Own vs. Rent files government housing policy

CNBC - Diana Olick - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage giants under government conservatorship, together owned 182,212 foreclosed properties as of the end of September.

What if Obama and Krugman ran a business?

Forbes - Kyle Smith - This winter has brought a useful tutorial on capitalism courtesy of the media, the Democratic party and President Obama. They have illustrated for us how the depredations of profit-seekers crush American aspirations.

Mortgage rates fall to record low

Calculated Risk - Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey® (PMMS®), showing average mortgage rates dropping to new all-time record lows as data on economic growth fell short of market projections. All products in the PMMS survey, except the 1-Year ARM, averaged...

The secret of American health care

Slate - Darshak Sanghavi - At the end of 2011, the remarkable innovator Donald Berwick was forced to resign as the recess-appointed head of Medicare and Medicaid, a casualty of Republican-led opposition to his confirmation. An outspoken fan of the United Kingdom’s single-payer system, Berwick was ...

Pension income guaranteed? Yes, but…

Time Moneyland - Dan Kadlec - As if we needed another reminder that our safety net is threadbare, AMR Corp., the American Airlines parent company, says it will shut down pensions covering 130,000 employees and retirees as part of a reorganization in bankruptcy court. A government backstop is in plac...

Condo prices fell in all five cities in November

HousingVIEWS - Maureen Maitland - November 2011 data for the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices were released on Tuesday January 31st, revealing monthly declines in condo prices in all five of the metro areas covered by our indices – Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. ...

The great zero-interest-rate gamble

The Telegraph - Jeremy Warner - Bravo, Mario Draghi, the European Central Bank’s new president. Everyone assumed that this mild-mannered Italian would be so determined to prove himself to his Bundesbank masters that he’d be even more German than the Germans in pursuit of the principles of sound ...

Real estate drops but second home market may see increase

Realty Times - Phoebe Chongchua - Interest rates continue to remain low for mortgages and it looks as though the Federal Reserve will keep the rate at which banks lend to each other overnight low through 2014.

Geithner defends Dodd-Frank, pledges housing moves

Wall Street Journal - Alan Zibel and Jeffrey Sparshott - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner defended the Dodd-Frank financial-overhaul law against mounting attacks on Thursday, the latest in a series of moves by the Obama administration to push ahead with its signature Wall Street overhaul.

January Employment Report revisions and issues

Calculated Risk - Tomorrow (Friday) the BLS will release the January Employment Situation Summary at 8:30 AM ET. Bloomberg is showing the consensus is for an increase of 135,000 payroll jobs in January, and for the unemployment rate to remain unchanged at 8.5%.