Federal Reserve: Policy or politics?

"The picture has brightened." That was Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's assessment of the U.S. economy in his semiannual report to Congress this morning.

"The gross domestic product expanded vigorously over the second half of 2003 while productivity surged, prices remained stable, and financial conditions improved further. Overall, the economy has made impressive gains in output and real incomes; however, progress in creating jobs has been limited," he said.  more...

BridgeSpan assets for sale

Frisco, Texas-based BridgeSpan and its California-based title company are for sale.

The two companies are "soliciting proposals for the purchase of their respective assets and operations either, in whole, or in part," according to a company statement.

Both corporations filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy late last month the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of California in San Jose.

The title company assets are for sale, but the title company itself is an asset of the parent company's bankruptcy, the corporate stated.  more...

Nashville real estate heats up

Following a record-breaking year, the Greater Nashville, Tenn., housing market continued to increase in January, according to data released by the Greater Nashville Association of Realtors.

For January, there were 1,991 home closings, which is a 14 percent increase from the 1,738 closings reported for January 2003.  more...

White-collar workers face uncertain future

America must act quickly to stave off the exodus of white-collar jobs to foreign countries, according to an article in the latest issue of Across the Board, The Conference Board's bimonthly magazine.  more...

Twin Cities real estate cools

While median price increases remained above historic norms, Minnesota's Twin Cities' home sales in January slowed to 2,504, a 19.5 percent decrease compared to 3,110 home sales in January of 2003, according to statistics released today by the Regional Multiple Listing Service of Minnesota Inc.

Closed sales were down in all 13 counties compared to January 2003.  more...

Real estate purchases drop

Overall mortgage purchases dropped 6.8 percent last week on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly survey.

The MBA seasonally adjusted purchase index decreased by 9.4 percent to 402.2 from 444 the previous week. The seasonally adjusted refinance index decreased by 4.7 percent to 3,099.1 from 3,250.6 one week earlier.  more...

Overnight interest rates flat

Long-term mortgage interest rates were virtually unchanged Tuesday, and the benchmark 10-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.1 percent.

The 30-year fixed-rate average remained at 5.34 percent, and the 15-year fixed-rate decreased slightly to 4.63 percent. The 1-year adjustable was up slightly at 3.3 percent.

The 30-year Treasury bond yield increased to 4.94 percent.

Rates are current as of 7:15 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.  more...