Housing Bubble and Real Estate Market Tracker

Here's our summary of articles and data points on the housing market. It's part of Seeking Alpha's coverage of the real estate market and homebuilder stocks. Like all other topics and stock coverage from Seeking Alpha, you can have this sent to your Blackberry or desktop email by signing up for our no-spam free email subscription service.

Quote of the Day- "From the House's Mouth"

"It's become a trading phenomenon -- a momentum business. And if the momentum stops, someone hits the windshield."- Robert Underhill, head of capital transactions for Shorenstein Properties, which bought Blackstone's properties in Portland, Oregon. Underhill was commenting on the red-hot commercial market. Since Blackstone Properties bought Equity Office Properties for $39 billion in February, it has flipped many of EOPs properties for higher prices and quick profits. (Wall St. Journal, July 26th)

Real Estate Sales and House Prices

• "Unexpected Weakness In Home Sales" (Barry Ritholtz in Seeking Alpha, July 26th): "[Median prices on home sales] can be skewed by either a drop in low end home sales or an increase in high end sales during the present weakness… Bloomberg [explained] how both the New Home Sales and Existing Home Sales data are assembled: "Monthly figures on home resales are compiled from contract closings and may reflect sales agreed upon weeks or months earlier, while new-home sales are recorded when a contract is signed. Sales of existing homes account for about 85% of the U.S. housing market, and new-home sales make up the rest."

• Westchester Housing Market Moderates In Second Quarter (Lower Hudson Online, July 26th): "Westchester-Putnam MLS: Buyers continued to show interest in Westchester County houses in Q2, although statistics portrayed a moderating market. The median price of a Westchester house… was $700,000, down 2.1% for the third consecutive quarter of y/ydeclines. But 1,363 sales were closed, a 1.3% increase… Condominiums had a Q2 median of $382,500, a drop of 0.6% over the comparable quarter a year earlier. Co-op apartments had a median price of $193,000, up 1.7%. Sales in both categories were down by 3.2% and 2.7%, respectively."

• County Sees First Sizable Dip In Home Prices (Palm Beach Online, July 26th): "Florida Association of Realtors: Sales of existing homes in Palm Beach County declined in June… Sales of existing single-family homes fell 19% [from] June 2006, and the median price took a tumble to $377,900 from $405,500. It was the first significant drop – 7% - in home prices since the market started cooling off from its unprecedented run-up two years ago… Palm Beach County [condo] sales rose 3%, while prices declined 3% y/y, to a median of $201,500… In the Treasure Coast, once one of the hottest real estate markets in the nation, sales of existing single-family homes fell 38% in June y/y."

• Home Sales Market Still Shrinking, But Prices Bottom Out (Tampa Bay Business Journal, July 25th): "Florida Association of Realtors: Florida's existing home sales continued its downward spiral, as sales in June fell 30% from a year ago. For the month, 12,954 homes were sold, closer to the activity level in June 2002. While prices continue to fall as well, the rate of descent has slowed. For June, the median price single-family home in Florida was $243,200, or 5% less than the $256,200 in June 2006. Sarasota… sales rose 5% to 797 units sold. The median price fell 10% to $292,700 from a year ago yet jumped almost 19% from last month."

• Illinois Median Home Price Up 1.1 Percent to $215,000 (Earthtimes.org, July 25th): " Illinois Association of Realtors: [As an indication of] Illinois' stable housing market and economy, total home sales (which include single-family homes and condominiums) were up 9.7% in June 2007 to 15,736 homes sold compared to 14,349 homes sold in May 2007. Sales were 17.1% below the 18,992 homes sold in June 2006. The Illinois median home sale price in June was $215,000, up 1.1% from $212,600 one year earlier…Year-to-date, sales were down 15.2% to 72,551 homes sold January through June 2007 compared to 85,567 homes sold during the same period last year."

• Real Estate Matters: Price Properly For Our High-Inventory Market, And Track The Trends (Tallahassee.com, July 24th) Tallahassee, Florida: "Don Pickett, Realtor, Coldwell Banker: "We currently have about a 40-week supply of residential properties listed in our entire MLS market with an average of 483 new listings being added each month… We will continue to tread water with a very high inventory of residential properties for sale. In June 2005 we had 1,326 single-family homes for sale. This June we had 3,327. In June 2005 we had 272 condos/townhouses, and now there are 1,272… On a bright note, in June we closed 483 residential properties, which is higher than 15 of the last 24 months."

