press coverage

We have another cool slide show up at BusinessWeek.com this week. They asked us to dig out the local markets where homes are selling the fastest. Here's a newsflash, folks, even the highest demand markets are moving like molasses. A fun look at the data nonetheless. We looked at 20 metros around the country and picked out one or two zip codes where the rate of turnover wasn't abysmal.

Also, in case you missed the bulletin to the Altos Research fan club: I'll be on the Fox Business channel tomorrow morning (September 9) between 8:00 and 8:30am California time with Brian Sullivan. We'll talking the housing market, natch. Check it out. Let me know if you find the live stream on the FBN site.

Our Latest National Housing Market Report is out. You can download the PDF here.

From the press release:

Mountain View, CA September 5, 2008 -- The Altos 10-City Composite Price Index showed a decline in asking prices of 1.5% in August and 2.3% for the past three months. Prices of properties listed for-sale fell in 20 of 25 major markets according to the Real-Time Real Estate Report,published by Altos Research, the premier source for real-time real estate research, and market analysis consultancy Real IQ.

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in Las Vegas -- down 4.8% during August -- and 8.6% over the most recent three-month period for an annualized rate of nearly 35%. Listing prices rose at the fastest rate in Denver -- up 1.9% in August -- followed by San Diego where prices were up 1.4%.

"Many markets that had posted multi-month sequential price increases during the Summer months displayed fresh weakness in August," said Stephen Bedikian, partner and research director for Real IQ. "This could portend a general resumption of the downward trend in prices as most markets typically experience seasonal weakness in the Fall and Winter months."

Inventory levels declined in 21 of 25 markets. Inventory fell by the largest amounts in Seattle and Dallas with inventory contracting 6.0% and 4.8% respectively. Many markets showed inventory declines of more than two percent for the past month including: San Francisco, San Jose, Washington, D.C., San Diego, Phoenix, Charlotte and Houston.

"While seasonal weakness is typical in the Fall and Winter months, continued widespread inventory reductions like we saw in August could temper near-term price declines," said Michael Simonsen, CEO and co-founder of Altos Research.

Sixteen of 26 markets had an average days-on-market of 100 or more. Days-on-market declined in just three of 26 markets. By far, the market with the slowest rate of inventory turnover was again Miami at an average of 160 days-on-market. Both San Diego and San Francisco experienced the fastest rate of inventory turnover at an average of 84 days-on-market, followed closely by Austin at 86 days.

Data in the Real-Time Housing Market Report is based on analysis of over one million properties currently listed for-sale in 26 metropolitan markets across the country. The report is the most timely source of housing market data on current market activity.

The report examines housing pricing, inventory levels and market conditions in 31 major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, DC. The Real-Time Real Estate Report is released every month.

Our latest National Housing Market Report is out. This one examines data through end of July 2008. You can download the PDF here.

Here's the press release:

Real Estate Report: National Housing Prices Down by 0.8% in July

Report measures current real estate data in major markets around the country. Data shows Las Vegas continuing to lead as the weakest US housing market with real estate prices down another 4% in July. Current real estate data shows some summertime price stability in Midwestern markets Detroit, Cleveland, Indianapolis, and Minneapolis

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA August 5, 2008 - The Altos 10-City Composite Price Index showed a decline in asking prices of 0.8% in July and 1.3% for the past three months. Prices of properties listed for sale fell in 13 of 26 major markets according to the Real-Time Real Estate Report, published by Altos Research, the premier source for real-time real estate data, and market analysis consultancy Real IQ.

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in Las Vegas - down 4.0% during July - and 7.5% over the most recent three-month period for an annualized rate of 30%. Listing prices rose at the fastest rate in Detroit - up 4.8% in July - followed by Cleveland where prices were up 2.7%. Prices were also up slightly in the Midwestern markets of Indianapolis and Minneapolis.

"While prices continue to fall in coastal and Western markets, prices appear to have stabilized in Midwestern markets that were previously declining," said Michael Simonsen, CEO and co-founder of Altos Research. "The real test will come in the fall when markets typically experience a seasonal slowdown which will be exacerbated by high job losses and foreclosures."

