foreclosure

As the economy hits stall speed, it is only to be expected that corporate default rates are set to rise. In fact, they have risen already, doubling since 2007.Through last week, 42 companies, all but one based in the U.S., have defaulted,…

The Times of London is reporting that Treasury Secretary Paulson is looking to infuse Fannie and Freddie with $15 billion to help alleviate market turmoil. However they cite no sources in doing so.Moreover, the $75 billion offered by…

Dean Baker has been on record since at least 2002 as predicting both the mortgage bust and the Fannie-Freddie collapse."If housing prices fall back in line with the overall rate price level, as they have always done in the past, it will…

As I said in an earlier post, taking over Fannie and Freddie has been the plan all along for the Bush Administration. They have been planning this since at least March. Coincidentally, I have confirming evidence now. The New York Times…

Everyone should recall that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were forced to massively increase their already bloated balance sheet in the aftermath of the Bear Stearns collapse. It seems reasonable to me to assume that the two organizations did…

from Bloomberg News: Ambac Financial Group Inc., the world's second-biggest bond insurer, stopped trading on the New York Stock Exchange in a ``subpenny halt'' after its share price fell as low as $1.04. Ambac declined 3 cents, or 2.5…

Regional banks have not suffered the writedowns suffered by the major banks and investment banks due to their lack of derivatives exposure. But, loose lending standards are starting to bite. The LA Times has an excellent story out, which…

Argentina is on the brink again. Earlier today, I wrote about doubts regarding the country's official inflation statistics. The official statistics showed 9.1% inflation when many believe inflation is running 25% and more. Now, it…

On Monday, I asked, "which homebuilder will go bankrupt next?" The answer came on the very next day: Legend Homes, an Oregon-based homebuilder. The Oregonian newspaper reports:"Legend Homes, one of Oregon's largest home builders, filed…

The risks going forward for financial institutions and their capital base are large and growing. The blog CalculatedRisk has reported on yet another story that should give chills to bankers. This one is very significant: Chapter 7…