by Calculated Risk on 5/09/2009 10:17:00 AM

Jon Lansner at the O.C Register has some quotes on housing: When will housing bottom? Depends on who is talking! I'll add my two cents later ...

And for those that missed them, here are some reset / recast charts.

And a graph comparing job losses with previous recessions.

And a video of a mothballed condo project in Irvine, CA

Best to all

by Calculated Risk on 5/09/2009 12:37:00 AM

Results from "Stress Test"
Bogus Kabuki theatre.
Truth remains hidden.
by Soylent Green is People
From the FDIC: Kitsap Bank, Port Orchard, Washington, Assumes All of the Deposits of Westsound Bank, Bremerton, Washington

Westsound Bank, Bremerton, Washington, was closed today by the Washington Department of Financial Institutions, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver....

As of March 31, 2009, Westsound Bank had total assets of $334.6 million and total deposits of $304.5 million. ...

The transaction is the least costly resolution option, and the FDIC estimates the cost to its Deposit Insurance Fund will be $108 million. Westsound Bank is the 33rd FDIC-insured institution to be closed this year and the second in Washington. The last bank to be closed in the state was the Bank of Clark County on January 16, 2009.

by Calculated Risk on 5/08/2009 08:31:00 PM

From the WSJ: Banks Won Concessions on Tests

The Federal Reserve at the last minute significantly scaled back the size of the capital hole facing some of the nation's biggest banks, following days of intense bargaining over the stringency of the stress tests.
...
When the Fed last month informed banks of its preliminary stress-test findings, executives at banks including Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. were furious ...

At Fifth Third, the Fed was preparing to tell the Cincinnati-based bank to find $2.6 billion in capital, but the final tally dropped to $1.1 billion.

by Calculated Risk on 5/08/2009 06:13:00 PM

Before reading, please see Tanta's: Reset Vs. Recast, Or Why Charts Don't Match

"Reset" refers to a rate change. "Recast" refers to a payment change.

Here are two Credit Suisse charts:

Click on image for larger graph in new window.

The first chart is from Business Week in April: Good News: Option ARM Resets Delayed

The reset and recast confusion continues! The x-axis is labeled "months to 1st reset", but the notes to the graph says: "estimated recast schedule".

And here is more from a Credit Suisse research report released in February (no link):

It appears Credit Suisse is using recast dates for Option ARMs and reset dates for all other loans. Resets are not a huge problem with low interest rates, but recasts could be significant.

Looking at these charts it would be easy to conclude that the recast problem last through 2012. However there is a difference between the original recast date, and the actual recast date - because negatively amortizing loans hit the recast ceiling earlier than the original forecast. I suspect the peak in recasts for Option ARMs will be in 2010.

by Calculated Risk on 5/08/2009 04:39:00 PM

From the FDIC: FDIC to Open a Temporary East Coast Satellite Office

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today announced it will open a temporary satellite office in Jacksonville, Florida, to manage receiverships and to liquidate assets from failed financial institutions primarily located in the eastern states.
...
The new office will provide facilities for up to 500 nonpermanent staff and contractors. ... Throughout its history, the FDIC has used these offices to keep temporary asset resolution staff closer to the concentration of failed bank assets they oversee. As the work diminishes, the temporary satellite offices are closed.

Unrelated - of course - BKUNA has been given an extension until May 14th. From the Miami Herald: N.Y. investment firm courting BankUnited

A third potential buyer has emerged for ailing BankUnited.

JC Flowers & Co., a New York investment firm run by J. Christopher Flowers, is looking at acquiring the Coral Gables-based thrift, according to a person familiar with the situation.

BankUnited, the main unit of BankUnited Financial Corp., is under federal regulatory orders to merge or find a buyer to strengthen its capital base. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. extended until May 14 the deadline for prospective investors or buyers of the thrift to submit their bids.