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in Las Vegas - down 4.0% during July - and 7.5% over the most recent three-month period for an annualized rate of 30%. Listing prices rose at the fastest rate in Detroit - up 4.8% in July - followed by Cleveland where prices were up 2.7%. Prices were also up slightly in the Midwestern markets of Indianapolis and Minneapolis.

Listed property inventories declined with the 10-City Composite markets showing a decrease of 2.0% in July. Inventory rose in just 6 of 26 markets with the biggest decreases occurring in Detroit and Cleveland.

"Broadly declining inventory is a positive sign in the near-term, particularly for the Midwestern markets which all showed inventory declines," said Stephen Bedikian, partner and research director for Real IQ.

For the Altos 10-City Composite, the average days on market was 111, a slight increase from 109 in June. Thirteen of 26 markets had an average days-on-market of 100 or more. By far, the market with the slowest rate of inventory turnover was Miami at an average of 156 days-on-market, nearly a full month more than the next slowest market - Tampa. Austin led all markets with the fastest rate of inventory turnover at an average of 78 days-on-market.

Data in the Real-Time Housing Market Report is based on analysis of over one million properties currently listed for sale in 31 metropolitan markets across the country. The report is the most timely source of housing market data on current market activity.

The report examines housing pricing, inventory levels and market conditions in 31 major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, DC. The Real-Time Real Estate Report is released every month.

Altos scores the big spread in BusinessWeek today! I was really happy to fulfill this request. The folks at BW wanted a national real estate slide show that wasn't just yet another chronicle of the market meltdown. They wanted to see where things were good too. Grown weary of all-bad-California-all-the-time, they also asked to take a look at 20 or so major metros around the country. So we suggested that we pick a nice sampling of metros, and then find the best and worst performing zip codes in each (in terms of median home price over the last year.)

And you know what? We found some very interesting trends. Aside from poor Las Vegas, we are able to find some healthy pricing trends in every metro we sampled.

What do the up markets have in common? Well, almost without exception, they're the nice parts of town. The biggest down zip codes? Again almost without exception, the hardest hit markets are the cheapest parts of town.

The phenomenon is working like this: There are a few folks who are well financed, and they for the first time in years, get to buy in the best neighborhoods without a ton of competition. Mortgages are still historically cheap, if in fact you can get one. While at the low end, no one can get financing, and of course those with the craziest mortgages are now selling or foreclosing. The mayhem starts at the bottom.

Check out the full article. Fascinating reading.

I twittered this yesterday, but since it's possibly my favorite press coverage my company has received, I figured I blog it today too.

Apparently Hulk Hogan is getting a divorce. He needs, of course, to understand what's happening in the housing market, especially in Las Vegas where he and his soon-to-be-ex have a condo. Where does a pro-wrestler-turned-reality-tv-star turn for the best insights? Why "prominent research firm, Altos Research" of course.

He also pointed out that Linda Bollea obtained an appraisal before his order to close on the property, and that Terry Bollea obtained his own appraisal several weeks after the order. Terry Bollea's appraisal came in at $1,000,000 less than Linda's.

In a statement issued late Friday, Terry Bollea's attorneys said they, "are gratified" by the ruling, adding, "...the sole justification for this transaction offered by Linda Bollea and her attorneys--that it is a good investment--redefines cluelessness...Nowhere is this more true than in Las Vegas, which the prominent firm Altos Research just this week called 'the weakest U.S. housing market.'"

Glad to help, Hulkster. Glad to help.

We released our National Real Estate Report today. Here's the press release.

Real Estate Report: Housing Prices Down By 0.5% in June

Report measures current real estate data in major markets around the country. Data shows Las Vegas the weakest US housing market with real estate prices down 3.6% in June. Current real estate data shows Denver the strongest US housing market in June with prices up fractionally over May 2008.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA July 8, 2008 - he Altos 10-City Composite Price Index showed a decline in asking prices of 0.5% in June and 0.8% for the past three months. Prices of properties listed for-sale increased in 15 of 26 major markets according to the Real-Time Real Estate Report, published by Altos Research, the premier source for real-time real estate data, and market analysis consultancy Real IQ.

