Existing Home Sales Decline Sharply in January
Submitted by
CalculatedRisk on Fri, 02/26/2010 - 7:13am (98 comments)
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Beat'cha to it-
The Big Picture » Blog Archive » Underwater Home-Owers: Demand Principal Reductions
Shadow people.
Ain't nothin' that price won't fix.
shadow banking system still in trouble according to Mishkin on CNBC. As far as I could understand liquidity was driven by securitzation and that ain't happenning
JP wrote:
Ain't nothin' that price won't fix.
US: "Ain't no price we can't fix."
Now THAT is a 'V' shaped recovery!
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_pMscxxELHEg/S4fjIGXIYgI/AAAAAAAAHnM/OriEyIoJEfk/s1600-h/EHSMonthsJan2010.jpg
JP wrote:
And
is in charge of fixing prices.
So we got that going for us, which is nice.
EDIT: Ya beat me, RIF.
That's because there's nothing shadowy about real wealth... it's just the illusions of wealth that have to hide in the darkness.
ResistanceIsFeudal wrote:
EU: "Ain't no price we can't avoid through strikes and infighting"
Eric wrote:
was a good addition, though.
EDIT: Ya beat me, RIF.
The
CR, can we add something to the charts showing when various stimuli were in effect? Sort of like the blue bars showing recessions?
ac wrote:
This sounds like a deep and interesting thought. Please elaborate.
OT: Congrats to CR. The WSJ has ranked 'em #3 (For the ZH crowd, it ranked in at #10): Ten Wall Street Blogs You Need To Bookmark Now - WSJ.com
ac wrote:
At Merrill Lynch, Harold Ford Received at Least $2 Million - DealBook Blog - NYTimes.com
As he flirts with a challenge to Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand in the Democratic primary, Harold E. Ford Jr., the former congressman from Tennessee, has been dogged by questions about his compensation on Wall Street, a sensitive issue because of taxpayer-financed bailouts of big banks during the financial crisis.
In response, Mr. Ford has said that he supports a system of pay in high finance that rewards profits and punishes poor returns, The New York Times’s Michael Barbaro and Louise Story write. “I believe that people take risk, and there are rewards if they do well; they should lose if they don’t,” he said in an interview several weeks ago.
As a vice chairman at Merrill Lynch, however, Mr. Ford benefited from an unusual arrangement that paid him generously regardless of how he and his firm perform. In 2007, he began working at the firm under a contract that guaranteed him annual compensation of at least $2 million, The Times said, citing two people with direct knowledge of the deal, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the agreement is confidential. With a bonus, his pay could well exceed that figure.
His guaranteed pay was twice that of the Merrill Lynch chief executive who hired him, E. Stanley O’Neal. Mr. O’Neal’s contract assured him a base salary of $700,000, with the rest of his compensation not guaranteed, and paid out only as a bonus, records show. In some years that bonus was quite large. In 2006, for example, Mr. O’Neal’s bonus was $18.5 million in cash and nearly $27 million in restricted stock, according to Equilar, a compensation-research firm.
Scary thought over your morning
: This number might be every bit as goosed by the $8k credit as was the November number. IOW go back and look at the graph and subtract out 1.5m SAAR sales from the total.
I'm starting to see rentable homes in central Phoenix listed for well under $50K. That's listed in the MLS, not bought for cash on the courthouse steps.
nova (homepage, profile) wrote on Fri, 2/26/2010 - 11:17 am
No war or revolution was required for the world to appreciate Newton's Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica nor Einstein's Theory of Relativity, nor Maxwell's Unification of Electricity and Magnetism. These are some of the most significant changes in how people see the world since the Renaissance.
Was this the report that came out at 10AM that resulted in the market shedding 50 points, before the
brought it right back up again? Bizarre how this market is shaking off every piece of bad news. It's like no one on Wall Street cares about housing anymore.
Housing is sooooo 2008.
ac wrote:
securitzation is the selling of debt and no one wants to kiss the walking dead
some investor guy, I'm looking at something like that.
yagij, I asked not to be included - and I'm not happy with the WSJ. That is all I'm going to say ...
best to all
Has this been linked here yet?
