The San Diego Union Tribune - "Bush's plan on mortgage problems isn't enough" (12-9-07)

"The White House ambulance belatedly arrived at the scene of the subprime mortgage crash last week, with President Bush and some banking industry paramedics trying to stanch the bleeding of the battered housing market. But Bush's proposed remedy is only a small bandage on a gaping wound. It may lessen or slow but will not halt the economic problems associated with the mortgage crisis. And there's even a chance that it could make matters worse."

Reuters - "UBS stops withdrawals from real estate funds-paper" (12-9-07)

"Swiss bank UBS stopped withdrawals from three real estate funds with a total volume of around 6 billion Swiss francs, Swiss Sunday newspaper Sonntag reported."

The San Diego Union Tribune - "Kickback scheme costs builders $6.4 million" (12-9-07)

"Rigged appraisals, lax underwriting and toxic loan products may dominate the headlines, but they are hardly the only issues causing problems in residential real estate. The federal government and state regulators are targeting other housing-related misdeeds that can cost consumers big money – especially involving under-the-table kickbacks among builders, real estate brokers, loan officers, mortgage bankers and title insurers."

The San Diego Union Tribune - "Santa's bag of home equity filled with coal" (12-9-07)

"The housing downturn that started last year and has accelerated this year has barred the chimney to Santa in many homes, as owners find they no longer have the growing equity that can be tapped again and again to finance spending."

The San Diego Union Tribune - "Foreclosure pattern points to loan fraud, experts say" (12-9-07)

"America's subprime mortgage crisis is partly due to predatory, or aggressive, lenders, hard-sell tactics by mortgage brokers and an easing of underwriting standards in the $10 trillion home-loan industry. But fraud accounts for a sizable share of the bad bets on mortgages, according to many industry experts, and lenders may have been victimized as much as anyone else."

SFGate.com - "MORTGAGE MELTDOWN" (12-9-07)

"New proposals to ease our great mortgage meltdown keep rolling in. First the Treasury Department urged the creation of a new fund that would buy risky mortgage bonds as a tactic to hide what those bonds were really worth. (Not much.) Then the idea was to use Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy the risky loans, even if it was clear that U.S. taxpayers would eventually be stuck with the bill. But that plan went south after Fannie suffered a new accounting scandal, and Freddie's existing loan losses shot up more than expected."

Orange County Register - "Tapped-out family's home is at risk" (12-9-07)

"Homeowners like the Coffmans who tapped their equity, as well as those who bought more home than they could afford, are falling behind on their mortgages in increasing numbers. U.S. home loan delinquencies in the third quarter reached the highest level in more than 20 years, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association."

Los Angeles Times - "The foreclosure bargain hunt" (12-9-07)

"IF regular real estate deals are a two-aspirin headache, then foreclosure purchases are a serious migraine. Despite the reported upswing in foreclosures, it actually is not easy to find them. Nor, once you locate one to buy, is the purchase process simple. Even if done right, it can take a while to find and buy a bank-owned property. And the process is fraught with pitfalls."