/10 | Obama
calls for limits on banks' activities
Embracing
Depression-era policy and populist politics, a combative President
Barack Obama chastised big Wall Street banks Thursday and urgently
called for limits on their size and investments to stave off a
new economic meltdown.
CBS
news>
1/21/10 | Opposition
grows to Bernanke second term
The confirmation
of Ben S. Bernanke to a second four-year term as chairman of the
Federal Reserve ran into further trouble on Friday as senators
Dodd and Reid joined senators Boxer and Feingold in saying they
would vote against it.
NY
Times news>
1/21/10 | Obama's
move to limit banks draws skepticism
President
Obama wants to cut down to size those too-big-to-fail banks. But
his vow on Thursday to rewrite the rules of Wall Street left many
questions unanswered, including the big one: Would this really
prevent another financial crisis?
NY
Times news>
1/20/10 | Banks
see levelling off of bad consumer loans
Since the
financial crisis hit, banks have chipped away at the mountain
of mortgages and credit card debt looming over struggling Americans.
At last, those efforts appear to be paying off, at least for the
banks.
NY
Times news>
1/19/10 | Souring
mortgages, weak market force FHA to walk tightrope
David Stevens
bought his first home almost 25 years ago, paying just 3% down
with a loan backed by the Federal Housing Administration. "If
it weren't for the FHA, I wouldn't have gotten that home." Now,
as FHA commissioner, Mr. Stevens has to decide how many others
to let through that door.
Wall
St. Journal news>
1/19/10 | Bernanke,
hoping to quiet critics, seeks review of Fed's AIG bailout
Mr. Bernanke,
in a letter to the acting comptroller general Gene Dodaro, said
the Fed would make available to the auditor, the Government Accountability
Office, all documents and personnel necessary to conduct the review.
NY
Times news>
1/15/10 | Call
for more regulation at financial crisis inquiry
FBI said
to be investigating 2,800 cases of suspected mortgage fraud.
NY
Times news>
1/15/10 | Inflation
in check, but spending power waning nonetheless
Even as
interest rates in the United States remain near zero and the government
pumps billions into the economy, inflation appears to be largely
in check, the Labor Department said on Friday.
NY
Times news>
1/15/10 | US
mortgage program helped 7% of borrowers who applied for relief
The administration’s
mortgage relief plan helped only 7 percent of borrowers who signed
up last year, the Treasury Department said Friday, results that
underscored the government’s struggle to stem the foreclosure
crisis.
NY
Times news>
1/14/10 | Federal
Reserve defends its turf
"The Federal
Reserve's ability to effectively address actual and potential
financial crises depends critically on the information, expertise
and powers that it gains by virtue of being both a bank supervisor
and a central bank," according to a letter sent by the Fed to
the Senate Banking Committee. "These benefits of the Federal Reserve's
supervisory role proved particularly important during the financial
crisis that emerged in 2007."
Marketwatch
news>
1/14/10 | Bankers
face tough questions about the financial crisis
The heads
of Wall Street’s largest banks faced skeptical questions on Wednesday
about executive pay and the failures of regulation from the bipartisan
commission established to examine the causes of the biggest downturn
since the Depression.
New
York Times news>
1/13/10 | Nation's
economists believe interest rates fueled housing bubble
Fed chief
Ben Bernanke has maintained that Fed policy did not contribute
to the housing bubble and subsequent crash, but a new Wall Street
Journal survey says that the nation's economists disagree..
CBS
news>
1/12/10 | Bankers
say sorry - sort of
As America
recovers from the worst financial crisis since the Depression,
some of the nation’s chief executives are offering that rarest
of statements — an apology. But often, their words are so carefully
parsed, scrubbed by lawyers or picked over by public relations
professionals that it is unclear just how much mea is in their
culpa.
New
York Times news>
1/4/10 | TARP:
No good deed goes unpunished
Only months
after it was started, the U.S. program designed to purge debts
of no immediate discernable value from the balance sheets of troubled
banks has helped transform the frozen debt into a money-maker
as the bonds have rallied.
BusinessWeek
news>
1/4/10 | Bank
credit may flow later 2010, Fed's Elizabeth Duke says
In a speech
to a business group in Raleigh, N.C., Duke said that nearly all
of the bankers she has talked to in recent weeks have said that
their business plans for 2010 are "based on achieving increases
in loan volumes."
Marketwatch
news>
12/24/09 | Banks
bundled bad debt, bet against it, and won
Investigators
are trying to determine whether banks like Goldman Sachs intentionally
sold their clients especially risky mortgage-linked assets --
all the while investing heavily on bets they would fail.
