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NEW -> Contingent Buyer Assistance Program
<p>The space coast newspaper has an article on Port Canaveral, which certainly isn't the biggist fish in the sea of ports. Traffic is down due to less lumber and cement being imported. Even the gambling cruises are down 2.2%.</p>

<p>They report your biggie ports are flat.</p>

<p>Just how long ahead of time are lumber and cement ordered? Got to be a lagging indicator. Somebody must think that construction is not going to recover in a long time.</p>
 
<p>got cash? </p>

<p><a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/BOGNONBR?cid=123">http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/BOGNONBR?cid=123</a></p>

<p><img alt="" src="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/data/BOGNONBR_Max_630_378.png" /></p>

<p> Check out the last week at the bottom of the chart</p>

<p><a href="http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h3/Current/">http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h3/Current/</a></p>

<p>From <a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/NFORBRES?cid=123">http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/NFORBRES?cid=123</a></p>

<p><img alt="" src="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/data/NFORBRES_Max_630_378.png" /></p>
 
<p><a href="http://tinyurl.com/38f3u8"><strong>Financial markets still unsettled, Lockhart says</strong></a></p>

<p>By <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/news/mailto.asp?x=114+110+117+116+116+105+110+103&y=Rex+Nutting&z=marketwatch.com&guid=%7B7930de36-516b-4d1f-8005-3ba8d2596074%7D&siteid=mktw">Rex Nutting</a>, MarketWatch</p>

<p>Last update: 12:47 p.m. EST Jan. 7, 2008</p>

<p><strong>WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The biggest danger to the U.S. economy right now is that financial markets could remain unsettled, said Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart on Monday.</strong></p>

<p> In remarks prepared for delivery in Atlanta, Lockhart delivered a "sober" message about the economic outlook, stressing the uncertainty about the outlook for both growth and inflation. <a class="lk001" target="_blank" href="http://www.frbatlanta.org/news/news_newsrouter.cfm?news_type=SPEECHES">Read the full text.</a></p>

<p>"The negatives in our economy may be gaining momentum," he said. Policymakers must respond "pragmatically."</p>

<p>Lockhart participates in discussions in the Federal Open Market Committee, but is not a voting member this year.</p>

<p> Lockhart said he expects "sluggish" growth in the first half of the year before a gradual improvement. He expects inflation to moderate in 2008, but said his forecast could be too optimistic. </p>

<p>"I'm troubled by the elevated level of inflation," he said.</p>

<p> "To a large extent, my outlook for this year's economic performance hinges on how financial markets deal with their problems," he said. "The coming weeks could be telling." </p>

<p> "The pivotal question -- the central uncertainty -- is the extent of current and future spillover from housing and financial markets to the general economy," Lockhart said. The effect of falling home prices on consumer spending and the impact of distressed credit markets on business investment will be the keys to the economy's performance in 2008, he said. </p>

<p>Lockhart urged financial firms to come to the confessional and disclose their potential losses.</p>

<p> "To restore market confidence, leading financial firms, I believe, must recognize and disclose losses based on unimpeachable valuation calculations, restore capital and liquidity ratios, and urgently execute the strenuous task of updating risk assessments of scores of counterparties," he said. </p>

The imbalances in the housing, mortgage and credit markers may need "much of 2008 to play out," he said. But he was optimistic that markets would adjust.
 
<p> America's inflated asset prices must fall </p>

<p>By Stephen Roach, chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia</p>

<p>http://news.yahoo.com/s/ft/20080107/bs_ft/fto010720081324550910;_ylt=Aowq_522SCo0vjzHOs.Lr5b2ULEF</p>
 
<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/01/07/bcnuseco107.xml">US recession is already here, warns Merrill</a></p>

<em>Mr Rosenberg, who is well-respected on Wall Street, argues: "According to our analysis, this [recession] isn't even a forecast any more but is a present day reality."</em>
 
<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080108/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/paulson_housing">Feds may expand mortgage help program - Yahoo! News</a></p>

<p><em>WASHINGTON - Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Tuesday the administration was exploring what would be a significant expansion of the program to help at-risk mortgage holders</em></p>
 
<p> Pending Sales of Existing U.S. Homes Fell in November (Update1)


</p>

<p><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=apXVernpcSqw&refer=home">http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=apXVernpcSqw&refer=home</a></p>

<p>Jan. 8 (Bloomberg) -- The number of Americans signing contracts to buy previously owned homes fell more than forecast in November, signaling further deterioration in housing. </p>

<p>The National Association of Realtors' index of pending home sales decreased 2.6 percent to 87.6, following a 3.7 percent gain in October that was larger than previously estimated, the group said today in Washington. </p>

