Lou Barnes

Contributor

After five years as Marketing Manager of a mountaineering clothing and equipment manufacturer and retailer (a great way to enjoy your 20s), Lou Barnes built 45-broker, two-office Spruce Real Estate in Colorado from 1978-83, spending most of his time guiding the firm through extremely high interest rates. The world of money was more fun for him than real estate, and Barnes sold Spruce and joined investment banking ranks for five years as Managing Partner of RCM Government Securities, a broker-dealer working on the early flow of mortgages to Wall Street and their related derivatives. Two of those years involved work on the heart of the savings and loan meltdown -- one of the "consultants" commuting to Texas, Arkansas and other Southwestern garden spots (fortunately, he spoke the language: his family were Okies), he was asked to figure out how deep the hole was going to be. He wrote one of the earliest accurate estimates of the ultimate cost in 1986, and was one of the first to address the necessary asset workouts. Some people thrive in a career on airplanes, and Barnes was not one of them. In 1988 the homebody began another career as a mortgage banker in Boulder, just in time to catch the terrible peak of foreclosures afflicting the greater "Oil Patch" and "Savings and Loan Belt." The firm, Boulder West, survived and thrived as a small mortgage bank -- very old-fashioned, strictly "A" paper, and based on long-term relationships with Realtors and past clients. Even with that strength, Boulder West closed in 2009, and Lou and many of his colleagues joined far-larger Premier Mortgage Group. As a marketing tool and for sanity, Lou has written a weekly column on the financial markets every Friday for 20 years.

Economic foolishness and self-inflicted wounds

Commentary: Darwin Awards, petards and 'Braveheart' extras

Apr 1

Living in a 'pretend' recovery

Commentary: International politics, financial policies in flux

Mar 25

An economic tale of human nature, forces of nature

Commentary: Cycling through the post-catastrophe 'counter-panic'

Mar 18

A futile search for economic answers

Commentary: 'Does anyone in authority have a housing plan?'

Mar 11

The true economy: look past hype in job numbers

Commentary: A recovery for the rich?

Mar 4

Economy's crystal ball: real estate

Commentary: Middle East, inflation are '2 things not to worry about'

Feb 25

Rising prices threaten growth

Commentary: Inflation fears build support for spending cuts

Feb 18

This isn't the real estate recovery you're looking for

Commentary: Spike in cash buyers is no reason for optimism

Feb 11

Housing to finish last in recovery?

Commentary: U.S. plays caboose to China's economic engine

Feb 4

U.S. deficit speaks louder than words

COMMENTARY: The union is in a troubled state

Jan 28

'Bond Vigilantes' intercept economic recovery

Commentary: Real estate sparks in December

Jan 21

Stability is an illusion

Commentary: From stocks to Treasurys, balance is unsteady

Jan 14

ESP and the search for economic recovery

Commentary: Signs of growth may be short-lived

Jan 7

3 unsustainable trends looming large

2011 forecast: Euro, U.S. deficit, China growth creating tension

Dec 29

U.S. economy giving up the ghost?

Commentary: Massive borrowing complicates 'Big Fix'

Dec 17

Keep waiting for a recovery

Commentary: It's 'Groundhog Day' again for the economy

Dec 10

Forget the Fed -- fix the budget

With markets unable to stand alone, everything depends on public policy

Dec 3

The 'steamroller' effect of housing policy

Commentary: Don't let ignorance shut down the Fed

Nov 19

QE2 is economic voodoo to many

Commentary: Europe's rescue plan is blarney for Ireland

Nov 12

Fed's QE2: '2' little, '2' late?

Commentary: Centrists push back in latest election

Nov 5

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