Search Results
Working Paper
The measurement and determinants of single-family house prices
We assess the conceptual and empirical features of a number of house price series for the United States. We then calculate a measure of the net upgrading of the existing stock of houses that took place during the 1950-1989 period and adjust price indexes for this net increase in quality. Judgments about the trend, volatility, and determinants of house prices are shown to depend crucially on which price series is used. The Freddie Mac upgrade adjusted house price measure rose 5.7% over the past four decades, falling 7.7% from 1950 through 1970 before rising 14.5% from 1970 through 1989. Real ...
Conference Paper
Bank credit and economic activity
Journal Article
A real, affordable mortgage
Homeownership has long been a cherished American goal, but many now find that homeownership is no longer possible. The median household income of potential first-time homebuyers is now estimated to be only three-quarters that required to afford the median-priced starter home. As a consequence, the 1980s was the first decade since the Great Depression during which the aggregate homeownership rate fell. ; The Price Level Adjusted Mortgage (PLAM) represents a genuine and substantial advance in housing finance in an inflationary environment. PLAMs rearrange the timing of the mortgage payments so ...
Journal Article
Securitization and small business
Small businesses have relied considerably on securitized markets for credit. The recent financial crisis led to a virtual cessation of securitization of some of the loans used by small businesses, such as commercial real estate mortgages, vehicle, and credit card loans. In addition, values of commercial and residential real estate, which small businesses often use as collateral for loans, dropped dramatically. As a consequence, small businesses may have experienced tighter credit conditions than larger businesses, which rely relatively less on those categories of loans and collateral.
Conference Paper
Issues in deposit insurance reform
Conference Paper
Domestic and international capital standards and bank assets
Journal Article
Inflation: retreating or reheating?
Journal Article
Real wages and unemployment
Journal Article
Credit union mergers: efficiencies and benefits
Mergers tend to improve credit union cost efficiency. When the acquirer is much larger than the target credit union, target members benefit in terms of lower loan rates and higher deposit rates, while acquirer members see little change. When merger partners are more equal in size, these benefits are shared more evenly. Over time, credit union mergers have shifted from, on average, only benefiting targets to also benefiting acquirers to some extent.