NYTimes
news>
12/22/09 | Obama
pledges to 'cut red tape' to help community banks
Meeting
with 12 executives representing small banks, President Barack
Obama vowed Tuesday to press federal agencies to "cut some of
the regulatory red tape" that may be limiting the ability of community
bankers to lend more as the economy recovers.
Marketwatch
news>
12/19/09 | Geithner
says TARP repayments won't hurt bank lending ability
Treasury
Secretary Timothy Geithner said U.S. banks aren’t hurting their
ability to lend as they repay the Troubled Asset Relief Program
and back away from government assistance.
Bloomberg
news>
12/18/09 | Geithner,
real estate execs meet to discuss industry's woes
Treasury
Secretary Timothy Geithner met Tuesday with about a dozen commercial
real estate industry executives and lobbyists to discuss the industry’s
continuing problems in the weak economy, sources familiar with
the session told Fox Business.
Fox
Business>
12/18/09 | Treasury
says private capital will boost lending
Some critics
have argued that the U.S. allowed banks to escape the government's
grip too quickly and without any agreement to boost lending. Treasury
Secretary Tim Geithner said that by getting out of the way, the
government would enable banks to make more loans.
Wall
Street Journal news>
12/12/09 | Rates
are low, but banks balk at refinancing
Mortgage
rates in the United States have dropped to their lowest levels
since the 1940s, thanks to a trillion-dollar intervention by the
federal government. Yet the banks that once handed out home loans
freely are imposing such stringent requirements that many homeowners
who might want to refinance are effectively locked out.
NY
Times news>
12/11/09 | House
approves financial regulation overhaul
The U.S.
House of Representatives approved the biggest changes in financial
regulation since the Great Depression on Friday, marking a win
for the Obama administration and congressional Democrats.
NY
Times news>
12/10/09 | Goldman
alters bonus policy to quell uproar
Moving
to quell the uproar over the return of big paydays on Wall Street,
Goldman Sachs announced on Thursday that its top executives would
forgo cash bonuses this year and that it would give shareholders
a say in determining compensation.
NY
Times news>
12/07/09 | US
forecasts smaller loss from bailout of banks
The Treasury
Department expects to recover all but $42 billion of the $370
billion it has lent to ailing companies since the financial crisis
began last year, with the portion lent to banks actually showing
a slight profit, according to a new Treasury report.
NY
Times news>
12/04/09 | Jobless
peak may have passed, according to one indicator
The peak
in unemployment in the United States has probably passed, according
to one economic indicator that proved reliable in all 10 previous
recessions since World War II.
NY
Times news>
12/04/09 | Dollar
stronger, oil down, possibly indicating the worst is over; Wall
Street not convinced
Wall Street
stocks gave up their early gains on Friday, as a better-than-expected
jobless report failed to convince investors that the worst was
over for the American economy. Still, while companies are still
shedding workers, the pace was the best since the recession began
in December 2007, and suggested to some analysts that the economy
is headed toward recovery.
NY
Times news>
12/01/09 | Real
estate predictions for 2010 from CNBC
Plus, grading
last year's predictions.
CNBC
news>
11/28/09 | 30-year
loan rates match record low
Average
rates for 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell this week, matching
a record low set last spring. Rates are more than a full percentage
point below what they were a year ago, Freddie Mac said Wednesday.
Washington
Post news>
11/27/09 | US
banks less exposed in Dubai than Europe's
U.S. banks
are probably less exposed than European rivals to a potential
debt default by Dubai World, but a lack of transparency and the
interconnectedness of the modern financial system make it difficult
to know which institutions are ultimately exposed, analysts said
this week.
MarketWatch
news>
11/23/09 | Bloomberg:
Existing home sales jump as prices fall
Lower prices,
pending expiration of first-time-homebuyers' tax credit help drive
a 10% jump in home sales in October -- reaching their highest
level since 2007.
Bloomberg
news>
11/13/09 | Bernanke
says 'headwinds' facing economy warrant continued low interest
rates
Federal
Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said economic “headwinds” of
reduced bank lending and a weak labor market will probably restrain
the pace of the U.S. economic recovery, warranting continued low
borrowing costs.
Bloomberg
news>
11/13/09 | Realtors
expect home prices to rise about 4% in 2010
Home prices
are expected to grow modestly next year and sales will keep rising
as the housing market continues to recover from the worst downturn
since the Great Depression, the National Association of Realtors
said Friday.
