During the housing boom, mortgage lenders were doling out the dough, giving loans to people who could never have qualified before.
Speculation that Ben Bernanke might very well be appointed for a second-term as Federal Reserve Chairman when his term expires in January 2010 has to remind one of Washington's Alice in Wonderland-like quality.
Despite all the hand-wringing and attempts to contain the foreclosure plague, the problem still spread during the first three months of 2009, as the number of foreclosure actions started hit a record high, according to a quarterly report.
If you visit Lehman Brothers' website today, more than a month after the investment bank's plunge into bankruptcy, you can still find the following words: "The effective management of risk is one of the core strengths that has made Lehman Brothers so successful."
The subprime mortgage meltdown and resulting rippling repercussions have a brief, but dramatic, history.
Mortgage scammers took advantage of loopholes in New York State lending laws to defraud homeowners and lending institutions all over the state, according to a new report released Thursday.
Hope Now, the mortgage industry alliance of lenders, servicers and housing counselors, reported Wednesday that it helped roughly 170,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure in the month of May.
On Capitol Hill this week, lawmakers are set to continue to grapple with the best response to the rising tide of home foreclosures. But the Bush administration says it has a solution in place: A nine-month old mortgage refinancing program run by the Federal Housing Administration.
Seven out of 10 seriously delinquent subprime mortgage borrowers are still not getting the help they need to keep their homes, according to a report released Tuesday by state officials working to stem the foreclosure crisis.
Kent and Mysti Cope met and fell in love working for one of the nation's top subprime lenders. Now, their life has been turned upside down after the sudden implosion of the subprime mortgage industry.
During the housing boom, mortgage lenders were doling out the dough, giving loans to people who could never have qualified before.
Speculation that Ben Bernanke might very well be appointed for a second-term as Federal Reserve Chairman when his term expires in January 2010 has to remind one of Washington's Alice in Wonderland-like quality.
Despite all the hand-wringing and attempts to contain the foreclosure plague, the problem still spread during the first three months of 2009, as the number of foreclosure actions started hit a record high, according to a quarterly report.
If you visit Lehman Brothers' website today, more than a month after the investment bank's plunge into bankruptcy, you can still find the following words: "The effective management of risk is one of the core strengths that has made Lehman Brothers so successful."
The subprime mortgage meltdown and resulting rippling repercussions have a brief, but dramatic, history.
Mortgage scammers took advantage of loopholes in New York State lending laws to defraud homeowners and lending institutions all over the state, according to a new report released Thursday.
Hope Now, the mortgage industry alliance of lenders, servicers and housing counselors, reported Wednesday that it helped roughly 170,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure in the month of May.
On Capitol Hill this week, lawmakers are set to continue to grapple with the best response to the rising tide of home foreclosures. But the Bush administration says it has a solution in place: A nine-month old mortgage refinancing program run by the Federal Housing Administration.
Seven out of 10 seriously delinquent subprime mortgage borrowers are still not getting the help they need to keep their homes, according to a report released Tuesday by state officials working to stem the foreclosure crisis.
Kent and Mysti Cope met and fell in love working for one of the nation's top subprime lenders. Now, their life has been turned upside down after the sudden implosion of the subprime mortgage industry.
At the East Side Organizing Project in Cleveland, six home owners recently went in for group foreclosure counseling. When asked if any had taken out payday loans, four hands shot up.
For months, we've fretted about the Armageddon that will hit when subprime adjustable rate mortgages start resetting to much higher interest rates.
Countrywide Financial said Monday it will expand programs to help borrowers manage their mortgage payments regardless of the type of subprime loan they have or whether they have already fallen behind on payments.
Since late last summer, the financial markets in the United States and in a number of other industrialized countries have been under considerable strain. The turmoil has affected the prospects for the broader economy, principally through its effects on the availability and terms of credit to households and businesses. Financial market conditions, in turn, have been sensitive to the evolving economic outlook, as investors have tried to assess the implications of incoming economic information for future earnings and asset values. These interactions have produced a volatile situation that has made forecasting the course of the economy even more difficult than usual.
If you think responsible borrowers are getting the short end of the stick with President Bush's mortgage freeze - don't worry - subprime borrowers aren't getting off scot-free.
Two things stand out about the credit crisis cascading through Wall Street: It is both totally shocking and utterly predictable.
Despite $1.2 billion third quarter loss, Countrywide Financial Corp. shares soared and officials say the company expects to return to profitability
As well as educating the chief executives of the future, business schools have a broader role -- understanding the essential workings of not only companies, but also the wider economic system.
The big and unexpected job loss in August shook economists and investors, and while the September report due Friday is expected to show a hiring rebound, job seekers should still be nervous.
