Housing crisis primer for the rest of us

Maggie says:
If, like me, you'd rather scan David Brooks (ugh) than the business section, grimace through Fox News (ugh) rather than financial channels, and "Marketplace" is the only NPR programming you turn off in favor of CDs in the car, then this is the report for you:

The Mortgage Crisis: Economic and Fiscal Implications for Metro Areas

Don't fear the official-sounding title, because in plain language that liberal arts types like myself can follow, this new report lays out what happened in our economy to get us here, which places are being hit the hardest and why, what various places can expect in 2008, and what we can do about it. After reading this report, I finally feel like more than a casual observer to the whole mess. I've followed everything in the press, of course, but this report actually makes me feel prepared to take part in something more than a casual discussion about what's happening in communities around the country with these foreclosure rates.

The report was developed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, an organization I've long admired for their ability to get to the place of the matters of the day in a surprisingly partisan-free manner. It's a shockingly effective organization, actually, and I wouldn't be surprised to see an initiative soon on place-based negotiations for new mortgage terms. Plus, if you're a place nerd like me, you'll love all the data in the report comparing metro areas nationwide, so you can infer your own meaning to the stats and apply place lessons to all of it. Planning is everywhere!

All that said, here's the press release if the 17-page report is still a bit much. It's okay, I understand. :-)