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in Las Vegas - down 3.6% during June - and 7.2% over the most recent three-month period. This is the third consecutive month that Las Vegas has held that dubious honor. Listing prices rose at the fastest rate in Denver - up 2.6% in June and 6.4% over the most recent three-month period.

"While the Composite Index continues to show price declines, the rate of decline has slowed recently and more than half of the markets we track are showing sequential asking price increases over the past three months," said Stephen Bedikian, partner and research director for Real IQ. "Housing markets are local, and this downturn remains largely confined to specific geographic areas of the country with four states in particularly bad shape: California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona."

Listed property inventories increased substantially with the 10-City Composite markets showing an increase of 5.7% during the past three months and 1.9% in June. Inventory rose in 17 of 26 markets with the largest jumps in Los Angeles and San Diego, up 8.7% and 6.1% respectively in June.

Data in the Real-Time Housing Market Report is based on analysis of over one million properties currently listed for-sale in 26 metropolitan markets across the country. The report is the most timely source of housing market data on current market activity.

For the Altos 10-City Composite, the average days-on-market was 109, a slight increase from 106 in May. Eleven of 26 markets had an average days-on-market of over 100. By far, the market with the slowest rate of inventory was Miami at an average of 154 days-on-market. Austin led all markets with the fastest rate of inventory turnover at an average of 72 days-on-market.

"Inventory continues to increase which is typical during the seasonally strong spring and summer seasons," said Michael Simonsen, CEO and co-founder of Altos Research. "The true test will come in the fall when the market experiences seasonal weakness. If inventory, especially foreclosure listings, piles up too quickly, prices may start declining broadly again."

The report examines housing pricing, inventory levels and market conditions in 31 major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, DC. The first report was published December 7, 2007 and is released every month. Report downloads are available at: www.altosresearch.com.

We released the latest National Real Estate Report today. You can download it here [PDF].

The data inspects 26 metro markets around the country and tracks home prices, inventory and days on market. We also track the Altos 10-City Composite for a National perspective on the trends.

Here's the press release:

HOUSING PRICES DOWN BY 0.3% IN MAY

Listing Prices Fell in Only 11 of 26 markets

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA � June 10, 2008 � The Altos 10-City Composite Price Index showed a decline in asking prices of just 0.3% in May. Prices of properties listed for-sale increased in 15 of 26 major markets according to the Real-Time Real Estate Report, jointly published by Altos Research, the premier source for real-time real estate research, and market analysis consultancy Real IQ�.

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in Las Vegas - down 3.7% during May and 6.5% over the most recent three-month period. Listing prices rose at the fastest rate in Denver up 3.7% and Dallas up 2.2% during May. Prices increased by more than one percent for the month in 11 of 26 markets.

"The weakest markets continue to be concentrated in Florida, California, Arizona and Nevada which all experienced the fastest price increases during the boom times," said Michael Simonsen, CEO and co-founder of Altos Research. "Now these same markets are outpacing others on the downside as foreclosures and price declines continue relentlessly. We�re seeing some stability in many markets outside of these hard-hit states."

Listed property inventories increased substantially with the 10-City Composite markets showing an increase of 7.9% during the first quarter and 3.7% in May. Inventory rose in 25 of 26 markets with the Miami market being the only exception. Inventory actually declined 1.3% in Miami during May and 2.4% during the past three months.

Data in the Real-Time Housing Market Report is based on analysis of over one million properties currently listed for-sale in 26 metropolitan markets across the country. The report is the most timely source of housing market data on current market activity.

For the Altos 10-City Composite, the average days-on-market was 106 � an improvement from 111 in April and 113 in March. Miami experienced the longest time-on-market span with an average days-on-market of 152. San Francisco led all markets with the fastest rate of inventory turnover at an average of 73 days-on-market.

