Some Observations on the Second Lien Problem
Some Observations on the Second Lien Problem
By Matt Stoller, Naked Capitalism, April 12, 2012
Over the past three years, the big four servicers have been keeping hundreds of billions of dollars of second mortgages on their books (mostly in the form of Home Equity Lines of Credit, or HELOCs). Many of these mortgages would seem effectively worthless, because a home equity line of credit or second mortgage on top of an already deeply underwater first mortgage has no value. You can’t use it to foreclose, because you’d get nothing out of the foreclosure – all of that would go to the first mortgage holder (usually some investor in a pension fund somewhere).
California Declares War on Suburbia
By Wendell Cox, Wall Street Journal, April 9, 2012
It's no secret that California's regulatory and tax climate is driving business investment to other states. California's high cost of living also is driving people away. Since 2000 more than 1.6 million people have fled, and my own research as well as that of others points to high housing prices as the principal factor. The exodus is likely to accelerate. California has declared war on the most popular housing choice, the single family, detached home—all in the name of saving the planet.
Flood of Foreclosures to Hit the Housing Market
By Les Christie, CNNMoney, April 13, 2012
The golden age for foreclosure squatters may soon be coming to an end now that the $26 billion mortgage settlement has been approved. The settlement, agreed to by the nation's five largest mortgage lenders, is expected to speed up the foreclosure process by providing stricter guidelines for the banks to follow when repossessing homes.
IMF Chief Lagarde Calls for U.S. Mortgage Relief
By Howard Schneider, Washington Post, April 12, 2012
International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde called on the U.S. government to reduce the mortgage debt owed by homeowners as a way help to revive the nation’s economy and stimulate growth in the wider industrialized world. Speaking Thursday at the Brookings Institution, Lagarde urged that this relief be extended to loans held by mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The issue of whether to reduce mortgages held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, representing more than half of U.S. home loans, has become contentious in Washington in recent months.