Jun 26 Did U.S. Tax Policy Contribute to the Housing Bubble? Question: How much does (did) federal tax policy contribute to the housing bubble? If it was a contributing factor, how should that policy be reformed? Paul Solman: Not much, I wouldn’t think. Tax deductibility of mortgage interest has been… Continue reading
May 21 How One Economics Reporter Experienced His Own Mortgage Meltdown Paul Solman: Who knew? I’ve been reading Ed Andrews since he took over the New York Times patents column back in the late 1980s, and I followed him following the housing crisis. But until the… Continue reading
May 20 Why Were Banks Allowed to Bet on Derivatives? Question: How did the dollar volume of U.S. mortgages get to be such a huge dollar problem? Did derivatives do that? Why are investment banks allowed to bet 34 dollars for only one they have? Paul Solman: First, a word… Continue reading
May 07 What Is a Stress Test? Why Are They Being Done? Question: What are the stress tests? And why are they being done? Paul Solman: A stress tests is simply an analysis of a bank’s balance sheet. To determine what? Whether the bank is viable as a business. Or likely to… Continue reading
Apr 27 When Will Any Housing Recovery Reach Small Businesses and Contractors? Question: The housing downturn has affected not only large builders, but also small businesses and contractors that support and supply them. How long will any recovery take for these sort of businesses? Paul Solman: I’m sort of a broken CD… Continue reading
Apr 16 Housing Market Continues to Stumble By PBS News Hour New home starts fell more than 10 percent in March, according to new government numbers released Thursday, while foreclosures surged 24 percent in the first quarter of the year. Continue reading
Mar 17 New Home Construction Jumps as Wholesale Prices Edge Up By PBS News Hour The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that construction of new homes and apartments jumped 22.2 percent in February compared with January, pushing total activity to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 units. Continue reading
Mar 09 What's the Total Wealth of the United States? Question: With all this economic turmoil and talk of trillions of dollars, my question is: What is the total wealth of the United States? If the total U.S. wealth is, say, $100,000 trillion, then spending $1 trillion to help banks… Continue reading
Mar 04 New Details Emerge on Mortgage Relief Plan By Admin, PBS News Hour The Obama administration on Wednesday announced new details on its $75 billion mortgage relief plan to help those in danger of losing their homes to foreclosure. Continue reading
Mar 03 Obama, Brown Praise Relations, Assess the Economic Crisis By Admin, PBS News Hour President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Tuesday hailed the "special relationship" between their countries as the two held talks on how to solve the economic crisis reverberating around the globe. Continue reading