Loan servicers unveil forbearance plan for the unemployed - Feb. 24, 2010
Under the proposal, loan servicers would reduce eligible borrowers' monthly payments to no more than 31% of their household income for up to nine months. Unlike a modification, however, the arrears would be tacked onto the end of the mortgage.
Cinco-X wrote:
These are some of the most significant changes in how people see the world since the Renaissance.
We've had very few ideas of universal importance since we specialized knowledge into compartmentalized research areas each with their own language or dialect, and a monetary authority to please.
CR gets the bronze, eh?
noob goldberg wrote:
I think Epicurean Dealmaker put it best:
It's amazing how little $2 Trillion buys these days. You'd think of 20 years of trying, people would realize you can't print and debt finance your way to prosperity.
agree nova.
The revolution was in the applications. More accurate ballistics from newton, semi-conductors from maxwell, and nuclear energy/bombs from einstein.
Following the history, each was a creature of a nation-state waging war.
CalculatedRisk wrote:
I'm not a fan of the WSJ in general, and if they played poorly with you in regards to your listing, then I guess I'm gonna have to dislike 'em some more.
yagij wrote:
I did not get the 'worst headline' bit. They did not like the wording? Freaking ponzi journal!
The squid is in ramping up the market here. Who needs real economic growth when you can manipulate financial markets?
SNAFU wrote:
They're just jealous because CR has better graphs.
10:23a
BREAKING
New York Gov. Paterson won't seek re-election: WSJ
ALERT, ALERT! WE HAVE A SHIP JUMPER!!!!!!!
CalculatedRisk wrote:
I'm not either. I think Murdoch killed it. I won't be renewing my subscription when it's up in June.
shill wrote:
It has nothing to do with ship jumping...... he wasn't ever going to win, and this recent scandal killed any other delusional hope he was harboring.
CalculatedRisk wrote:
I can see why after reading their commentary about you. BOOOOOOOO WSJ, what a bunch of sold out whores of mass delusion.
Some things still going up...Anyone else have a Blue Shield HDHP? I've had one for 6 yrs. Got a free colonoscopy too!
Those who reported the highest rate increases appeared to have a high deductible Blue Shield policy paired with a savings account.
These policies, known as health savings accounts, or HSAs, were created by the Bush administration in 2003 as way to trim health costs. The policies are supported as a market solution to rising health costs because they require members to pay more of their medical expenses out of pocket to use fewer services.
Blue Shield officials said the company's lack of experience with these types of plans combined with the poor economy compelled them to raise rates, primarily affecting three HSAs.
Read more: Health insurance hikes stun small businesses
So Denninger didn't make the list? I'd be insulted.
Freddie Mac to stop buying interest-only mortgages - MarketWatch
Repeat after me " We will not print money " :
Eric wrote:
There's going to be a lot of "Captain Smiths" over the next two election cycles. Patterson was torpedoed for all the wrong reasons however. It will undoubtably be one of those cases of the electorate regretting not having him to kick around anymore.
yagij wrote:
The list is alphabetical.
Outsider wrote:
That will be a big help when the unempolyed person takes a job at 50% of prior earnings.
Consumer Sentiment is out
U.S. Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index Fell to 73.6 in February - BusinessWeek
"Confidence among U.S. consumers declined this month as job prospects dimmed.
The Reuters/University of Michigan final index of consumer sentiment for February fell to 73.6 from 74.4 in January. Today’s final February figure compares with the preliminary reading of 73.7 released on Feb. 12.
The number of Americans filing first-time claims for jobless benefits rose to the highest level in three months last week, indicating companies are waiting to see sustained sales before adding to payrolls. An unemployment rate that’s forecast to average 9.8 percent this year may restrain gains in consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy.
“People are still worried about job prospects, worried about home values,” said Gary Thayer, chief macro strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors in St. Louis, before today’s report. “It’s a confluence of events that’s weighing on the economy.”
Nanoo-Nanoo wrote:
Insipid media coverage is one thing. CR's objection is probably due to... something else.
AIG Extends Support to ILFC, Consumer Lender to February 2011 - Bloomberg.com
:three flying pigs:
gotta insure those execs fly in comfort ya know...business first class is just sooooo slumming.
Outsider wrote:
SO DENNINGER DIDN'T MAKE THE LIST? I'D BE INSULTED
The list is alphabetical.
.
Clusterstock comes before Calculated Risk?