Mercury
News news>
11/13/09 | Commercial
real estate continues to suffer from credit crunch
A severe
ongoing credit crunch in commercial real estate lending is hampering
recovery, according to a commercial market update at the 2009
REALTORS® Conference & Expo by the group's chief economist, Lawrence
Yun.
NAR
news>
11/12/09 | Geithner
says US committed to strong dollar
Treasury
Secretary Timothy F. Geithner offered fresh reassurances to Asian
nations on Thursday that the Obama administration was committed
to a strong dollar and to actions aimed at bolstering its value.
NY
Times news>
11/11/09 | Bloomberg
reports commercial lending crisis 'looming'
“A crisis
of unprecedented proportions is approaching” in the U.S. commercial
real-estate market, according to Randall Zisler, chief executive
officer of Zisler Capital Partners LLC.
Bloomberg
news>
10/31/09 | Madoff
explains how he concealed fraud
In a wide-ranging
jailhouse interview with SEC Inspector General David Kotz, convicted
swindler Bernard Madoff explained how he managed to conceal his
multi-billion-dollar fraud operation.
CBS
news>
10/27/09 | Case
Shiller index signals real estate market improvement
Home prices
inched higher in August, the third-consecutive monthly increase
and the latest evidence that the hard-hit housing market is recovering
from the recession.
BizJournals
news>
10/26/09 | Regulator
states he sees big reform ahead for banking
U.S. bankers need to prepare for sweeping financial regulation changes that are gaining momentum in Congress, Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan said on Monday.
Reuters
news>
10/21/09 | Fed
sees continued signs of brightening economy
Regional
economies in most parts of the country are on the mend, largely
because home sales are rebounding and factories and manufacturers
are stirring back to life, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday.
NY
Times news>
10/19/09 | Bernanke
urges US deficit reduction
Fed chair
says US needs to take steps to reduce its growing budget deficit
-- and that China, other countries need to encourage more consumer
spending to foster growth.
MSNBC
news>
10/15/09 | Greenspan
says US should consider breaking up large banks
Too big
to fail is just too big, says former Fed chair..
Bloomberg
news>
10/9/09 | First-time
jobless claims decline
The Labor
Department said on Thursday that first-time claims for unemployment
insurance dropped last week to a seasonally adjusted 521,000,
from the previous week’s upwardly revised total of 554,000.
NY
Times news>
10/9/09 | US
trade deficit unexpectedly improved in August
The U.S.
trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in August as exports climbed
to the highest level of the year and oil imports plunged.
Bloomberg
news>
10/7/09 | Debt
market paralysis deepens credit crunch
The continued
disarray in debt-securitization markets, which in recent years
were the source of roughly 60 percent of all credit in the United
States, is making loans scarce and threatening to slow the economic
recovery.
NY
Times news>
10/6/09 | Support
growing among economists for tax credit to spur hiring
The idea
of a tax credit for companies that create new jobs, something
the federal government has not tried since the 1970s, is gaining
support among economists and Washington officials grappling with
the highest unemployment in a generation.
NYTimes
news>
10/2/09 | Pew
study : impact of higher capital requirements on bank lending
would be minimal
Higher
capital requirements on the U.S. banking industry could have less
of an impact on bank lending than has been widely expected, according
to a new study from Pew Research.
DSnews
news>
10/2/09 | Boston
Fed chair: current policy is on the right path
Current
U.S. policy is on the right path, but the economy and financial
markets need more time to recover before the Federal Reserve can
start to withdraw its accommodative monetary policy, Boston Federal
Reserve President Eric Rosengren said Friday.
NASDAQ
news>
10/1/09 | Fed
balance sheet shrinks .8%, signalling decreased demand for emergency
funds by banks
The Federal
Reserve’s balance sheet contracted for the first time in eight
weeks as lending to banks in the U.S. and abroad declined.
Bloomberg
news>
9/29/09 | Key
housing index shows biggest increase since 2005
The S&P/Case-Schiller
Index of new home prices rose 1.2% in July, 2009 over the prior
month -- the biggest increase since 2005.
Bloomberg
news>
9/29/09 | In
Madoff's wake, SEC told to revamp inquiries
Two reports
released by the SEC's inspector general, H. David Kotz, recommended
dozens of specific changes to the way the agency evaluates tips,
trains investigators and documents examinations of securities
firms.
