What We're Hearing

Suddenly, it's deals, deals, deals everywhere in nonperforming land. Of course, it's not like sellers are actively sending out press releases on what they're auctioning but activity has definitely picked up over the past month, we're told by bidders -- and maybe that's a sign that housing has really bottomed. However, most of what is being offered involves pools of $100 million or less -- usually much smaller than that. There are no 'mega' sales out there though sources say GMAC is trying to unload some of its massive holdings of NPLs in privately negotiated transactions. Meanwhile, the new Case-Shiller home price indices came out today and the message boils down to this: home prices are firming up but are way off their highs of a few years ago. Here's a sobering fact: homes today cost the same as they did in the second quarter of 2003. Ouch. That's a lot of hot air (equity, that is) disappearing into the ether...