Ifo, the German Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, said on Thursday, that the financial and economic crisis has had a particularly negative effect on the residential real-estate market. New construction is expected to weaken by about 20% and it’s estimated unsold housing units in Spain amounts to about 1 million. Poland is the star performer, with a market worth almost €46 billion - - Ireland was €38 billion at the peak in 2007.

US health care is broken but President Obama’s reforms would raise costs and subsidize the beast with taxes on small businesses and the successful.

The International Monetary Fund says in  areport issued on Thursday, that the Eurozone economy remains in recession. Although there are tentative signs of improvement, the outlook is still uncertain. The IMF says more action is needed to support the recovery and a return to self-sustaining growth, and to address cross-border spillovers within the European Union (EU).

Some banks are starting to bypass foreclosure on large, troubled real-estate developments and instead are throwing the properties into receivership.

The Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan, TD, today published the draft text of proposed legislation for the Irish “bad bank” National Asset Management Agency (NAMA), which is being established on a statutory basis to handle property/construction related loans to developers, from Irish banks.

Markets news on stocks, currencies and oil.

Irish Economy: The Central Bank said in its Quarterly Bulletin today, that for next year as a whole, a decline in activity of about 2.7 per cent in GDP and 3.5 per cent in GNP terms is projected. This outlook is contingent on a gradual recovery in world demand next year. By contrast, the contraction in domestic demand is likely to continue. It says with forward-looking indicators pointing to a further contraction in housing output and declining disposable incomes likely to depress consumer demand, there is little prospect of any recovery in domestic demand before 2011.  Property-related banking loans were at 61% of total bank loans at the end of March 2009.

A management company has sued a tenant for libel over a Twitter post complaining about a moldy apartment, according to court records and online reports.

Developers battling banks to keep funding spigots open on construction projects are taking heart from Citgroup’s defeat in its court battle with a mall.

Vornado plans to raise up to $600 million, in a key test of TALF’s ability to revive the market for commercial mortgage-backed securities.