| The mortgage crunch bites even the rich
Mortgage woes have moved upstream, landing even in tony neighborhoods. The credit crunch now is hitting home buyers from all walks of life, not just subprime borrowers with poor credit. That in turn could mean fewer buyers -- and lower prices. For instance, a multimillion-dollar deal in Larkspur went belly-up last week when the lender yanked the financing at the last minute. "Everything was perking along smoothly. All contingencies were removed," said Bill Hogan, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker in Greenbrae, who sold the four-bedroom home for $2.45 million and expected to close the deal later this month. "The loan was approved and locked in. People were ordering moving trucks, everyone was feeling euphoric." On Thursday, the couple buying the house learned that their lender was rescinding their loan because they were making only a 10 percent down payment.
Mortgage market not new, some say
NEW YORK -- While the disruption roiling the mortgage financing industry may seem like panic, some market veterans say it is actually a return to normal following a period of excess. Without trillions of dollars in easy money pouring into bonds backed by mortgages in the last few years, many of the lenders going bankrupt this year would never have thrived. And the American consumer never would have grown accustomed to a market where someone with a spotty credit history and no verifiable income could borrow lavishly with little or no down payment. "There is a little bit of rationality returning to the markets," said Richard Bookstaber, a former risk manager at a number of Wall Street investment banks. Bookstaber is author of a book called "A Demon of Our Own Design," which argues crises like this are inevitable because of the way markets are structured.
Lenders cut back on zero-down mortgages
In the latest sign that the nationwide credit crunch is worsening, lenders are saying no to borrowers who want no-money-down mortgages. The popular financing option which requires no down payment and finances 100 percent of a home loan is being scrapped or strictly curtailed by lenders across the United States. .
Small Businesses Caught in Credit Crunch
A running-scared Wall Street is impacting business in North Texas, as Dallas investment banker David Mahmood saw this week when he tried to complete $90 million in private financing for a California client. The client, a technology company that makes electronic consumer goods, needed money to see it through the manufacturing process in China, then to retail sales during the make-or-break Christmas season. "The lender backed out yesterday, so now we're scrambling," Mr. Mahmood said Friday. "If we can't raise enough money, [the company] will lose tens of millions of orders." Mr. Mahmood's firm, Allegiance Capital Corp., managed to secure $50 million, but the lender is demanding that Allegiance come up with $10 million from another source before it will put in the remaining $40. "We're not concerned about getting it done, but it's indicative of the fact that the market is tightening up," said Mr.
Seeger Weiss LLP Announces a Class Action Lawsuit Against American Home Mortgage Investment Corporation -- AHM
NEW YORK, Aug. 2, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- The law firm of Seeger Weiss LLP announces that it filed a class action lawsuit today in the United States District Court for Eastern District of New York on behalf of purchasers of American Home Mortgage Investment Corporation (``AHM'' or ``Company'') (NYSE:AHM - News) common stock in the open market between July 26, 2006 and July 27, 2007, inclusive (the ``Class Period''). The complaint seeks remedies for the class under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ``Exchange Act''). .
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