Is There a Private Sector Solution to U.S. Health Care Mess? [Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway (“Berkshire”), or any other entity referenced. Edina Realty is a subsidiary of Berkshire.] No, I don’t know how to reform the United States’ tangled,...Read More
Make That Four Theories (#4. Overreaction) In my post on Thursday, “National Moratorium on Foreclosures,” I puzzled over the seeming disconnect between the stocks of publicly-traded title insurance companies (barely affected), and the supposed tidal wave of claims headed their way due to defective mortgage foreclosures. I posited three possible explanations: 1) the aforementioned companies...Read More
And Then There Were Two Goldman and Morgan were assisted in a rather violent industry consolidation. They remain, more than ever, officially “too big to fail” (TBTF), so they know they can always request tax funds directly from the Treasury Department and elevate risks above competitors. With their enormous profits they can buy out any...Read More
Barry Ritholtz Talk I’m in NY the next few days, mainly to serve as a chaperone to a few kids (at least they’re my own!). However, I did manage to break away to hear Barry Ritholtz, of The Big Picture blog (see, my Blog Roll) at a midtown Barnes & Noble. Or, more accurately, see...Read More
List Price: $17,900; Sold Price: $85,100 Sure, it was a mess. But this beat-up, bank-owned home was in a prime location — just a couple blocks from the Mississippi, in Minneapolis’ Longfellow neighborhood (the land alone had a tax assessed value of $44k). So it wasn’t surprising to see this home sell quickly. However, even...Read More
