Investing | Banking

ProPublica, Planet Money tackle CDOs with comic strip, song

By Rosland Gammon on Sep 02, 2010 in Best Practices, Economy, Featured, Investigation, Investing | Banking

ProPublica’s Jake Bernstein and Jesse Eisinger tackled the very complicated issue of mortgage bonds known as collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, to show how bankers created fake demand for the once lucrative product. They write:
“An analysis by research firm Thetica Systems, commissioned by ProPublica, shows that in the last years of the boom, CDOs had [...]

D.C.-area newsletter seeks banking reporter

By Linda Austin on Aug 31, 2010 in Basics, Investing | Banking, Job listings, Jobs

Lisa Getter, co-publisher of Bank Safety & Soundness Advisor, is looking for a banking reporter who understands the following terms: CAMELS ratings, Call Reports and consent orders.
The newsletter, based in Gaithersburg, Md., is directed at bank executives, she says, and its mission is “helping financial institutions thrive in the shifting regulatory environment,” according to its website. [...]

Reuters goes to ground to find homes resold at 13 times foreclosure price

By Rosland Gammon on Aug 25, 2010 in Best Practices, Economy, Featured, Investigation, Investing | Banking, Real estate | Econ development

Nick Carey of Reuters heard from an editor about a mortgage-fraud hot spot in Chicago. When he went to check it out, he found a trend happening in poorer communities. He writes of one house:
“Public records show it sold in foreclosure for $25,500 in January 2009, then resold for $355,000 in October. In between, a [...]

NYT pers fin blogger opts for Sharpie instead of computer graphics

By Rosland Gammon on Aug 23, 2010 in Best Practices, Featured, Investing | Banking, Personal finance

New York Times blogger Carl Richards could have used flashy graphics with his weekly personal finance column. Instead, he opted for a Sharpie and cardstock.
“I’ve been drawing similar drawings for 10 years on whiteboard,” he says. “I told [editor Ron Lieber] one time in a restaurant, and all I had was a napkin. He said [...]

Journalist seeks sources for story on credit crunch for small businesses; can you help?

By Linda Austin on Aug 18, 2010 in Economy, Find help with a story, Investing | Banking, Real estate | Econ development, Story ideas

We at the Reynolds Center get queries from journalists seeking help with business stories, and we try to offer ideas and sources. We got one yesterday from a journalist in Wisconsin, who wrote:
“Folks starting up businesses say it’s impossible to get a commercial construction loan from any bank in the State of Wisconsin right now. [...]

When your story goes viral: Be careful what you ask for

By Robin J Phillips on Aug 17, 2010 in Investing | Banking, Media | Advertising

In CJR today, Elizabeth Dwoskin tells the tale of watching one of her stories go viral.
This is the CJR piece: Watching My Story Go Viral in Twenty-Four Hours: How Debrahlee Lorenzana became the banker heard ‘round the world
This is her story: Is This Woman Too Hot To Be a Banker?
You will remember [...]

Are record-low mortgage rates helping local borrowers?

By Melissa Preddy on Aug 17, 2010 in Beats, Economy, Featured, Investing | Banking, Personal finance, Story ideas

Average rates on a 30-year, fixed mortgage fell to another astounding low last week – 4.44 percent, according to this release from Freddie Mac. That’s the lowest rate since records began in 1971 and down from 5.29 percent a year ago.
The low number is a good peg for a check on real estate sales [...]

National and state efforts try to slow foreclosure rates

By Bernie Kohn on Aug 16, 2010 in Basics, Featured, Investing | Banking, Real estate | Econ development, Story ideas

On Wednesday, the Obama Administration announced that it will provide another $3 billion in aid for unemployed homeowners in 17 states and Washington, D.C. who are struggling to keep up with mortgage payments.
The money, which is coming from a combination of TARP bailout money and a new program led by the Department of Housing and [...]

MoJo looks into ‘foreclosure barons’ through ex-employees

By Rosland Gammon on Aug 12, 2010 in Best Practices, Economy, Featured, Investigation, Investing | Banking, Real estate | Econ development

In a piece that CJR’s Ryan Chittum describes as “the must-read of the week,” Andy Kroll of Mother Jones investigates the profitable push to foreclose and the tactics that go along with it. He writes:
“Backdated documents, according to a chorus of foreclosure experts, are typical of the sort of shenanigans practiced by a breed of [...]