Anna Bahney
Holiday Evictions Show Gaps in Mortgage Loan Aid
Thousands of borrowers still face eviction over the holidays because their mortgages are held by private investors instead of government-owned Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, which called a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures.
Home shoppers rush in as mortgage rates fall
Average rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 5.97%, down from 6.33% the week before. Credit the Federal Reserve's announcement that it will buy $500 billion of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's mortgage-backed securities.
Fannie, Freddie Halt Foreclosures for the Holidays
Mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will suspend foreclosures and evictions for owners of occupied homes through the holidays — the latest effort to keep people in their houses.
Are Aid Plans Doing Enough for Struggling Homeowners?
Housing experts and economists are asking if homeowner assistance programs are doing enough to help the ailing housing market in addition to individual borrowers.
Lawmakers put AIG execs on the spot
Days after the government rescued AIG with an $85 billion loan, the insurance company spent $443,000 on a week-long event for agents at a California resort, former executives revealed during a congressional hearing Tuesday.
Sales of New Homes Rise 2.7%
September sales of new homes rose 2.7% from August, but economists and housing experts say that might not be a good thing.
Even With Bailout, Mortgage Delinquencies Will Likely Worsen
Not even one of the biggest government bailouts in history will immediately turn back the flow of home foreclosures, as mortgage delinquencies, already a growing problem for subprime borrowers, are rising among prime mortgage borrowers.
Mortgage Rules Changes Skewer Some Sales
Both buyers and sellers are being caught off guard by a rippling wave of mortgage changes, including suspending mortgage products, raising required down payments and imposing a premium on loans in regions deemed to be "declining" markets.
The housing act is historic in its sweep and ambition. It aims to provide relief to homeowners, incentives to buyers, guidance to lenders and oversight Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Who will benefit? Does it have teeth?
Real Estate
Fishing Rods and A Place to Fish
Real estate listings aggregated around lifestyle have been percolating on the
Internet for years, but the outdoor outfitter Cabela’s is one of the first retailers to brand
listings by partnering with independent brokers.
A Pricing System With Wiggle Room
Variable pricing, also known as “value-range marketing” or “range
pricing,” has gained popularity in the San Diego area over the last
decade, becoming an established peculiarity of the region’s real estate
market.
The Telltale Party
For a buyer or seller looking to discover what a real estate agency values - let alone its quotient for fun - much can be gleaned
from the annual holiday party.
Still On The Market
What do Jack Welch, the former chairman of General Electric, and
Britney Spears, the former princess of pop, have in common? Both have
real estate that will not sell.
The Tricks Of the Trade In Coping With Slower Sales
In
Manhattan, properties are taking a month longer to sell than they did a
year ago at this time, 133 days on average As agonizingly long as that
may sound to a seller, it is still within the norm for the last 20
years.
The Very First Time
A look at five recent first-time buyers, who between a little hard
work and a lot of old-fashioned savings, had an eye for investments an
openness to small gifts and a ''willingness to be lucky.''
Williamsburg Reinvented
More than 130
buildings are currently planned in Williamsburg and Greenpoint in
Brooklyn, but they are only a curtain raiser for the large-scale
waterfront developments that are anticipated along the East River.
Are Commissions Really Negotiable? Sort Of.
While the majority of commissions in Manhattan are still at 6
percent, some sellers realize that, with agents starved for listings
and prices strong, they not only have the upper hand with buyers, but
with brokers as well.
Staking a Claim in Manhattan
A shared apartment in Manhattan - a pied-à-terre - can seem like a good investment for a family, but co-op boards can be leery of what comes with it: grown children without real estate who hang around.
Style
A Life Between Jobs
Many young people in the workplace are finding that quitting their job is becoming the satisfying new alternative to the standard, entry-level benefit for vacation.
The line between what is public and what is private is increasingly fuzzy for young people comfortable with broadcasting their lives on the Web. Companies are starting to adopt policies that address it.
The Bank of Mom and Dad
Today, parents are finding that they are on the hook for contributions of thousands of dollars a year to help young men and women get on their feet economically, often into their 30's.
Don't Talk To Invisible Strangers
A new wave of concern over social networking websites has led some parents to curtail their children's Internet use, but some Internet safety experts say that the fear has grown disproportionately to demonstrated threats.
So You Think You Can Just Adopt a Dog?
Adopting a stray dog or cat has become politically fashionable, but the hurdles to getting a pet can make the process feel nearly as daunting as adopting a child.
C'mon, Pooch, Get With the Program
Figuring out how to make the dog mind, it seems, has become a national obsession. The problem, some dog experts suspect, is not that there are more bad dogs, only more demanding owners.
High Tech, Under the Skin
Young people, interested in the connection between the body and technology, are implanting radio frequency identification chips in their bodies for artistic and utilitarian purposes.
