John is Vice President and Senior Policy Advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, where he supervises and conducts research in financial-side macroeconomics. Prior to joining the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas in 1991, John was an economist at the Federal Reserve Board from 1986 to 1991--where he briefed former Fed Chairman Greenspan, former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, and the Federal Reserve Board--and was a part-time lecturer at the University of Maryland. John currently teaches money and banking as an Adjunct Professor at Southern Methodist University. During his years in the Federal Reserve System, John has given many economic presentations and has published over 50 articles on macroeconomics, money, credit, wages, and housing.

    John graduated summa cum laude from Yale with a B.A.  He received a Ph.D. in economics from Princeton, where he first met current Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and studied much of the Chairman’s research.  Since 1991, John’s family has lived in Rockwall, Texas, where John currently serves as a trustee of The Fulton School (a private college preparatory school) and in the past has served on the City of Rockwall's capital improvements committee.  

    John's presentation will provide perspective on developments in housing, the financial crisis, and their impact on the economy.  The presentation will discuss factors behind the boom and bust in housing markets and finance.  John will also discuss the impact of slower home price appreciation on consumer spending, and provide a little perspective on real estate markets and the economy in Texas. Please note that as a Fed official, John cannot comment on the future course of interest rates, exchange rates, or financial asset prices.

     Attendees may be interested in three free web articles on the mortgage and financial crisis that are co-authored by John and some of his colleagues at the Dallas Fed:

•         The Rise and Fall of Subprime Mortgages (Nov. 2007):

            http://dallasfed.org/research/eclett/2007/el0711.pdf

•         From Complacency to Crisis: Financial Risk-Taking in the Early 21st Century (Dec. 2007):

            http://dallasfed.org/research/eclett/2007/el0712.pdf

•         Fed Confronts Financial Crisis By Expanding Its Role As Lender of Last Resort (Feb./March 2009, with DiMartino & Renier):

            http://dallasfed.org/research/eclett/2009/el0902.pdf