:scratches head:
That will be a big help when the unempolyed person takes a job at 50% of prior earnings.
I believe this issue is easily solved by multi-generational mortgages--simple formula--half the earnings equals twice the length of the note--and so on.
It would be really nice to leave the grand-kids something.
CalculatedRisk wrote:
It's hard to stay anonymous when you're really good.
It's also hard to keep spin doctors and extremists off your site if you become very influential.
Biden to Unveil New Rules on US Retirement Savings - CNBC
Hahahahaha! they are here to protect you ( We seriously need a puke icon )
Yeah, the WSJ took a few pretty big swipes at CR in it's top 10 article! None of the other 9 really had any swipes taken at them. There must be some bad blood in there somewhere?
Rob Dawg wrote:
You think he's going to get elected President?
blackhat wrote:
One thing you can be sure of, there will plenty of vacant land.
Take that NAR!
"Bizarre how this market is shaking off every piece of bad news. It's like no one on Wall Street cares about housing anymore."
There IS no one on Wall Street anymore.
You're right tg.
Let's do this right.
SO DENNINGER DIDN'T MAKE THE LIST?!!! I'D BE INSULTED!!!!
(how do you change typeface size?)
tncubsfan wrote:
Maybe they are getting comments like some of the other papers online editions. Things like "CR gets things right quickly and he doesn't even get paid to do this. You call yourself a newspaper......" I've seen a few of those, and some of them are getting deleted quickly by the Blowntown Gazette.
Cinco-X wrote:
To be fair, no one understood Einstein's ToR for quite a few years, and Newton was an asshole who only wrote Principia because Halley kept harrassing him.
yagij wrote:
Actually, if you throw out all the delusion and propaganda, one can actually use it to determine what the psychopaths who run things are doing, at least on a overt level.
Whiskey, I know. His decorum, demeanor and patience is remarkable. His credibility on his fact based analysis far outstrips WSJ-I'm grateful we at least can get information/analysis beyond what is offered up by those well-funded maim stream sources.
tncubsfan wrote:
From the 2009 article: "The charts on the site are some of the most informative on the Internet, but also some of visually dullest."
Likeliest explanation:
“It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it” - Upton Sinclair
Congrats CR, even if you are unhappy. You do deserve the recognition for all the great work you do.
The WSJ lost me when it became a Murdoch publication since I consider him one of the chief spinmeisters and a squidly insider. And I happen to know that this blog is read by some of the FED, at least the ones in San Fran!
This isn't rocket science.
There is an excess of inventory, the prices are still inflated....
the middle class hasn't seen income increases, and it's heavily indebted at an individual, state, and federal level...
Outsider wrote:
No, but then it ain't on the list, either.
My mother told me never to run around the house with sharp home sales decline charts. However, I didn't listen. Unfortunately, I only have one testicle now.
I always thought KD was super-frothing and foaming.
But his recent rants about laptops and webcams are over-the-top, even for him.
I agree on the substance, but he's not getting any style points.
yagij wrote:
It was alphabetical I think, which is why my blog will be called AAAAAAh, Calimari.
Elvis wrote:
The bad news is that was only the first step on the stairs.
JP wrote:
Well deserved CR...so I guess the
round is on you 
Outsider wrote:
I think you mean: I'D BE FUKKING PISSED !!!1!!!11!!!111
Edit Geez, I'm slow. Everyone made the joke first. Off to the salt mines.
Nanoo-Nanoo wrote:
Is "maim stream" a Freudian slip or a rhetorical flourish?
Of all of the sites mentioned, CR is probably the most mainstream, and if the WSJ wants to maintain the conceit of blogs as hyperbolic rant factories, then it clearly isn't in the same league as a Zero Hedge.
No, but then it ain't on the list, either.
Ah! I see now. On the thumbnail it's listed as Clusterstock. On the writeup it's listed as BusinessInsider/Clusterstock.
Okay, now I can move on. Thank you.
Rob Dawg wrote:
They're charts. What does the WSJ want? Blinking lights?
Keep up the awesome work, CR, and please keep them 'dull' so that I can learn something. I have no need to sing along with the housing chart and play connect-the-dots with RevPAR.
I don't know KD is no doubt in the top 5.