Credit Suisse expects to report a third-quarter profit of at least $860 million despite turmoil in the market, the Swiss bank said Monday.
The default rate on U.S. mortgages is stabilizing, an American housing official said Monday, adding she didn't expect last week's cut in U.S. interest rates to significantly affect the number of defaults.
The government is casting a wide net in its scrutiny of Wall Street banks, investors, credit-rating agencies and others in the role they played in the subprime mortgage crisis.
Quitting the troubled subprime lending market will cost General Electric as much as $400 million, the industrial conglomerate has announced.
Thrift bank Washington Mutual Inc. said Thursday it will cut 1,000 jobs, eliminating its sales force dedicated to mortgage borrowers with questionable credit and slashing some of its wholesale banking operations.
Could the housing market's woes spread to bonds held in mutual funds by millions of ordinary investors?
--From his Aug. 31 speech at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's Economic Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Lehman Brothers Holdings Wednesday said it is shutting down subprime mortgage unit BNC Mortgage Corp., affecting the jobs of 1,200 employees in 23 cities and resulting in a $52 million hit to earnings.
Democratic presidential contender John Edwards has investing ties to subprime lenders who are foreclosing on victims of Katrina, according to a report published Friday.
Accredited Home Lenders Holding Co., a subprime mortgage lender that agreed in June to be acquired, said its survival is in doubt and that bankruptcy is possible, sending its shares down as much as 52.5 percent.
After the subprime mortgage market collapsed, many products that were widely available have disappeared from the scene.
Wells Fargo & Co., the fifth-largest U.S. bank, said Monday it stopped offering a popular subprime mortgage product in response to market and regulatory pressure.
Despite government calls for tougher regulation in the subprime mortgage market, brokers and lenders don't seem to be getting their guidance from Washington. Instead, they're turning to Wall Street.
It would appear that subprime lenders have yet to learn from their mistakes. According to a consumer advocate group, abuses persist industry wide, despite the recent subprime mortgage meltdown.
Bear Stearns does not plan to bail out the second of two struggling hedge funds - citing stabilizing markets - but the subprime loan woes that brought the funds down continue to rattle investors.
The fallout from problems at two Bear Stearns hedge funds that may be on the verge of collapse could roil the bond market and lead to a tightening of credit, analysts said Thursday.
Facing criticism from some members of Congress over lax regulation of the nation's mortgage market, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke came out swinging Thursday against too much government intrusion in the troubled subprime mortgage business.
The nation's big automakers and Wall Street auto analysts could probably drive head on and not get killed right now - because they'd miss each other by a mile.
General Motors Thursday reported improved results from its auto operations in the first quarter, but problems in subprime mortgages contributed to earnings that missed Wall Street forecasts by a mile.
Problems in subprime mortgages caused a sharp drop in home sellers being able to find buyers for their homes in March, according to a trade group report Tuesday that showed the battered real estate market was much weaker than expected.
Home sales posted their sharpest drop in 18 years in March, a real estate group said Tuesday, as problems in the subprime mortgage sector pushed sales well below what economists had forecast.
General Electric sees problems growing from subprime loans into other types of mortgages, it said Friday.
Bond prices fell Monday as U.S. stocks surged while investors looked to encouraging signs from the housing market and falling oil prices.
New Century Financial Corp. said Monday it will immediately cut 3,200 jobs, or 54 percent of its work force, as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.
The recent wave of defaults in the subprime mortgage sector that sent shocks through Wall Street has caught the attention of Congress.
The meltdown in the subprime mortgage market is making it tough for many potential home buyers to find financing. Home buyers with damaged or thin credit histories may be shut out.
About 2.4 million holders of subprime mortgage loans made between 1998 and 2006 will lose their properties to foreclosure, according to a report from the Center for Responsible Lending, a non-profit policy and advocacy organization for home owners.
Bonds held steady Tuesday morning amid concerns about the effect subprime loans fallout could have on the economy. The dollar weakened against the euro and gained against the yen.
Economic concerns could continue to weigh on U.S. stocks when the opening bell rings Tuesday on Wall Street.
Outside of people swinging hammers for a living, few fortunes are more closely tied to the housing market than Countrywide Financial's. And for years, that was just the way investors liked it.
Everyone is blaming "explosive ARMs" for the crisis in subprime loans. But several spokesmen for the mortgage industry told Congress this Thursday that these variable mortgages have not contributed much to rising default rates.
The Senate Banking Committee held hearings Thursday on the crisis in the subprime mortgage lending industry. But we're going to tell you why you should care about the subprime mortgage meltdown and how it's going to affect you.