Real Estate Investing and Sentiment

• LoopNet, Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2007 Financial Results (Business Wire, July 24th): "LoopNet, Inc. (LOOP): Revenue for Q2'07 was $17.0 million, an increase of 46% from $11.6m in Q2'06. Net income for Q2'07 was $5.1 or $0.13/diluted share, compared to $3.4m or $0.09/diluted share in Q2'06… The number of LoopNet registered members, which includes both basic and premium members, grew to 2,224,464 during Q2'07, a 56% increase over Q2'06... There were over 518,000 total commercial real estate listings active on the LoopNet marketplace as of the end of Q2, a 30% increase over Q2'06… ComScore Media Metrix: Average monthly unique visitors during Q2'07 were approximately 950,000, a 10% increase over Q2'06."

Mortgates and Real Estate Lending

• Weekly Mortgage Applications Down 3.6% (MarketWatch, July 25th): "Mortgage Bankers Association: Refinancing mortgage applications dropped a seasonally adjusted 1.4% for the week ended July 20 compared with the prior week, while purchase applications decreased by 5.0%. Total mortgage application volume fell a seasonally-adjusted 3.6%, compared with the week before, but volume was up 13.1% compared with the same week in 2006. Refinancings accounted for 38.5% of all applications, up from 37.7% the week before, while adjustable-rate mortgages held at 21.0%... The average interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages was 6.59% last week, down from 6.61% the previous week, while 15-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.24%, down from 6.29%."

Subprime Fallout

• IMF Warns On Credit Markets Volatility (Financial Times, July 26th): "International Monetary Fund: The deterioration of credit prices since April, and in particular the rising difficulties in the US subprime mortgage market, vindicated its warning about how much credit discipline had weakened in recent years… Jaime Caruana, director of the IMF’s monetary and capital markets department: “In sum, risks have increased and credit markets could remain volatile in the period ahead with a further repricing of some credit products. So far, our assessment is that this risk is likely to remain largely contained.”

• US Housing Slump Bites As Sales Slip To 54-Month Low (The Hong Kong Standard, July 26th): "Moody's Investors Services: The credit market rout caused by the slump in US subprime loans gives "serious reasons to worry" and is a "reality check," without posing a systemic threat. While the turmoil has caused some investors to reassess credit risk, others are ready to acquire assets at lower prices, given the "ample liquidity" available. The readiness to buy means there is no generalized threat to the integrity of the financial system, Moody's said."

• Next To Fall: The Publicly-Traded Government-Sponsored Mortgage Lenders (Michael Panzner in Seeking Alpha, July 25th): "Like the big private- sector players, government- sponsored companies [Freddie Mac (FRE) Fannie Mae (FNM) and Ginnie Mae], which own or guarantee 45% of all residential mortgages, have taken on more risk in recent years. Now they hold a sizable piece of subprime and other potentially toxic debt--securities and largely illiquid loans that could take a hit after the recent… Bear Stearns hedge funds [drop]. And given the state of the broader housing market, more trouble may lie ahead… bad news for shareholders and investors who own their mortgage-backed securities… FRE [says its] "well positioned to withstand even a severe and enduring period of heightened credit risk."

• Foreclosures Turn Pools Green (11 Alive, July 26th): "House foreclosures are leading to 'green pools'… [and] because the pool is on private property, public health officials can't get involved until or unless there's a complaint from a neighbor… The Gwinnett Health Department [Atlanta]: "It does pose a public health problem. Because it can be harborage for mosquitoes." The hotter the weather, the shorter the breeding time from mosquito larvae to biting adult -- as quick as four days, in very little water… This is West Nile virus season."

Foreclosure Impact

• Foreclosures Go Through The Roof (San Francisco Chronicle, July 25th): "DataQuick Information Systems: In the Bay Area, 7,696 homeowners received notices of default in Q2, up 164.5% from 2,910 in Q2'06... The notices are the first step in the foreclosure process, but do not always result in foreclosure… Three affluent Bay Area counties stood out as having the least likelihood of default notices: Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties. Statewide, homeowners received 53,943 notices of default, up 158% from 20,909 from Q2'06. That number represents 50,901 different residences because some homes are financed with multiple loans."

• Foreclosures Tempting To Investors (The Oregonian, July 26th): "In Oregon, 2.19% of home loans were 30 days or more late on their payments on March 31 compared with 4.84% nationally, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The number of late mortgages in Oregon is ticking up."

