For Immediate Release
September 26, 2005
Contact: Susan Miller
317-816-9760
smiller@hickmanassociates.com Nation’s Leading Economists Debate Risks of Housing Bubble ( Indianapolis , Ind. – September 26, 2005) - Indiana lawmakers, business leaders and other stakeholders in Indiana’s future will convene to identify the economic consequences that could occur during a rapid decline in the housing market on Wednesday, October 12 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the Columbia Club in Indianapolis . The inaugural Networks Financial Institute (NFI) Financial Forum Series event will examine whether State lawmakers can avoid devastating consequences similar to the economic events following the tech-bubble burst in 2000-01.
The panel of monetary experts scheduled to discuss and debate the housing bubble include Michael D. Bordo, professor of economics and director of the Center for Monetary and Financial History at Rutgers University; Amy Crews Cutts, deputy chief economist for Freddie Mac; and Jonathan McCarthy, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The panel will discuss the implications of a collapse in home prices including how a burst in the housing bubble would impact consumers, builders, lenders and the real estate industry, along with macroeconomic issues including unemployment. Questions on the agenda include: how large is the housing bubble today, do housing bubbles pop abruptly or deflate slowly, would a housing bust wipe out banks and other financial institutions and would a housing bust cause a recession or global crisis?
“The housing market has remained a constant source of growth and economic vigor, unlike any other component of the economy. The State cannot afford to deny the implications a decline or bust in the housing market would present,” said Dr. John Tatom, director of research for Networks Financial Institute. He noted that the panel of experts has been widely published in the business press and appeared as experts on leading networks such as CNN.
The event is open to the public with individual tickets priced at $25, student tickets priced at $10 and corporate tables of eight available for $200. Reservations are required and may be made online at
www.networksfinancialinstitute.org or by contacting Linda Beckwith at (317) 536-0281 or 1-800-603-7113. The registration deadline is October 7.
Networks Financial Institute at Indiana State University was founded in 2003 with a grant from Lilly Endowment. NFI strives to facilitate broad, collaborative thinking, dialogue and progress in the evolving financial services marketplace, concentrating on the areas of education, outreach and research. Headquartered in Indianapolis with offices in Washington, D.C. and on the campus of Indiana State, and with outreach internationally, NFI’s goal is to serve as a catalyst for change in the financial services industry.