The Texas Rangers Baseball Club said Tuesday it would drop the name of troubled subprime mortgage lender Ameriquest from its stadium.
When a mortgage goes bad, Wall Street firms turn to firms like Clayton Holdings.
Blue-chips stocks rose for the fifth time in six sessions Thursday as merger news and strength in the financial sector overshadowed concerns about subprime mortgages.
Stocks gathered momentum Thursday afternoon despite former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's concerns that the problems with subprime mortgages could spill over to other sectors.
Stocks trimmed gains Thursday afternoon after former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said that the problems with subprime mortgages could spill over to other sectors, but added that a 10 percent rise in home prices could stop the problems.
Stocks snapped back Wednesday, finding momentum at the end of a volatile session, as investors wrestled with the subprime mortgage crisis and their desire to put money back to work after the recent selloff.
Stocks snapped back Wednesday, finding momentum at the end of a volatile session, as investors wrestled with the subprime mortgage crisis and their desire to put money back to work after the recent selloff.
Techs led a broader market advance Wednesday afternoon, near the end of a volatile session that saw investors torn between worrying about the fallout from the subprime mortgage market and scooping up recently battered stocks.
Stocks turn mixed Wednesday afternoon, as investors fought back from a steep midday selloff, but remained on edge amid worries about the fallout from the subprime mortgage market.
Stocks turned lower Wednesday afternoon, as investors gave up early attempts to recover from some of the previous session's battering and instead opted to refocus on the subprime mortgage market troubles.
Stocks stabilized Wednesday morning after a choppy start following Tuesday's big selloff as upbeat earnings distracted investors from worries about the subprime mortgage market.
Lehman Brothers said Wednesday that turmoil in the subprime mortgage business is likely to persist but that could open up some opportunities for the firm.
Stocks struggled Wednesday morning after the big selloff on Tuesday as investors weighed earnings from GM and Lehman Brothers against ongoing worries about the subprime mortgage market.
Stocks slumped Tuesday, with the Dow losing 243 points, as worries about subprime lending, the economy and the weak dollar sparked the second-worst selloff of the year.
Bond prices surged Tuesday as the fallout of the subprime lending sector rattled investors' nerves and tumbling stock markets sent investors looking for refuge, while the dollar fell against the yen and the euro.
Stocks surged Monday, as the market finally found momentum after a tough session in which worries about the subprime lenders overshadowed deals news and lower oil prices.
Stocks jumped late Monday afternoon, as the market finally found some momentum following a choppy session in which worries about the subprime lenders overshadowed deals news and lower oil prices.
Stocks jumped late Monday afternoon, as the market finally found some momentum following a choppy session in which worries about the subprime lenders overshadowed deals news and lower oil prices.
Wall Street's big banks have been money-making machines, posting record earnings in recent years, but the shakeout in the subprime mortgage business threatens to derail their stellar run.
Bond prices ticked higher Monday as more woes in the subprime lending sector sent jitters through Wall Street.
Embattled mortgage lender New Century Financial Corp. warned Monday of a series of serious financial problems that cast its future in doubt - and cast a pall over much of the nation's financial sector.
Can fund managers be too smart for their own good? You might think so, given the way so many top mutual funds have been crushed by their bets on subprime mortgage lenders and housing-related stocks.
The Federal Reserve has been monitoring the U.S. subprime mortgage market for several months, Fed Governor Susan Bies said Friday.
General Motors may owe as much as $1 billion to cover defaulted mortgage loans made to borrowers with less than top credit by its former home lending unit, according to a public report.
Lending to homeowners and buyers without good credit has suddenly become a very bad business - and possibly a very big problem for the U.S. economy as a whole.
Analysts may be hailing Merrill Lynch's appetite for acquisition, but new fears are rising on Wall Street that Merrill's foray into the subprime mortgage lending market could put the kibosh on its plans to continue to target more companies aggressively.
Just as the struggling real estate market seems to be stabilizing, a fresh problem is brewing far from real estate offices or home construction sites: a jump in defaults by higher-risk borrowers.
The number of homeowners with subprime mortgages who will lose their homes to foreclosure will jump over the next few years, according to a recent study.
There's a political scandal waiting to explode.
The Consumer Federation of America has warned borrowers about the costs and risks of using Internet payday loan sites that make relatively small loans to consumers for short periods of time.
Predatory lending can take many forms -- from pushing unjustifiably expensive loans on consumers to charging excessive fees for lending services.
I should have paid closer attention when I saw TV pitchman Jim Palmer exhorting viewers to phone 1-800-LOAN-YES to latch on to one of Money Store's no-sweat home loans. As the ads ran over the past...
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