• County Foreclosures Are On The Rise (Hudson Star Observer, July 26th) Wisconsin: "St. Croix County Clerk: 212 foreclosure cases were filed in 2005. The number more than doubled, to 447 in 2006 and, as of Monday, 262 had been filed this year. County Sheriff: 40 foreclosure sales were conducted in 2003. Last year’s foreclosure sales totaled 188. [There were] 251 recorded thus far in 2007... Sheriff Dennis Hillstead: “When I first started as sheriff in 1999, we had one or two sales a week. Last Tuesday there were 12 sales scheduled. Two were postponed or cancelled and 10 went.”

Global Impact of the Subprime Turmoil

• Cadbury Extends Deadline for Selling U.S. Drinks Unit (Bloomberg, July 27th): "Cadbury Schweppes Plc, the world's largest confectionery company, said it's extending the deadline for selling its U.S. drink business after "extreme volatility'' in debt markets. Cadbury: There's still "strong'' interest from potential buyers… The timetable for the auction is "under review…" Turmoil in credit markets sent stock markets sliding this week on concern that companies won't be able to finance takeovers."

• Australia's Westpac Says No U.S. Subprime Exposure (Reuters, July 26th): "Australia's Westpac Banking Corp. CEO David Morgan said on Thursday the bank did not have any exposure to the U.S. subprime market. Westpac has exposure to troubled Australian hedge fund Basis Capital, which has lost heavily in bets gone wrong in the U.S. subprime crisis. Investors in BT Financial Group, the wealth management unit of Westpac, had Australian $180 million ($159 million) in Basis Capital's two funds."

• Nomura Hit By US Subprime Exposure (Financial Times, July 25th): "Japan’s largest broker, on Wednesday said it was considering withdrawing from the US residential mortgage-backed securities market following substantial losses related to the subprime mortgage market and a writedown of its US operations… Nomura disclos[ed] for the first time its exposure to the US subprime mortgage market, which has led to a Y31.2 bn ($259m) loss in the fixed-income business in Q1 and a Y70bn write-down of its US business… Nomura has reduced its exposure to the RMBS market, with RMBS assets falling from Y657.8bn at the end of March to Y266bn… to the end of June. Of that balance, subprime mortgages amount to Y71.1bn."

• Subprime Shock Waves Hit Australia (Forbes, July 26th): "Two Australian hedge fund managers have stopped their investors from pulling money out of four funds for fear that a stampede would lead to their collapse… Absolute Capital, a boutique specialist fund manager in structured debt… says that the two funds it froze Wednesday night — the Yield Strategies Fund and Yield Strategies NZD, which hold 200 million Australian dollars ($177 million) in assets — have limited exposure to the U.S. subprime market: less than 5% exposure of its investment assets, with little leverage, no margin calls and no immediate payment obligations. In short, Absolute is acting to protect itself from a ripple effect."

• China Shying From Shaky US Mortgage Market (Asia Times, July 26th): "Chinese economists: While China is eager to invest a portion of its US$1.33 trillion foreign-exchange reserve overseas, it is unlikely to take a chance on buying additional US mortgage-backed securities [MBS]… Bloomberg: China held $414 billion in US Treasury bonds as of April… US HUD Dept.: As of June 2006, China held $107.5 billion in MBS, up from $3b in 2003 and $100 million in 2002… Yi Xianrong, a senior economist and finance professor with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a central government think-tank: Of the approximately $7t worth of US mortgage securities, subprime loans currently account for about 15%... 13% of US mortgage delinquencies in Q4'06 were from subprime loans."

• Northern Rock Hit By Housing Slowdown (The Independent, July 26th) United Kingdom: "Northern Rock has flagged up a slowdown in house price inflation in the second half as it warned that spiralling interest rates will put a dent in full-year profits. The UK mortgage lender reported record lending levels for the six months to 30 June, with net lending increasing by 47.3% to £10.7bn. Profits rose 27% to £346.6m… The company's share of home loans increased to 18.9%. CEO Adam Applegarth said the outlook for the full year has been hit by rising borrowing costs after the Bank of England raised interest rates five times to 5.75% in the past 12 months."

Macro Impact, And Will The Housing Slump Cause A Recession?

• U.S. Economy Grew at a 3.4% Annual Rate Last Quarter (Bloomberg, July 27th): "The U.S. economy grew last quarter at the fastest pace in more than a year, propelled by rising exports, commercial construction and government spending... Spending on commercial construction projects rose at the fastest pace in 13 years, helping to overcome another drop in homebuilding... Residential investment fell at an annual rate of 9.3% last quarter, after contracting by 16% in the previous three months. That took away 0.5 percentage point from economic growth, compared with a 0.9 percentage point reduction in Q1."

