Posted by Chau Tu

For Marketplace Money, October 8, 2010

With foreclosures being halted in a number of states recently, the housing crisis doesn’t seem to be getting any better. Adriene Hill reported from a recent event at the Los Angeles Convention Center that tried to help thousands of homeowners with questions and concerns. We took a look at the housing crisis and foreclosures from a broader perspective, and wondered about how much better off we would be if there hadn’t been a housing bubble (with a rather shocking revelation about home price appreciation).

And while some people remain distrusting of banks, many are turning to prepaid debit cards as a way to budget money. But Marketplace’s economics editor Chris Farrell warns that fees on cards and other services can add up, and we shouldn’t let it. And finally, Stephen Dubner from Freakonomics tells the story of when an economist walks into an A&W Root Beer restaurant — only to find it didn’t have any root beer — and how that could relate to customer service and the income of customers. As for our songs, here they are:

• A Forest – The CureBuy

• Wildcat – RatatatBuy

• Somebody’s Watching Me – RockwellBuy

• Get Ur Freak On – Missy ElliottBuy