“I think you’ve got to move away from a situation where when private shareholder gain and government taxpayer losses, and that is what this bill seeks to do, it really transforms how we doing housing finance hopefully we will be able to pass something that puts us on a better course than where we are,” said Sen. Corker in an interview Tuesday on CNBC.

(Read More: Big Banks Bet on Jumbo Mortgages Again)

Some analysts say the lawsuit could actually push Congress to act more quickly on winding down Fannie and Freddie.

“What we just a few days ago saw as only a remote possibility is now a 25 percent chance for action,” wrote Jaret Seiberg of Guggenheim Partners in a note to investors. “This is because we suspect this will anger many on Capitol Hill who believe Fannie and Freddie are only alive and kicking because taxpayers put $187 billion at risk. We see the suit reinforcing the view on Capitol Hill that Fannie and Freddie included too much upside for investors and too much risk for taxpayers.”

(Read More: Reverse Mortgages Backfiring on Seniors)

—By CNBC’s Diana Olick; Follow her on Twitter @Diana_Olick or on Facebook at facebook.com/DianaOlickCNBC

Questions? Comments? RealtyCheck@cnbc.com

Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100806300

Political consultant Jim Stearns, who is representing the labor organizations behind the recount effort, said after reviewing the cost estimates provided by the Department of Elections late Friday, the group decided it was simply too expensive. Elections Director John Arntz estimated that it would cost nearly $80,000 to manually re-tally the 35,140 ballots cast in the race and that a machine recount would cost about $7,000 less. In a Monday letter to Arntz announcing their intent to cancel the recount request, lawyer Jim Sutton wrote that a complete recount could cost as much as $120,000.

A recount has never been done since San Francisco instituted ranked-choice voting eight years ago, and it appears to be two to three times as expensive as in a normal, two-candidate race.

“We still believe that the election was close enough to merit a recount, and believe there was good chance that results could have changed,” Stearns said Monday. “But given the prices from the Department of Elections, we simply can’t afford it. At these costs, it’s hard to see how any individual campaign or organization other than the most wealthy ones could ever afford a recount.”

Considering the costs, Stearns said, city officials may want to consider whether taxpayers should at least partially fund recounts under ranked-choice voting. In the letter, Sutton urged city officials to consider “adopting a rule whereby the city would pay for a recount should the results be within a certain margin, as is done in several states,” or to explore a change in city law, which currently limits the amount a candidate can raise from their existing donor pool to $100 per person. The letter noted that $120,000 is more than many candidates raise during their entire race.

- Marisa Lagos

On the move: Mayor Ed Lee is focusing on former Building Inspection Commissioner Mel Murphy as he looks to fill an open seat on the city’s Port Commission, an influential panel that will consider major developments planned for the waterfront, including a proposed arena.

Lee on Monday took a break from holding up his end of the bargain on his World Series bet with Detroit’s Mayor David Bing to tell the Insider he was waiting for a completed background check of Murphy before making an appointment.

“He’s a contender for sure,” Lee said.

Murphy, co-owner of Murphy O’Brien Real Estate Investments, is also a director of the Coalition for Responsible Growth, a political advocacy group funded largely by developers and others with real estate interests.

If appointed, his confirmation could face opposition from some on the Board of Supervisors’ left flank who consider the group too conservative.

Last year, Lee’s election campaign said it had returned seven contributions from Department of Building Inspection employees totaling $2,150 that were donated at a fundraiser at Murphy’s home. City law prohibits commissioners from soliciting city employees for campaign contributions.

- John Coté

E-mail: cityinsider@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SFCityInsider.

Article source: http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/SF-election-loser-drops-recount-request-4088402.php

The best number out of today’s report on sales of newly built homes is not the 7.3 percent bump up in signed contracts, it’s the drop in inventories to a 6.5 month supply.

That number is based on a quicker sales pace and a drop of 5000 in the absolute number of newly built homes on the market.

That volume is the lowest since at least 1963, according to Miller Tabak’s Peter Boockvar, who worries that the supply of existing homes is still simply too much for anyone to be touting the builders.

“The best response on the part of builders is to shoot themselves in the foot for as long as they can financially stand, so the market can more quickly absorb the excess inventory of existing homes which make up most of the overall market,” writes Boockvar.

Aristar’s JT Smith chimes in on the actual April sales number: “Unadjusted sales of 32k makes April 2011 tied for the worst April sales number in recorded history.”

My concern is not over the inventory of newly built homes. I think it’s a big positive. My problem is the glut of bargain-priced REO (bank owned) homes against which the builders compete.

Check out a chart we re-made from data by the Calculated Risk Blog.

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Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/43151710?__source=RSS*blog*&par=RSS

Yesterday morning I attended the FDIC’s background press briefing before the vote on proposed risk retention rules.

While the rules covered a vast ground, I was of course most interested in those that focus on the “Qualified Residential Mortgage.”

The QRM would be the exemption from risk retention, and therefore banks would want most borrowers to fall under the QRM standard.

A few moments after we reporters sat down at the big conference table, FDIC representatives clunked down a huge document in front of each of us. Then another, then another: Well over 200 pages of what these proposed rules are all about. Thankfully, they then had some other FDIC folks explain to us exactly what we needed to know. I then ran out onto the balcony camera and reported the three top points…20 percent down payment, debt to income ratio requirements and various servicer rules.

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Article source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/42341427?__source=RSS*blog*&par=RSS