More NewsClips today than I usually send!

More Forecasts and Charts:

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Forecast 2008: Recession and Recovery – John Mauldin’s Weekly E-Letter
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“DeKaser’s Financial Market Outlook” taps the intelligence of USA Today’s top-ranked forecaster, National City Chief Economist Richard DeKaser. -  National City
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Byron Wien’s Top Surprises for 2008 -  Infectious Greed
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“Year-End 2007: A Snapshot” provides an unsentimental reflection on the year that was, offering insights into what may happen this year. -  National City 
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2008 Credit Performance Prospects are ‘Bleak’ … writes Michael Youngblood, analyst at FBR Investment Management Inc.  – more -  riskcenter.com free reg. 

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An astounding chart: Per Capita Spending and Life Expectancy  -  The Big Picture
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WSJ Marks $100 Crude With Charts Galore (free) – by Tim Iacono – seeking alpha

Readers Submit:

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Rolfe Winkler, fellow newsclips email member and blogger wrote …  What will we do if big two go bust? – Baltmore Sun 
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Ira Artman Section – thanks Ira -
1.  Experts Insist Housing Crisis Will Last Through 2008 – riskcenter.com free reg
2.  Professor Forecasts Consumer-Led Recession by Summer – riskcenter.com free reg.
3.  Subprime Meltdown Has Yet to Soften Tech  – Tech remains unscathed by the housing credit crisis, but analysts warn against viewing it as a safe haven. -  Eweek.com

4. Housing Crash Still Weighs on the Economy – By Mark Weisbrot -  CEPR 
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thanks Margaret – “SUBPRIME” voted word of the year at American Dialect Society!

Palm Beach County, Alt-A Issuance, Poof, Levitt Collapse, How Far

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Palm Beach County Foreclosures Triple – “Palm Beach County’s foreclosure rate skyrocketed to one for every 45 households in 2007 … Palm Beach Post 

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Alt-A Issuance Drops Dramatically in Third Quarter: Report -  housingwire

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Poof! Mortgage Brokers Vanishing in Washington – … with only 66 percent of previously licensed mortgage brokers and 42 percent of previously licensed loan originators fully renewed and approved to do business in the state …-  housingwire http://www.housingwire.com/2008/01/02/poof-mortgage-brokers-vanishing-in-washington/
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With Builder in Bankruptcy, Buyers Are Left Out – “The collapse of Levitt & Sons, a unit of the Levitt Corporation… illustrates how the turmoil in real estate is spreading far beyond subprime borrowers who cannot pay their mortgages. Levitt had a fabled brand, decades of experience and enthusiastic customers with good credit, but none of that was enough to save it…. – NY Times 

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How Far Might Housing Prices Fall?  – … Now, a new study shows exactly how and why that might occur: Home

Price to Rent Ratio -  The Big Picture 
The PDF of the study can be found here:  The Rent-Price Ratio for the Aggregate Stock of Owner-Occupied Housing.

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Pandora’s Box, NJ Lowball Report, Paulson Speech, Reverse Under 62, 15 Points

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Minding the Hinges on Pandora’s Box – By John P. Hussman, Ph.D. -  investorsinsight 

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read this – NJ Lowball Report – For those new to Lowball!, a lowball offer is when a buyer offers a significantly lower bid than asking in hopes that the seller accepts the offer. We take a list of home sales from the past month and pick out the sales that have the highest percentage difference between original list price and selling price. -   NJ RE Report 

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1.  Paulson’s Most Bearish Speech Ever – Felix Salmon  -  portfolio.com

2.  Paulson Touches on Housing and Capital Markets -  speech by Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson, Jr. on Housing and Capital Markets before the New York Society of Securities Analysts. -  riskcenter.com free reg. 
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First Fixed Rate Reverse Mortgage For People Under 62 -  Reverse Mortgage Daily

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Fifteen Points on Credit Where Credit Ain’t Due – a lot of this is about housing – The Aelph Blog