The principal linkages between Japan and the U.S. global economies are trade, financial markets, and commodity markets.

Potential home buyers have a two-step decision process. First, they determine whether they can afford to make a purchase - does their income safely cover their mortgage payment? Then they determine whether owning is a better financial choice than renting - are the costs of owning a home lower than the cost of renting it?

There is plenty of blame to go around for the U.S. housing bubble, but not much of it belongs to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The two giant housing-finance institutions made many mistakes over the decades, some of them real whoppers, but causing house prices to soar and then crater during the past decade weren't among them.

If Mr. Trump gets precisely the policies he says he wants, then the economy will suffer a recession.

The principal linkages between Japan and the U.S. global economies are trade, financial markets, and commodity markets.

There are different flavors of recession. You can get into some pretty dark scenarios pretty quickly.

We need to get rid of the debt ceiling law. It's anachronistic and it's a problem.