By Jon Birger
Known for his early warnings on Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, analyst Martin Weiss of Weiss Research is now sounding the alarm about state of California municipal bonds.
In a new report, Weiss has some rather blunt advice for California muni investors: “Sell all California paper now!” His reasoning? California is facing a $24 billion budget gap with no obvious way to close it.
Asked to put odds on California defaulting on its $59 billion in outstanding general obligation bonds, Weiss doesn’t hedge. “It’s unavoidable,” he tells Fortune.