CNN - "New Century's woes deepen, spread" (3-12-07)

"Troubled mortgage lender on the hook for $8.4 billion as financing vanishes. Top Wall Street firms, home prices could take hit."

Market Watch - "New Century's creditors pull out; bankruptcy looms" (3-12-07)

"At this point, termination of all lending lines means either they find a sale in the very short term or it's probably bankruptcy," said Zack Gast, an analyst at the Center for Financial Research and Analysis. "They might pull a magic buyer out of the hat, but I'm not sure anyone would want to step in at this point."

NAR - "NAR Supports Strengthening Financial Soundness of Government-Sponsored Enterprises Through Independent Regulatory Agency" (3-12-07)

"The National Association of Realtors® testified today that creating a strong regulatory regime that preserves the housing mission of the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) will strengthen the housing finance system and emphasize the important role housing plays in the nation’s economy."

Business Week - "Subprime Lending's Next Act" (3-12-07)

"What the market will look like for borrowers after the shakeup—which players are likely to suffer and which are positioned to weather the storm"

CBIA - "New Home Sales Rise by 9% in January, CBIA/Hanley Wood Survey Finds" (3-12-07)

"In another sign the state’s housing market may be firming up, sales at the state’s major new-home communities rose in January by 9.4 percent compared to December while median asking prices remained unchanged at $463,900, according to the monthly CBIA/Hanley Wood Market Intelligence report."

Inman - "GSE reform bill wouldn't set cap on Fannie, Freddie portfolios" (3-12-07)

"The government shouldn't impose arbitrary caps on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's lending portfolios, but should distance itself from some of the government-sponsored mortgage repurchasers' debt obligations should they get into financial trouble. That's the view of a bipartisan bill introduced Friday to overhaul regulatory oversight of Fannie and Freddie and prevent a repeat of the management and accounting scandals of 2004. The bill, HR 1427, is expected to generate about $500 million a year for an affordable-housing fund to address concerns that the government-sponsored entities have neglected the mission they were chartered by Congress to perform. Backers of the bill from both parties hope it will resolve the long-running GSE reform debate. Although there has been general agreement about the need to create an independent oversight agency with powers similar to those of a bank regulator to oversee Fannie and Freddie, Democrats have opposed a Bush administration proposal to set limits on the GSE's lending portfolios. The House passed a GSE reform bill last year that would have created an independent regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, a companion bill stalled in the Senate over the issue of portfolio caps. The new compromise legislation, HR 1427, would not establish an arbitrary cap on Fannie and Freddie's debt. But it would strengthen the GSE's minimum capital provisions, and allow the Federal Housing Finance Agency to establish rules for safety and soundness and revise product approval standards. That means Fannie and Freddie will have to convince the newly created FHFA that it is not taking on more debt than it can handle. As a further crimp on Fannie and Freddie's borrowing power, the legislation allows the GSEs to be placed into receivership if they are unable to pay their debts. "

OC Register - "New Century moves closer to bankruptcy" (3-12-07)

"Irvine mortgage lender New Century edged closer to bankruptcy this morning, as it announced that all of its lenders have cut funding or announced their intent to halt financing, because New Century failed to make payments. The company received letters from Wall Street lenders including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup, among others, alleging events of default. New Century's early-morning filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission could shake the entire financial sector, because so many major firms are involved, said CNN/Money.com."

CA Real Estate Journal - "Winter Slowed Construction Employment in February" (3-12-07)

"Construction employment dropped by 62,000 jobs in February, according to The Associated General Contractors of America, because of the housing slowdown and the winter weather across much of the country. However, Ken Simonson, chief economist for AGC, said he expects nonresidential construction to correct much of that downturn in March. "