NAR - "Existing-Home Sales Soften on Economic Volatility" (11-24-08)

"Existing-home sales – including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops – fell 3.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate¹ of 4.98 million units in October from a downwardly revised pace of 5.14 million in September, and are 1.6 percent below the 5.06 million-unit level in October 2007."

Bloomberg - "U.S. Pledges Top $7.7 Trillion to Ease Frozen Credit" (11-24-08)

"The U.S. government is prepared to provide more than $7.76 trillion on behalf of American taxpayers after guaranteeing $306 billion of Citigroup Inc. debt yesterday. The pledges, amounting to half the value of everything produced in the nation last year, are intended to rescue the financial system after the credit markets seized up 15 months ago."

Bloomberg - "Citigroup Faces More Losses, Dilution, Whitney Says" (11-24-08)

"Citigroup, the fifth-largest U.S. bank by market value, received the guarantees from the U.S. government for troubled mortgages and toxic assets and will get a $20 billion cash injection from the Treasury Department. The New York-based bank had been facing a possible breakup or sale as it posted four straight quarterly losses totaling $20 billion, sending the stock tumbling 60 percent last week."

Bloomberg - "Goldman May Lead FDIC-Backed Bond Sales After Ruling" (11-24-08)

"Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc. may lead banks selling bonds guaranteed by the government as soon as this week, starting a wave of issuance that some analysts said will exceed $400 billion."

Bloomberg - "UBS Overvalued Property by $100 Million, Fired Executive Says" (11-24-08)

"UBS AG, Switzerland's biggest bank, charged inflated fees at an $11.7 billion U.S. real-estate fund by overvaluing some commercial properties, a former official alleges in his wrongful-termination lawsuit."

Wall Street Journal - "Construction Industry Is Poised for a Rebound" (11-24-08)

"The construction industry, beset by one of the biggest drops in employment in the current economic downturn, could be poised for a rebound under President-elect Barack Obama's expected stimulus package. Mr. Obama hasn't offered details, but anticipating a surge in public-works spending, investors bid up construction and engineering stocks. URS Corp., a San Francisco-based engineering and construction company, rose 34%, global giant Fluor Corp. rose nearly 17% and Granite Construction Inc., a domestic engineering company, rose 22%."

Orange County Register - "Downey Financial to file for bankruptcy after government seized assets" (11-24-08)

"Downey Financial in Newport Beach said it will file for bankruptcy by Wednesday, five days after federal regulators seized its savings and loan subsidiary amid mounting losses on delinquent home loans."

Orange County Register - "New funding for San Clemente development blocked" (11-24-08)

"A bankruptcy judge in New York has denied a motion by Irvine-based SunCal Cos. to pursue alternate funding for the stalled Marblehead Coastal housing project in San Clemente, plus 19 other developments elsewhere in California"

Inman News - "Online home listings don't tell whole story" (11-24-08)

"HOUSE HUNTING TIP: There is inconsistency in the quality of what you see and read about listings online. The Internet is not regulated, so you may find that some agents adhere less to trust-in-advertising guidelines than they do in print ads. However, many professional real estate companies scrutinize their Internet advertising for accuracy before it's uploaded to the Internet."