VIDEO BLOOMBERG: Bernanke, Paulson Testify Before House Panel; Regulating Wall Street - Clip Syndicate

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FDIC’s Covered Bond Effort Wins Support From Bernanke - Rebecca Christie - Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he supports proposals to boost mortgage financing through the use of covered bonds, with the caveat that the U.S. may need legislation before a viable market develops. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is seeking to change its regulations on how covered bonds would be treated in the event of a bank failure, addressing concerns that bondholders could face delayed payment. -  Bloomberg

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good read about WaMu and Nat City - The Fed Wishes to Inform You It Is Displeased - Posted by Dennis K. Berman - You might have missed the obscure securities filing that rejiggered some of the terms behind the Corsair Capital-led $7 billion investment in the Ohio’s National City. -  Deal Journal WSJ 

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For-sale inventory, days on market higher in June -  Altos-Real IQ report tracks 26 markets -  … Los Angeles and San Diego saw the largest jumps in inventory — 8.7 percent and 6.1 percent,  respectively — and Miami had the slowest rate of turnover with an average of 154 days on market. … -  also has link to report - Inman News 

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Wilbur Ross has a plan for mortgage restructuring - shared appreciation - details at Mortgage Orb by John Clapp
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Pawning the future: Foreign Investors Pile Up More Pieces of Americana - LANDON THOMAS Jr. -   NY Times  
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US economy ‘to begin recovery mid-2009′ - The US economy is set to begin recovering from its slowdown next year, it has been predicted. Kenneth Lewis, chief executive of Bank of America, issued his projection for the economy in a speech before a non-profit organisation in Los Angeles - London Stock Exchange

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good accounting summary -  - Are Investors Overreacting on Fannie, Freddie? - LINDA LOWELL - housingwire

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Streamlined Foreclosure and Loss Avoidance Framework for Securitized Subprime Adjustable Rate Mortgage Loans - Executive Summary - 42 pages  American Securitization Forum 

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Sheriff Has a Smart Idea on Foreclosures - The Allegheny County sheriff has a promising solution for property owners caught in the mortgage foreclosure crisis — talk. That is, court-ordered talk with their lenders toward a workable payment plan. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania) - knowledgeplex

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Syndicated Lending Wasn’t Supposed to Work Like This  - Vernon Hill - Deutsche Bank and Wachovia pay two buyout forms $1 billion to just go away   - bankstocks.com 

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Wow - The Outlook for Inflation and the Likelihood of $60 Oil - In my view, the problem will emerge a few months from now, as a) economic demand softens further, b) planned production hikes actually emerge, and c) weakening price momentum encourages speculators to close long positions instead of rolling them forward. At that point, I expect that net speculative positions will plunge by 10-15% of open interest and we’ll see a sudden glut on the market for spot delivery. It should not be surprising if this speculative unwinding takes the price of crude below $60 a barrel by early next year. - John P. Hussman, Ph.D. - Hussman Funds

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IRA ARTMAN SECTION - thanks Ira:

RealestateConsulting.com has a totally cool interactive map where you can zoom into most parts of the US and see street level pictures. Check it out. 
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Andrea Steiner has spreadhseets you can use.  Of particular interest is her latest: Valid Correlation Matrix Simulation: Given lower and upper bounds on each correlation value, this sheet generates a valid correlation matrix. This is useful for correlation stress testing / scenario analysis 

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Chip Case - of Case Shiller fame thinks we may be bottoming out in housing - istockanalyst 

      posted by Bill Coppedge