Zapping Old Flames Into Digital Ash
In predigital times, the end of a relationship might have been marked by the burning of letters and scissoring the ex out of photographs. But now mementos reside on computers and can be expunged with brutal efficiency.
New Way for Teenagers To See if They Bounce
Parkour, a French sporting discipline that blends moves from gymnastics and martial arts as practitioners move through urban landscapes using walls, ledges and stairs as springboards and catapults, comes to the U.S.
Escapes
Twilight of the Summer Share
The summer share was something every young New York professional did in the 1980's, but for today's 20- and 30-somethings the summer share, as an object of desire, is over.
A Place Where Spring Arrives On the Wings of a Sandhill Crane
The arrival of a half-million sandhill cranes along the Platte River in Nebraska every March is, like cherry blossoms in Washington and desert wildflowers in southern Arizona, a sure sign that spring is finally coming.
Between A Rock and A High Place
Rock crawling is one of the fastest growing motor sports, with modified 4-by-4's with huge tires and massive suspension systems to navigating steep inclines, craggy rocks and muddy drops on off-road courses.
A Nowhere Striving to Be a Somewhere
The Great Platte River Road Archway Monument emerges out of the flat plains of Nebraska over Interstate 80 with a an impressive import designed to persuade at least some of the 6.8 million drivers to stop.
Ah, To Be Young: Working All Day, Partying All Night
Summer jobs are a rite of passage. Away from home and on their own the young men and women who staff the restaurants, bars and gift shops of the country's beach resorts live with an intoxicating sense of freedom.
Greetings From... "Wyotana" Home of the Second Home
Welcome to Wyotana: part State of Wyoming, part State of Montana, part state of mind.
Giving Thanks, Even in a Buffet Line
An personal essay about the way Thanksgiving traditions change.
Taking the Plunge Into the Great Beyond
Tandem sky diving is growing in popularity because little knowledge is required, but jumping out of a plane is still a risk, as the author discovers.
Travel
Acapulco: Shades of the 50's, but the Night Life Is Very 00's
Acapulco has always been counted on for night life, but now a new generation is taking over the clubs that their parents built and raucous parties on the beach are followed by more dancing at an after-hours club.
Treading Footpaths Fit for Gods
Hiking the web of rugged, well-worn footpaths above the cliff side villages along the Amalfi Coast in Italy, one moves between the ancient and contemporary faces of the coast.
Metro
Get 'Em While They're Cool: Footwear for the Few
For sneaker collectors, being first in line for the newest limited edition pair is worth sleeping on the street.
Two of Juliana Flores's four children were born with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenital, a genetic disease which results in dwarfism. Ms. Flores speaks little English, so she has trouble understanding doctors' diagnoses.
The Neediest Cases; Mother and Daughter Flee To New Home, and Safety
Rebecca Glucksman was not granted a "get" or bill of divorce required under Orthodox Jewish law, but she fled, with her daughter, from her husband's abuse only to find her own health deteriorate.
The Neediest Cases; Loss of Job Leads Bronx Couple to Brush With Disaster
Health complications and job loss lead to Joseph and Helen Sulle being evicted for falling behind on rent and sleeping in their car after choosing to spend their meager income on their daughter's college tuition.
The Neediest Cases; Escape From a Nightmare That Loved Ones May Still Endure
Amadu Sidibey escaped from Sierra Leone's violence after watching family members raped and killed by members of the Revolutionary United Front, a rebel group, that stormed Mr. Sidibey's village.
The Neediest Cases; Budding Designer Rises From Broken Home
Brenda Mendez and her 18 year old daughter Delila have found peace in a new apartment away from an abusive husband and father as Delila pursues a career in fashion.
The Neediest Cases; Surrogate Mother Prepares for a Reunion
Sandra Cunningham is working to be reunited with two nieces she has custody of in Texas. A small apartment and her two years of unemployment are obstacles, but selling holiday handcrafts are part of her efforts to get past them.
The Neediest Cases; Learning to Help Himself, Then Others
Champ Hallet, 38, was doing everything a champion should not do: drugs, alcohol and robbing drug dealers. After losing a leg, contracting AIDS and spending time in prison, Champ now helps others with AIDS and is writing a play.
The Neediest Cases; Big Sister Decides to Step Up, Putting Her Dreams on Hold
Mary Fulford's plan was to fix cars, but when her younger siblings were removed from her mother's care, there was something else to repair and she has become a kinship foster mother to six of her eight brothers and sisters.
The Neediest Cases; Health Problems Cascade On a Mother and Daughter
Helen Oyervide is four and cannot speak or walk. Doctors are unsure she can see. Her mother, Gladys Parra, struggles to care for her disabled child because she has cervical cancer and an inactive form of tuberculosis.
The Neediest Cases; After a Fire, Kindness Only Goes So Far
Nichelle Thompson and her children Katrina and Daniel Lopez, 14 and 6 have been living in a shelter since their Bronx apartment caught on fire and Ms. Thompson's $1,000 a month salary could not absorb the catastrophe.
