The Subprime Crisis: A Humorous Look

Everyone knows the sub-prime mortgage crisis is serious, but today, we thought we'd try to lighten things up a bit and bring you a funny look at the whole mess.  John Clarke and Bryan Dawe are satirists. They stage interviews for the Australian news networks. Their commentary is biting and hilarious.  In this case, Clarke and Dawe take on subprime lending. They provide a perfect explanation for bad-banking practices. You’ll love it!

We hope you enjoyed seeing a little LIGHTER bit of news today.  Tell us what you think.  Leave us your comment below.  We'd love to hear from you.

Vacant Homes for Sale Hit a New Record High

The percentage of vacant homes for sale in the United States set a new record high in the first quarter of this year.

The Census Bureau report released recently shows that 2.9% of U.S. homes — excluding rental properties — were vacant and up for sale, compared with 2.8% in the fourth quarter of 2007. It was the highest quarterly number in records going back to 1956.

That works out to 2.28 million properties, up from 2.18 million in the same quarter last year.

The Census Bureau's report also said that the U.S. homeownership rate remained at 67.8% in the first quarter, down from a peak of 69.2% at the end of 2004.

The National Association of Realtors also reported recently that sales of existing homes also fell in March, dropping by 2%, with prices declining on a year-over-year basis by 7.7%.

Housing Market Woes: Is Washington Doing Enough?

With the news continuing to be bleak (at best) around the housing market, the question is, are interest rate cuts and tax rebates enough, or should Washington be doing more to actively intervene in the struggling housing market?

The U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee recently approved a sweeping bill to enable the government to finance $300 billion in distressed mortgages with the aim of helping two million homeowners.

The latest interest rate cut by the Fed took the cost of borrowing to 2.0 percent, its lowest since December 2004.

Meanwhile President Bush has signed into law a $150 billion economic stimulus package designed to spur the ailing economy by giving tax rebates to millions of Americans.

But is all this enough?  Should (or could) Washington be doing more to help?  We'd love to hear your opinion.  Click the comment link below and give us your feedback.  Your email address (although required to post a comment) will never be published here, so go ahead, sound off.  We know you want to.

Home Improvements: Prices Improving?

When it comes to food and fuel prices, they're going through the roof. But what about the roof itself? There the news might be a little better. Stacy Johnson takes a closer look in this short (1:18) video.

Tell us what you think… we'd love to hear YOUR opinion.  Use the comment link below to sound off.

Gas Prices Continue to Spike

The average price of gasoline has jumped another 15 cents over the past two weeks to a national average of $3.62 per gallon of self-serve regular, according to a national survey.  That rise continued at virtually the same rate as the previous two weeks, and forecasts are, it will only get higher.

We'd love to hear what you think.  Do you think oil companies are just gouging us?  Or do you think it's wise to drop the tax on gasoline to help us consumers?  Use the comment link below to sound off on this gasoline price spike situation.  We'd love to hear your comments and feelings on this subject.  And don't worry, even though your email address is required to post a comment, that email address will never be published here for your protection.  So go ahead, tell us what you think about the high gas prices!