New
York Times news>
9/29/09 | Opinion
leaders explain views on executive compensation and short-term
thinking and their role in the financial crisis
The Fed
is crafting a proposal that would allow it to police pay practices
at big banks. But how did pay get so out of whack, and how did
it contribute to the crisis? Two contributors to a recent statement
from the Aspen Institute, which argues that the root is short-termism,
share their views in a WSJ interview.
Wall
Street Journal news>
9/28/09 | Big
merger deals suggest renewed confidence
In a signal
that confidence — and perhaps a bit of executive swagger
— may be returning to the business world, two large mergers
were announced on Monday, adding to a flurry of deals in the last
month.
New
York Times news>
9/23/09 | Fed
releases statement following September meeting
In its
statement following its Open Market Committee meeting, the Fed
reiterates its expectation that inflation will main a low risk,
and reaffirms its other efforts to foster economic recovery.
Wall
Street Journal news>
9/17/09 | Some
outflow from money market funds as government guarantee ends
The federal
guarantee supporting money market fund investments expires 9/18/09;
some outflows from money funds seen this week may be attributable
to the expiration.
Reuters
news>
9/16/09 | Stocks,
commodities rise on hopes for economy's recovery
Speculation
that the economy is recovering has driven stocks and commodities
like gold higher over the past several days.
Bloomberg
news>
915/09 | Bernanke
says recession "very likely over"
Unemployment
likely to continue to rise, however.
MSNBC.com
news>
9/03/09 | Judges'
frustration grows with mortgage servicers
As they
wait for an answer on whether they might qualify for modification,
homeowners are succumbing to foreclosure and bankruptcy proceedings
and winding up in courts -- at times in front of judges who are
also frustrated. .
New
York Times news>
9/03/09 | Legendary
LBO firm turn to vulture funds in face of credit crunch
The biggest
private-equity firms, shut out of the market for leveraged buyouts
as banks curtail lending, are turning to bankruptcy courts to
make acquisitions.
Bloomberg
news>
8/21/09 | Securities'
association releases annual "top ten investor traps"
list
Leveraged
funds, which aim to amplify returns by buying futures and options,
top the list, which also includes firms that promise to "fix"
your home mortgage.
USA
today news>
8/21/09 | Banks
reduce borrowing from emergency Fed program
Banks borrowed
less over the past week from a Federal Reserve emergency lending
program designed to combat the financial crisis, a sign the institutions
are having an easier time getting credit from private markets.
AP
news>
8/21/09 | Bernanke
says global recession nearing its end
At a symposium
of central bankers and academics, the Fed chairman said the economy
is beginning to emerge from recession following swift, aggressive
action from central banks and governments.
B
loomberg news>
8/17/09 | With
credit tight, Fed extends TALF program
With banks
limiting the availability of auto, student and other consumer
loans, the Federal Reserve said Monday it would extend a program
intended to help spur more lending at low rates.
AP
news>
8/17/09 | Fed
says credit crunch likely to persist
With delinquency
rates rising to a record high, banks were still clamping down
on lending to businesses and consumers over the past three months,
and they said they planned to keep their credit standards tight
for at least a year, the Federal Reserve reported Monday.
Marketwatch
news>
8/06/09 | Economists
see modest positive impact from stimulus
Even as
the Obama administration braces for another grim report about
job losses on Friday, economists say that the president’s $787
billion stimulus package has helped blunt the downturn in limited
but discernible ways.
NYTimes
news>
8/03/09 | Foreclosures
stabilize in key states
Foreclosure
rates in three states hit hard by the housing bust — CA,
AZ and FL — stabilized in June, offering hope, according
to an AP economic analysis covering more than 3,100 U.S. counties.
AP
news>
8/02/09 | Welcome
to the bottom: housing begins slow rebound
By every
measure, except foreclosures, the housing market has stabilized
and many areas are recovering, according to a spate of data released
in the past two weeks.
SFGate
news>
7/31/09 | Considering
a Roth IRA conversion? Waiting until 2010 might make sense
Deciding
whether to convert a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA involves tax
trade-offs. People whose modified adjusted gross income (MAGI)
in 2009 will be $100,000 or less face a second decision. If you
convert, should you do it now or wait until 2010?
Yahoo!
Finance news>
7/20/09 | New
report details how banks have used TARP funds
While some
residential mortgage lending has occurred, banks are also reserving
TARP allotments as a reserve against bad loans amid fears of an
ongoing recession.
Bizjournals
news>
7/15/09 | PPiP
must be sold to public ... literally
Angelo
Gordon was one of nine managers selected by the U.S. government
last week to participate in the Public Private Investment Program,
under which the government will back investment managers’ purchases
of toxic assets from banks. Each firm has 12 weeks to raise at
least $500 million in capital to get started.
