Bomb Suspect Faced Foreclosure

Bomb Suspect Faced Foreclosure
May 4, 2010, Wall Street Journal

Faisal Shahzad was losing his Connecticut home to foreclosure, disliked President George W. Bush, and was an almost invisible presence at the American university where he earned two degrees. Those are some of the details in the still-emerging portrait of the man who authorities say has implicated himself in the botched Times Square bomb plot.


Pending Home Sales Rise 5.3 Percent in March
May 4, 2010, Washington Post via AP

The number of buyers who signed contracts to purchase homes surged more than expected in March, another sign that government incentives are propelling the housing market this spring. The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday its seasonally adjusted index of sales agreements for previously occupied homes rose 5.3 percent from a month earlier to a reading of 102.9.


Is Strategic Default a Menace?
April 27, 2010, City Journal

In his recent article in City Journal, economist Luigi Zingales suggests that strategic defaults are immoral and socially irresponsible. He also criticizes me, along with Roger Lowenstein of the New York Times, for supposedly contributing to the social menace of strategic default. Before I respond, let me emphasize that the decision to default strategically on a mortgage involves many complex, localized, and individualized factors.


Commercial Real Estate Carnage Continues
May 5, 2010, Fox Business

The troubled commercial real estate market continued to ravage the community banking sector last month as federal banking regulators closed 23 banks, the highest monthly toll in nearly a year. In total, the April bank closings cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation nearly $9 billion as banks loaded with commercial real estate and construction loans continued to falter at a record pace.