The cars and trucks may gleam in the sun, but it’s the land underneath the Bill Heard chain of car dealerships that could hold the most value. More…

The prized Neuberger Berman asset management business of bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc is being sold to private equity firms Bain Capital LLC and Hellman & Friedman LLC for $2.15 billion (1.2 billion pounds) — a lot less than original estimates. More…

The strategic benefits of Citigroup Inc.’s (Citi) acquisition of Wachovia Corporation’s (Wachovia) retail, corporate/investment and private banking operations are tempered by Citi’s own escalating asset quality challenges, according to Fitch Ratings. Fitch has placed Citi’s ‘AA-’ long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) on Rating Watch Negative following the announced agreement. More…

How bad is it? This is the worst financial crisis in 60 years, and it has shaken the banking system to its foundations. Even the Chancellor, Alistair Darling, has compared the crisis to the Great Depression and he is not given to overstatement. More…

WASHINGTON Struggling to stave off financial catastrophe, the Bush administration on Friday laid out a radical bailout plan with a jawdropping price tag a takeover of a half-trillion dollars or more in worthless mortgages and other bad debt held by tottering institutions. More…

Fitch Ratings has affirmed the ratings for EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) as follows: Continue…

Monarch Bank, a subsidiary of Monarch Financial Holdings, Inc. , today announces a new service that will provide greater access to FDIC insurance. Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Services, , allows individuals and businesses the security of FDIC insurance of up to $50 million on CD investments, with just one banking relationship at Monarch Bank. Continue…

The prized Neuberger Berman asset management business of bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc is being sold to private equity firms Bain Capital LLC and Hellman & Friedman LLC for $2.15 billion (1.2 billion pounds) — a lot less than original estimates. Continue…

The strategic benefits of Citigroup Inc.’s (Citi) acquisition of Wachovia Corporation’s (Wachovia) retail, corporate/investment and private banking operations are tempered by Citi’s own escalating asset quality challenges, according to Fitch Ratings. Fitch has placed Citi’s ‘AA-’ long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) on Rating Watch Negative following the announced agreement. Continue…

Fitch Ratings has affirmed the ratings for EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE:EGP) as follows: Continue…

U.S.-based private equity fund Oaktree Group said Thursday that it will take control of a Japanese real estate investment trust after its sponsor announced bankruptcy. Oaktree, which manages assets worth $58.7 billion, will become the sponsor of Re-plus Residential Investment Inc. after Re-plus Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday. Read the full story Continue…

Updated 9:39 a.m.: Citigroup has agreed to buy Wachovia s banking operations in a government-brokered deal for $1 a share in stock, a move that that would concentrate power within the nation s banking industry in the hands of a few giant lenders, The New York Times s Eric Dash and Andrew Ross Sorkin reported Monday morning. Continue…

Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) — Gold jumped on demand for a haven as governments in the U.S. and Europe raced to prop up lenders amid the persistent credit squeeze. Silver declined. Continue…

The strategic benefits of Citigroup Inc.’s (Citi) acquisition of Wachovia Corporation’s (Wachovia) retail, corporate/investment and private banking operations are tempered by Citi’s own escalating asset quality challenges, according to Fitch Ratings. Fitch has placed Citi’s ‘AA-’ long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) on Rating Watch Negative following the announced agreement. Continue…

SOMERSET . A New York real estate magnate has bought the historic Somerset Refinery for $2.2 million and said he wants to have it up and running by early next year. That would begin a new chapter for the refinery. It had been turning crude oil into gasoline for generations before it ran into financial trouble and shut down in late 2006. A bitter fight over the company ensued. Michael … Continue…

The prized Neuberger Berman asset management business of bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc is being sold to private equity firms Bain Capital LLC and Hellman & Friedman LLC for $2.15 billion (1.2 billion pounds) — a lot less than original estimates. Continue…

