Home Prices Still Falling

Home Prices Still Falling

MoneyNews
Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2007

NEW YORK -- U.S. home prices fell in October for the 10th consecutive month, declining a record 6.7 percent compared with a year ago, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index.

"No matter how you look at these data, it is obvious that the current state of the single-family housing market remains grim," said Robert Shiller, who helped create the index, in a statement Wednesday.

The previous record decline was a drop of 6.3 percent, recorded in April 1991.

Home prices fell 1.4 percent in October compared with the previous month. more,,,,

http://moneynews.newsmax.com/money/archives/articles/2007/12/26/094407.cfm

Analyst: Mortgage Industry Must Slash Jobs By 1/3

Analyst: Mortgage Industry Must Slash Jobs By 1/3

Although the mortgage industry has shed 103,200 jobs since employment peaked at 504,700 in October 2006, the deteriorating housing market will need to purge another third of the roughly 400,000 remaining jobs in 2008, says a research analyst at Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. (FBR).


Research analyst Paul J. Miller has some unwelcome news for more than a hundred thousand mortgage professionals: your services are no longer needed.

In lowering his initial forecast of residential originations for 2008, Miller dropped his prediction from $2.2 trillion to about $1.8 trillion.

"Bottom line, too many loan brokers are chasing too few loans!" wrote Miller in a research note.

"Until the mortgage industry eliminates back-office personnel and loan officers, which could take several quarters, we believe the mortgage industry will not generate an economic profit."

The FBR analyst suggested that the mortgage industry has entered a historically unprecedented period where older criteria for predictions no longer apply.

In the past, Miller wrote, the level of annual originations was more or less tied to the fluctuations of interest rates during the year, making it difficult to present yearly forecasts.

However, two factors have arisen in the largest housing slowdown in U.S. history to make predictions more simple this time around: diminished liquidity and tightened lending standards.

Miller wrote that "lower interest this time around is having only a marginal impact on origination volume as reduced liquidity coupled with stricter underwriting standards are driving origination volumes lower."

The analyst suggested that employment serves as a decent barometer of how the mortgage industry is faring.

Although mortgage jobs continued to climb well after originations began to fall last year, the number of industry professionals has declined by roughly 20% since peaking in October 2006.

Miller says that the mortgage industry probably will not reach a balance between loan fundings and employment before major lenders will generate a profit once more.


Posted on Tuesday, December 18, 2007

http://www.mortgageledger.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2707

Fannie Mae CEO: Housing Woes Until 2009

MoneyNews
Friday, Dec. 14, 2007 WASHINGTON -- Fannie Mae's CEO told shareholders Friday he does not expect a housing market recovery until late 2009, "at the earliest," and that the mortgage-finance company is strong enough to ride out the downturn.

Fannie Mae "will weather the turbulence of today's mortgage market and prosper when better conditions return," the president and CEO, Daniel Mudd, said as he and other top executives faced shareholders for the first time in three-and-a-half years at an annual meeting. More...

http://moneynews.newsmax.com/money/archives/articles/2007/12/14/142536.cfm?s=mne

Dow Drops 300 After Fed Cuts Rates

Dow Drops 300 After Fed Cuts Rates

Tuesday, December 11, 2007 3:55 PM Article Font Size

NEW YORK -- The Dow Jones industrial average has plunged more than 300 points as investors disappointed by the Federal Reserve's rate cut sold off stocks. In late afternoon trading, the Dow is down 303.61 to 13,423.42. The Fed lowered its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points, disappointing some investors who hoped the central bank would take more aggressive measures. The Dow Jones industrial average, which had been up about 40 points before the decision, fell 300 points. http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/Dow_Drops_300_After_Fed_C/2007/12/11/56119.html