housing crisis

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Calif. Budget Falls Prey to Housing Crisis

Governator orders across-the-board cuts as deficit nears $10B

(Newser) - With the housing crisis laying waste to California’s coffers, Arnold Schwarzenegger yesterday ordered all state agencies to cut budgets by 10%, the LA Times reports. “We are among a handful of states that has a lot of exposure to the housing crash,” said an economist. Property, sales,...

Top Chicago Homebuilder Goes Bankrupt

Neumann becomes second largest builder to fall in subprime collapse

(Newser) - Neumann homes, a top Chicago homebuilder, will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the Chicago Tribune reports, making it the second-largest builder felled by the dive in the housing market. The company has laid off all but 20 of its 110 workers. “I’m not overly optimistic about the...

Housing Ills Ripple Across Pond
Housing Ills Ripple Across Pond

Housing Ills Ripple Across Pond

(Newser) - The American housing crisis is echoing in Europe, where home prices are dropping after a decade of rapid growth. The damage is limited, however, by intercontinental differences. High interest rates and shaken confidence are catching up to prices in France, Ireland, and particularly Spain, where new home construction had spurred...

Credit Crisis Could Torpedo UK Housing Market, Too

Prices more inflated than US, agency warns

(Newser) - Britain risks its own housing price crash, according to an International Monetary Fund report. The UK is in a credit crunch similar to the ongoing US version, and its housing is more overpriced than the US market before the crisis. In fact, "a number of advanced economies' housing markets...

Paulson: Economy in Danger
Paulson: Economy in Danger

Paulson: Economy in Danger

(Newser) - The ongoing housing implosion poses “a significant risk” to the economy, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said in a speech at Georgetown University today, in a sobering about-face from earlier attempts to downplay the crisis. “The ongoing housing correction is not ending as quickly as it appeared,” he...

Housing Still a Drag: Fed Chief
Housing Still a Drag: Fed Chief

Housing Still a Drag: Fed Chief

Setbacks likely, says Bernanke, who offers no hints on interest rate status

(Newser) - The real estate slump will continue to be a "significant drag" on US economic growth well into next year, said Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke in his first speech on the economy since August. Recovery from the credit crisis will take time, and setbacks are likely, Bernanke told the...

Home Sales Sink to 5-Year Low
Home Sales Sink to 5-Year Low

Home Sales Sink to 5-Year Low

Stats at 5-year low due to credit crunch

(Newser) - Sales of previously owned US homes fell 4.3% in August, marking a 5-year low point and continuing the housing swoon growing out of the credit crisis. Although the drop was slightly less than expected, borrowing costs have risen and mortgage qualification has gotten harder, so demand is down and...

Largest US Homebuilder Posts Biggest Losses Ever

Lennar stock drops after worse-than-expected earnings report

(Newser) - The atrophied housing market has sent America’s largest homebuilder into even more of tailspin than expected. Lennar announced today it lost $513.9 million last quarter, or $3.25 per share—the worst losses in its 53-year history. Lennar says home discounting and the dismal mortgage situation will force...

Home Foreclosures Hit Record
Home Foreclosures Hit Record

Home Foreclosures Hit Record

August numbers double, with no end in sight

(Newser) - Another 108,716 American homeowners received foreclosure notices in August, a record total more than double last year’s figure. And this is only the beginning, say analysts, who expect even more subprime borrowers to default over the next 2 years. That will further depress housing prices, which are expected...

Jobless Claims Rise, but Economists See Silver Lining

Figures lower than expected as labor market deals with volatility

(Newser) - First-time applications for jobless claims rose last week, but economists are encouraged that the figures were less than expected, Bloomberg reports today. Claims grew by 4,000 to 319,000—still well short of the 325,000 applications expected. The numbers suggest that the labor market isn’t collapsing, despite...

New-Home Sales Grow, Spur Wall St.
New-Home Sales Grow, Spur Wall St.

New-Home Sales Grow, Spur Wall St.

But new figures don't fully reflect credit market's impact, analysts say

(Newser) - New-home sales grew 2.8% last month, delivering an unexpected bit of good news to investors still reeling from the credit crunch. But the housing market, which had been rebounding in recent months from a slump, will likely show renewed weakness after he mortgage crisis dust settles, Bloomberg reports.

New Flood of Foreclosures Looms
New Flood of Foreclosures Looms

New Flood of Foreclosures Looms

Adjustable borrowers face up to 35% spikes in mortgage payments

(Newser) - When adjustable-rate mortgages are increased this year, hundreds of thousands of subprime borrowers  could lose their homes, triggering a precipitous drop in the housing market, CNNMoney reports. The threat is the latest in the emerging subprime loan crisis. Heartland industrial areas, as well as once-hot markets in California, Nevada and...

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