Housing & Real Estate

Research

The Economic Situation, March 2013 Bruce Yandle \| Mar 01, 2013 There was only one lane open as I made my trip to Atlanta; the other three were blocked with those unhappy yellow and black make-believe barrels used by the highway folks. Traffic flow was constrained by efforts to repair potholes and broken pavement. We in the slow lane had little choice in the matter. Instead of 70, we were slowed to 20 miles per hour. We had to accept our fate, or find another route at the next exit.	House of Cards: Reforming America's Housing Finance System Dwight M. Jaffee, Arnold Kling, Peter Wallison, Lawrence J. White, Michael Lea, Anthony B. Sanders, Edward Glaeser \| Feb 29, 2012 This research compendium presents a variety of articles that discuss the problems with housing finance in the U.S. and presents alternative reforms to the current GSE model.
Economic Situation Report Bruce Yandle \| Sep 06, 2011 In this quarterly economic situation report, Bruce Yandle discusses how the economy has changed since May 2011.	Five Proposals for a New Housing Finance System in the United States Dwight M. Jaffee, Lawrence J. White, Peter Wallison, Arnold Kling, Anthony B. Sanders, Michael Lea \| Mar 2011 Some commentators suggest that a private market for U.S. mortgages is no longer possible. Others argue that heavily subsidized government programs have crowded out private providers, making actual competition impossible. The five papers presented here look beyond the housing crisis to present various proposals for the long-term reform of government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) and the U.S. mortgage market.
Community Associations at Middle Age Robert H. Nelson \| Dec 08, 2010 With over 300,000 community associations in America, developers and policy makers need to address the appropriate lifetime of a community association. Should failing associations go out of business?	Gambling with Other People's Money Russell Roberts \| Apr 28, 2010 “If you don’t know who the sucker is at the table, it’s probably you,” runs an old poker saying. At the poker table of the current financial crisis, “We are the suckers,” opines Professor Russ Roberts as he makes the case that public-policy decisions have perverted the incentives that naturally create stability in financial markets and the market for housing.

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Testimony & Comments

Building a Sustainable Housing Finance System: Examining Regulatory Impediments to Private Investment Capital Arnold Kling \| Apr 24, 2013 I do not believe that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage can be issued in large volume without taxpay- ers becoming liable for interest-rate risk. Conversely, if we reform the housing system so that the private sector truly bears the risk, then borrowers would encounter a large differential between the cost of a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and the cost of a loan with an interest rate that is fixed for only 5 years. Borrowers should be making their choices based on this true cost differential.	Oversight of the Federal Housing Administration's Reverse Mortgage Program for Seniors Anthony B. Sanders \| May 09, 2012 A reverse mortgage for seniors is a reasonable idea, but should not be guaranteed by the Federal government. It is an ownership decision and the Federal government must stop trying to micromanage this decision, particularly since there is an easy alternative that does not require government guarantees.
HARP's Uncharted Waters Anthony B. Sanders \| Apr 25, 2012 Let us be wary of creating another Jurassic Park policy change. We are in unchartered waters for housing finance and Federal Reserve policies and any further changes should be enacted with extreme caution.	Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Anthony B. Sanders \| Mar 27, 2012 After billions of dollars have been spent, Hope VI and this bill should focus on a better way to help the poor rather than “a lick of paint” approach public housing. After all, $350 million is a drop in the proverbial bucket…
Helping Homeowners Harmed by Foreclosures: Ensuring Accountability and Transparency in Appeals Anthony B. Sanders \| Dec 13, 2011 Anthony B. Sanders testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development about transparency and accountability in foreclosure appeals.	Housing Finance Reform: Continuation of the 30-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage Anthony B. Sanders \| Oct 20, 2011 Anthony Sanders testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs about 30-year fixed rate mortgages.

