CRjunky writes:
Goodmorning
CRjunky | 06.13.08 - 8:48 am | #

KindaScared writes:
Inflation jumps 0.6 percent in May, reflecting higher energy prices
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080613/e...13/ economy.html
KindaScared | 06.13.08 - 8:50 am | #

barely writes:
["Virtually none of the data had been subjected to a rigorous process to check for consistency and completeness -- they were typically responses to surveys that produced aggregate, unverified results from individual firms," ]

Sound like more shoddy ratings agencies work?
barely | 06.13.08 - 8:53 am | #

RayOnTheFarm writes:
Good morning Tanta !
RayOnTheFarm | 06.13.08 - 8:58 am | #

threetorches writes:
I don't want to "read between the lines" too much or inappropriately, but because the OCC's chief mandate is "safety and soundness," I get the impression that the loan portfolios are increasingly problematic...that is, the systemic problems are not actually contained, and the worst is not behind us.
That is, more accurate numbers may prove to be quite depressing to behold.
But it would be nice if I were wrong, for a change! :)
threetorches | 06.13.08 - 8:59 am | #

Neal writes:
Peception is everything, numbers mean nothing.

Flying in and getting photographed standing in front of the debris and hugging the survivors is the same thing as rebuilding--right??
Neal | 06.13.08 - 9:01 am | #

Malaclypse writes:
"The industry will whine about regulatory burdens, as it always does,"

Have you forgotten your role as designated Countrywide shill?
Malaclypse | 06.13.08 - 9:05 am | #

tbgpalisades writes:
Lack of rigor in developing and reporting statistics pretty much defines the whole real estate business.
tbgpalisades | 06.13.08 - 9:07 am | #

Elvis writes:
I'm just waiting for the day the current administration drops its doctored statistics from airplanes on the hardest hit towns. I just hope they don't also drop "two chickens for every pot," because that might infuriate PETA. Don't mess with PETA.
Elvis | 06.13.08 - 9:08 am | #

not a banker writes:
"It will of course also occur to some of us that the OCC's supervision of these banks over the last several years has apparently been based in part on data that it never until now seemed to realize needed some cleaning up."

Wonder what the OTS has to say?
not a banker | 06.13.08 - 9:22 am | #

Mike Dillon writes:
http:// www.mortgagenewsdaily.com...e_Avalanche.asp

Was there a recent shift from this on the part of the OCC or am I hearing pots and kettles chattering?

Somehow, I just don't think the OCC has any room to question any of the data coming out of (No)Hope Now when the data is skewed because of counsel given to Hope NOW participants by the OCC itself. "Six servicers have either declined to provide information or are in negotiations to work out confidentiality concerns. Chase and Wells Fargo have declined to participate based on advice from the Office of Comptroller of the Currency which OCC has refused to change and Washington Mutual along with Chase have refused to provide data because of their participation in the Hope NOW Alliance."

Besides, look at the participants in Hope NOW - I wouldn't trust the numbers coming out of any of those servicers if my life depended on it. But, then again, I may be a tad cynical...

You can't advise entities not to participate and then call shenanigans because you don't like the numbers that ARE available. Oh, wait...The OCC just did that...I guess you can do that...Nevermind...
Mike Dillon | Homepage | 06.13.08 - 9:27 am | #

Chris writes:
News or not? Inflation heating up. Last month yearly inflation came in at 3.9%, this month it is up to 4.2%. I presume this is why the Fed is chattering about it.
Chris | 06.13.08 - 9:29 am | #

Melancholy Korean writes:
BLS stats have been under-reporting inflation for a while. Great article in Harper's by Kevin Phillips about this, as well as all the work done by B. Ritholtz on the Big Picture.

