Friday, April 11, 2008

TFB's Stumbles: Week Ending April 11, 2008

Here are some food for thought for this week:

My Very Own Risk-Based Repricing Experience (Credit Slips) - A law professor wrote about his experience with disputing a billing error on his credit card.

And It All Comes Down to This ... (Wall Street Journal) - After writing more than 1,000 columns, Jonathan Clements is leaving WSJ. He distilled his advice down to eight simple suggestions. No surprises.

Lenders Swamped By Foreclosures Let Homeowners Stay (Bloomberg) - Borrowers who don't pay their mortgage get to live rent-free for six months. That's a sweet deal.

The real reason borrowers default (Business Week) - And why do those borrowers not pay their mortgage? A recent study from Boston Fed says it's because they are upside down. They stop paying even if they can keep making payments if they really have to. It would be a different story if home prices are going up, not down. "Heads I win, tails you lose ..."

Better never than late (Enough Wealth) - See how homeowners in the U.S. are spoiled. Mortgage rates in Australia are 9%. And it looks like you can fix your rate for maximum 5 years. Perhaps they don't have Fannie Mae there.

And tell me why the U.S. government is contemplating giving billions of dollars to delinquent mortgage borrowers? What a strange world.

0 comments:

Disclaimer

I'm not not a financial advisor. I do have personal opinions, sometimes strong, ignorant, or biased. Everything you read here on this blog is my personal opinion, not financial advice. I'm by no means an expert on anything. I don't intend to mislead, but my facts, figures, and calculations can be incomplete, inaccurate or plain wrong. The word "you" doesn't mean literally you, the reader. In most cases it means myself. Please be sure to double check everything if you decide to act on anything I wrote about. Bottom line, please don't blame me for anything you do. Privacy policy.