• Housing-Related Job Cuts Already Ahead Of 2006 Total (Central Valley Business Times, July 26th): "Outplacement company Challenger, Gray & Christmas: Through Jan-June 2007, planned job cuts announced by firms in the real estate, construction and mortgage lending industries reached 37,564 – 65% more than the 22,814 job cuts announced in all of 2006. Housing-related job cuts account for 10% of the 393,499 job cuts announced YTD. In 2006, housing cuts represented less than 3% of the year-end total. CEO John Challenger: “We are seeing job cuts in several other industries, including retail, consumer products manufacturing and industrial products manufacturing resulting from the slumping market." The construction industry announced 19,030 or 51% of the 37,564 housing job cuts YTD. Mortgage lenders announced 16,638 job cuts in Jan.-June 2007, more than double the 8,210 cuts announced by these firms in Jan.-June 2006."

• Optimism Takes a Hit as Real Estate Continues to Slump (James Picerno in Seeking Alpha, July 26th): "Thomas Higgins, chief economist at Payden & Rygel: [There's] a high correlation (77%) between mortgage rates and a two-month lag on existing home sales… "Between May 11-July 13, the rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage surged from 6.15% to 6.75%... A rise in mortgage rates tends to impact existing home sales with a two month lag." [So] existing home sales "could see another down leg in July and August…" Housing starts posted their first monthly rise [2% in June] since February... But new housing permits (a signal of future activity in the sector), continued falling and dropped 7.5% in June from May."

• Copper Futures Decline in New York as U.S. Homebuilding Slumps (Bloomberg, July 25th): "Copper fell the most in four weeks in New York as a slowdown in homebuilding damps demand in the U.S., the world's second-largest consumer of the metal. Home resales in the U.S. fell for a fourth straight month in June, a sign that housing remained mired in the worst slump in 16 years. Copper has fallen 12% since reaching a record high in May 2006 as a decline in U.S. home construction curbs use of the metal in pipes and wiring."

Homebuilders And Housing Stocks

• MDC Holdings Q2 2007 Earnings Call Transcript (Seeking Alpha, July 26th): "CEO Larry A. Mizel: "During Q2, we reduced our lot supply by 15%, allowing us to generate $50 million in operating cash flow. We did this during a period which typically requires the use of substantial cash to prepare for higher deliveries later in the year. This quarterly amount increased our total operating cash flow over the last 12 months to $675m. We ended Q2 with almost $1.9 billion in cash and available borrowing capacity, including $668m in cash on hand… Our ability to capitalize on an industry turnaround will depend not only on our financial strength, but also on our success in streamlining our operations."

• Meritage Homes Reports Second Quarter and First Half 2007 Results (CNN Money, July 26th): "Meritage Homes (MTH) reported a net loss for Q2'07 of $57 million, or $2.16/share, vs. net earnings of $77m, or $2.82/share in Q2'06. The results included pre-tax real estate-related and joint venture impairments of $80m and goodwill-related impairments of $28m in Q2'07. The 2007 real estate-related charges stemmed from reduced market valuations of properties in California ($45 million), Florida ($15 million), Nevada ($12 million) and Arizona ($8 million). Due to persistent and severe weakness in southwest Florida, all goodwill and other intangible assets relating to a February 2005 acquisition in Ft. Myers/Naples were impaired and written off. These charges… reduced net earnings from homebuilding operations by $70m… Order backlog stood at 3,838 homes valued at $1.2 billion on June 30, 2007, compared to 5,849 homes valued at $2.0 billion on June 30, 2006… Meritage's net debt-to-capital ratio was 47% as of June 30, 2007, compared to 42% at June 30, 2006.".

• The WGA Energy Efficient Buildings Workshop: Performance Contracting Stocks (Tom Konrad in Seeking Alpha, July 26th): "Performance contracting is [when] the government body contracts for a certain level of service (such as a level of building temperature and lighting) instead of buying the energy needed to run their building directly from the utility. The Energy Service Company, [ESCO]… uses [the money] to… make efficiency improvements to the facility… Quite a few ESCOs, as well as their financiers and suppliers, are divisions of public firms. These companies are well placed to benefit from the raft of initiatives to improve the energy efficiency of government operations… [For example,] Trane, a leading A/C manufacturer and division of American Standard Companies (ASD)."

