Must read: Excellent presentation goes quickly - Matt Simmons: Peak Oil Update - The world probably hit peak oil around 2005. We are running out of oil. - This has huge implications for the energy industry and the future of humanity. Most people haven’t realized the extent of the growing energy problem. Unfortunately, it is human nature to ignore a problem until it becomes a crisis. - has bottom line and what to do - planBeconomics ———— Director... Read Full Story

  To Our Clients, Colleagues and Friends,  Next week you’ll be coming to the Western Secondary Marketing Conference in San Francisco, our cool, gray City of Love, so here are a few suggestions: (1) Never go out at night without a sweater, and be prepared for afternoon coolness and fog on even the warmest of days, (2) skip the high heels as the city is just too hilly, and (3) take a cable car at least once.  It’s the only National Monument that moves.  As for our hills, ... Read Full Story

  When I graduated from Cal with a fresh business degree, I tried to get an apartment in Manhattan. They wouldn’t let me in. I knew it would be expensive, but I just assumed that for $2,000 a month, the toilet would be inside the apartment. That has changed a little, since in the last year Manhattan apartment sales dropped more than 50% and the average price dropped about 23%. The average price of Manhattan apartment in the second quarter slid to $1.3 million down from $1.7 million a ye... Read Full Story

  The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University is pleased to share The State of the Nation’s Housing 2009.———— Reverse Mortgages for Home Purchases - BOB TEDESCHI - THE federal government issued new guidelines at the start of 2009 that would allow older borrowers to use reverse mortgages to buy a principal residence. But few lenders were ready to offer this option — until fairly recently.  The problem, said Peter Bell, the executive ... Read Full Story

  excellent - Dick Bove Sees Hope For Banks - Steve Forbes - The analyst whose call on BankAtlantic inspired a SLAPP lawsuit is optimistic about banking’s future - video at Forbes.com ———— FICO Scores Show Flaws as U.S. Banks Cut Consumer Credit Lines - By Alexis Leondis -… “Reductions to a consumer’s line of credit based upon the lending institutions’ overall appetite for risk has little or no bearing on a consumer’s own risk of default,” said ... Read Full Story

  Last week I asked my doctor, “Should I reduce my alcohol intake, and consume more fruit and grains?” She replied, “No, not at all.  Wine is made from fruit.  Brandy is distilled wine, which means they take the water out of the fruity stuff so you get even more of the goodness that way. Beer is also made out of grain. Bottoms up!” Alcohol is proven, by college students around the globe, to increase confidence. But why is confidence, or a lack of confi... Read Full Story

     Are you a glass Half-Full or Half-Empty person? In these very challenging times, the first 181 days of 2009 may go down as one of the most memorable times in U.S. history. The question will be if it will be a good memory or not. The combination of economic data and period items mark this time in history, so you make the decision: President Obama, the first U.S. afro-American President, is inaugurated on January 20, 2009. The U.S. economy is in economic recession after r... Read Full Story

    short paper - Guest Post: The Future - Deflation - Posted by Tyler Durden - Submitted by James Perry - Zero Hedge ———— A Faster Lost Decade? - Is the United States economy headed for a Japan-style lost decade? Evoking our February, 2008, item “Faster Markets,” Slate’s Daniel Gross suggests that the deep, ongoing recession in the United States may unfold much more quickly than Japan’s analogous bubble-bust of the 1990s. This is good stuff:... Read Full Story

    SEVERELY Bearish Treasury Development - From Marketwatch: NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Dresdner Kleinwort Securities has withdrawn from the Federal Reserve’s primary U.S. government security dealers, the U.S. central bank said Friday.  The change is net neutral in terms of numbers as a new dealer just came online, but in general this is a major net negative for the Treasury market. - The Market Ticker ———— How to: I Hedged my Gas Prices ... Read Full Story

  I overheard the kids last night talking about doing chores. My daughter said, “If we stop dusting, we could use the coffee table for a message board!” Speaking of message boards, I have seen a few analysts state that they believe property appraisals are keeping a lid on values. More precisely, when home prices start to increase near the end of a recession, even though buyers are willing to pay more, appraisals often come in lower than the agreed-upon price because they’re... Read Full Story