Commercial real estate losses threaten local banks

"Commercial real-estate loans could generate losses of $100 billion by the end of next year at more than 900 small and midsize U.S. banks if the economy's woes deepen, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal."  Maurice Tamman and David Enrich report that losses on commercial real-estate loans are much greater than loses related to home loans.  Their analysis reveals that stress on the banking system extends well beyond the largest financial institutions.  An interactive graphic shows how the small and midsized banks fared under the same "stress tests" the federal government used for the nation's largest banks.