The Pew Charitable Trust has just released a comprehensive 54 page report entitled: 

No, this is not a Halloween prank. The world economies (lead by the U.S.) are a total mess and, according to many economists, the most frightening fact is that the enormous cost of today’s financial rescues is just a drop in the bucket.
We have heard all the gory details and micro analysis by the daily-talking-heads, with […]

Despite the latest plunge in the markets (and the plunges have been historic), Jim Wiandt of Seeking Apha argues that the market feels like it just may be finding its sea legs again.
We are certainly not out of the woods yet, he states, and all signs point to a protracted economic slump. BUT, according […]

So what are buyers to do? Today is yet another day, another piece of evidence that waiting for mortgage rates to fall is a flawed financial strategy, as suggested in a piece from the Mortgage Reporter. Perhaps this review will help stimulate more mortgage activity.
Here is what is truly going on. Let us take […]

Real estate investors and professionals say financial and real estate markets in the U.S.will hit bottom in 2009 and continue to slump for much of 2010, according to a report released October 22, 2008, by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (read the full report), and as reported in the Baltimore Business Journal.
We have seen […]

The next shoe? If and when something is going to drop, you should know about it, beforehand, so that you can be proactive and strategic in your investment and management positions.
After years of plunging residential property valuations, commercial real estate (CRE) is now heading into the danger zone as  –office vacancies rise, stores close and hotel bookings fall.
All of […]

As reported today in the Baltimore Sun, after two years of work, the Harford County Council unanimously approved (7-0) last night an overhaul of its decades-old zoning code.
Real Esate Opportunity >>Harford is bracing for BRAC, which is expected to bring about 20,000 new jobs to Harford by 2011.
More than $1.3 Billion Dollars in federal money is […]

We know we got ourselves into deep financial trouble, but how?
Turns out the crux of it seems to have stemmed from something called a Mortgage Backed Security (MBS). But what exactly are MBS??
Check out these very interesting videos, to explain it all. They are so interesting and simple, even a child can understand these explanations. Click here […]

Act III: The Final 2008 Financial Bailout Act (It is law!) >> In a 263-171 vote, the U.S. House of Representative today, October 3, 2008, approved a massive spending plan — voted down in an earlier form Monday (9.29.08) – that will supply hundreds of billions of dollars in a federal effort to ease the credit squeeze […]

The credit crunch is — in deed —  getting worse:

LIBOR jumped again,
TED spread is at a new record.
Bad news on employment: payrolls down 159,000, average work week down, official unemployment rate flat at 6.1 percent but broad measure (U6) up from 10.7 to 11.

To understand the full impact of the credit crisis, read this article […]