Monday, June 20, 2011

Government Stays Glued to Mortgage Market



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The fragile housing market is complicating Washington's stated goal of dialing back its support after it has reduced stakes in the financial-services and auto industries. The slide in home prices in turn is weighing on the economic recovery, and it threatens to hamper a bipartisan push to unwind the emergency support policymakers enacted three years ago.

Falling prices are eroding consumer confidence and hindering job mobility by leaving millions of borrowers trapped in homes worth less than what they owe. A glut of bank-owned foreclosures has slowed residential construction, damping a major source of job growth. In some markets, the share of buyers paying in cash for homes has hit its highest levels in years, a red flag that prices could fall below "fair value" due to a lack of credit.




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Original content Bob DeMarco, Look Beyond the Obvious