Tag Archives: The Fed

The Contagion Risk of Europe

About the only thing there was seeming consensus on in Europe was that Greece will eventually default. The question is when. European leaders, along with the IMF, have caved and will give Greece €12 billion to tide them over while they debate on finding €70-100 sometime late next month. Continue reading

Posted in Economic News, Fresh Perspectives | Tagged Greece, The Euro, The Fed | Leave a comment

When The Fed Speaks, Housing Listens

Especially since the 1990′s, home prices have largely been driven, directly or indirectly, by the actions of The Fed. The Greenspan Fed enabled the Credit and Housing Bubbles, and the Bernanke Fed is doing everything it can to keep them inflated, extending and pretending, hoping the fundamental core economy will eventually catch up.
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Posted in Banking and Finance, Economic News, Foreclosures and Short Sales, The Daily Hotsheet | Tagged Bernanke, Deflation, Foreclosures, Greece, greenspan, Home Prices, Inflation, QE2, QE3, Shadow Inventory, The Fed | 7 Comments

Europe at the Abyss; US Housing in the Abyss; Who is to Blame?

Blaming banks for lending when real interest rates are hugely negative is tantamount to placing a bottle of vodka in front of an alcoholic, telling the alcoholic it is the best vodka in the whole world, then blaming the alcoholic for what happens next.
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Posted in Fresh Perspectives, Home Economics | Tagged Home Prices, Housing Bubble, The Fed | Leave a comment

A Random Walk Through the Minefield

In the last 48 hours, so much news has come out of Europe that has me frankly shaking my head. It is a strange game of brinksmanship they are playing, and it is one we should be paying attention to (as if the brinkmanship played by US politicians over the debt ceiling is not enough). This week we look at what seems to be European leaders taking random walks through the minefield at the very heart of the European Experiment. Continue reading

Posted in Economic News, Fresh Perspectives | Tagged Debt, GDP, Greece, Greek Default, Interest Rates, Ireland, Portugal, Spain, The Euro, The Fed | Leave a comment

Why housing prices belong in CPI

Whether you define deflation in terms of credit, in terms of purchasing power of the dollar, in terms of the CPI, or in terms of the Case-Shiller CPI, to the complete consternation of screaming hyperinflationists, those predicting deflation got it correct. Continue reading

Posted in Foreclosures and Short Sales, Home Economics | Tagged Deflation, Home Prices, Housing Bubble, Inflation, The Fed | Leave a comment