SOMERSET . A New York real estate magnate has bought the historic Somerset Refinery for $2.2 million and said he wants to have it up and running by early next year. That would begin a new chapter for the refinery. It had been turning crude oil into gasoline for generations before it ran into financial trouble and shut down in late 2006. A bitter fight over the company ensued. Michael … More…

NEW YORK—-The strategic benefits of Citigroup Inc.’s acquisition of Wachovia Corporation’s retail, corporate/investment and private banking operations are tempered by Citi’s own escalating asset quality challenges, according to Fitch Ratings. More…

U.S.-based private equity fund Oaktree Group said Thursday that it will take control of a Japanese real estate investment trust after its sponsor announced bankruptcy. Oaktree, which manages assets worth $58.7 billion, will become the sponsor of Re-plus Residential Investment Inc. after Re-plus Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday. Read the full story More…

Sept. 29 (Bloomberg) — Gold jumped on demand for a haven as governments in the U.S. and Europe raced to prop up lenders amid the persistent credit squeeze. Silver declined. More…

The prized Neuberger Berman asset management business of bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc is being sold to private equity firms Bain Capital LLC and Hellman & Friedman LLC for $2.15 billion (1.2 billion pounds) — a lot less than original estimates. More…

PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS TO BE VOTED ON NOVEMBER 4, 2008 NOTICE OF ELECTION I, Kurt S. Browning, Secretary of State of the State of Florida, do hereby give notice that an election will be held in each county in Florida, on November 4, 2008, for the ratification or rejection of proposed amendments to the Constitution of the State of Florida. More…

Sept. 23 (Bloomberg) — American International Group Inc. , selling assets to repay a U.S. government loan, may seek buyers for some of its $16 billion in global real estate holdings. More…

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) — Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ’s bankruptcy filing may delay the sale of about $30 billion of commercial real estate assets at a time when property values are eroding, leaving less on the table for creditors. More…

In the inky blackness of the night, I hear them. Here in the US Pacific Northwest, with the sun no longer ionizing the upper levels of the atmosphere, I can hear AM radio signals from stations up to 3,000 kilometers away, all the way to Chicago and beyond. More…

The prized Neuberger Berman asset management business of bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc is being sold to private equity firms Bain Capital LLC and Hellman & Friedman LLC for $2.15 billion (1.2 billion pounds) — a lot less than original estimates. More…

SOMERSET . A New York real estate magnate has bought the historic Somerset Refinery for $2.2 million and said he wants to have it up and running by early next year. That would begin a new chapter for the refinery. It had been turning crude oil into gasoline for generations before it ran into financial trouble and shut down in late 2006. A bitter fight over the company ensued. Michael … More…

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) — Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ’s bankruptcy filing may delay the sale of about $30 billion of commercial real estate assets at a time when property values are eroding, leaving less on the table for creditors. More…

U.S.-based private equity fund Oaktree Group said Thursday that it will take control of a Japanese real estate investment trust after its sponsor announced bankruptcy. Oaktree, which manages assets worth $58.7 billion, will become the sponsor of Re-plus Residential Investment Inc. after Re-plus Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday. Read the full story More…

The strategic benefits of Citigroup Inc.’s (Citi) acquisition of Wachovia Corporation’s (Wachovia) retail, corporate/investment and private banking operations are tempered by Citi’s own escalating asset quality challenges, according to Fitch Ratings. Fitch has placed Citi’s ‘AA-’ long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) on Rating Watch Negative following the announced agreement. More…

SOMERSET . A New York real estate magnate has bought the historic Somerset Refinery for $2.2 million and said he wants to have it up and running by early next year. That would begin a new chapter for the refinery. It had been turning crude oil into gasoline for generations before it ran into financial trouble and shut down in late 2006. A bitter fight over the company ensued. Michael … More…

Citigroup Inc set a deal to buy regional powerhouse Wachovia Corp’s banking operations, one of several U.S. tie-ups triggered by the deepening financial crisis on Monday. More…

