Headlines versus Underlying Data
I sometimes think I live in a different planet than some people. My friend Cody, for instance, lives in a very different economic world...
New Column up at Real Money (12/01/05): Home Sales Data: Lots...
An expanded version of yesterday’s commentary is up on Real Money, titled Home Sales Data: Lots of Huffing and Puffing. You will no...
New Home Sales Data: Don’t rely On It Either
Here we go again: Yesterday’s New Home Sales data of plus 13% month over month was . . . how shall I politely phrase this . . ....
Read it here first: Real-Estate Boom Soon May Sputter As an...
A key part of my Bearish thesis for 2006 has been that as interest rates tick up, the Real Estate cylinder in the economic engine will...
Chart of the Week: Home Equity Cash Outs
Our discussion of Credit Card usage leads us review this: Since 2000, American households have spent more than they earned – a...
Ramifications of Eliminating the Mortgage Tax Deduction
What are the economic ramifications of the Mortgage deduction being eliminated? How likely is it that such a significant tax change is...
Housing Starts Soften; Builder’s Bear Market?
signs were appearing that Housing was cooling back in August. More recently, there was also a comprehensive front page WSJ article on the...
WSJ: Housing Market Shows Further Signs of Cooling
"We believe the market has peaked." So says Doug Duncan, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s chief economist, referring to...
Foreign Skyscraper Purchases
Does this sound at all familiar to anyone else? A foreign investor, flush with cash thanks to recent economic shifts, begins buying...
The Unending Housing Boom
I kinda disagree with the premise of Floyd Norris’ column yesterday (although how can I not love the chart?). click for...