Category: Economy

Even during the Great Depression some people made money. The same holds true today despite one of the toughest economic environments in decades. The key is to understand the roots of appreciation or what causes real estate to go up …Read more  »

More than 14 million borrowers were underwater as of Q1 2010, and with a further 10.8% decline in house prices expected relative to Q4 2009 levels, another 6 million borrowers are likely fall into negative equity by the end of …Read more  »

The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep US interest rates at historic lows when it meets later Wednesday, as it tries to keep a languishing recovery on track. The Fed's top rate-setting body is widely expected to keep its …Read more  »

The two large questions on the minds of real estate investors are: when will the economy recover? and when is a good time to reinvest in the housing market? We think the economy has reached the point where aggressive investors …Read more  »

Our "favorite housing economist" Dr. Bob Shiller thinks the market (especially housing) is already overheated.  "We are in a very unusual circumstance," says Shiller, "because of the massive bailouts, the homebuyer tax credits, the Fed's purchase of mortgage-backed securities - …Read more  »

Categories are graded from A thru F: Economic Growth:  D+ Spending remains high and income improved, but the unemployment level remains very high. Overall economic growth improved slightly this month, and the results for our economic growth metrics were generally …Read more  »

A year after record-setting declines, the slide in national housing prices appears to be nearing an end. CoreLogic projects overall price appreciation of 4.5% over the next 12 months. National home prices were down less than 1% in January compared …Read more  »

Survival of the fittest applies to economics as well as biology – in fact, some would argue the concept is better applied to the financial arena than any other area of study. Unfortunately, it’s a fact few Americans want to …Read more  »

Categories are graded from A thru F: Economic Growth: D+ Overall economic growth was about the same this month compared to last, and the results for our economic growth metrics were mixed. The revised fourth quarter GDP growth rate increased …Read more  »