NAR - "Economic Softening Hits Leading Commercial Real Estate Index" (8-20-08)

"The Commercial Leading Indicator for Brokerage Activity¹ slowed 0.9 percent to an index of 117.9 in the second quarter from a reading of 119.0 in the first quarter, and is 2.1 percent lower than the record 120.5 in the second quarter of 2007; NAR’s track of the index dates back to 1990."

DQNews - "California July 2008 Home Sales" (8-20-08)

"A total of 39,507 new and resale houses and condos were sold statewide last month. That was up 12.2 percent from 35,202 in June and up 12.3 percent from 35,185 for July last year. While below the 47,756 average for the last 21 Julys, last month's sales count was off the record low sales level which the market went into last September."

Mortgage Bankers Association - "MBA: Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Originations Fall in Q2" (8-20-08)

"The decrease in commercial/multifamily lending activity during the second quarter was driven by decreases in originations for most property types. When compared to the second quarter of 2007, the overall 63 percent decrease included an 87 percent decrease in loans for hotel properties, a 65 percent decrease in loans for office properties, a 63 percent decrease in loans for retail properties, a 57 percent decrease in loans for industrial properties, a 42 percent decrease in multifamily property loans, and a 66 percent increase in health care loans"

Mortgage Bankers Association - "Mortgage Applications Decrease Slightly In Latest MBA Weekly Survey" (8-20-08)

"The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending August 15, 2008. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, was 419.3, a decrease of 1.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from 425.9 one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 2.6 percent compared with the previous week and was down 34.2 percent compared with the same week one year earlier."

San Francisco Chronicle - "Twice as many in state can now afford a home" (8-20-08)

"The percentage of households able to buy an entry-level residence in the state reached 48 percent during the second quarter, double the level from a year ago, according to the California Association of Realtors. The trade group defines a starter home as one priced at 85 percent of an area's median, which works out to $329,120 for the state. The minimum income needed to purchase such a property is $62,870, down from $101,440 a year ago (assuming an adjustable-rate mortgage starting at 5.69 percent and a 10 percent down payment)."

New York Times - "F.D.I.C. to Let IndyMac Borrowers Modify Loans" (8-20-08)

"Troubled borrowers with mortgages from IndyMac Federal Bank will be able to seek lower-priced, fixed-rate loans as part of a plan unveiled Wednesday by the regulatory agency that took over the failed thrift about a month ago."

Yahoo - "Fannie, Freddie shares dive on bailout fears, bonds up" (8-20-08)

"Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shares plunged to their lowest levels in almost 20 years on Wednesday, while the mortgage companies' bonds rallied on the belief that an increasingly likely government bailout would wipe out shareholders but secure their massive debt."

Bloomberg - "SEC's Cox Says Nobody Gets Pass in Auction-Rate Probe" (8-20-08)

"New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Aug. 15 that he will next target brokerages, including units of Fidelity Investments and Charles Schwab Corp. Cuomo and regulators including the SEC have won pledges from Citigroup Inc., UBS AG, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wachovia Corp. to repurchase $34.8 billion of the securities. State regulators imposed $360 million in fines on the companies."

Bloomberg - "Banks' Subprime Market-Related Losses, Capital Raised: Table" (8-20-08)

"The following table shows the $503.8 billion in asset writedowns and credit losses at more than 100 of the world's biggest banks and securities firms as well as the $352.5 billion capital raised to cope with them."

Bloomberg - "Wachovia Sells Land, Construction Loans to LandCap" (8-20-08)

"Wachovia Corp. sold land and construction loans secured by 2,900 housing lots for $40 million to a joint venture headed by residential land company LandCap Partners, a person with knowledge of the transaction said."