It's hard to find anyone who's still bearish on the economy or the market these days. Listen to the average pundit on CNBC and this is what you'll hear: The credit crisis? It's over! Quit worrying. The real estate mess? Fixed! No problem. The economy? Rebounding. The worst is behind us. The markets? They're headed to infinity and beyond! Better get on board. I've talked about the credit crisis a few times in previousLy. And no less an authority than the International Monetary Fund (IMF) believes we've only acknowledged $1.29 trillion of the $4 trillion in total global credit losses to date. That means we're not even a THIRD of the way through the process. In the real estate arena, we're seeing tentative signs of life in some hard-hit markets. But it's the distressed, "fire sale" stuff that's moving. Inventory levels remain high, and foreclosures show no sign of abating. In fact, foreclosure filings hit a new record high of 341,000 in March — a gain driven by rising unemployment, falling home prices, and the expiration of several, temporary state and industry moratoriums. And that's just on the RESIDENTIAL front!
Commercial real estate is suffering, too. In fact, General Growth Properties, the second-largest mall operator in the U.S., just filed the biggest real estate bankruptcy in U.S. history.
The COMMERCIAL real estate business is in full-scale meltdown mode. Prices are plunging, vacancies are soaring, and rents are dropping. Office tenants recently vacated a whopping 24.9 million square feet of space, the most since the 9/11 attacks. And General Growth Properties, the second-biggest mall operator in the U.S., just filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company is buried under $27 billion in debt, and its bankruptcy is the largest EVER seen in the commercial real estate industry. It's (still) the Economy, Stupid! But it's the economy that could be the weakest link here. Several companies have come out and said that business isn't getting any worse. Some of the earnings reports I've read talk about how conditions are now simply horrendous, rather than Armageddon-like. But does that mean things are getting better? Is the economy really ramping up? Is the worst yet To come. and to all a good night 10:10 Pm Central and for all you uneducated I'm not on acid just life .
This is CABL.com posting #250950. Tiny Link: cabl.co/mbdrK
