Gyroscopic Investing

Great article on Yahoo finance today, about the excessive leverage of the 3 big mortgage insurance companies, and how close they are to collapse.

http://finance.yahoo.com/loans/article/ ... et=&ccode=

It's hard to imagine a world where house prices have anywhere to go but down if PMI is taken out of the equation.  Banks will start demanding 20% down payments, as well they should.

If interest rates were to rise that would also push home values down, since people normally shop in terms of the monthly payment they can afford, not the value of the house itself.

Lots of headwinds for housing that are going to continue for quite a while, I think.