Billionaire Sam Zell sees mortagage back securities improving

"I believe the overall market has already started to ease,'' Zell, chairman of Equity Residential, the largest U.S. apartment owner, said in an interview in New York. ``Is it in large volumes? No. Is it the first natural step in the evolution? Yes.'' -Stock Article Link

Profile of Real Estate guru, Sam Zell

Billionaire and real estate investor Sam Zell, is the chairman and co-founder of Equity Group Investments which has created many private and public companies. Most notable is Equity Residential (EQR), Equity Lifestyle Properties (EQR), and Equity Office Properties which was recently sold to the Blackstone Group for $39 billion in cash!

Zell is also Chairman of Capital Trust Inc.(CT), a finance and investment management company focused on the commercial real estate industry, and Anixter International(AXE), the world's largest distributor of communication products and electrical and electronic wire and cable.

Zell has done some insider buying on CT since August.

2-Aug-07 
  
*27,500
CT
  Purchase  at $32.84 - $33.15 per share.
(Cost of about $907,000)
2-Aug-07 
  
*41,300
CT
  Purchase  at $32.40 - $32.83 per share.
(Cost of about $1,347,000)
2-Aug-07 
  
*31,200
CT
  Purchase  at $31.65 - $32.39 per share.
(Cost of about $999,000)

These days Sam Zell is perhaps best known as the investor who made the apparently successful bid of $8.2 billion to take the Tribune Company (TRB) private. It's closing in the fourth quarter of November 11/2007 at $34 (Currently trading at $28).

Articles of interest.

Invest like a billionaire: Sam Zell

Sam Zell on the Credit Crisis: not that bad