"Continued growth in inventory across virtually all markets will restrain near-term price increases," said Stephen Bedikian, partner and research director for Real IQ. "Markets like Denver and Dallas are showing strength because they did not experience high price inflation during the boom and are showing only limited inventory growth now. Affordability and limited inventory are the keys to a healthy market."

The report examines housing pricing, inventory levels and market conditions in 31 major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, DC. The first report was published December 7, 2007 and is released every month. Report downloads are available at: www.altosresearch.com.

Our latest National Real Estate Report is out this morning. The headline this month is that while the Altos National 10-City Composite price fell by 0.6% from last month, prices only fell in 7 of the 25 markets covered in the report. Maybe some signs of life? Too soon to call. Probably just spring.

Here's where you can download the full PDF May 2008 National Real Estate Report.

Here's a chart of our two national housing market composite price metrics.

Here's the full press release:

Housing Prices Down by 0.6% in April 2008

National real estate report sees prices falling in only 7 of 25 metropolitan markets. Real-time real estate data also indicates rising inventories and stabilizing market time in many parts of the country.

Mountain View, May 8 2008 - The Altos 10-City Composite Price Index showed a decline in asking prices of 0.9% over the past three months and continued that decline in April with a decrease of 0.6% for the month. Prices of properties listed for-sale fell in only 7 of 25 major markets according to the Real-Time Real Estate Report, jointly published by Altos Research, the premier source for real-time real estate research,

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in Las Vegas down 2.7% during April. The largest three-month declines occurred in Las Vegas and Philadelphia, off 5.1% and 4.5% respectively. Listing prices rose at the fastest rate in Denver up 2.6% and Charlotte up 2.1%. Prices also increased by more than one percent in April in Boston, Houston, Dallas and San Francisco.

"While this is not shaping up to be a typically strong spring selling season," said Stephen Bedikian, partner and research director for Real IQ, "we are now seeing price stability or price increases in most markets. During April, only the most troubled markets such as Las Vegas, Miami, Tampa, Philadelphia and Phoenix, continued to show asking price declines."

For-sale property inventories increased in 19 of 25 markets during April. Inventory in the Altos 10-City Composite markets rose just 0.8% for the month and 5.6% during the most recent three-month period. Data in the Real-Time Housing Market Report is based on analysis of over one million properties currently listed for-sale in 31 metropolitan markets across the country.

The report is the most timely source of housing market data on current market activity. For the Altos 10-City Composite, the average days-on-market was 111 an improvement from 119 in March and 122 in February. Miami and Detroit experienced the longest time-on-market spans with an average days-on-market of 153 and 143 respectively. Austin led all markets with the fastest rate of inventory turnover at an average of 67 days-on-market.

"Inventory buildup is typical during the spring selling season but so far it has been fairly modest and that is reflected in the decline in average days-on-market," said Michael Simonsen, CEO and co-founder of Altos Research. "Tight mortgage credit, foreclosures, and economic fears continue to put pressure on the real estate market but if inventory growth remains restrained, we may see supply and demand balance out. "

The report examines housing pricing, inventory levels and market conditions in 31 major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, DC. The Real-Time Real Estate Report is released every month.

We did this fun infographic for the Boston Globe's spring real estate section last week.

City/Town	Average days on market	Median price
1. Watertown	63	$476,911
2. Needham Heights	72	$661,418
3. Arlington	73	$623,993
4. West Newton	80	$947,661
5. Reading	84	$449,514
6. Jamaica Plain	84	$658,687
7. Somerville	85	$338,882
8. Waltham	85	$389,807
9. Newton Centre	86	$924,786
10.West Roxbury	87	$432,925

What we found mirrors much of the rest of the country: the close in, nice neighborhoods are where the demand is. Go further out and time-to-sell a home climbs into the many months range.

Click on any city name for the real estate report for that town.

I did a bunch of press calls last week and they all had one question in common: Everyone wants to know if it's a good time to buy.

Our BusinessWeek article from Friday carries the theme:

Where some see despair, others see hope. Sellers, who were once clinging to boom-time expectations, are trimming asking prices. But the news isn't all bad for buyers. In fact, for some the timing couldn't be better. The lower prices—at least in some markets—are making homes affordable for first-time home buyers and more attractive for investors on the lookout for fire-sale discounts.

