PIMCO’s May 2008 Investment Outlook, “All Quiet on the Western Front” by Bill Gross is now available at PIMCO ———— Ex-Fed official criticizes Bear Stearns rescue: report - … “worst policy mistake in a generation,” the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.  Vincent Reinhart, who used to be the Fed’s director of monetary affairs [...]

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“I’m so old, I stopped buying green bananas.” And I remember when they didn’t have the MLS! Often agents work with properties just off the multiple listing services. What are some of the policies of the larger investors? Astoria says that the property must be off the market for 3 months prior to the application [...]

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To Our Clients, Colleagues and Friends:    · The MBA/STRAT MOR peer group study is, in our view, the best industry analysis that anyone does.  Their 2007 study showed that smaller lenders reported average profit margins of 10.1 bps vs. an average loss of about 15 bps for the Mega and Large lenders.  Within the production [...]

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  PIMCO - U.S. Credit Perspectives By Mark Kiesel, May 2008 - A forced, low-calorie financial diet has significant implications for credit markets and investment strategy - PIMCO ———— San Diego: Resales of homes a house divided - San Diego County’s unprecedented housing downturn has created a sharp split in the resale market, with foreclosed [...]

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Interest rates are set in two primary ways. With the Fed meeting today and tomorrow, remember that short term rates (credit cards, ARM’s, HELOC’s) are highly influenced by the Federal Reserve. And the Fed keeps a close eye on inflation: if the Fed fears that prices are rising too fast, it will raise rates to [...]

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Awesome post - Buffett, in His Own Words - Kevin LaCroix - D&O Diary ———— As ARMs reset, little of the expected chaos is coming to fruition - You’re not hearing much about this ARM reset problem today because it has been ameliorated - at least for now - by the Federal Reserve’s steep interest [...]

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The Week Ahead in the Capital Markets April 28, 2008 All eyes will be on the Fed this week. They meet Tuesday and Wednesday, with their decision about interest rates due Wednesday afternoon at 2:15pm EST. Continuing the dramatic reversal of the past two weeks, odds for a 0.25% rate cut fell below 100%. There [...]

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Is the FHA and HUD excited about all of the new business heading their way? Perhaps not… check out this article in Forbes, which focuses on concerns about federalizing the US housing market, and a reminder that the taxpayer supports these programs. Spending 70 greenbacks to fill up your gas tank once or twice a [...]

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  Chart of the Day -  The stock market is about to enter what has historically been the weakest half of the year. … Hence the saying, “sell in May and walk away.” - Chart of the Day  ———— Fannie Mae loan commitments, portfolio up in March - … The government-sponsored enterprise said its mortgage [...]

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  Housing data bodes ill for Chicago - Video from Crain’s ———— What Price Fair Value Assumptions? FAS 157 is making auditors and investors eager to find out more about your company’s third-party pricing data. - Marie Leone - CFO.com  ———— In Battered Secondary Mortgage Market, Some Encouraging Trends May Be Emerging - housingwire ———— [...]

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