Business Week - "More Subprime Woes to Come" (7-12-07)

"The subprime storm isn't blowing over. On July 10, credit-rating agencies Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's (like BusinessWeek, a unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies (MHP)) warned of greater-than-expected losses for bonds backed by subprime loans—news that helped send stocks tumbling. The ratings changes were small. S&P put $12 billion worth of mortgage-backed securities, just 2.1% of the total issued from late 2005 to late 2006, on watch for downgrades, while Moody's cut its ratings on just $5.2 billion worth. S&P also said mortgage fraud is a bigger problem than it had foreseen and that it's tightening its rating practices."

Orlando Sentinel - "Dire forecast: Housing slump likely to linger" (7-12-07)

"Nationally known economist Mark Zandi told home builders and industry professionals meeting Wednesday in Orlando that the beleaguered U.S. housing industry could bleed for another year or more. Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Economy.com consulting company, said the good news he had for the residential-construction and home-sales business is that "the worst of the decline is over," roughly two years into a correction caused by overbuilding and resale-inventory buildup."

Yahoo - "Home foreclosures drop in June but spike likely" (7-12-07)

"U.S. home foreclosures fell in June after jumping to a 30-month peak in May, but default rates will escalate as a horde of mortgages resets at higher loan rates, real estate data firm RealtyTrac said on Thursday. Foreclosure filings fell 7 percent in June to 164,644 after jumping 19 percent in May, but they remain 87 percent above last June's pace, with one filing for every 704 households, RealtyTrac said in a monthly report."

TheStreet.com - "Managers: Subprime Blame Lies With Rating Agencies" (7-12-07)

"Robert Rodriquez, chief executive officer of First Pacific Advisors, was even more blunt. 'We haven't seen much of a problem in the subprime area [but only] because the pricing is a fraud; the ratings are bullshit,' said the two-time recipient of Morningstar's Fund Manager of the Year. 'I don't buy these prices, but as long as someone can provide capital to keep the finger in the dike, the charade will go on.'"

MSN - "Should home sale prices stay secret?" (7-12-07)

"If you live in a hot real-estate market, you may receive frequent postcards or fliers from real-estate agents touting the sales prices they recently nabbed for neighbors. In a handful of states, however, home sale prices are not a matter of public record. In several others, you'll have to extrapolate the sales price from the transfer tax the state collects on every ownership change."

Orange County Register - "84,000 O.C. homes planned" (7-12-07)

"Builders now have 84,368 new residential units on the drawing boards for Orange County, MarketPointe Realty Advisors recently reported. That's the projection emerging from the San Diego-based real estate consultant's second-quarter 2007 survey of proposed new housing."

Orange County Register - "Listing deletes homes' days-on-market data" (7-12-07)

"Home shoppers in Orange County and other parts of Southern California will no longer know how long a residence has been on the market unless they ask. The Southern California Multiple Listing Service has stopped providing "days-on-market" data in client reports. That decision has sparked some speculation in the blogosphere that the MLS is trying to hide details about old listings while driving more traffic to real estate agents. The Anaheim-based MLS, the nation's second-largest listing cooperative, maintains that the days-on-market data has been inaccurate and abused. The information can't be understood without some explanation, MLS leaders said."

Orange County Register - "Businesses feel pinch of high rent" (7-12-07)

"Office rents are skyrocketing across the nation, driving up costs for businesses large and small, thanks to a dearth of space in some major markets and a new breed of deep-pocketed landlords who can afford to hold out for premium tenants. Nationwide, effective rents on office properties – the amount tenants pay after concessions – jumped an average of 3.1 percent during this year's second quarter, up from gains of 2.8 percent in the first quarter and 2.1 percent in the year-earlier period, according to real-estate research firm Reis Inc."