Prices are down so much, there must be bargains, right?

Well, yes. But don't kid yourself. Getting a steal on a great property is NOT a slam dunk.

Glenn Kelman at Redfin has an excellent post on the challenges involved with mining for bargains in short sales, foreclosures, and other distressed properties. (aside: Glenn's Redfin corporate blog is consistently cogent and entertaining. If you're at all interested in real estate or startups, you should read it.)

Some of our Wall Street clients are well-financed funds that buy distressed mortgages from the banks. In many cases they're actually taking ownership of hundreds of properties every month. Guess what. As a buyer looking for a bargain, these guys are your competition.

So what's the recipe for investing in this market?

1. Be well-financed. In fact, be over-financed. Even good-credit first-timers are having trouble getting loans this spring. But if you're a well capitalized investor with a solid loan-to-value portfolio and a good relationship with your lender, you have a strategic advantage right now.
2. Build insider channels. Chances are if you're only driving around on weekends, you're going to miss the deals. You'll need to augment your search with other avenues, like foreclosure auctions or even direct lender relationships, to truly capitalize on the opportunities. Kelman points out that Redfin's buyers making offers on short sale properties are only succeeding at a 15% rate. Remember that you're competing against professional investors and specialized Wall Street firms for these deals. Also know that these specialized firms don't really want to be long-term owners, so the opportunity occurs when you work directly with them.
   
3. Do your homework. Know your market and your strategy. How are you finding the property? Where are you going to find them? Has your realtor handled many? Is she already selling some? You already know Altos for market analysis, but there are lots of excellent investment analysis websites (some marvelous Altos partners include Deedquest.com and InvestmentRiches.com, check them out.)
4. Be persistent. There's no question the bargains are out there. But your bid on a short sale or foreclosure will be subject to lender approval. (Kris Berg did a great illustration of the trend San Diego.) That means if you're aiming for a bargain, some of your offers will be getting rejected. That means you'll have to keep shopping.
5. Hope against large-scale bailouts. Every government deal aimed at helping owners ironically hurts buyers. You can argue right or wrong, but if you're a buyer, bailouts shrink your opportunity.

In short, bargain shopping for homes is like any bargain hunting. It takes insight and perseverance. It takes relationships. And above all it takes the financial wherewithal to capitalize when the opportunity strikes. Good luck.

Our National Real Estate Report measuring current real estate data trends in a couple dozen housing markets around the country was published today. You can download the PDF here.

Highlights from the March 2008 National Real Estate Report:

• The Altos 10-City Composite median home price declined by 0.4% in February. That's a slightly slower pace than the 1.6% three month decline from December 2007 - February 2008.
• Central cities like Denver and Dallas continue to outperform the coastal bubblevilles. By outperform, I mean housing prices were essentially flat. The Dallas Morning News already picked up the story. As I said in the article, Dallas never climbed as high as say, San Diego, so it has less to fall.

Here's the press release

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA - March 12, 2008 -
The Altos 10-City Composite showed a decline in asking prices of 1.6% over the past three months and continued that decline in February with a decrease of 0.4% for the month. Prices of properties listed for sale fell in 15 of 22 major markets according to the Real-Time Real Estate Report, jointly published by Altos Research, the premier source for real-time real estate
research, and market analysis consultancy Real IQ™.

Asking prices fell at the fastest rate in San Diego, down 3.0% during February and 5.2% for the most recent three-month period. Prices also fell by more than two percent in the Detroit, Los Angeles and Las Vegas markets during February. Prices increased in Chicago, Charlotte, New York, Dallas, Phoenix and Houston during February and were flat in Seattle.

"We are seeing some stability in asking prices as a result of seasonal reductions in inventory during the past winter months," said Stephen Bedikian, partner and research director for Real IQ. "Unfortunately we also saw an increase in listed property inventories this month which is atypical this early in the year. Only a sustained reduction in inventory will arrest the market's fall nationally."