• The Real-Estate Market Still Stinks, but Some Housing Stocks May Be Tempting (US World & News, July 26th): "John Rogers, chairman and CIO, Ariel Capital Management, [has] been adding to positions in three housing-related stocks: Black & Decker (BDK), the tool manufacturer; Mohawk Industries (MHK), a leading maker of home-flooring materials; and USG Corp (USG)., which manufactures drywall, ceiling tiles, and other construction materials… Morningstar analyst Parrish Glover noted that last year "40% of sales industrywide [drywall sales] were for repairs and remodeling." Though Mohawk is affected by the slowdown in housing, Morningstar analyst John Kearney noted that it is diversified between the residential and commercial markets and that it has been growing its business through acquisitions. The majority of Mohawk's sales—60%—comes from… home renovations and repairs."

• Black & Decker Sues Makita Over Patents for Drill Components (Bloomberg, July 25th): "Black & Decker Corp. (BDK), the largest U.S. power-tool maker, sued Japan's Makita Corp. for infringing patents on transmission assemblies used in drills. Makita's three-speed MXT and LXT model drills sold in Home Depot Inc. and Lowe's Cos. stores violate three Black & Decker patents awarded since 2006, the company claims in its complaint filed yesterday in federal court in Delaware."

• Standard Pacific Corp. Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend (PR Newswire, July 25th): "Standard Pacific Corp. (SPF) CEO Stephen J. Scarborough… announced Wednesday that the Company's Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $.04/share of common stock. Standard Pacific… constructs homes within a wide range of price and size targeting a broad range of homebuyers. Standard Pacific operates in many of the largest housing markets in the country with operations in major metropolitan areas in California."

• Centex F1Q08 (Qtr End 6/30/07) Earnings Call Transcript (Seeking Alpha, July 25th): "Centex Corp. CFO Cathy Smith: "Our cancellation rate has declined for the second straight quarter sequentially… from 39% to 34 to 31… More divisions are seeing some level of predictability and stability than at any point of the past two years… A majority of our divisions have reduced their un-sold inventories to appropriate levels… Owned lots are down 15% y/y, to approximately 96,000 lots. Options lots now stand at about 54,000, down 68% y/y and 12% sequentially. On a pre-tax basis, we had $913 million in impairments and option walk away costs… also down sequentially the last two quarters… The impairments were concentrated in southern California, Florida and Nevada… In the quarter, [we] took the opportunity to repurchase $55 million of debt at a discount."

• U.S. Homebuilding Chiefs' Pay Follows the Slump: Graef Crystal (Bloomberg, July 25th): "Paul Saville of NVR Inc.(NVR) total pay in 2006 declined 91% from 2005, the lowest of any U.S. homebuilder -- just $809,000. He received no bonus, stock or option awards... Stuart Miller of Lennar Corp. (LEN): His total pay fell 72%, to $9.1 million. Stephen Scarborough of Standard Pacific Corp. (SPF) took a 66% cut in total pay to $7.3m… Donald Tomnitz of D.R. Horton Inc. (DHI) had the lowest salary, $300,000, yet was the only CEO who received a raise in total pay in 2006… 3.5% to a hefty $13.6m… Chad Dreier of Ryland Group (RYL): His pay dropped 30% to $24.2m from $34.4m-- [still] the highest-paid CEO among the 11. Yet in sales, Ryland ranked 10th out of the 11 companies… Robert Toll of Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL): His total pay dropped 36%, though he [was] the second highest- paid CEO, at $23.4m."

• M.D.C. Holdings Announces Second Quarter 2007 Results (PR Newswire, July 25th): "M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. (MDC) announced Wednesday a Q2 net loss of $106.1 million, or $2.32/share, which included pre-tax charges of $161.1m for asset impairments and $6.4m for write-offs... Net income for Q2'06 was $76.5m, or $1.66/share, including pre-tax charges of $12.1m for write-offs of deposits and pre-acquisition costs. Total revenue for Q2 was $716.7m, compared with revenue of $1.23 billion for Q2'06. Net loss for Jan.- June 30, 2007 was $200.5m, or $4.40/share, which included pre-tax charges of $302.5m for asset impairments and $10.5m for [land] write-offs."

• Champion CFO Exercises Options (Forbes, July 25th): "The executive VP and CFO of Champion Enterprises Inc. (CHB), which makes prefabricated homes, exercised options for 100,000 shares of common stock, according to a SEC filing Tuesday. In a Form 4 filed with the SEC, Phyllis A. Knight reported she exercised options for the shares Friday for $2.48 and then sold 20,073 of them Monday and Tuesday for $12.40 to $12.50 apiece. Knight also surrendered 24,452 shares back to the company for $12.35 apiece."

