Islamic militants have been wreaking havoc in Mumbai, India’s financial capital. Reports so far indicate that 88 people have been killed and a number taken hostage. The pictures from the area look like a battlefield. So why care? Simply because we are likely to see an increase in this type of violence as we suffer […]

Despite a spate of bad economic news, the equity markets continued their upward climb. I don’t know if it means anything but I never discount markets either, so maybe there is some sense that corners are being turned. Here, however, from Market Watch is a synopsis of the data that came out today: Stocks had […]

Unlike a vampire, driving a stake through the heart of Downpayment Assistance Programs doesn’t seem to kill them. They’re trying to make a comeback. Housing Wire has a story that you can peruse. The front men for this are some non-profits but you can bet that they are getting all the help they need from […]

BusinessWeek has an interesting article about the abuses that are starting to creep into FHA lending. Combine their report with the reports that as mortgage rates fell drastically this week and borrowers flocked into the mortgage broker offices to refinance and you have a mixture of less than pleasant ingredients. The article recounts a number […]

I’ve taken to following all of the various home price indices less and less. Generally, they tend to be too macro and tell little about the dynamics of the various markets they purport to analyze. Naturally they’re backward looking, hence of marginal value in trying to figure out what’s going to happen. And I suspect […]