For sale property inventories increased in 19 of 22 markets during February. The Altos 10-City Composite showed a supply increase of 2.5% for the month. Property inventories declined in only three markets: Chicago, Indianapolis and San Francisco.

Data in the Real-Time Real Estate Report is based on analysis of over one million homes currently listed for-sale in 22 metropolitan markets across the country. The report is the most timely source of real estate data available.

"Inventory growth combined with the recent rise in mortgage rates and reported job losses does not bode well for future price stability," said Michael Simonsen, CEO and co-founder of Altos Research. "We expect housing price declines to resume in earnest during the next several months."

The Real-Time Real Estate Report also found that time-on-market remained high. Miami and Detroit experienced the longest time-on-market spans with an average days-on-market of 146 and Minneapolis was close behind at 145 in February. Seventeen of 22 markets had an average days-on-market of over 100. Denver led all markets with the fastest rate of inventory turnover at an average of 77 days-on-market, followed by Dallas at 79 days.

The report examines housing pricing, inventory levels and market conditions in 22 major U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and Washington, DC. The Real-Time Real Estate Report is released every month.

Links:

The Altos Real Estate Data services

This month's National Real Estate Report PDF

RealIQ

Some Altos coverage in Wall Street insider publication Merger Market recently. I met writer Hana Askren in New York last month at the O'Reilly Money:Tech conference. Her article on us is out now. Merger Market's output is all behind a paywall, so here's a snippet of the contents.

Note: Since this pub writes about mergers and acquisitions, the article is centered on the very hypothetical question, Who might acquire Altos Research? With that caveat, enjoy some rampant, totally unfounded speculation:

Altos Research, a Mountain View, California-based real estate data company, could become a target for strategics in the information industry...The startup is profitable, self-funded, and is not actively seeking investments, Simonsen said. Several companies have approached Altos seeking strategic partnerships and some have sought to buy a stake in the company, he added, although none have yet pursued a buyout. One of these strategics may eventually buy the company, he said, but declined to name potential bidders, adding that Altos already has "several relationships in place" with partner companies.

...

An industry executive ... said it would make sense for title insurance companies to acquire a real estate data startup like Altos in order to add to their data offerings. This news service reported that First American has acquired a number of data and analysis companies in recent years, including Basis100.

...

Paul Kedrosky, a venture capitalist in the financial technology industry, also said it would make sense for Altos to be acquired as a "tuck-in" by companies like Fidelity National Information Services or Core Logic. He added that a company like Thomson would also find Altos attractive, as an addition to its information services...A futures exchange might acquire Altos, said the industry executive. Kedrosky agreed, saying that exchanges are becoming aggressive about providing more services to listed companies...Altos collects weekly real estate data and sells it to individual brokers, realtors, and real estate information companies, said Simonsen, as well as Wall Street firms and hedge funds which use the data for trading. Because of the nature of real estate transactions, he added, publicly available data can be more than six months old.

...

The company's first revenue-producing year was 2007 and it is growing at a rate of 20% each month, Simonsen said. While not disclosing revenues, he said that the company has thousands of customers and half of its revenue comes from Wall Street firms. Altos uses Farella Braun & Martel for its legal advising and does not have a relationship with an investment banker. Altos was founded in 2005 by Silicon Valley executives Simonsen and Jason Buberel, who own a majority of the company.

The Times points out today that some New York lawmakers are proposing legislation to prohibit mortgage foreclosures for a year.

Portfolio Magazine's Felix Salmon describes it as "too early." I'll describe it as "insane."

Look, if I'm a lender, and I can't rely on my ability to collect the collateral against which the loans are made, do you really think I'll keep lending? Next thing you know the legislators will be trying to compel me to lend.

Look out below.

Felix pointed out the strength in the Altos Manhattan Condo Index. We haven't yet started publishing the New York real estate data on our free research page, so I'll have to dig in manually to get the goodies on the rest of the area.

[trivial aside: I was the anonymous source of the visual details of the U2 concert described in the first paragraph of this article in the inaugural Conde Nast Portfolio magazine last year.]