Commercial Real Estate and REITs

• Real Estate Bets in Shaky Times (Business Week, July 26th): "Jay Hutchins, president of Comprehensive Planning Associates: An easy way… to diversify is through the Morgan Stanley Global Real Estate Fund (MRLAX), which currently has 60% of its assets in foreign real estate. The distribution income is similar to a Standard & Poor's 500-stock index fund, and the expense ratio is reasonable—a little higher than 0.95%... The Alpine International Real Estate Fund (EGLRX) has a strong track record and is up 15.5% year-to-date. It targets areas that are doing very well and is getting into emerging markets such as Brazil. Its expense ratio is 1.17%, which isn't cheap but may be warranted given its five-year rate of return of 31%, vs. 22.5% for the average REIT."

• Blackstone's Slick Flip (Wall St. Journal, July 26th): "Blackstone Group [sold] several properties for record prices and earning back more than 70% of its $39 billion Equity Office purchase price… Some buyers have… since resold the properties at still higher prices… Real Capital Analytics: EOP once held about 102 million-sf of office space in 24 markets; Blackstone has shed at least 62 million-sf of it, including much of the choicest and most expensive properties... Blackstone benefited from strong demand for top-quality commercial real estate… This month, Morgan Stanley sold 50% ownership in the two San Francisco waterfront towers... to Paramount Group for $720 million. That price equaled to $993/sf, a 58% jump over the already high price of $631/sf that Morgan Stanley paid in April."

• EastGroup Shares Dip Despite Solid 2Q (Chron.com, July 25th): "Shares of EastGroup Properties Inc. (EGP) touched a 52-week low Wednesday, even after the industrial REIT met Q2 expectations and raised the low end of its full-year guidance… EastGroup reported FQ3 funds from operations, or FFO, increased to $17.5 million, or $0.74/share, from $15.2 million, or $0.69/share, in the year-ago period. Analysts… expected FFO of $0.74/share. The REIT also lifted the low end of its full-year guidance, forecasting FFO/share between $2.99-$3.03. The company had expected FFO/share between $2.93-$3.03. Analysts anticipate FFO of $2.99/share. REIT stocks have suffered this year following several years of outperformance. Industrial REITs have lost 4.8% year-to-date."

• CNL Adds To Ski Investments (Salt Lake Tribune, July 25th): "A California ski area originally put on the map by legendary Utah skier and jumper Alf Engen has been bought for $45 million by CNL Income Properties Inc., the Florida REIT that bought Brighton Resort earlier this year… Counting Mountain High, CNL has purchased eight ski resorts around the country since May of 2006. The total purchase price of those resorts was $320.5 million, including the $35 million paid to Boyne USA for Brighton… The day before its purchase of Brighton was announced, CNL bought seven theme and water parks from Six Flags Inc. for $312 million."

• Cohen & Steers Reports Second Quarter 2007 Results (PR Newswire, July 25th): "Cohen & Steers, Inc. (CNS) reported net income of $18.6 million, or $0.44/diluted share and $0.45/basic share for Q2'07, compared with a net loss of $37.8m, or $0.95/share (diluted and basic), for Q2'06. Total revenue in Q2'07 was $69.3m, an increase of 64.5% from $42.1m in Q2'06… EPS were $0.28.For the six months ended June 30, 2007, the company recorded net income of $40.9m, or $0.96/diluted share and $0.98/basic share, compared with a net loss of $29.1m, or $0.73/share (diluted and basic), for the 2006 period."

Web Site of the Day

Since the credit and housing markets appear to be the topic du jour, here's a look at how the housing slump and subprime fallout has affected the little guy.

Debtkid.com was set up by a 24-year old man who already owes $300K in unsecured debt. The blog is a valiant attempt to document his efforts to climb out of a financial hole. The list of creditors is scary, but his hard-won realizations and observations could be useful to anyone who financially plans. ("You don't need that half a million dollar house.")

Tracking the Housing Market and Homebuilder Stocks You can track developments in the housing market and homebuilder stocks by bookmarking our Housing coverage or subscribing to our free email service. If you have a blog or website of your own, you can track developments in the sector and provide great content for your readers with our Housing Market widget (left). It's simple to add -- just select "Housing Market" from the drop-down menu here.