WSJ
news>
7/09/09 | With
mortgage assets less toxic, other troubles hobble banks
After a
government bailout of $700 billion+ to deal with toxic mortgages
and troubled mortgage-backed securities, the big threat to the
economy is now believed to be troubled credit card, commercial
real estate and commercial industrial debt.
AP
news>
7/08/09 | Treasury
picks nine money managers for PPIP
The Treasury
Department has identified nine firms who will raise as much as
$10B as public managers of the toxic asset disposal plan.
Bloomberg
news>
7/08/09 | Treasury
devising "Plan C" to stave off lingering economic threats
As the
financial system tries to right itself after its near-collapse
last fall, the Treasury Department has assembled a team to examine
what could yet bring it down and has identified several trouble
spots that could threaten the still-fragile lending industry.
Washington
Post news>
7/02/09 | Obama
administration expands mortgage rescue program
The Obama
administration is expanding the number of borrowers who can refinance
home loans under its housing-rescue program.
WSJ
news>
6/18/09 | What
the proposed new financial regulations could mean to you.
The
Wall Street Journal offers their analysis of the personal
finance effects of proposed reforms.
WSJ
news>
6//10/09 | Subprime
lenders could profit again
Some of
the same lenders who profited on the up side of the mortgage boom-bust
cycle have plans to gain from devalued assets, prompting criticism.
SFGate
news>
6/08/09 | Reverse
mortgages: next subprime crisis?
A US regulator
warns that reverse mortgages could be the next financial time-bomb
-- and notes that they disproportionately target the same vulnerable
consumers as sub-prime mortgages.
CNN
news>
6/01/09 | Could
California real estate be near a bottom?
California
was one of the first states to feel the burst of the housing bubble.
Does that mean it will be among the first to see a housing recovery?
Business
Week news>
5/28/09 | Seeking
a simple formula for PPIP
The simplicity
of the TARP program may have encouraged to its abuse, but officials
know that maintaining the simple approach for the upcoming PPIP
is essential to its chances for success.
New
York Times news>
5/27/09 | US
mortgage applications sink as rates rise
Treasury
is aiming to launch toxic asset purchases during June -- sooner
than many expected -- to help ailing banks raise capital, and
top money managers say they can raise private funds in time.
Reuters
news>
5/08/09 | Funds
say they're ready to purchase "toxic" assets
Treasury
is aiming to launch toxic asset purchases during June -- sooner
than many expected -- to help ailing banks raise capital, and
top money managers say they can raise private funds in time.
Reuters
news>
4/28/09 | More
people turning to self-directed IRAs
A leading
Utah banker believes devaluing of 401(k)s has prompted retirement
investors to take more control.
SL
Tribune news>
4/17/09 | Latest
consumer sentiment survey shows big jump
Early April's
Reuters/Michigan survey of consumer sentiment jumped to 61.9,
beating economists' expectations significantly..
Forbes
news>
4/08/09 | Real
estate industry pushes for longer TALF terms to aid commercial
borrowers
5-year
repayment term eyed as industry seeks to support commercial real
estate borrowers with more re-financing options.
Wall
Street Journal news>
4/08/09 | Bailout
as investment opportunity for small investors?
Obama administration
is encouraging several large investment companies to create the
financial-crisis equivalent of war bonds: bailout funds.
New
York Times news>
3/28/09 | The
fight over who will guard your nest egg
A power
struggle in Washington will shape how investors get the advice
they need.
Wall
Street Journal commentary/analysis>
3/23/09 | Did
your 529 plan blow up on you?
It hurts
to lose your own money in the market, but losing the money you
set aside for your children is agonizing. A look at what has happened
to many of the biggest state 529 plans.
Wall
Street Journal commentary/analysis>
3/23/09 | Geithner:
My plan for bad bank assets
In a Wall
Street Journal column, Secretary Geithner outlines his perspective
on the crisis and broad strokes of his plan.
Wall
Street Journal news>
3/10/09 | Our
biggest fear is fear itself
American
consumers are in better shape than you think, says Newsweek columnist.
Newsweek
news >
2/25/09 | Economists
see deeper pain, followed by gain
Group forecasts
deeper recession, improvement by year end, stronger economy in
2010.
CNN
news >
2/18/09 | Treasury:
Lending flat despite bailout
Banks that
received bailout money have not been lending it, says a Treasury
Department study.
InvestmentNews
news >
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