For the last year, a small team of traders has worked here to buy massive amounts of mortgages to fill the void left after institutional investors quickly retreated in the throes of the 2008 financial crisis, unable or unwilling to put money into the fast-melting mortgage arena.

The purchases have given the Federal Reserve its largest balance sheet ever and triggered fears of runaway inflation. But most analysts now credit them for lowering mortgage rates, providing a vital lifeline for the battered housing market.

“Something like this had never been tried on this scale before,” said Mark Gertler, a former resident scholar at the New York Fed and an economics professor at New York University. “The fact that they got it mostly right is quite remarkable.”

TO CONTINUE READING THIS ARTICLE, CLICK THIS LINK FOR THE LOS ANGELES TIMES: As Fed’s mortgage purchases end, eyes turn to investors – latimes.com.

Just about every economist opposed the tax credit as expensive and ineffective. Here are some quotes from a post last September from an article by Patrick Coolican in the Las Vegas Sun: Economists say extending tax credit for first-time homebuyers is bad policy.”

TO CONTINUE READING THIS STORY, CLICK THIS LINK FOR HUFFINGTON POST: Home Buyer Tax Credit Likely To Cost Taxpayers $100K Per Home: Calculated Risk.

economics

A massive new study of Americans’ attitudes concludes that the city at the foot of the Rocky Mountains is home to the happiest, healthiest people in the United States. At the bottom of 162 large and medium-sized cities: Huntington, W.Va.

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, based on interviews with more than 353,000 Americans during 2009, asked individuals to assess their jobs, finances, physical health, emotional state of mind and communities.

“Most of our highest-scoring cities are found out West and most of our lowest-scoring cities are in the South,” says research director Dan Witters. Wealthier communities typically score higher.

Residents of large cities — those with a population of 1 million or more — generally report higher levels of well-being and more optimism about the future than those in small or medium-sized cities. In small cities, at 250,000 or less, people are more likely to feel safe walking alone at night and have enough money for housing.

The study provides a city-by-city portrait of the nation’s mood and a potential tool for policymakers.

FOR CONTINUATION OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK THIS LINK FOR USA TODAY: Western cities fare best in well-being index – USATODAY.com.

Home foreclosure filings For November 2009 — including default notices, scheduled foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions — numbered 306,627, a decrease of nearly 8 percent from the previous month, but still up 18 percent from November 2008. That number means one in every 417 U.S. housing units received a foreclosure filing in November.

Default notices nationwide were down 8 percent from the previous month, but still up 22 percent from November 2008; scheduled foreclosure auctions were down 12 percent from the previous month, but still up 32 percent from November 2008; and bank repossessions were flat from the previous month and down 2 percent from November 2008.

Many of these homes will be sold at auction.

FOR CONTINUATION OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK THIS LINK FOR BANKRATE.COM How to buy foreclosures at an auction.

“This is a traumatic time in this country and the future isn’t something we’re 100% sure about now either. What’s left? The answer for most home buyers is authenticity,” said Heather McCune, director of marketing for Bassenian Lagoni Architects in Park Ridge, Ill.

Buyers today want cost-effective architecture, plans that focus on spaces and not rooms and homes that are designed ‘green’ from the outset,” she said. The key for home builders is “finding the balance between what buyers want and the price point.”

For many buyers, their next house will be smaller than their current one, said Carol Lavender, president of the Lavender Design Group in San Antonio, Texas. Large kitchens that are open to the main family living area, old-fashioned bathrooms with clawfoot tubs and small spaces such as wine grottos are design features that will resonate today, she said.

FOR CONTINUATION OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK THIS LINK FOR YAHOO!: the-10-must-have-features-in-todays-new-homes.html: Personal Finance News from Yahoo! Finance.

According to analysis recently compiled by real estate website Zillow.com , some cities around the US offer significantly better prices for foreclosed homes than others. By comparing the median price of a foreclosed home to the median price of a non-foreclosed home, Zillow calculated the cities with the largest average discount when purchasing a residential property under foreclosure.

So, what are the best cities to buy a foreclosed home? The results may surprise you. Click ahead for the list!

FOR CONTINUATION OF THIS ARTICLE, CLICK THIS LINK FOR CNBC: The Best US Cities to Buy a Foreclosed Home – CNBC.