Financial Solution News

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. home prices fell in the second quarter of 2008 according to OFHEO’s seasonally-adjusted purchase-only house price index. The index, which is based on data from home sales, was 1.4 percent lower on a seasonally-adjusted basis in the second quarter than in the first quarter. This decline was less steep than the 1.7 percent decline in the prior quarter. Over the past year, prices fell 4.8 percent between the second quarter of 2007 and the second quarter of 2008. The decline is the largest in the purchase-only index’s 17-year history, but is much smaller than those of other indexes.
OFHEO’s all-transactions House Price Index (HPI) fell 1.4 percent in the latest quarter and was down 1.7 percent over the four-quarter period.
The figures were released today by OFHEO Director James B. Lockhart, as part of the quarterly report analyzing housing price appreciation trends.
“Tighter credit conditions and relatively high inventory […]

Original post by Admin

The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to keep its target for the federal funds rate at 2 percent.
Economic activity expanded in the second quarter, partly reflecting growth in consumer spending and exports. However, labor markets have softened further and financial markets remain under considerable stress. Tight credit conditions, the ongoing housing contraction, and elevated energy prices are likely to weigh on economic growth over the next few quarters. Over time, the substantial easing of monetary policy, combined with ongoing measures to foster market liquidity, should help to promote moderate economic growth.
Inflation has been high, spurred by the earlier increases in the prices of energy and some other commodities, and some indicators of inflation expectations have been elevated. The Committee expects inflation to moderate later this year and next year, but the inflation outlook remains highly uncertain.
Although downside risks to growth remain, the upside risks to inflation are also of […]

Original post by Admin

Has anyone heard of or used Joseph Wealth Systems?
I like to keep an eye out for any “interesting” financial program and this was the most recent one that was presented to me. I wrote about Primerica and had a discussion about Money Merge accounts in the past because they were different programs that needed to be talked about. I really want to hear what people have to say about Joseph Wealth Systems (JWS).
The first thing I noticed is that it is an MLM. Multi-level-marketing things in and of themselves don’t bother me, but often it is the people involved that leave a bad taste in my mouth. Just to be fair, this is not always the case, but I just hate wondering if my “buddy” is calling me to come over for dinner because he enjoys my company or if he secretly is just wanting to sell me something.
This is […]

Original post by bob

It is easy to fall into the mentality of just focusing on our problems here in the U.S. To make matters worse, we often seem to think that we have “problems,” when by comparison most of us have not experienced “problems.”
For example, if you make $50,000 in the U.S. you are richer than 99% of the rest of the world. You can see where you rank here.
But as far as inflation goes, we as a country are calling our 4% inflation a “problem.” While I agree that we should try to make our country the best it can be, sometimes we just need to see things like this to put things into perspective.

And a few other articles I have been reading this week…

The masses of humanity live lives of quiet desperation.
A cool new google gadget for Biblegateway.com
How to handle unfairness in life
What we expect is often what we get
Its worse […]

Original post by bob

The European Central Bank’s president is playing down prospects of further interest rate increases. They raised their benchmark lending rate to 4.25%.
“The monetary policies stance after today’s decision, contributes to achieving our objective of price stability. We are never pre committed. It is a constant feature of our monetary policy. We do what is necessary to deliver price stability in the medium term and be credible and that delivery. Thursday’s 0.25% increase will help bring inflation back below 2%. We saw the little bit of a rebound, but that was chili weakness for the zero after this decision”.
With the US off for the July 4 holiday, he really is damping down prospects of further interest  rate increases. Traders took that as a bad sign, by selling the Euro down to a one week low against the dollar.
Nobody much likes the pound because of the UK subprime crisis. The pound has […]

Original post by Admin

The effects of inflation on my money
In the May 2008 Money magazine they had an article titled, “Life in the time of inflation.” They mentioned how the price of milk is up 13% over the last year, hospital costs 8%, and of course gas up 33% . Overall inflation being up about 4%.
There are lots of effects that inflation has on the world, our economy, and our personal lives, but I think one of the most important ones for us to be aware of is how it affects our cash.
Cash sitting in our wallets, under the mattress and even in many savings accounts is becoming less valuable because of inflation.
At 3% inflation (which I think has been the average over the last decade in the U.S.) we are essentially losing money when our cash is not earning at least that amount in interest. So, if you have a […]

Original post by bob

The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to lower its target for the federal funds rate 75 basis points to 2-1/4 percent.
Recent information indicates that the outlook for economic activity has weakened further. Growth in consumer spending has slowed and labor markets have softened.  Financial markets remain under considerable stress, and the tightening of credit conditions and the deepening of the housing contraction are likely to weigh on economic growth over the next few quarters.

Inflation has been elevated, and some indicators of inflation expectations have risen.  The Committee expects inflation to moderate in coming quarters, reflecting a projected leveling-out of energy and other commodity prices and an easing of pressures on resource utilization.  Still, uncertainty about the inflation outlook has increased.  It will be necessary to continue to monitor inflation developments carefully.
Today’s policy action, combined with those taken earlier, including measures to foster market liquidity, should help to promote moderate […]

Original post by Admin

The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to lower its target for the federal funds rate 75 basis points to 2-1/4 percent.
Recent information indicates that the outlook for economic activity has weakened further. Growth in consumer spending has slowed and labor markets have softened.  Financial markets remain under considerable stress, and the tightening of credit conditions and the deepening of the housing contraction are likely to weigh on economic growth over the next few quarters.

Inflation has been elevated, and some indicators of inflation expectations have risen.  The Committee expects inflation to moderate in coming quarters, reflecting a projected leveling-out of energy and other commodity prices and an easing of pressures on resource utilization.  Still, uncertainty about the inflation outlook has increased.  It will be necessary to continue to monitor inflation developments carefully.
Today’s policy action, combined with those taken earlier, including measures to foster market liquidity, should help to promote moderate […]

Original post by Admin

By a 9-1 margin, the Federal Reserve cuts the key interest rates by 1/4 point.
The Federal Open Market Committee - FOMC decided today to lower its target for the federal funds rate 25 basis points to 4-1/4 percent.
Incoming information suggests that economic growth is slowing, reflecting the intensification of the housing correction and some softening in business and consumer spending. Moreover, strains in financial markets have increased in recent weeks. Today’s action, combined with the policy actions taken earlier, should help promote moderate growth over time.

Readings on core inflation have improved modestly this year, but elevated energy and commodity prices, among other factors, may put upward pressure on inflation. In this context, the Committee judges that some inflation risks remain, and it will continue to monitor inflation developments carefully.
Recent developments, including the deterioration in financial market conditions, have increased the uncertainty surrounding the outlook for economic growth and […]

Original post by Admin