Freddie Mac recently announced that rates for a 30-year mortgage fell to 4.69%, the lowest level since they started keeping track. [More]
recession watch
New Home Sales Down 33%, A New Record
By 6.23.10
The Commerce Department has released figures that show that new home sales have dropped to a record low — down 33% from April. The drop isn’t unexpected, but it does show to what extent the market was being propped up by the tax credit for new home buyers. [More]
Are Electronic License Plate Ads The Next Rage On The Road?
By 6.21.10
Because we all know that the two things the world lacks these days are (1) advertisements and (2) car accidents, a California State Assemblyman has put forth a bill we kill both birds with the same 23-car pileup on the freeway by replacing our boring, non-revenue-generating license plates with fancy electronic ones complete with advertising. [More]
What Would You Do With $20,000?
By 6.18.10
A couple of weeks back, we asked what you would do if you stumbled upon a bag containing $18,000 in cash with no signs of the owner’s ID. Today, CNN took a camera out on the street to ask folks what they would do if they suddenly had $20,000 to spend, no strings attached. [More]
Shrink Ray Hits Size Of New Single Family Homes
By 6.18.10
When the economy began circling the drain a couple of years back, everything began getting smaller, from the cars we drive to the number of banks we have to choose from. And according to the Census Bureau, even our homes were nailed by the recession shrink ray. [More]
Woman Arrested For Squatting In $3.3 Million Mansion
By 6.16.10
If you’re going to live in a house that doesn’t belong to you, why not make it a luxury home? After all, there are more than a few of them sitting empty these days. And that’s exactly what a woman in Washington state had been doing, at least until she got caught. [More]
There's A Reason You Can Get This House At A Discount
By 6.16.10
Now, many of you don’t know that I have a degree in architecture. So maybe it’s only my keen eye that can discern the minute tectonic details that would make this particular McMansion Lite slightly less expensive than another one. Can your novice senses detect the reason? [More]
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac No Longer Worthy Of The NYSE
By 6.16.10
Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, announced today that the government-sponsored mortgage purchasers would delist themselves from the NYSE. [More]
Detroit Moving Police & Fire Depts. Into Empty Casino
By 6.11.10
There are a lot of empty buildings in the Detroit area, but the beleaguered city’s mayor announced today that he’s found the perfect vacant space to house HQs for both the city’s police and fire departments — the old MGM Grand Detroit casino. [More]
VIDEO: How To Pack For A Weekend Beach Getaway
By 6.11.10
In case you hadn’t notice, the summer vacation season is upon us. And even if people don’t have the cash to rent a beach house for a full week, plenty of folks are still going off for weekends on the water. And in the interest of keeping your luggage to a minimum, the editors at Lucky Magazine had put together a handy, perhaps even dandy, guide for how to get everything you need in one bag. [More]
Mortgage Applications At Lowest Level Since Spice Girls Were Popular
By 6.9.10
Remember 1997? It was my last year of college so I don’t have too solid a grasp on it, but I do remember being inundated with songs by the Spice Girls and Third Eye Blind. And apparently it was the last time that the demand for mortgages was as low as it is right now. [More]
Rapper Chamillionaire Lets Bank Foreclose On House Rather Than Pay Mortgage
By 6.7.10
When you decide to go with a hip-hop moniker like Chamillionaire, it’s probably not the best PR move to let one of your houses go into foreclosure. But, says the rapper, it wasn’t because he was having money problems. Instead, he handed the manse back to the bank because he just didn’t feel like paying the mortgage on a house he never lived in. [More]
New Home Sales Hit 2-Year High; Prices At Lowest Since 2003
By 5.26.10
In not-so-depressing news about the economy, the Commerce Dept. announced this morning that sales of new homes in April had jumped up 14.8% from March — the highest level in nearly two years. [More]
Federal Reserve Is Making All Sorts Of Money For The Treasury
By 5.25.10
Bloomberg is reporting that the Federal Reserve will probably transfer record earnings exceeding $70 billion into the US Treasury. The income is coming from assets that include mortgage-backed securities, says the Congressional Budget Office. [More]
Your Household's Share Of The September 2008 Economic Collapse: $104,350
By 5.25.10
A recent report from the Pew Charitable Trusts tallies up each US household’s share in the economic collapse. Your household’s share? $104,350. That includes lost income, government bailouts, and both reduced home values and reduced stock values. [More]
10% Of Homeowners Just Missed A Mortgage Payment
By 5.20.10
The Mortgage Bankers Association says that if you just missed a morgage payment, you’re not alone — 10% of homeowners just did the same thing. [More]
Target Says You Are Buying Crap You Don't Need Again
By 5.19.10
Target’s first quarter profits were up and things are looking better for the retailer’s troubled credit card division. The secret to their success? Consumers are buying more “discretionary merchandise,” which is retailer speak for ” various bullsh*t like video games and cheap designer clothes that you don’t technically need to survive.” [More]
Holy Crap, GM Made Money
By 5.17.10
GM announced today that it made $865 million in the first quarter, its first profit since 2007. Revenue was up 40%, and the NYT says that GM is on track to being a public company again as soon as the 4th quarter. [More]