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Expert Commentary

Dodd-Frank Remains a Troubled Work in Progress American Banker By Hester Peirce, James Broughel \| Jan 09, 2013 It has been more than five years since the financial crisis began and more than two years since the passage of the legislative response, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The nature and magnitude of the effects of the largest piece of financial legislation in generations will become clearer as regulators exercise the broad discretion given them under the act. Regulators’ efforts at implementation are far from complete, with many of the rules still unwritten and others not yet in effect. Regardless of how the rules are written, the act will certainly have far-reaching effects on the financial system and our economy.	How to Cement a Real Housing Market Recovery U.S. News and World Report By Anthony B. Sanders \| Oct 22, 2012 We are in the fourth year of the slowest economic recovery following a financial crisis since 1882, and we have experienced a catastrophic downturn in housing prices since 2008. The rapid rise in unemployment, combined with declining house prices, resulted in a large increase in mortgage delinquencies and defaults. This left the housing market in a state of shock.
It’s All or Nothing. I Prefer Nothing The New York Times Room for Debate By Arnold Kling \| Oct 17, 2012 At a time when low rates have led to a boom in new and refinanced mortgages, recent moves by the Federal Reserve have allowed banks to make even more profit off mortgage-backed bonds than they did previously. And those rates could be a half-point lower if banks were satisfied with the profit margins of just a few years ago. But should the government consider cutting out the middleman, as it does with student loans, and issue mortgages itself?	Anthony Sanders Discusses the Federal Reserve Announcement By Anthony B. Sanders \| Sep 13, 2012 The Fed shocked most with an open-ended purchase program, especially in Fannie and Freddie mortgage-backed securities. It won’t help housing because with tight credit, only wealthier Americans with perfect credit benefit from lower mortgage rates. Additionally, seniors get hurt again with aggressive Fed action because bank deposit rates fell. This action will not help the housing market, it will not help unemployment, but it will create bubbles in asset prices.
More Federal Reserve Action Won't Create Long-Term Economic Growth U.S. News and World Report By Anthony B. Sanders \| Aug 01, 2012 It's time for the Fed to forget about introducing more and more economic uncertainty, and focus instead on letting the market stabilize so that Americans can turn their full attention to pulling ourselves out of this mess…	About The Dodd-Frank Act, George Washington Would Be Turning Over In His Grave Forbes By J. W. Verret \| Jul 02, 2012 President Washington would turn over in his grave to see the structure that Dodd-Frank sets up for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), which enjoys immunity from oversight by the President, substantial immunity from review by the judicial branch, and complete immunity from budgetary review by Congress.

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Experts

Arnold Kling

Arnold Kling is an affiliated senior scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University where he is also a member of the Financial Markets Working Group. He draws on his experience at Freddie Mac and the Federal Reserve to increase understanding of monetary policy, the regulation “anomaly,” and the inside workings of America's federal financial institutions.

Videos

Anthony Sanders Discusses The Low Down on Fannie's Loans on CNBC

Anthony B. Sanders | March 13, 2013

Anthony Sanders Discusses the Decline in Home Sales on Fox Business

Anthony B. Sanders | January 22, 2013

Podcasts

Anthony Sanders Discusses Ideas to Stimulate the Economy on WAMU's The Big Fix

Anthony B. Sanders | January 08, 2013

This program discusses the merits and viability of ideas to stimulate the economy, including borrowing from retirement accounts to pay credit card debt, creating a federal sales tax and making it easier to get small business permits.Guests are Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy, and Anthony B. Sanders, a professor of real estate finance at George Mason University.

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Recent Events

Parallels in Financial Crises

**Note: This program has been can cancelled and will be rescheduled on a future date.** While every nation weathers periodic economic storms and disarray, total and widespread financial…

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Books

Book Chapter: Silicon Somewhere: A Critique of Cluster Policy

Frederic Sautet, Pierre Desrochers | Dec 31, 2008

The fundamental idea of this paper is that government is not and cannot be the source of successful clustering. While clustering is valuable to the economy, governments do not have access to the…

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The Economic Situation, March 2013 Bruce Yandle \| Mar 01, 2013 There was only one lane open as I made my trip to Atlanta; the other three were blocked with those unhappy yellow and black make-believe barrels used by the highway folks. Traffic flow was constrained by efforts to repair potholes and broken pavement. We in the slow lane had little choice in the matter. Instead of 70, we were slowed to 20 miles per hour. We had to accept our fate, or find another route at the next exit.	House of Cards: Reforming America's Housing Finance System Dwight M. Jaffee, Arnold Kling, Peter Wallison, Lawrence J. White, Michael Lea, Anthony B. Sanders, Edward Glaeser \| Feb 29, 2012 This research compendium presents a variety of articles that discuss the problems with housing finance in the U.S. and presents alternative reforms to the current GSE model.
Economic Situation Report Bruce Yandle \| Sep 06, 2011 In this quarterly economic situation report, Bruce Yandle discusses how the economy has changed since May 2011.	Five Proposals for a New Housing Finance System in the United States Dwight M. Jaffee, Lawrence J. White, Peter Wallison, Arnold Kling, Anthony B. Sanders, Michael Lea \| Mar 2011 Some commentators suggest that a private market for U.S. mortgages is no longer possible. Others argue that heavily subsidized government programs have crowded out private providers, making actual competition impossible. The five papers presented here look beyond the housing crisis to present various proposals for the long-term reform of government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) and the U.S. mortgage market.
Community Associations at Middle Age Robert H. Nelson \| Dec 08, 2010 With over 300,000 community associations in America, developers and policy makers need to address the appropriate lifetime of a community association. Should failing associations go out of business?	Gambling with Other People's Money Russell Roberts \| Apr 28, 2010 “If you don’t know who the sucker is at the table, it’s probably you,” runs an old poker saying. At the poker table of the current financial crisis, “We are the suckers,” opines Professor Russ Roberts as he makes the case that public-policy decisions have perverted the incentives that naturally create stability in financial markets and the market for housing.

