Housing Prices Continue to Decline Nationwide – Third-quarter U.S. Housing Market now undervalued by 5.7% – Most Overvalued, Most Undervalued of the 330 Largest U.S. Metro Areas Examined  – Global Insight     – thanks Ira Artman 

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1.  Treasuries Gain a Fifth Week, Driving Yields to Record Lows – Daniel Kruger and Dakin Campbell -  Treasuries gained for a fifth consecutive week, pushing yields to record lows,… Yields on two-, 10- and 30-year securities fell to the lowest levels since the Treasury began regular sales of the debt….  The difference between two- and 10-year note yields narrowed to the smallest amount since September after Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the central bank may buy Treasuries to target long-term interest rates to revive the economy. – Bloomberg 

2.  Bernanke Says U.S. Must Step Up Foreclosure Efforts – Scott Lanman – Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke urged using more taxpayer funds for new efforts to prevent home foreclosures, saying the private sector is incapable of coping with the crisis on its own. The Fed chief outlined four possible options, including buying delinquent mortgages and providing bigger incentives for refinancing loans. - Bloomberg

3.  Oil May Fall Below $25 Next Year, Merrill Lynch Says – Grant Smith – Crude oil may dip below $25 a barrel next year if the recession that’s slashing fuel demand around the world spreads to China, Merrill Lynch & Co. said. -  Bloomberg 

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interesting graphic – Housing bottom? It depends who you ask – Tim Iacono – … The box in the lower right of the graphic below has been provided by yours truly to neatly summarize the findings. Not surprisingly, those in the business of selling real estate are far more sanguine than are potential home buyers and sellers.    … – themessthatgreenspanmade 

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Surprise: Fed Study “Exonerates” the Fed – Lew Rockwell 

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Mortgage REIT Insider: Agencies Ascending – PATRICK HARDEN  – This week marked the annual FBR Capital Markets Fall Investor Conference, normally a raucous REIT road show in classic Eric Billings style. This year, however, big colorful charts with ever-growing dividends were replaced with liquidity tables and complex covenant calculations … If the pace of delistings continues, I’m going to turn this column into a Big Board graveyard. As you read Wednesday, embattled Thornburg Mortgage lost its listing despite a 1 for 10 reverse split back in late September. … – housingwire

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Houses and Stocks – Maybe It’s Time to Buy - Allan Sloan – Washington Post

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Housing Undervalued? Bah, Hah, Hah, Hah! – Tom Reese and Paul Rubillo, Dividend.com – Eager to be early in calling a trend, some economists say U.S. real estate is now too cheap for fundamentals. – Forbes

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about rating agencies: Debt Watchdogs: Tamed or Caught Napping? – GRETCHEN MORGENSON – “These errors make us look either incompetent at credit analysis or like we sold our soul to the devil for revenue, or a little bit of both.”   — A Moody’s managing director responding anonymously to an internal management survey, September 2007.  -  NY Times
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30-Day and 90-Day T-Bill Yields Plunge to just 0.10%  -  … The great paradox about the credit crisis at this stage is how investors continue to lunge after super low yielding T-bills and T-bonds when an entire gamut of fixed income markets – many with implicit government guarantees – are yielding north of 7%. Investors are indeed pricing in a serious deflation. … – The Soverign Society

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Economy in turmoil and bailout plans adrift – Carolyn Lochhead - Detroit automakers are in line behind governors who are in line behind banks, seeking emergency aid from Washington. Nearly $8 trillion in federal commitments is already out the door, and half of the $700 billion October rescue package has been spent. The economic downturn is accelerating. And nobody is really in charge. – SFGate.com 

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long and worth it – excellent – Profiles in Panic – With Wall Street hemorrhaging jobs and assets, even many of the wealthiest players are retrenching. Others, like the Lehman Brothers bankers who borrowed against their millions in stock, have lost everything. Hedge-fund managers try to sell their luxury homes, while trophy wives are hocking their jewelry. The pain is being felt on St. Barth’s and at Sotheby’s, on benefit-gala committees and at the East Hampton Airport, as the world of the Big Rich collapses, its culture in shock and its values in question. – by Michael Shnayerson – Vanity Fair

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Layoffs expected to decimate Wall Street ranks – The Associated Press – … The sectors of the industry that deal with mortgage mortgage-related asset-backed securities and other risky investments are expected to be among the most battered. … – Google