Wednesday Linklube: Local Statitude, TARP is not TARP, Copper theft is SOOO last year.

Local:
Home Sales Stubbornly Continue to Increase Through October[MAAR]
October stats are in.  High points: YOY Pending sales and closed sales up 6.9% and 12.0% respectively. 40% (!!) of pendings are under $150k in price, pushing median sales price down 18% to $180k.  WOW: 48% of all sales lender mediated (foreclsoure, short sale, etc.)

Minneapolis Downtown Condo Update [Jennifer Kirby]
Excellent breakdown points out that Downtown Minneapolis has more for sale listings than any other district, almost all condos. Other highlights: Avg. 108 days on market, inventory down 28%, average price UP 5.6%, only 8% of sales foreclosures/short.

Have Home Sellers Given Up? [Boardman]
Did you know that St. Paul has had 3,333 canceled listings this year? Teresa Boardman tells us what this might mean.

Foreclosures not Dwindling; Prices Still Falling [Buchta/Strib]
Read closely and you might see a quote in here from someone you know...

Strip and Steal Hurting Minneapolis [Minnpost]
When a Meth addict has taste: Architectural theft is a huge problem in vacant period homes in Minneapolis.  Copper theft is SOOOO last year.

Elsewhere & Otherwise:
Appraiser Should Use Recent Comps [Matrix]
If you don't understand where appraisers fit into a real estate transaction, read this right now.

"Investing" in AIG et al [Steven Randy Waldman]
An excellent rant: "What kind of society is compatible with an economy managed by a cadre of large, politically connected firms whose operations and those of the state are intimately connected, and which cannot be permitted to fail since that would bring "chaos"?

TARP Update: Remember that $700 Billion Dollar bailout thing?  The one where Treasury was to spend the money buying toxic assets from banks, and thereby save the financial system?  Yeah, um, they aren't doing that anymore. 

11/12/08 at 01:59 PM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Friday Linklube: Blogs get nasty, Dayton's bluff home tour, the 'meastro' admits mistakes.

Local:
Daytons Bluff: Beautiful, historic, and vacant [Strib]
A neighborhood with some of the best views of St. Paul's river valley and downtown has 100's of vacant homes.  The community is hosting a vacant homes tour Sunday.

State Money Does Little for Foreclosure Relief [MPR]
State housing money will go toward affordable housing, new units. "The state can only do so much and it really will require some sort of federal relief. 28,000 foreclosures this year, I mean there aren't enough state resources around to have a significant response to that level of hardship,"

Elsewhere & Otherwise:
Housing Blogs Throw Stones [WSJ]
WSJ discovers real estate blogs are not immune to trolls.  "Aggressively rude" commenters descend on blogs to mock pricing, finishes, decorating touches, and more.

Indy-mac Mtg Modification Plan: Still in the Real World [CR/Tanta]
The FDIC efforts to modify Indy-mac mortgages are proving every bit as tough as skeptics suggested. Turns out, it's not just uncooperative, unresponsive servicers that make large scale loan modifications tough.  They just are tough, no matter who's trying to do them. Interesting to ponder as more and more government intervention in the workout/modification portion of the mortgage market seems likely.

Greenspan Admits Errors to Hostile House Panel [WSJ]
"The Meastro" admits he was out of tune, and surprised by the fact that house prices fell (they never had before) banks did not protect their own interests, did not recognize the housing bubble until 2006 (!!) (!!!!). 

Consumer Watch: Wal-Mart is bringing back lay-away, and seeing paycheck related spikes in baby formula, staple sales.

Private Sector Losses vs. Fannie/Freddie [Big Picture]
Bary Ritholtz summarily debunks the canard that Fannie/Freddie and the CRA was what led to the mortgage meltdown.  Not subject-to-CRA private sector mortgage lending was upwards of 80% of the subprime/garbage paper lending, and ultimately what led us into this, not some bunk about CRA and Fannie/Freddie. 

10/24/08 at 11:30 AM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Thursday Linklube: 10% off sale, "trojan homes" foisted on charities, giant pool of money redux

Local
· 10 Days, 10% Off: Coldwell Banker Burnet [MPR]
· Twin Cities: Top Ten Best Value for $1.00 [TCBJ]
· Fighting Foreclosure: Minnesota Getting $57.8 Million [F&C]
· Lenders Getting Better at Foreclosure Workouts [MPR]
· Underwater Homes Dumped on Charities [MinnPost]
· St. Paul: Citywide Housing Clearance Sale [Boardman]
· 1 in 9 Minnesotans Pay 50% of Income to Housing [Strib]

Elsewhere & Otherwise:
· The Great Hedge Fund Unwind [Kedrosky]
· Worth Listening: Giant Pool of Money, Pt2 [TAL]
· GMAC Auto Loans: Need a 700 Credit Score [Bloom]
· Inflation Expectations Moderating [Econompic Data]
· Real Estate has not Bottomed Yet [NYT]

10/16/08 at 12:02 PM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Monday Linklube: Agents on bikes, home sales highs (and lows), your 14 year old sister understands the financial crisis

Local
· Pending Sales, on the Hop: 42% Spike [The Skinny]
· The 5 Most Expensive Homes Sold in Sept [Goheens]
· And the 5 Cheapest Homes Sold in Sept [Goheens]
· New Twist? Mortgage Fraud Propped Up by Rents [Strib]
· CRA and the Twin Cities Market [TCDP]
· Realtors on Bikes! Gee Whiz! [Strib]
· Downtown Population: 34k, 30% higher Since 2001 [DTJournal]
· Lehman Limbo: North Loop Building's Future Uncertain [DTJ]
Elsewhere & Otherwise
· Ilegal Immigrants Have Lower Delinquency Rates [LAT]
· Why Banks Don't Care About Elevated LIBOR [SRW]
· US to Guarantee Foreign Investment in Morgan Stanley? [Yves]
· Financial Crisis as Explained to a 14 Year Old [Bygone Bureau]

10/13/08 at 11:22 AM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Weekend Linklube: House Swapping, Celebrity Real Estate, Bed Bugs, and More

Minnesota Viking Matt Birk's home is on the market for $3.995M.  Image courtesy Star Tribune.

