Doris Dungey
Encyclopedia
Doris J. Dungey was an American
blogger who wrote extensively about the United States housing bubble
for the blog Calculated Risk
under the pseudonym Tanta.
on November 15, 1961 and raised in Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
, Dungey earned a master's degree in English from the University of Wisconsin, where she taught until 1989. She then returned to Bloomington, where she wrote the training manual for a local rape crisis center. She worked in the mortgage
industry for many years, starting at Champion Federal Savings and Loan Association where she was a trainer and technical writer
. Her work for her last employer, Mortgage Dynamics, included securitization
due diligence, contract review and technical writing.
, a former technology executive who believed that the United States housing market was near its peak
, and he posted articles and statistics to his blog to support his argument. Dungey started posting to the blog, using the pseudonym Tanta, a family nickname, because she hoped to return to work in the mortgage business. As Tanta, Dungey used her inside knowledge of the mortgage industry and humor to post corrections and analysis of her own about mortgage financing. December 2006 marked her first post to the blog, criticizing a Citigroup
report that was confident that the mortgage industry would "rationalize" in 2007.
Her work for the blog included The Compleat ÜberNerd, a series of 13 articles that provided an in-depth summary of the mortgage business from origination and servicing, to mortgage-backed securities, negative amortization
and foreclosure
, which was called a "definitive word on the subject" by The New York Times
.
She was quoted by CBS News
in April 2008, emphasizing that the subprime mortgage crisis
was not the result of the inherent complexity of instruments like collateralized debt obligation
s, but was caused by excessive leverage
that was part of efforts to "goose the yield" of mortgage securities
to offer higher interest rates to investors by creating "complex cash-flow structures hedged by complex rate swaps". The Federal Reserve cited her in its 2008 paper Understanding the Securitization of Subprime Mortgage Credit.
Her posts influenced a number of economists and journalists through their wit and clarity. In 2007 Felix Salmon, writing for Condé Nast Portfolio, called her "one of the best financial writers in the world". The week after her death, Alyssa Katz wrote for the Columbia Journalism Review that "journalism [has] lost its most incisive, stubbornly accurate, and unfailingly hilarious chronicler of the failings of the mortgage industry."
One of her final posts to the blog, in September 2008, criticized a proposed aspect of the 2008 bailout plan
, which would have had the United States Department of the Treasury
purchase bad loans directly from banks. As Tanta, she argued that bank executives should be forced to explain why they purchased the asset in the first place, what they learned from seeing the asset go bad and how they will ensure that the same mistake is not made in the future.
, died at age 47 on November 30, 2008, of ovarian cancer
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blogger who wrote extensively about the United States housing bubble
United States housing bubble
The United States housing bubble is an economic bubble affecting many parts of the United States housing market in over half of American states. Housing prices peaked in early 2006, started to decline in 2006 and 2007, and may not yet have hit bottom as of 2011. On December 30, 2008 the...
for the blog Calculated Risk
Calculated Risk
Calculated Risk is a finance and economics blog. It was started in early 2005 by former technology executive Bill McBride , with frequent posts by Doris Dungey until her death on November 30, 2008 from ovarian cancer...
under the pseudonym Tanta.
Early life and work
Born in Oxnard, CaliforniaOxnard, California
Oxnard is the 113th largest city in the United States, 19th largest city in California and largest city in Ventura County, California, by way of population. It is located at the western edge of the fertile Oxnard Plain, and is an important agricultural center, with its distinction as the...
on November 15, 1961 and raised in Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
Bloomington-Normal, Illinois
Bloomington-Normal refers to the twin municipalities of Bloomington and Normal in McLean County, in Central Illinois. The combined population of the two communities in a special census in 2006 was 125,000.-Sports:...
, Dungey earned a master's degree in English from the University of Wisconsin, where she taught until 1989. She then returned to Bloomington, where she wrote the training manual for a local rape crisis center. She worked in the mortgage
Mortgage loan
A mortgage loan is a loan secured by real property through the use of a mortgage note which evidences the existence of the loan and the encumbrance of that realty through the granting of a mortgage which secures the loan...
industry for many years, starting at Champion Federal Savings and Loan Association where she was a trainer and technical writer
Technical writer
A technical writer is a professional writer who designs, creates, and maintains technical documentation...
. Her work for her last employer, Mortgage Dynamics, included securitization
Securitization
Securitization is the financial practice of pooling various types of contractual debt such as residential mortgages, commercial mortgages, auto loans or credit card debt obligations and selling said consolidated debt as bonds, pass-through securities, or Collateralized mortgage obligation , to...
due diligence, contract review and technical writing.
