_Economy and Finance

Housing and Core Inflation – It’s Complicated Laura Rosner - Market Economics US Daily Spotlight | 22 Feb 2013 03:15 | Markets were risk-off on Thursday, as equity markets sold off by more than 0.6% for the second day in a row, while the 10yr Treasury closed the day at 1.98%. Data for the day were unimpressive with jobless claims for the week suggesting only modest improvement in February payroll employment, existing home sales edging marginally higher and the February Philly Fed manufacturing index falling sharply (details of the report were less negative than the headline index implied). Meanwhile, core inflation was slightly stronger than expected in the January CPI report, mainly reflecting a rebound in core goods prices, but also modestly firmer increases in housing costs.

Real Estate Apartment Nation: Trend to Multi-Family Housing Continues By Peter Coy March 20, 2012 The U.S. is a long way from Germany, where only 42 percent of families are homeowners. But construction of multi-family units is growing faster than construction of single-family homes—a trend confirmed today by the Census Bureau’s monthly report on residential construction. http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-03-20/apartment-nation-trend-to-multi-family-housing-continues

FORTUNE The one number to watch for a housing recovery By Nin-Hai Tseng, Writer March 20, 2012: 5:00 AM ET If you're waiting for home prices to go up, then you're missing signs the troubled housing market has finally turned around.

CNNMoney Throwing cash at the housing market will make it worse By Nin-Hai Tseng, writer-reporter February 28, 2012: 11:42 AM ET Nearly half of current homeowners buying new homes by the end of 2012 are expected pay in cash, and that's not a good thing for home prices. FORTUNE – In today's troubled housing market, it's all about the Benjamins. Home prices are at a 9-year low, and it should come as no surprise. For the past three years, tighter lending standards and record foreclosures have driven an unusually higher number of homebuyers to pay for discounted properties in cash. The bulk has come from investors eyeing fixer uppers, as well as foreign buyers armed with wads of cash for properties from California to Miami.

U.S. housing faces extra drag - low appraisals By Alexandra Alper NEW YORK | Wed Aug 24, 2011 8:07am EDT (Reuters) - When Sean McGowan signed a contract to buy a New Jersey home in November, he didn't expect he'd still be living with his parents nearly a year later.

Home Sales Fall on Credit, Cancellations, Confidence Published: Thursday, 18 Aug 2011 | 10:51 AM ET By: Diana Olick CNBC Real Estate Reporter July's existing home sales, which represent contract closings, came in well below expectations of a two to three percent gain, falling 3.5 percent month to month.

How We All Suffer July 11, 2011 Kim Luu is the editor of Money and Risk and a principal at an independent brokerage firm specializing in retirement and 401(k)s. The federal Home Affordable Modification Program was badly designed, overly complicated and poorly communicated. Borrowers suffered through horrendous paperwork for months and years. People ran through their retirement savings during the process, and then lost their homes anyway. Meanwhile, banks are saddled with billions of dollars in losses and inventory that still need to be auctioned.

The Unemployment Factor July 11, 2011 Morris A. Davis is the academic director of the James A. Graaskamp Center for Real Estate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

POLITICS JULY 11, 2011, 4:47 P.M. ET U.S. Tackles Housing Slump By NICK TIMIRAOS The Obama administration is ramping up talks on how to revive the housing market, which is weighing on the economic recovery—and possibly the President's re-election in 2012.

US Housing Crisis Is Now Worse Than Great Depression Published: Tuesday, 14 Jun 2011 | 12:04 PM ET By: Jeff Cox CNBC.com Staff Writer It's official: The housing crisis that began in 2006 and has recently entered a double dip is now worse than the Great Depression.

How housing could rebound -- in 2025 By Colin Barr May 31, 2011: 11:49 AM ET Ready to be Depressed? House prices have fallen further in the past five years than they did in the Great Depression – and there's no sign the free fall is about to stop.

'Double-Dip' in Housing Prices Even Worse Than Expected Published: Tuesday, 31 May 2011 | 9:05 AM ET By: Reuters U.S. single-family home prices dropped in March, dipping below their 2009 low, as the housing market remained bogged down by inventory and weak demand, a closely watched survey said Tuesday.

China Economic 'Facade' Starts to Show Cracks: Chanos Published: Wednesday, 18 May 2011 | 8:16 AM ET By: Jeff Cox China's economy is showing real signs of weakening, particularly in real estate, and even could tip into a recession, hedge fund manager Jim Chanos told CNBC.

10 places where housing is soaring France Annual increase: 9.5% Paris has long been known for stylish people, delicious cuisine and universal health care. And let's not forget some of the priciest real estate in the world.

10 places where housing is soaring China Annual increase: 15.3% (based on Beijing and Shanghai prices) Need somewhere to store your wealth and maybe even make a healthy profit? Millions of Chinese have been buying up homes with the same enthusiasm once common among U.S. home buyers. With few investment options for many middle class Chinese, residential properties have become a great option to store wealth. Even while the global financial crisis in 2008 gripped many nations, China's housing market was virtually unaffected.

'Uneven' housing recovery continues By Annalyn Censky, staff reporter April 20, 2011: 12:12 PM ET NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Sales of existing homes increased in March, "continuing an uneven recovery" in real estate, an industry group said Wednesday.

New Home Sales Sink To An All-Time Low As U.S. Housing Woes Continue (00:20:41 min) This week’s U.S. housing data report negative trends all across the sector. Existing home sales declined 9.6% in February and 33% from their 2005 peak, and sales of new homes dropped to their all-time lowest level. In this podcast, Standard & Poor’s Senior Director Erkan Erturk discusses the latest trends affecting the sector. Listen

Standard & Poor’s Comments On Recent U.S. Housing Data (00:05:01 min) In this podcast, Standard & Poor's Senior Director Erkan Erturk, Structured Finance, comments on this week's key U.S. housing data and what we expect for the industry this year. Topics include the reasons behind the continuing falloff in home sales, major industry risks, and declining home prices. Listen