If you ever wondered why municipal bankruptcies are so rare, you needn’t look further than Jefferson County, Alabama. Fallout from the county’s bankruptcy...
Muni Bonds News and Perspectives
Below are bond market commentaries, strategies and analyses written by our municipal bond specialists. They are listed by date.
If you have any questions, please call us at 1-800-FMS-BOND (1-800-367-2663) or e-mail us.
The Mets, The Pundits and The Old ‘Perfessor’
The “Amazin’s.” For those not old enough to remember, this was the title bestowed upon the original New York Mets baseball team by its first manager, the...
The Upside of Lower Rates
Lower interest rates are generally seen as a boon to municipal bond issuers and a bane to investors. But for holders of individual munis, the current...
Moody’s: Muni Default Rate to Remain Low
How rare are defaults in the municipal bond market? During the most recent period, 2010-2011, there were only 11 defaults out of the 17,700 bond issues...
Don’t Try This at Home
A number of financial Web sites are posting excerpts from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney’s Global Investment Committee Report for February. The municipal bond...
Debt Should Be Paid on Dissolved California Agencies
Despite the ax falling recently on California's 400 redevelopment agencies, officials paved the way for the groups to wind down their business and we expect...
Off the Table, or Not?
Does the White House want to limit the tax benefits of municipal bonds? It’s hard to tell. In a story Monday, The Bond Buyer, quoting unnamed "senior White...
State Programs Help Borrowers and Quality-Conscious Investors
When thinking of “credit enhancement,” most investors think of bond insurance. But there is another tool used by local governments and school districts that...
Man Bites Dog, Almost
It wasn’t exactly a “man-bites-dog” story, but a recent article in USA Today will surely catch many investors by surprise. Over the past 30 years, bonds have...
A Disappointing Year for Doomsayers
When Jefferson County, Alabama declared bankruptcy, the bashers had a ball. Soothsayers, whose earlier predictions of a widespread muni market collapse didn't...
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