Writing career
The blog Calculated Risk was started in 2005 by Bill McBrideBill McBride (blogger)
Bill McBride is an American blogger who founded the economics and finance blog Calculated Risk. A former technology executive, in early 2005 McBride believed that the housing market in the United States was near its peak, and he posted articles and statistics to his blog to support his argument...
, a former technology executive who believed that the United States housing market was near its peak
United States housing bubble
The United States housing bubble is an economic bubble affecting many parts of the United States housing market in over half of American states. Housing prices peaked in early 2006, started to decline in 2006 and 2007, and may not yet have hit bottom as of 2011. On December 30, 2008 the...
, and he posted articles and statistics to his blog to support his argument. Dungey started posting to the blog, using the pseudonym Tanta, a family nickname, because she hoped to return to work in the mortgage business. As Tanta, Dungey used her inside knowledge of the mortgage industry and humor to post corrections and analysis of her own about mortgage financing. December 2006 marked her first post to the blog, criticizing a Citigroup
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
report that was confident that the mortgage industry would "rationalize" in 2007.
Her work for the blog included The Compleat ÜberNerd, a series of 13 articles that provided an in-depth summary of the mortgage business from origination and servicing, to mortgage-backed securities, negative amortization
Negative amortization
In finance, negative amortization, also known as NegAm, deferred interest or graduated payment mortgage, occurs whenever the loan payment for any period is less than the interest charged over that period so that the outstanding balance of the loan increases...
and foreclosure
Foreclosure
Foreclosure is the legal process by which a mortgage lender , or other lien holder, obtains a termination of a mortgage borrower 's equitable right of redemption, either by court order or by operation of law...
, which was called a "definitive word on the subject" by The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
.
She was quoted by CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
in April 2008, emphasizing that the subprime mortgage crisis
Subprime mortgage crisis
The U.S. subprime mortgage crisis was one of the first indicators of the late-2000s financial crisis, characterized by a rise in subprime mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures, and the resulting decline of securities backed by said mortgages....
was not the result of the inherent complexity of instruments like collateralized debt obligation
Collateralized debt obligation
Collateralized debt obligations are a type of structured asset-backed security with multiple "tranches" that are issued by special purpose entities and collateralized by debt obligations including bonds and loans. Each tranche offers a varying degree of risk and return so as to meet investor demand...
s, but was caused by excessive leverage
Leverage (finance)
In finance, leverage is a general term for any technique to multiply gains and losses. Common ways to attain leverage are borrowing money, buying fixed assets and using derivatives. Important examples are:* A public corporation may leverage its equity by borrowing money...
that was part of efforts to "goose the yield" of mortgage securities
Mortgage-backed security
A mortgage-backed security is an asset-backed security that represents a claim on the cash flows from mortgage loans through a process known as securitization.-Securitization:...
to offer higher interest rates to investors by creating "complex cash-flow structures hedged by complex rate swaps". The Federal Reserve cited her in its 2008 paper Understanding the Securitization of Subprime Mortgage Credit.
Her posts influenced a number of economists and journalists through their wit and clarity. In 2007 Felix Salmon, writing for Condé Nast Portfolio, called her "one of the best financial writers in the world". The week after her death, Alyssa Katz wrote for the Columbia Journalism Review that "journalism [has] lost its most incisive, stubbornly accurate, and unfailingly hilarious chronicler of the failings of the mortgage industry."
One of her final posts to the blog, in September 2008, criticized a proposed aspect of the 2008 bailout plan
Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Division A of , commonly referred to as a bailout of the U.S. financial system, is a law enacted in response to the subprime mortgage crisis...
, which would have had the United States Department of the Treasury
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
purchase bad loans directly from banks. As Tanta, she argued that bank executives should be forced to explain why they purchased the asset in the first place, what they learned from seeing the asset go bad and how they will ensure that the same mistake is not made in the future.
Death
Dungey, who had lived in Upper Marlboro, MarylandUpper Marlboro, Maryland
Upper Marlboro is a town in and the county seat of Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The live-in population of the town core proper was only 648 at the 2000 census, although Greater Upper Marlboro is many times larger....
, died at age 47 on November 30, 2008, of ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
.
External links
- Compendium of Tanta's Posts on the Calculated RiskCalculated RiskCalculated Risk is a finance and economics blog. It was started in early 2005 by former technology executive Bill McBride , with frequent posts by Doris Dungey until her death on November 30, 2008 from ovarian cancer...
blog