Building a Sustainable Housing Finance System: Examining Regulatory Impediments to Private Investment Capital Arnold Kling \| Apr 24, 2013 I do not believe that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage can be issued in large volume without taxpay- ers becoming liable for interest-rate risk. Conversely, if we reform the housing system so that the private sector truly bears the risk, then borrowers would encounter a large differential between the cost of a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage and the cost of a loan with an interest rate that is fixed for only 5 years. Borrowers should be making their choices based on this true cost differential.	Oversight of the Federal Housing Administration's Reverse Mortgage Program for Seniors Anthony B. Sanders \| May 09, 2012 A reverse mortgage for seniors is a reasonable idea, but should not be guaranteed by the Federal government. It is an ownership decision and the Federal government must stop trying to micromanage this decision, particularly since there is an easy alternative that does not require government guarantees.
HARP's Uncharted Waters Anthony B. Sanders \| Apr 25, 2012 Let us be wary of creating another Jurassic Park policy change. We are in unchartered waters for housing finance and Federal Reserve policies and any further changes should be enacted with extreme caution.	Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Anthony B. Sanders \| Mar 27, 2012 After billions of dollars have been spent, Hope VI and this bill should focus on a better way to help the poor rather than “a lick of paint” approach public housing. After all, $350 million is a drop in the proverbial bucket…
Helping Homeowners Harmed by Foreclosures: Ensuring Accountability and Transparency in Appeals Anthony B. Sanders \| Dec 13, 2011 Anthony B. Sanders testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development about transparency and accountability in foreclosure appeals.	Housing Finance Reform: Continuation of the 30-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage Anthony B. Sanders \| Oct 20, 2011 Anthony Sanders testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs about 30-year fixed rate mortgages.

Dodd-Frank Remains a Troubled Work in Progress American Banker By Hester Peirce, James Broughel \| Jan 09, 2013 It has been more than five years since the financial crisis began and more than two years since the passage of the legislative response, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The nature and magnitude of the effects of the largest piece of financial legislation in generations will become clearer as regulators exercise the broad discretion given them under the act. Regulators’ efforts at implementation are far from complete, with many of the rules still unwritten and others not yet in effect. Regardless of how the rules are written, the act will certainly have far-reaching effects on the financial system and our economy.	How to Cement a Real Housing Market Recovery U.S. News and World Report By Anthony B. Sanders \| Oct 22, 2012 We are in the fourth year of the slowest economic recovery following a financial crisis since 1882, and we have experienced a catastrophic downturn in housing prices since 2008. The rapid rise in unemployment, combined with declining house prices, resulted in a large increase in mortgage delinquencies and defaults. This left the housing market in a state of shock.
It’s All or Nothing. I Prefer Nothing The New York Times Room for Debate By Arnold Kling \| Oct 17, 2012 At a time when low rates have led to a boom in new and refinanced mortgages, recent moves by the Federal Reserve have allowed banks to make even more profit off mortgage-backed bonds than they did previously. And those rates could be a half-point lower if banks were satisfied with the profit margins of just a few years ago. But should the government consider cutting out the middleman, as it does with student loans, and issue mortgages itself?	Anthony Sanders Discusses the Federal Reserve Announcement By Anthony B. Sanders \| Sep 13, 2012 The Fed shocked most with an open-ended purchase program, especially in Fannie and Freddie mortgage-backed securities. It won’t help housing because with tight credit, only wealthier Americans with perfect credit benefit from lower mortgage rates. Additionally, seniors get hurt again with aggressive Fed action because bank deposit rates fell. This action will not help the housing market, it will not help unemployment, but it will create bubbles in asset prices.
More Federal Reserve Action Won't Create Long-Term Economic Growth U.S. News and World Report By Anthony B. Sanders \| Aug 01, 2012 It's time for the Fed to forget about introducing more and more economic uncertainty, and focus instead on letting the market stabilize so that Americans can turn their full attention to pulling ourselves out of this mess…	About The Dodd-Frank Act, George Washington Would Be Turning Over In His Grave Forbes By J. W. Verret \| Jul 02, 2012 President Washington would turn over in his grave to see the structure that Dodd-Frank sets up for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), which enjoys immunity from oversight by the President, substantial immunity from review by the judicial branch, and complete immunity from budgetary review by Congress.

Mercatus Center

Housing & Real Estate