By Michael Stubel

July 20, 2012

Throughout the week, the BPC Housing Commission highlights news items that address critical developments in housing policy. Any views expressed in the content posted on this forum do not necessarily represent the views of the Commission, its co-chairs or the Bipartisan Policy Center.

What We're Reading posts now include a compilation of useful links in the Housing Visualized section below. These resources offer the latest economic indicators, expert insight, and statistical trends related to the U.S. housing market.

Housing Visualized

2010 Census l Mapping the Census l Housing Market Indicators
Infographic: Household Formation Gap l Who Gains Most From Tax Breaks
Infographic: Housing's Economic Impact l Measuring State-Level Economic Mobility Past Commissions and Reports l Trulia’s Housing Barometer
Credit Conditions l U.S. Housing Summary 2012 l Changes in Home Prices since 2003
Wells Fargo Monthly Economic Outlook l Wells Fargo Real Estate & Housing Reports

High rents, tight credit put many at the mercy of the market
By Michelle Conlin and Ilaina Jonas
Reuters

"Five years after the housing bubble burst, the United States is in the midst of a housing affordability crisis. Home prices have fallen a third from their peaks, but many Americans cannot benefit because they cannot get a mortgage. With credit tight, many consumers have no choice but to rent. Others who can afford to buy are also renting, because they view real estate as a lousy investment. With this increased demand, rents in some cities have jumped by double-digit percentage rates." Read more here.

By Michael Stubel

May 22, 2012

Throughout the week, the BPC Housing Commission highlights news items that address critical developments in housing policy. Any views expressed in the content posted on this forum do not necessarily represent the views of the Commission, its co-chairs or the Bipartisan Policy Center.

What if everything we’ve been told about the financial crisis is wrong?
By Paul Jackson
HousingWire

"Fed economists Christopher Foote, Kristopher Gerardi, and Paul Willen apparently decided the time has come to try to unplug at least some people from a financial markets version of The Matrix: that is, common knowledge about the financial crisis and associated housing collapse. And their paper makes for gripping reading to anyone who has spent the majority of their professional life in the financial markets. In various turns, the authors end up arguing that much of what we think we know about the financial crisis is, in fact, not actually rooted in fact at all." Read more here.

By Michael Stubel

March 14, 2012

Throughout the week, the BPC Housing Commission highlights news items that address critical developments in housing policy. Any views expressed in the content posted on this forum do not necessarily represent the views of the Commission, its co-chairs or the Bipartisan Policy Center.

Foreclosures Pick Up In Many States
The Associated Press

"Foreclosure activity surged last month across about half of the nation's states, as banks tackled a backlog of homes with mortgages that had gone unpaid yet remained in limbo due to delays stemming from foreclosure-abuse claims." Read more here.

By Michael Stubel

November 8, 2011

Throughout the week, the BPC Housing Commission will highlight news articles that address critical developments in housing policy. Any views expressed in the content posted on this forum do not necessarily represent the views of the Commission, its co-chairs or the Bipartisan Policy Center.

Finding more flaws in HUD’s accounting of HOME program

By Debbie Cenziper
The Washington Post

"Launched two decades ago, the HOME program provides federal money to local housing agencies, which subsidize developers willing to build or renovate homes for the poor. Over the years, HOME funding has been used to produce thousands of successful rental units and homes for purchase by low-income buyers. Advocates say the money is crucial to cash-strapped cities struggling to provide affordable housing.

"But The Post, using publicly available data, found in May that nearly 700 current projects showed signs of being delayed, either because they were launched more than five years ago, had stopped drawing federal money or faced other obstacles identified by local housing agencies." Read more here.