NEW YORK—-The strategic benefits of Citigroup Inc.’s acquisition of Wachovia Corporation’s retail, corporate/investment and private banking operations are tempered by Citi’s own escalating asset quality challenges, according to Fitch Ratings. More…

Updated 9:39 a.m.: Citigroup has agreed to buy Wachovia s banking operations in a government-brokered deal for $1 a share in stock, a move that that would concentrate power within the nation s banking industry in the hands of a few giant lenders, The New York Times s Eric Dash and Andrew Ross Sorkin reported Monday morning. More…

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) — Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ’s bankruptcy filing may delay the sale of about $30 billion of commercial real estate assets at a time when property values are eroding, leaving less on the table for creditors. More…

Sept. 23 (Bloomberg) — American International Group Inc. , selling assets to repay a U.S. government loan, may seek buyers for some of its $16 billion in global real estate holdings. More…

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) — Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ’s bankruptcy filing may delay the sale of about $30 billion of commercial real estate assets at a time when property values are eroding, leaving less on the table for creditors. More…

Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) — Frank Raiter says his former employer, Standard & Poor’s, placed a “For Sale'’ sign on its reputation on March 20, 2001. That day, a member of an S&P executive committee ordered him, the company’s top mortgage official, to grade a real estate investment he’d never reviewed. More…

Real estate companies have joined the ranks of those seeking protection from short-selling on Wall Street, including two national firms with properties in New Jersey. More…

Sept. 23 (Bloomberg) — American International Group Inc. , selling assets to repay a U.S. government loan, may seek buyers for some of its $16 billion in global real estate holdings. More…

In the fall of 1992, Sweden’s banking system crashed, but its political system discovered how to cope. More…

U.S.-based private equity fund Oaktree Group said Thursday that it will take control of a Japanese real estate investment trust after its sponsor announced bankruptcy. Oaktree, which manages assets worth $58.7 billion, will become the sponsor of Re-plus Residential Investment Inc. after Re-plus Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday. Read the full story More…

TAMPA, FL-Banks are willing to work with commercial real estate developers on projects before trouble arises, and bankruptcy should not be part of the equation for either side. Read…

PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS TO BE VOTED ON NOVEMBER 4, 2008 NOTICE OF ELECTION I, Kurt S. Browning, Secretary of State of the State of Florida, do hereby give notice that an election will be held in each county in Florida, on November 4, 2008, for the ratification or rejection of proposed amendments to the Constitution of the State of Florida. Read…

ATLANTIC CITY-After months of searching, the troubled Tropicana Casino may have found a buyer–Baltimore-based Cordish Co. But Tropicana Entertainment insists that Cordish’s $700-million offer is too low and has announced its intentions to block the sale of the property. Read…

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) — Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ’s bankruptcy filing may delay the sale of about $30 billion of commercial real estate assets at a time when property values are eroding, leaving less on the table for creditors. Read…

Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) — Frank Raiter says his former employer, Standard & Poor’s, placed a “For Sale'’ sign on its reputation on March 20, 2001. That day, a member of an S&P executive committee ordered him, the company’s top mortgage official, to grade a real estate investment he’d never reviewed. Read…

Real estate companies have joined the ranks of those seeking protection from short-selling on Wall Street, including two national firms with properties in New Jersey. Read…

Sept. 23 (Bloomberg) — American International Group Inc. , selling assets to repay a U.S. government loan, may seek buyers for some of its $16 billion in global real estate holdings. Read…

U.S.-based private equity fund Oaktree Group said Thursday that it will take control of a Japanese real estate investment trust after its sponsor announced bankruptcy. Oaktree, which manages assets worth $58.7 billion, will become the sponsor of Re-plus Residential Investment Inc. after Re-plus Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday. Read the full story Read…

In the fall of 1992, Sweden’s banking system crashed, but its political system discovered how to cope. Read…