<p>...</p>

<p>Tougher lending rules are adding to market woes. A third of planned home sales were canceled or delayed in September, October and November because of loan problems, according to the results of a survey of 2,416 real-estate agents issued yesterday.</p>
 
Countrywide denies bankruptcy rumors:





<a href="http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080108/countrywide_financial.html">http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080108/countrywide_financial.html</a>
 
The newest post on the Calculated Risk blog confirms what we've discussed about banks, and their fear of liquidity. Not only are they hoarding cash that they borrow from the FED, but they are keeping deposit rates high. The banks are neglecting their interest income in order to build up reserves. IMO, this confirms they are in survival mode.
 
<p>Cash or Credit? </p>

<strong><a target="_blank" href="http://money.cnn.com/2008/01/08/news/economy/consumer_borrowing.ap/index.htm?postversion=2008010815">Credit card debt spikes to six-month high</a></strong>


<em>Total consumer borrowing shoots up to 7.4 percent in November as buyers rely on credit cards in the face of housing market collapse</em>
 
<p>I cannot stand Barney Franks and I am a pretty firm Democrat.</p>

<p>Voice is irritating and avoid providing real questions. AHHHHHHHH!!!!!</p>

<p>"No one knew that the subprime crisis would have the worldwide impact that it did" So ridiculous.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=621286714&play=1">www.cnbc.com/id/15840232</a></p>
 
Can any one explain to me why the the 10 Year Treasury jumped after the feds cut rates, but has since continued on its steady fall downwards?



I thought the effect would have been the opposite?



Anyway, I'm in the market for a new home and I don't want to catch the falling knife so I'd like to get the low rate and low price.



I found a new site that seems pretty cool for viewing property www.beekast.com. Its like the youtube of realestate. I think I found the house I want on it.
 
<p><a href="http://tinyurl.com/2kvvlq">Investment professionals' "shortsightedness" led them to make fundamental errors that led to the mortgage crisis and credit meltdown</a>, St. Louis Federal Reserve President William Poole said Wednesday.</p>




<p>Poole said five key mistakes were made, and professionals made four of them.</p>

<p> "I can understand the mistakes many financially naïve borrowers made but have a hard time understanding how so many investment professionals could have been so wrong," he said in the prepared text. </p>

<p> "Many observers point to greed, but I prefer a different explanation. Shortsightedness rather than greed explains actions that led to losses of tens of billions of dollars and the failure of many financial firms." </p>

<p>Poole's list of five key mistakes:</p>





<p> Borrowers took on mortgages they could not afford. </p>





<p> Mortgage brokers put too many people in unsuitable mortgages. They knew, for instance, that adjustable-rate mortgages probably wouldn't be right for many borrowers if interest rates rose as the market expected. </p>





<p> Investment banks jeopardized their reputations by securitizing mortgages without doing due diligence on the underlying assets, many of which were based on "inadequate or spurious information." </p>





<p> Rating agencies put their stamp of approval on securitized mortgages without considering whether AAA ratings could be maintained if house prices fell.


</p>





<p> Investors scooped up those securities without doing adequate analysis first. "Investors too readily accepted the AAA ratings at face value," Poole said. "A reach for yield with inadequate attention to risk in another basic lesson that apparently cannot be relearned often enough. </p>



>

"There are no new lessons here," he said. "The mistakes that brought us to this point have been made before."
 
<p><strong>S&P Affirms WCI Ratings, Shares Tumble</strong></p>

<p><a href="http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/01/09/ap4513822.html">http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/01/09/ap4513822.html</a></p>

<p>NEW YORK - </p>

<p> </p>

<p>Shares of WCI Communities Inc. sank Wednesday after Standard & Poor's affirmed the ratings of the struggling homebuilder at junk status.</p>

<p>Shares fell $1.69, or 53 percent, to $1.50 wednesday, after hitting a new low of $1.35 earlier in the session. Shares have traded between $3 and $24.20 in the past 12 months.</p>
 
The MLS machine begins to crack..... <a href="http://www.inman.com/inmanstories.aspx?ID=65729">Inman Real Estate News - Zillow to get half a million property listings</a>
 
<p><em>Although subprime loans make up only 2.8 percent of IndyMac's servicing portfolio, more than one in four such loans -- 26.9 percent -- were delinquent by 30 days or more in November. That's up from 24.4 percent in October. </em></p>

<p><a href="http://www.inman.com/inmanstories.aspx?ID=65730">Inman Real Estate News - IndyMac says Fannie, Freddie changes will hamper growth</a></p>

<p> </p>
 
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