Trying to sell a home in this market is a bit difficult. If you are going to sell, you have to be prepared to lower your asking price — and maybe even accept a loss. That is a lesson that basketball star Shaquille O’Neal has learned as he has tried to sell his Miami mansion over the past year. He finally did sell, for $16 million — which turns out to be less than the $18.8 million he paid for it. And significantly less than the original $32 million asking price.

In the current housing market, there is a glut of homes. Even high end luxury homes are seeing some increased supply. And that means that the buyer is at an advantage — especially if the seller has to move. If you want to sell your home, but don’t want to take a loss, you might consider renting it out. This is the solution that many take when they have to move. They help offset the cost of the mortgage on the home by renting it out. Then, when the market recovers (which may not happen until at least 2012), it is possible to sell for a better price.

Several months ago, a Ponzi scheme fell to pieces and billionaire investment manager Bernard Madoff was revealed as a con man. He has been on trial, and found guilty. And today he was sentenced to 150 years prison. Clearly, he’s not going to live that long. And, there is a good chance the 71 year old wouldn’t have made it the 12 years his lawyer asked for. However, the judge decided that the man behind one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history needed to serve as an example to the rest of the financial sector.

Sort of.

The bottom line is that there are plenty of other crooks out there in the financial world. While they may not be instigating Ponzi schemes, they are — quite likely — involved in other sneaky and underhanded practices. But most financial sector workers and companies have emerged largely unscathed. Which means that Bernie Madoff pretty much represents the entirety of justice being served to the financial sector. Perhaps that is why he got such a long sentance. Perhaps he is atoning for the sins of an entire industry that went crazy with greed the last 10 - 15 years.

So today’s video isn’t exactly “fun”. But it does show what an amazing entertainer Michael Jackson was. Enjoy his first ever moonwalk. A great song, and a cool dance move. I can’t say how long I practiced before I could do some semblance of that. (Hint: It worked best in my ballet shoes and and my clogging shoes.)

RIP Michael Jackson.

While the housing market is considered one of the pillars of economic recovery, it is far from the only consideration. Another important factor in economic recovery is employment. In fact, some argue that the labor market might be the most important consideration for a successful economic recovery. This is because as long as people are still losing jobs, they won’t be able to spend the money that keeps the economy moving. And, of course, increased unemployment means that eventually home payments won’t be made, and the housing market will continue to suffer.

Today, the labor market (and the economy) received another blow. Initial jobless claims leaped to a one-month high today. There have been some declines in the jobless rate since March, proving some hope that the recession might be nearing its end. However, the data released today shows that there is still a long way to go before the labor market returns to normal. And that means delays in other aspects of economic health as well.

Numbers for May’s new home sales are in, and it appeares that there has been an unexpected fall. Analysts thought that there would be an increase in new home sales, driven by government programs, low mortgage rates and low home prices. However, new home sales fell instead.

This is line with some opinions that the housing market will continue to languish through this year and maybe next year, and begin to see some increased activity in 2011. The housing market is not expected to stabilize and begin thriving until 2012.

One of the biggest reasons that new homes sales are falling is due to the preference for existing homes. New construction just can’t compete with the bargains offered by existing homes. In many cases, home owners are willing to deal, selling for below market value. Additionally, foreclosures make up a relatively substantial number of existing home sales. It’s hard for a builder with fixed costs to compete with those kinds of deals.

Right now, there is a lot of talk revolving around “economic green shoots” and the end of the recession. However, there has been very little in the way of solid evidence that things are improving in a substantial manner. Unemployment is slowing, but the numbers are still high. Additionally, housing prices have yet to reach a bottom. But there is speculation that the housing market will return to normal in 2012.

Kathy Tyson at Real Estate Investing on Banks.com points this out about hopes for the housing market:

There is hope again for a “boring” housing market - one in which there are just as many buyers as sellers and home prices aren’t plunging and home loans area affordably available.

Stability in the housing market — and the rest of economic recovery –  is not likely to be seen quickly. Recovering from the current recession is going to take the better part of two years, and it appears that the housing market will be long in recovery as well.

It appears as though enthusiasm about “economic green shoots” has been a bit premature. The World Bank has announced that it is cutting its global growth forecast for 2009, showing that economic uncertainty still remains. There are a number of factors at play here, but one of them appears to be higher oil prices. With prices rising on the hope of rapid economic recovery, speculation has sent oil prices high enough that they are cutting into consumer spending and contributing to the slow down. At least, many analysts feel that higher oil prices could slow global economic recovery.

Another issue is the fact that many probably just jumped the gun. With signs that the recession may be coming to a close, over-eager investors and analysts have been looking forward to economic recovery. However, any economic recovery is likely to come slowly, as evidenced by the new World Bank forecast.

It is important to remember that this recession isn’t going to be completely reversed overnight. These things take time. The recession isn’t likely to come to a complete end until the close of this year, and economic recovery will be happening all through 2010 and into 2011.

Remember Weird Al Yankovic? Well, he’s got a song about Craigslist. Enjoy.

Happy Friday!

Right now, mortgage regulations are a disparate hodge-podge of requirements from independent agencies and state governments. With President Barack Obama’s proposed overhaul of financial regulation, though, that could all change. Part of his suggestions for regulatory reform include standards that would be uniform across the entire mortgage industry. These uniform requirements could possible include the following:

* Mortgage brokers would have to offer the best possible home mortgage loans to borrowers.

* Borrowers would have to choose to opt-out of traditional mortgages (30-year fixed).

* Possible ban on prepayment fees and yield spread premiums.

* Greater transparency in mortgage terms.

Of course, the proposed regulations are just that — proposed. The creation of a consumer protection agency will have to be approved, and some of Obama’s other proposed regulations will have to make it through Congress before taking effect.

Back when the economic stimulus bill was being debated in February, there was talk in the Senate about a $15,000 tax credit for all home buyers. In the end, the idea was relegated to the trash heap and the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit was adopted. But the idea of a massive tax credit for all home buyers didn’t die. In fact, it’s up for consideration in the Senate again, as its own bill. CNN Money reports on Senator Johnny Isakson’s (R-GA) rationale for another home buyer tax credit:

“The first-time home buyer tax credit has made a difference,” said Isakson when announcing the bill. “First-time home buyers used it and the market stabilized, but we don’t have a recession in first-time home buyers. We have a recession in the move-up market.” Continued the senator, “One of the biggest problems facing the American people today is an illiquid housing market, a decline in their equity, a decline in their net worth and a depression in the housing market that we are obligated to correct if we possibly can.”

He’s probably right that such a tax credit would help stimulate the housing market further. But what about the potential for another bubble? That is a very real concern right now. What good if housing prices rapidly inflate again, only to deflate as soon as demand drops when the tax credit disappears? By targeting only first-time home buyers, there is an argument that the current tax credit limits the possibility of a true bubble forming.

It will be interesting to see what happens going forward. If the $15,000 tax credit passes, and if it ends up with the same rules as the current tax credit, allowing for use as a down payment, I might decide to buy a new home…