Articles About Financing

The economic upheavals of recent years have changed Americans in ways that we are still coming to terms with because it marks the end of an era.  The Great Recession was anything but an ordinary downturn and the way we live and work has been transformed.  Construction and auto jobs have declined by one-third; retail […]

If you’ve noticed a recent drop in mortgage interest rates, thank the PIGS’ (Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain) troubles, which are causing jitters in the globe’s equity markets.  Seeking a safe haven, investors are putting their money into U.S. Treasury notes.  Because mortgage interest rates tend to rise and fall with 10-year U.S. Treasury note […]

Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT) is enjoying a big victory in his last days in the Senate following passage of broad financial reform legislation designed to rein in the excesses that caused the financial meltdown.  First, the Senate and House versions of the bill must undergo reconciliation.  Under the new law, for example, homebuyers will have […]

Wells Fargo & Company and LNR Property Corporation are hunting for buyers for $1 billion each of distressed commercial real estate assets and loans.  San Francisco-based Wells Fargo, the nation’s largest commercial real estate lender, is soliciting bids on $500 million to $1 billion worth of office and hotels.  LNR, the nation’s largest CBMS special […]

In a rare moment of bipartisanship, the Senate voted 96 – 0 to attach a modified version of an amendment proposed by Sen. Bernard Sanders (I-VT) to the financial regulatory bill to investigate transparency in emergency lending practices by the Federal Reserve during the financial crisis.  “This amendment begins the process of lifting the veil […]

As the 1st quarter 2010 numbers come in, banks across the country are still uneasy about the short-term outlook for commercial real estate – and their portfolios in particular.  At the same time, there is a growing sense that the potential for disaster has faded and that problems are being resolved. In general, banks reported […]

The recent release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s March meeting may hint that the nation is experiencing a sustainable recovery and is possibly facing upwards inflationary pressure.  The yield on 10-year Treasury notes has already surpassed four percent for the first time since last June; oil and copper traded at their highest prices in […]

The nation’s small and medium-sized banks – those with under $10 billion in assets – could see a spate of commercial loan failures in coming years, according to a report issued by the Congressional Oversight Panel as part of its supervision of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).  The panel’s chair, Harvard law professor Elizabeth […]

The United States still faces “significant economic challenges”, with unemployment at “stubbornly” high levels and businesses that are reluctant to spend as government deficits rise.  This is the opinion of Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh, who said “Taking account of the broad range of economic and financial conditions, there is no wonder that the electorate […]

Bank of America (BofA) is taking steps to write down mortgage principal owed by thousands of underwater homeowners in what has been termed “the mortgage industry’s boldest move yet” to resolve the nation’s foreclosure problem.  Bank of America can well afford the initiative. According to Betsy Graseck, a Morgan Stanley analyst, the ultimate cost of […]