Madoff spotted Advising NY State

let's take a look

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ALBANY — Gov. David A. Paterson and legislative leaders have tentatively agreed to allow the state and municipalities to borrow nearly $6 billion to help them make their required annual payments to the state pension fund.

And, in classic budgetary sleight-of-hand, they will borrow the money to make the payments to the pension fund — from the same pension fund.

As word of the plan spread, some denounced it as a shell game and a blatant effort by state leaders to avoid making difficult decisions, like cutting government spending or reducing pension benefits.

“It’s a classic Albany example of kicking the can down the road,” said Harry Wilson, the Republican candidate for comptroller, who holds an M.B.A. from Harvard.

Pension costs for the state and municipalities are soaring, a result of enhanced retirement benefits for public employees and the decline in the stock market over the past two years. And, given declines in tax revenue and larger budget shortfalls, the governments are struggling to come up with the money to make the contributions.

Under the plan, the state and municipalities would borrow the money to reduce their pension contributions for the next three years, in exchange for higher payments over the following decade. They would begin repaying what they borrowed, with interest, in 2013.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/12/nyregion/12pension.html

Mortgage volume down big-time!

let us take a look

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WASHINGTON — The number of customers applying for a mortgage to purchase a property fell to the lowest level in 13 years last week, a sign the housing market is struggling without government incentives.

Purchase volume declined 5.7 percent and is at its lowest point since February 1997, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday.

Overall mortgage application volume, which includes loans for purchases and refinancings, dropped by 12.2 percent during the week ending June 4, compared with the previous week. Refinance volume tumbled 14.3 percent.

"Purchase applications are now 35 percent below their level of four weeks ago, as homebuyers have not yet returned to the market following the expiration of the homebuyer tax credit at the end of April," said Michael Fratantoni, MBA's vice president of research and economics.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iIvqFRg66XEuDVbUOooZbk-FI9lgD9G7SG280

What would Reagan do?

Tax Hikes and the 2011 Collapse

Today's corporate profits reflect an income shift into 2010. These profits will tumble next year, preceded most likely by the stock market.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704113504575264513748386610.html

Bank of America Settles with Consumers

Bank of America to pay $108 million to settle Countrywide case

The agreement with the Federal Trade Commission will create a fund to provide refunds to homeowners who were charged improper fees.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-countrywide-mortgages-20100608,0,6444494.story

Foreclosure

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/01/business/01nopay.html?src=busln

Mortgage Modification Program Modifying

let's take a look:

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Attention delinquent borrowers: If you want to get into the Obama administration's mortgage modification program, you'd better have your paperwork ready..............

................................Of the 1.2 million people who've started trial modifications, fewer than 300,000 have received permanent assistance. Another 278,000 have washed out of the program either because they didn't send in timely payments, hand in the required documents or meet the eligibility criteria

http://money.cnn.com/2010/05/28/news/economy/loan_modification_paperwork/index.htm?source=cnn_bin&hpt=Sbin

FHA Loans out pace the rest

lets take a look:

FHA Home-Financing Volume Sign of ‘Very Sick System’

May 24 (Bloomberg) -- Loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration, the U.S.-owned mortgage insurer, may be involved in more home-purchase transactions than borrowing financed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

FHA lending last quarter may have topped the combined volume of government-supported Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in a home-lending market that’s still a “government-financed market,” David Stevens, the agency’s head, said today at a conference in New York, citing research by consultant Potomac Partners.

“This is a market purely on life support, sustained by the federal government,” he said at the Mortgage Bankers Association conference. “Having FHA do this much volume is a sign of a very sick system.”

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-05-24/fha-home-financing-volume-sign-of-very-sick-system-update2-.html