· House Swapping is a Growing Trend [Strib]
· Credit Crunch: Remodeling Gets Tougher [WCCO]
· Brooklyn Park: Remodeling and Selling Foreclosures [WCCO]
· Boutique Hotels Redefine Downtown [KARE]
· Eden Prairie: Historic Barn Saved! [Strib]
· Jessica Lange Home: Sold, $1.82M [wcco]
· Commercial RE: Lending Limbo [TCBJ]
· Bed Bugs (!!!) [Strib]
· Viking Matt Birk's Pad: 3.995 Million [Strib]
· Ugly But Green: Meet the 5ive House [Strib]
· Staging: All About That First Impression [Strib]
· MN to Get $58 Million in Foreclosure Funds [MPR]

09/27/08 at 06:48 AM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Friday Linklube: Drums in the Deep

       Doom, boom, doom went the drums in the deep.
                                      -JRR Tolkien, Lord of the Rings

· Was Wamu Shot as a Hostage? [Interfuidity]
· This Cannot Continue. The System is Eating it's Young [ATC]
· Bill O'Reilly Fries them All.  And he is right [Gawker]
· Blow by Blow Politics of Yesterday's Breakdown [Politico]
· Some Men Just Want to Watch the World Burn [Kedrosky]
· McDonalds is Now a Better Risk than USA [Market Movers]
· Game Theory: This thing may not work anyway [Econompic]

09/26/08 at 09:48 AM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Thursday Linklube: Zillow Says What?, Housing Weirdness, FDIC has Plenty of Money

Local
· How to Prepare for Economic Collapse? [Bob Collins]
· Mahtomehdi: Fear and Confusion + Coffee [Strib]
· Affordable Housing Developers Under Tax-Credit Squeeze [F&C]
· Local Angle: Zillow Says What? [Technology Evangelist]
· Weird: One Act Plays to Solve Housing Disparities. [TCDP]
· Urban Fringe Still Booming [Strib]

Elsewhere & Otherwise
· The Fed May be Forced to Cut Rates Soon [Bloomberg]
· New Home Sales: Lowest Since 1982. Less inventory. [Barrons]
· Stay Calm: The FDIC Cannot Run Out of Money [Market Movers]
· The Case for Rent to Own [AHI]
· Cramdown Will Force Rates Higher? Not So Fast [CreditSlips]

09/25/08 at 01:36 PM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Wednesday AM Linklube: Edina Bridges, Green Stuff, Buffet and the Bailout

Local:
· Closed: Washington County "Green Acres" Tax Loophole [Strib]
· Local Angle: Bailout Won't Help Homeowners [MPR]
· Blowback: Will Wind Power Destroy Property Values? [PiPress]
· Historic Edina Bridge: History and Renovation [Strib]
· St. Paul School Board Maxes Prop Tax Levy [Strib]

Elsewhere & Otherwise
· Horse Choker: Goldman Paying Buffet 17% for his Money [Ritholtz]
· Great Insight on the Buffet Deal and What it Means [Jeff Matthews]
· This Bailout is Not Necessary [Yves]
· Just Another $30 Billion Pumped into Money Markets [Bloomberg]
· Why Bulk Mortgage Modifications are a Bad Idea [Felix]

09/24/08 at 09:28 AM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Monday Linklube: Bailout Fever, Stumps Gone Mad, MN Companies you cannot short

Local
· Copper Thieves: 4-Plex Explodes [Strib]
· Bloomington: Historic Home Razed over Peeling Paint? [Strib]
· Home Loans Were Different, Back in the Day [Soucheray]
· Woodbury: Property Taxes to Go Up [PiPress]
· Foreclosures Causing Tight, More Expensive Rental Market [MPR]
· SW Minneapolis Condo Pipeline Has Been Updated [SW Journal]
· Tax Discovery on Park-Owned Land is Hit or Miss [SW Journal]
· Trees Gone, Stumps Remain. For Years. [SW Journal]
· MN Firms on the "No Shorting" List [TCB]
· Low Income Housing Status Doesn't Help Some [Strib]
· Senior Housing Still Going Strong [Strib]

Elsewhere & Otherwise
· Cash for Trash: Why the Bailout Plan Stinks [Krugman]
· Bailout Cost Projected: Twice War on Terror [Econompic Data]
· Public Humiliation [Surowiecki]
· Why You Should Hate the Bailout Proposal [Yves]

09/22/08 at 09:40 AM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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Friday PM Links: Curb Appeal, Short Sales, Financial Terrorism

Local:
· Curb Appeal Enthusiasm: Weekend Open House Picks [BTM]
· Is Nicollet Island benefitting the public, or not? [TCDP]
· 30 Million for Uptown City Apartments [F&C]
· Another Architect Home Tour [PiPress]
· Where to Find Foreclosures [Strib]
· What $400k Buys You in... [Strib]
· Should you sign a lease before short sale? [Strib]
Elsewhere & Otherwise:
· Why the Short Selling Ban Stinks [Marketbeat]
· Was This Week's Meltdown Terrorism? No Really! [TBP]
· Either Way, Financial Crisis Will Make Things Tough [Salmon]
· Bailout to Cost Hundreds of Billions [Dealbook/NYT]

09/19/08 at 01:33 PM Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
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