The Fed’s QE3 and the Bank-Stock Connection

The Federal Reserve’s third round of Quantitative Easing, that massive stimulus program intended to boost the economy in the years following the housing collapse of 2008, officially ended in October 2014. But as the dust settles, some financial experts point out that...

Artificial Intelligence Changes the Finance Game

As far back as 1990, financial experts were predicting that in the not too distant future, investment and money management would be aided by sophisticated computer technologies. Flash forward a couple of decades, and that future is here. Robotics experts predict that...

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: Still On Top in Home Loans?

Ever since the great housing collapse of 2008, legislators and regulators have tried to scale back – or even eliminate – federal mortgage megalenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. But as new regulations n private lenders, the agencies everyone loves to hate just keep on...

Inflation Rate Models Make a Difference

Inflation is a word that strikes dread into the hearts of American consumers, who know that when it’s headed their way, their hard earned dollars will buy less. But different models of measuring inflation can make a big difference in how scary those numbers can be....

Does Housing Drive Income Inequality?

The widening gap between the wealthy and – well, everyone else in America has occupied news headlines since the housing collapse of a few years ago. As the famous one percent gets richer and the other 99 do not, a new theory suggests that income inequality is really...

What’s Ahead for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?

Fannie and Freddie are still headed for the chopping block. The demise of those venerable home loan agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac might not seem to matter to anyone who’s not looking to buy a house. But some market watchers worry that the dismantling of the...

Students Strike Against Loan Debt

The much-discussed US student loan debt load has hit $1.2 trillion, and in spite of government-sponsored debt forgiveness and other measures, it isn’t likely to shrink. Now, a group of students is taking matters into their own hands by simply refusing to pay off loans...

Do New Laws Erode Financial Privacy?

Where financial privacy is concerned, you can run, but you can’t hide. There was a time when offshore banking was the smart choice for investors, corporations and just about anybody who wanted to keep assets safe from the prying eyes of authorities. Swiss bank...

Interest Rates: Trends for 2015?

With every new year comes a round of predictions about the financial future. This year, as in many others, the fate of interest rates in 2015 and beyond is the subject of speculation, most of it pessimistic. Financial experts and economists are once again predicting...