Housing

Foreclosures: A Decade Long Overhang (Part 4 of 5) - Barry Ritholtz

American suburbs turning into ghost towns: How homeowners are ditching out of town areas to live in big cities – Daily Mail

Suburban regions are also said to be suffering increased poverty due to the decline in population growth.

‘The heyday of exurbs may well be behind us,’ Yale University economist Robert J. Shiller said.

Shiller, co-creator of a Standard & Poor’s housing index, is perhaps best known for identifying the risks of a U.S. housing bubble before it actually burst in 2006-2007.

Examining the current market, Shiller believes America is now at a turning point, shifting away from faraway suburbs in the long term amid persistently high gasoline prices.

Demographic changes also play a role: They include young singles increasingly delaying marriage and childbirth and thus more apt to rent and a graying population that in its golden years may prefer closer-in, walkable urban centers.

‘Suburban housing prices may not recover in our lifetime,’ Shiller said, calling the development of suburbs since 1950 ‘unusual’ and enabled only by the rise of the automobile and the nation’s highway system.

New FHA collections rule impacts homebuilders, not Ginnie Mae – HousingWire

A new rule prohibiting homebuyers from getting a Federal Housing Administration mortgage if they owe more than $1,000 in outstanding collections accounts could cut demand by up to 20%, according to banking analysts.

Foreclosure Crisis May Worsen As 2012 Goes On – HuffPo

DeMarco defends not cutting Fannie Mae principal – MarketWatch

Economy

Office Vacancy Rate declines slightly to 17.2% in Q1 - CR

US Labor Market: Increasingly Low-Wage Driven - Barry Ritholtz

Student Debt’s Red Herring – Fox

Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims decline to 357,000 - CR

Americans Cutting Back on Drugs and Doctor Visits – NY Times

Bay Area

Newly cleaned up downtown hopes to attract more retail – Berkeleyside

How BART Finally Decided to Replace Its Bacteria-Covered, Gross Old Seats – The Atlantic

SF backs Mission Rock development plan by Giants – SF Gate

Misc.

Mind Games: Sometimes a White Coat Isn’t Just a White Coat – NY Times

Millions of Americans Cut the TV Cord - Mashable

The Big Flaws in Hotel Rankings – WSJ

Randi Zuckerberg Is Doing a Bravo Reality Show – BetaBeat

In a press releasetoday, Bravo announced a list of new shows, including one produced by Ms. Zuckerberg with the working title Silicon Valley.

Ms. Zuckerberg’s show is part of Bravo’s attempt to better position itself as an innovative channel dedicated to digitally savvy, breakthrough programming. According to the release, the show will put startup kids striving for tech success in the spotlight. “Teaming up with internet entrepreneur Randi Zuckerberg, Bravo captures the intertwining lives of young professionals on the path to becoming Silicon Valley’s next great success stories,” it reads.

Let’s Make Sustainable Food Less Elitist – Good.Is