Best Time to Bury a Story? X-Mas Eve The U.S. Treasury said it would provide capital as needed to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac over the next three years, effectively opening its checkbook to the government-controlled companies in a bid to reassure investors in their debt. Treasury announced the moves in a Christmas Eve press...Read More
“Surge” or “Stay the Course?” Depleted and demoralized by the huge sums it has already spent (and arguably squandered) trying to stabilize a still-hostile environment, the U.S. must decide its next move. The three choices are to: 1) double down (“surge”); 2) “stay the course”; or 3) declare victory and get out. U.S. forces in...Read More
Hemorrhaging at FHA FHA runs low on cash, fueling bailout concerns. –Headline, The Boston Globe (11/13/09) Here we go again. First come the rumors of funny accounting and huge, buried losses. Then come the vehement denials from company executives. Finally, the truth comes out: the critics are vindicated, the losses are toted up, the discredited...Read More
“Airline Pricing” Spreads to Mortgages Both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac say they are tacking on extra fees to counter higher risks and losses associated with certain loan products, buyer equity stakes and credit scores . . . However, real estate agents, mortgage bankers and brokers are incensed at the new round of fee increases,...Read More
Scorning the Financial Gods — And Paying the Price After the tech bubble, the healthy and natural progression dictated we enter recession. Alan Greenspan never allowed us to take that medicine, opting instead to inject the economy full of fiscal and monetary drugs. The resulting imbalances steadily built through the years and arrived at our...Read More
