Today's Top Topics






Economy and Economics RSS

"Thank goodness for Reason.... one sane voice fighting tons of nonsense."

John Stossel, ABC's 20/20

"Reason Foundation’s tolerance, civility, and consistency in defending individual liberty make it a haven for believers in a free society of all shades of opinion."
Milton Friedman, Nobel Laureate in Economics

"Reason has excellent discussions of economic, political, and social issues. It does not simply assume the case for free markets and free choice, but persuades readers with careful analysis."
Gary S. Becker, Nobel Laureate in Economics

Recent Research and Commentary

Private Sector's Increasing Role in Infrastructure Investment

May 17, 2012, 9:16pm

Harris Kenny

See Leonard Gilroy and my's latest piece on Real Clear Markets entitled, "States and Cities Going Private With Infrastructure Investment," which explains "that new infrastructure financing models and sources of capital will be the only viable option to support and sustain growth."

High Unemployment the New Normal

The headline unemployment statistics are wrong; unemployment is higher than 8.1 percent and it will be for a while
May 14, 2012

Anthony Randazzo

 

Last month the government said that 8.1 percent of the American work force was unemployed, down from 9 percent in April 2011. Cue the golf clap. Compared to an unemployment rate that was well above 10 percent in the early part of the Obama Administration, 8.1 percent sounds nice. But it is a moral victory at best. The reality is that the labor market stinks. Just ask college graduates. Or black guys over 19 years old. Or the New York Knicks. So where is the disconnect between the headline statistics and the reality on the ground? The answer is an unfortunate circular problem.

 

Fannie Mae Breaks Its 14 Quarter Bailout Streak

May 11, 2012, 12:02pm

Anthony Randazzo

Fannie Mae performed a magic trick this past quarter: they made a net profit including their dividend payment to Treasury for the first time since the fall of 2008 when they were taken into conservatorship. This week, Fannie Mae's 1Q 2012 earnings statement was actually an earnings statement.

A Long Slog Ahead on Unemployment

May 10, 2012, 4:10pm

Anthony Randazzo

There have been a lot of stories lately about the challenges of college graduates finding a job. They aren't without merit. Here is some of the data.

(Video) Interview on Reason's New Mortgage Reform Study

May 10, 2012, 2:12pm

Anthony Randazzo

Earlier this week I appeared on Fox Business to discuss our recent Reason Foundation study "Restoring Trust in Mortgage Backed-Securities." We argue that to end the government housing monopoly and reduce the $5.8 trillion in mortgage debt liability taxpayers have as a result, that Congress should authorize MBS investors to have access to more information about the mortgages they are buying, and that the mortgage industry should create a group to create clear mortgage definitions that do not rely on federal regulations like the qualified residential mortgage.

How to Restore Trust in Mortgage-Backed Securities

Perpetuating government control of housing finance in today’s era of high deficits is unaffordable
May 10, 2012

Anthony Randazzo, Marc Joffe

Over the past four years, there have been a number of government efforts to spark the rusted engine of the U.S. housing market. These include tax refund incentive programs for borrowers and incentive payments to banks to modify mortgages. The Federal Reserve has run a “quantitative easing” program designed to push mortgage rates to historical lows below 4 percent. And more than 90 percent of American mortgages that originated in 2011 were securitized by government entities using taxpayer funds to guarantee investors against default risk. Despite these programs, the American housing market remains stalled.

 

More »

View Resources by Type

StudiesBlog PostsOp-EdsReason.comReason.tv

More Video From Reason.tv...

Featured Research

Economy and Economics Blog

Related Topics

Experts: Economy and Economics