BANK LEGACY ASSETS

Legacy Assets (another word for possible bad loans) are the unknown on Bank's balance sheets. Unkown because their performance is uncertain. The housing bubble that created the negative economic cycle that we are in is now being helped with taxpayer dollars. If banks that acquired marked down legacy assets (because they bought another bank's servicing portfolio), and now if those assets are performing, they can take a gain and wirte them back up. Something called accretion. The treasury has issued a white paper and press release on the handling of these legacy assets. Are there any accountants here in AR that can explain this process? ************* Interest rates worsened slightly yesterday afternoon, and are starting to worsen already this morning. Anyone waiting for 4.00% to refinance has missed the window. In months past the Fed has made a statement or move to purchase more Fannie/Freddie mortgage securities and rates have improved. With the economy showing signs of improvement they may not so this time, and rates may move higher. ****************** Best conforming conventional 30 Yr Fixed Rate starts at 5.250% today with no points. Best FHA 30 Yr Fixed Rate starts at 5.00% today with no points. (Rates may be adjusted for loan size and credit scores, call for personalized quote).