The Neediest Cases; From China to New York Challenge After Challenge
Seven days before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Yue Huan Feng arrived in New York City from China six months pregnant. She cannot work because of blood cancer and she and her two-year-old son live in a family shelter.
The Neediest Cases; Losing a Daughter to Drugs and Gaining Three Children
Betty Trantham is 62 years old and has 16 great-grandchildren, 22 grandchildren and nine children. Only it is eight children since her daughter died from drug use and Ms. Trantham took in three of her six children.
The Neediest Cases; A Father's Dream: Seeing His Son Walk
August Marziliano is clear about his hopes for his 7-year-old son Antonio, who was born with cerebral palsy and now relies on a wheelchair. "I would like to see him walk," he said. "That's the biggest thing, if I ever saw him walk."
The Neediest Cases; Woman Survived the Khmer Rouge, but the Language Barrier Is the Challenge Now
Neary Kiet was born in Cambodia the year the monarchy was overthrown and was reunited with her father, a pilot in the Cambodian Royal Air Force who was stationed in Thailand and was granted asylum, in 1998.
Hi, Why Did You Drop My Paper?
Journalists at The Philadelphia Inquirer, began making personal phone calls to former subscribers, many of whom dropped the paper this year after the paper ran a series of editorials favoring John F. Kerry for president.
Where the Motto is, We Work in Harmony to Ply a Lost Trade
A look at a small niche business: Timothy Fink & Company an organ building firm in Port Chester, N.Y.
Plattsburg's Favorite Phrases? 'Stop By' and 'Pitch In'
Plattsburg, Mo., a town of 2,300 in Northwest Missouri, and others like it rely on volunteers to get things done.
Culture
The Spotlight Is on Modern Theater in Bombay
In the Bombay of today modern theater is in its relative
infancy. A major advocate for its coming of age is the Prithvi Theater, which
in its 21 years of existence has held 16 festivals to showcase modern
drama.
They'll Be Dancing, Dancing in the Sea
A preview of a special episode of "SpongeBob SquarePants": "SpongeBob's House Party."
A Rare Sight: 'That Girl' in This Century
A preview of the re-broadcast of the 1970's children classic, "Free to Be You and Me."
Future Telling, April 16, 2008
Bloomberg Markets's cover story about Nassim Taleb, author of "The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable."
Mortgage Banker Mojo, April 10, 2008
The Center for Responsible Lending dropped a study highlighting the role of mortgage brokers in sub-prime debacle.
Food (and Energy) for Thought, April 9, 2008
Dealbreaker.com on the insistence on focusing on "core" inflation makes
the numbers look better.
Soros on Market Myths, April 3, 2008
George Soros calls out Hank Paulson for not doing enough heavy lifting to improve regulation of financial institutions.
Debits and Credits, March 31, 2008
The WSJ's junk stats; read the Times; Fortune shines on Ground Zero, etc.
Debits and Credits, March 17, 2008
Morgenson’s memory; A bad blog; Good Spitzer reporting, etc.
Debits and credits, March 10, 2008
WSJ's subprime scoop, debits for early deadlines, a lame service column; WaPo’s rose-colored look at the Journal, etc.
Debits and Credits, March 3, 2008
Nonsense from Forbes's publisher; an all-wet WSJ "a-hed"; McClatchy's overdue writedown, etc.
Debits and Credits, February 25, 2008
Portfolio’s weak cover; BW’s cool update; Economist instructs; WSJ probes, etc.
Debits and Credits, February 18, 2008
Times get debit for no Reuters credit; The Atlantic overreaches; WSJ leder chugs along, etc.
Debits and Credits, February 11, 2008
A.P. falls for McClatchy's hidden-ball trick; FT shines thrice, etc.
Debits and Credits, February 4, 2008
Two cheers for Newsweek; Portfolio's foresight; FT, eh; etc.
Debits and Credits, January 28, 2008
Gates’s
banality on WSJ’s page one; FT, NYT beat WSJ to bond insurers; cliché
storm drenches Wall Street to metaphorical skin, causing proverbial
cold; etc.
WP's Johnson unearths prosecutorial log-rolling; WSJ leaves something out; CNBC's rotten Apple 'scoop'.
Debits and Credits, January 14, 2008
Business Week slips on Perle; Eisinger's interesting warning; WSJ arrives late to an accident, etc.
Debits and Credits, December 31, 2007
A valuable warning from the Times; Ben Stein’s not all bad; The Economist malls it in.
Debits and Credits, December 17, 2007
Debits and Credits, December 10, 2007
Debits and Credits, December 3, 2007
Journal, Morgenson help navigate subprime torrent; Fortune walks into sandstone building, hurts nose.
Debits and Credits, November 26, 2007
Business Week pushes parents' anxiety buttons; Ruth Simon on subprime, etc.