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Nearly every man who develops an idea works it up to the point where it looks impossible, and then he gets discouraged. That's not the place to become discouraged.
Thomas Edison Categories
Tag Archives: housing
5 tips for staying under your own debt ceiling
It seems like common sense: Don’t take on more debt to pay off your bills. Yet debt-laden consumers routinely do just that, even as they criticize the federal government for efforts to raise the debt ceiling. Read More
Layoffs, housing data point to chronic problems
Sour reports Thursday, June 23, on the number of people who sought unemployment benefits and buyers of new homes illustrate what Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke acknowledged Wednesday: Many factors weighing on the economy are proving to be more chronic than first imagined. Read More
Baby boomers near 65 with retirements in jeopardy
Through a combination of procrastination and bad timing, many baby boomers are facing a personal finance disaster just as they’re hoping to retire.
Starting in January, more than 10,000 baby boomers a day will turn 65, a pattern that will continue for the next 19 years.
The boomers, who in their youth revolutionized everything from music to race relations, are set to redefine retirement. But a generation that made its mark in the tumultuous 1960s now faces a crisis…read more Read More
AP analysis: Economic stress falls to 18-month low
Job gains around the country offset higher foreclosures and helped reduce the nation’s economic stress in October to an 18-month low, according to The Associated Press’ monthly analysis.
Stress fell in 56 percent of the roughly 3,100 U.S. counties analyzed and in 28 of the states, the AP’s Economic Stress Index shows. Demand overseas for U.S. semiconductors and strength in technology companies have helped lower unemployment…read more Read More
Tiny house movement thrives amid real estate bust
As Americans downsize in the aftermath of a colossal real estate bust, at least one tiny corner of the housing market appears to be thriving.
To save money or simplify their lives, a small but growing number of Americans are buying or building homes that could fit inside many people’s living rooms, according to entrepreneurs in the small house industry. Some put these wheeled homes in their backyards to use as offices, studios or extra bedrooms…read more Read More
Survey: Economic growth will be tepid through 2011
The pace of the U.S. economic recovery will remain steady but slow in the face of persistently high unemployment and heavy debt burdens, according to a new survey.
The National Association for Business Economics survey, set to be released Monday, found economists now expect growth of 2.7 percent this year, up slightly from the previous forecast of 2.6 percent.
For 2011, the group still expects an economic expansion of 2.6 percent…read more Read More
Builders glum on housing market despite uptick
Builders are pessimistic about the housing market, but are seeing a little more foot traffic after the worst summer for home sales in a decade . . . read more Read More
The American Economy …confidence is lacking
Most forecasting economists will tell you that the U.S. economy returned to growth about 12-15 months ago…statistically at least, if not emotionally. The National Bureau of Economic Research, the “official” scorekeeper for the American economy, is expected to make that call at any time in coming months. We do know that what we now call the Great Recession started in December 2007 . . . read more Read More
Homebuilders’ confidence stuck at 18-month low
WASHINGTON (AP) — Homebuilders’ confidence in the housing market stayed this month at the lowest level in 18 months, and more worry that the traffic of potential buyers is falling . . . read more Read More
Home prices rise in 17 cities in June
he Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index of home prices in 20 major U.S. cities posted a 1 percent increase in June from a month earlier . . . read more Read More
So what exactly is a ‘double-dip’ recession?
Concerns are rising that the economy is at risk of slipping into a “double-dip” recession.
High unemployment, Europe’s debt crisis, a slowdown in China, a teetering housing market and sinking stock prices are all weighing on a fragile U.S. recovery.
So what exactly is a double-dip recession?
Robert Hall has an idea of what one looks like but no precise definition. He’s chairman of the National Bureau of Economic Research, a group of academic economists that officially declares the starts and ends of recessions . . . read more Read More
A snapshot of the AP Economy Survey results
The Associated Press Economy Survey drew upon forecasts from 44 economists. What follows are their average forecasts, along with some historical context.
HOUSING
— Sale prices of previously occupied homes: In 2010, a decline of 0.1 percent. In 2011, a 2.3 percent increase. Prices tumbled 10.7 percent last year.
— Number of previously occupied homes sold: In 2010, 5.4 million. In 2011, 5.9 million . . . read more Read More
Homebuyers scramble as mortgage rates jump
The era of record-low mortgage rates is over.
The average rate on a 30-year loan has jumped from about 5 percent to more than 5.3 percent in just the past week. As mortgages get more expensive, more would-be homeowners are priced out of the market — a threat to the fragile recovery in the housing market. . . . read more Read More
Take two: Gov’t tries new fix for mortgage crisis
The government’s bold new plan to stem the foreclosure crisis aims to succeed where previous efforts have fallen flat. Yet just as before, the odds are long, and many struggling borrowers won’t qualify.
In theory, the effort unveiled Friday, March 26, would help millions of troubled homeowners who owe more on their mortgages than their homes are worth, or who are jobless and need a break on their payments.
But it depends on cooperation from investors and bankers, many of whom have been locked in disputes over whether to reduce the debt owed by homeowners.
And just like the bank bailouts, this rescue plan poses risks. If it doesn’t slow the wave of foreclosures or if home prices nosedive, the tentative recovery in the housing market could fizzle. . . . read more Read More
The four cities that best weathered the recession
Call them the Final Four: The four large cities that have made it through the Great Recession with the smallest increases in unemployment.
Minneapolis, Buffalo, Oklahoma City and Rochester, N.Y., don’t have much else in common. But a government report shows they’ve had the smallest increases in joblessness over the past two years among cities with at least 1 million people. . . . read more Read More