Speaking of Denninger,
FRONTLINE: digital nation: learning: schools: how google saved a school | PBS (forward to 4:50 to watch an assistant principal monitor kids doing makeup)
He's pissed at this and understandably so.
It's also hard to keep spin doctors and extremists off your site if you become very influential.
Bring'em on. I just hope they bring to the table something a little more substantial than a wright model 'b' or mork from ork popping in to say we're in a recovery when on [an infrequent] occasion a CR chart shows a positive trend.
Whiskey...Maim stream is a JD brain production. Love it myself. By MSM I mean those who are paid handsomely by Murdoch, Turner, etc and have become laughable examples of 'news' organizations.
CalculatedRisk wrote:
CR,
Thanks for keeping Calculated Risk the class act we know and love.
Tanta vive!
shill wrote:
I've never read him. Who is he, and what's he like? At least with ZH, it was a big enough name that I could share a laugh with a co-worker over one of his(?) posts.
Rob Dawg wrote:
I would like to see the charts in some type of Adobe Flash format. Lots of blinky things, transitions, and maybe even the ability to rotate the 2D plots in 3D. Then I would visit the site more often.
Info Vs. entertainment. I like shiny things.
black dog wrote:
I like to wander over to Dealbreaker once in a while, just to sit and watch the snark-master that is Bess Levin. If she happened to wander into hoocoodanode, I think she'd fit right in.
Here is your weekly recap....as one can clearly see the recovery is right on schedule.
Update: Unified School District - 321 Layoff Notices
Murrieta Valley Unified School District - up to 175 Job Cut Notices
Sony DADC in Pitman - Halting DVD production = 160 Layoffs
Lake Bluff School District 65 - 15 Teachers , Aides
N. Oklahoma Resource Center in Enid & S. Oklahoma Resource Center in Pauls Valley - 80
The Menlo Park City School District Ca - 8 Teachers , and Program Cuts Likely
University of Idaho - No Layoffs, But Furlough Details Coming Next Week
Ceratizit in Latrobe Pa - 20 to 25
Update: Chicago Public Schools - 500
Sunrise Senior Living Inc - 30
Davie Yards Inc Canadian Shipbuilder - 1,600
Hubbardton Forge of Castleton VT - 13
City of Las Vegas Recommends - 171 Layoffs
The Torrance Unified School District Ca - Possibly 110 Job Cuts, and Shortening School Year by 5 Days
Detroit Mayor Dave Bing - More layoffs Likely
The Red Bluff Elementary Unified School District Ca - 22
Update: Brownsburg school district Indiana - up to 20 this summer
Oroville City Elementary School District - Proposes 24 Job Cuts
Union Bankshares and First Market Bank Merger - 72 Jobs to be Lost
Kruger Inc Corner Brook Paper Mill ( International ) - 15
Chula Vista Elementary School District Ca - Considers Pay Cuts , up to 459 Layoffs
Kendle International Inc - Job Cuts Coming?
City of Wildwood - 30
Steuben Glass - Layoffs, Unknown Number
Glen Ridge NJ - 2 Police Recruits
Update: Yuma City Employees - 16 Hours More of Furloughs
Irish airline Aer Lingus ( International ) Plans - 1,100
Wheaton College - Job Cuts Coming and Tuition Hike
Ripon Printers - 13
Troy Michigan - Tax Increase Rejected - 47 Layoffs Very Possible
Lafayette Indiana Alcoa - 17
Albion College - 15
The Oregonian - 37
The city of Roanoke Water Sewage Gas and Filter Plant - 2
Post Danmark and Sweden’s Postn AB International - 2,000
Fort Mill School SC - 30 Possible Job Cuts
The town of Oro Valley AZ - 2 Building Inspectors
Santa Ana Unified trustees - Voted 126 Layoffs Next School Year
Update: Bakersfield City School District Ca - Approves 120 by Next School Year
Temecula Valley Unified school District - 150
Stockton Unified School District - 200 Layoff Notices by March 15
Belleayre Mountain Ski Center - 59
Lake Norman Regional Medical Center - < 50 Temporary Laid off
Update: Visalia Unified School District - 26
Merced City School District - 19 Layoff Notices
Lenovo - 32
The Dryden Central School District - 17 Possible
Ford Motor Credit Business Center in Mauldin SC - 100
Muni May Transit - 170
Jackson Memorial Hospital - Cut up to 1,000 Jobs
NYC Transit Agency - 1,000
Update: ABC News - 300 to 400
HP - Layoffs this week, Unknown Number
Update: State of Georgia - Up to 5,000 Job Cuts Possible
Pratt & Whitney Connecticut - 163
Car dealer Pendragon ( International ) - 190
ABC News - Hundreds of Buyouts Coming Tomorrow
Carrefour ( International ) - 1,700 Layoffs, and 21 Retail Store Closings
Cabarrus County - 76
MaineToday Media - More Layoffs Coming in March Possibly
University of Illinois’ Urbana campus - 9
Buzzi Unicem plant in Pryor's MidAmerica Industrial Park - 1/2 of Workforce or 55 Temp Layoffs?
Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc - 60
San Rafael school District - 37 Job Cuts Notices
Community Regional Medical Center - 38
The Port Huron Area School - 27
Stafford Township NJ - 5
The Kansas State athletic department - 8
Rock Hill School District SC - 31 Layoffs Possible
Update: San Francisco Ca School Teachers - 900+ Jobs on the Line
Monster Worldwide Inc - 200
Invista - 50 in Wilmington Area
The Dothan City Schools - 131 to 220 Job Cuts Possible
Metropolitan Transportation Authority of NYC - Layoffs to be Announced Today
Update: Boeing Puget Sound Area - 527
Goodrich Corporation in Jamestown - 60
Sacramento County Ca - 111 More Job Cuts
Randolph Township NJ School Board - Warns 25 Layoffs and More Program Cuts
Bunge in Dansville - 100
Pfizer Pearl River Facility - 72 More Layoffs
Continental Airlines Inc. - 600 Reservation Agents
Covenant Doors & Millwork Neb. - 30
Swiss Post ( International ) - 100
The Shasta Union High District - 25 Layoff Notices
St. Peter's College in Jersey City - 14
Fresno's Community Regional Medical Center - 38
Innovative Consultants LLC - 287
Port Huron Area School District - 27
Merced Irrigation District - 24
Viking Range Corporation - 20
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District - 92 Likely
Waterford CT - 75 Accepted Furloughs no Layoffs
City of Corona - 31
Triosyn - 35
Update: Jersey City - 279
The Mississippi Board of Education - 6
Daily Job Cuts - Layoff News , Job Layoffs 2009 , Bankruptcy, Store closings and other Business Economy News
well said and ditto!
Mike_ wrote:
'cringes
How long before Isaskon pushes to double down on the 8K credit? Taxpayer be damned.
I like graphs that you can also eat. Please start making them out of cheetos.
Elvis wrote:
Why do you think we have pies and pizzas? D'uh!
albrt wrote:
But you'd have to live next to those people and most folks in PHX can't be having that. They'd rather live an hour away from downtown than do that.
that Ritholz is at #1 should tell you something. The king of "maybe, could be, might be, etc.".... If ever there was a fellow not taking much of a position (other than totally obvious to the rest of the world) he fits it.
Ciao
MS
Recent Stats Indicate U.S. Economic Recovery Was an Illusion -- Seeking Alpha
yagij wrote:
I prefer cheetos.
MS wrote:
It tells you that nobody had a name starting with A.
Your daily
alert is brought to you today by astrology geeks who have too much time on their hands. The fortune cookie says beware the Ides of March. Which could be March 15 or 14...or hell the whole month for all we know, reconciling the various Roman calenders is tough...but some big bad secret sign in the sky (probably just the horny moon, but they wouldn't tell me) portends upheaval. Upheaval of what, couldn't tell me. So watch out for vague upheavals sometime in March. Personally, I am betting on more snow I have to up heave while getting assassinated in the back by a rogue snowball.
The graphs here are the best. Simple and consistent helps you to understand whats really going in.
MS wrote:
That 'B' comes early in the alphabet?
I used to read Barry and Paul Kedrosky with CR. I just read CR these days.
Rob Dawg wrote:
If he had run in lieu of Spitzer there is no way I would have voted for him. Now however, he is my favorite politician and I am sad to hear he is bowing to party pressure to end his re-election campaign. He speaks the truth and other politicians hate him for it.
FD: I am a registered Repub but vote who I feel is the better candidate.