Stronger dollar is one way (fastest way) to lower oil prices. If the dollar - euro rate differential starts to tighten, could be helpful for oil and commodities prices. (of course, raising rates in a recession has other issues.)
Melancholy Korean | Homepage | 06.13.08 - 9:38 am | #

Peripheral Visionary writes:
Tanta, more rules on data reporting are well and good, but there's a legal barrier: the Government Paperwork Elimination Act. In the unintended consequences effect so typical of government, the agencies are limited in how strict their requests for information can be. Since, in most cases, private entities can respond to government requests for information with data in their own format, there is a significant amount of inconsistency in data, and consequent clean-up that needs to be done.

Laws (not just rules, which can't get around the Paperwork Elimination Act) could enforce consistency in reporting from industry, but good luck getting that through Congress.
Peripheral Visionary | 06.13.08 - 9:48 am | #

Mel writes:
Hope Now reminds me of another bs name game--Patriot Act.
Mel | 06.13.08 - 9:50 am | #

Racer X writes:
...that big bank databases are sloppy and inconsistent

That could be why the focus is on the FICO score. It's closer to a static input so maybe they feel like the data integrity is better.
Racer X | 06.13.08 - 9:56 am | #

John M writes:
By the way, Paul Jackson's HousingWire blog is is listed on Google as a NEWS source.
John M | Homepage | 06.13.08 - 10:23 am | #

muzical chairzz writes:
I guess you've been 'helped' if someone 'listened' to your crying phone call about losing your house. What really gets me and somehow in all the reporting of foreclosures vs mitigation/relief is the basic fact that THERE IS NO WAY TO HELP someone who cannot afford a home loan! The only possible solution is to just plain reduce the amount they owe. This is certainly not going to be the first solution and may never be a solution except in limited cases for all the reasons we here recognize. (lending money is a business designed to make money, cancelling debt leads to moral hazard, etc, etc)

Human nature being what it is, we've come to the place where each bankster, homeowner, gov't official acts in such a way that appears to help themselves look good and/or end up on the 'top of the pile'. Each plays to their own self interest.... it won't stop anytime soon.
muzical chairzz | 06.13.08 - 10:27 am | #

JBL writes:
I'm one of those who generally preaches that regulatory burdens are excessive (largely because they're usually not very effective or well-targeted). But I'm also quite happy to preach that whatever your position on how extensive regulation ought to be, consistent, reliable reporting is a pretty good baseline.
JBL | 06.13.08 - 10:48 am | #

Anonymous writes:
It generally seems that no one makes the distinction between reviewing a loan/borrower for a loan modification and actually completing a loan modification. Servicers are reviewing many delinquent loans to see if they might be able to modify it. The number of those actually getting completed, after the borrower signs all the paperwork and documents ability to pay, is very few. I get the impression HOPE NOW counts every loan that is reviewed for loss mit as a borrower that was helped. Oh well if the borrower never sends back the paperwork.
Anonymous | 06.13.08 - 11:32 am | #

sdtfs writes:
I personally have no reason to question the numbers. You would have to ask yourself,"Are the banks in the business of dealing with unrealistic numbers? And if so, wouldn't they be in a world of hurt?"


I rest my case.
sdtfs | 06.13.08 - 11:44 am | #

Leon Avalos writes:
hey chris inflation is boiling now

credit cards
Leon Avalos | Homepage | 06.13.08 - 12:20 pm | #

lama writes:
I'm working on a systems implementation for a Fortune 500 (or so) company. Yesterday, I told the IT folks that the customer purchase orders they were giving me from the old system was from the wrong fields (i.e. 100% error rate). Another consultant on our project told me "if it's wrong, we'll just have to fix it. Don't hold up this process!". He was wagging his finger at me in an authorative manner. If these are not entered 100% correctly, my client will not be paid for perhaps months of services. We will have to manually enter thousands of PO numbers and hope they are all correct.

In case anyone was wondering how numbers get completely screwed up, there's one example.

Git 'er done!
lama | 06.13.08 - 1:47 pm | #

sdtfs writes:
If these are not entered 100% correctly, my client will not be paid for perhaps months of services.

Who cares? You'll still be paid at the end of the month right? Don't hold up the process. In this case, process and cesspool are synonymous ;)
sdtfs | 06.13.08 - 1:59 pm | #