Fannie Mae (FNM) – One Man’s Opinion – Thomas Kee -  The government must step in to protect the solvency of these companies. -  Stock Traders Daily 

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National Trend of Home Price Declines Continued through the First Half of 2008 According to the S&P/Case-Shiller Composite Home Price Indices – Standard and Poors

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Fitch Introduces New Tool to Quantify CDO Losses -  As banks struggle with how to value their impaired stuctured finance assets, Fitch Ratings has introduced a new asset-level projected loss analysis (PLA) to quantify loss expectations on Collateralized Debt Obligations CDOs). – Research Recap

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Carteret Mortgage Latest To Close; Accredited Exits Wholesale – PAUL JACKSON – housingwire 

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FDIC says IndyMac failure costlier than expected – Karey Wutkowski – … it now expects IndyMac’s failure in July to cost its insurance fund $8.9 billion, compared with the previous expected range of $4 billion to $8 billion. … – Reuters
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Pimco Seeks as Much as $5 Billion to Buy Distressed Senior Debt – Sree Vidya Bhaktavatsalam – … The Distressed Senior Credit Opportunities Fund will invest in “senior” and “super-senior” securities backed by commercial and residential mortgages, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the fund is private. Senior debt is first to be paid off in a default.  … – Bloomberg

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Fannie, Freddie can suspend payments without triggering swaps – Karen Brettell – Losses related to mortgages guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have some concerned that the mortgage giants may opt to defer interest payments if their capital levels drop to less than required levels. Under certain circumstances and guidelines, the government-sponsored entities are able to suspend payments without triggering swap payments. “There is a grace period for five years,” said Ricardo Kleinbaum, a BNP Paribas analyst – Reuters
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S&Ls given warning about freezing credit – The Office of Thrift Supervision warns against improperly lowering credit limits or altering rules for home-equity loans. – KEVIN G. HALL – McClatchy Newspapers -   Star Tribune

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OFHEO: Home Prices Increased in 30 Out of 50 States Over Last Year, From 2007:Q2 to 2008:Q2 – Mark Perry -   Carpe Diem
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Credit Spreads Continue to Get Worse – FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair commented in a press conference this afternoon that she expects the credit markets to continue to worsen, and judging by the recent action in credit spreads, the market seems to agree. – Bespoke Investment Group 

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has graphs for all major MDAs – June Case-Shiller Housing Numbers – Bespoke Investment Group 

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Foreclosures Boost Bay Area Home Sales – Sue McAllister – San Jose Mercury News  -  knowledgeplex

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How one bank avoided the meltdown – BNP Paribas helped spark the global credit crunch when it froze three funds a year ago. So why is it the largest bank in the world that hasn’t had to raise any capital?  …   NEW YORK (Fortune) — Not every player in banking is getting clobbered these days. BNP Paribas, which sparked part of the very first global credit-crunch panic when it froze three funds on Aug. 9, 2007, may emerge as the bank least affected by the industry’s carnage. – Money CNN
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Zions: Bank avoided toxic loans, not pain – USA Today

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RBS hires 16 in mortgages, including 15 from Bear – Reuters

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US Home Price Declines Show Signs of Slowing -  US home prices continued to decline in June, though at a slowing pace. The S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices showed continued broad-based declines in the prices of existing single family homes across the country through June. – Research Recap

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Fannie Mae executive team axed to restore confidence  – Fannie Mae chief executive Daniel Mudd last night presided over his own “Night of the Long Knives”, replacing the company’s chief financial officer, … – Telegraph.co.uk

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IRA ARTMAN SECTION – thanks Ira:

Computing Inflation In Real Time  – Brad Zigler – … For those who distrust the government’s take on inflation, or who just don’t want to wait a month for the next indication, I propose a new method: one that allows you to gauge inflation in real time from readily obtainable information.  … -  Hard Assets Investor

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Loans backed by assets thrive as cheaper funding vanishes – Hilary Johnson – Big increase reported, though tight credit conditions may strain lenders’ capacity  – Financial Week 

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OFHEO Releases Research Paper “Recent Trends in Home Prices: Differences across Mortgage and Borrower Characteristics” – OFHEO