“There Are Going To Be A Number Of Unsuccessful Sellers”
The Union Tribune reports from California. “San Diego County housing prices dropped in 2006 for the first time in 11 years, apparently driven by a weak condominium and new-housing market, DataQuick reported. The overall median stood at $490,000 for the year, 0.8 percent below 2005’s $494,000. It was the first time since 1995 there was a year-over-year drop.”
“The new-housing category, which saw 11,481 sales, saw a 6.7 percent drop, from $476,000 in 2005 to $444,000 in 2006. Included in this group were numerouslower-priced condo conversions which outweighed higher-priced new construction.”
“The single-family median was $540,000, down 1.8 percent from December 2005; resale condos was $380,000, down 2.6 percent; and new construction and conversions, were $460,000, down 14.7 percent.”
The Orange County Register. “O.C.’s sellers and buyers of homes started the year on a slow note, says the math of Steve Thomas at Re/Max Real Estate Services in Aliso Viejo.”
“It would take 7.78 months for buyers to gobble up all the houses and condos for sale at the current pace, vs. 7.51 months two weeks earlier, BUT still way above 4.85 months a year ago.”
“Thomas notes: ‘We are already starting the year with 4,000 additional homes on the market. There are going to be a number of unsuccessful sellers and the market time should remain above the five-month mark, which is equilibrium. At today’s 7.78 month inventory, we are already experiencing a buyers’ market.’”
From a press release. “The Temecula law firm of Ackerman, Cowles & Lindsley filed a 1.2 billion dollar claim against what are alleged to be the perpetrators of a vast real estate and currency exchange scheme taking place in Southern California.”
“Riverside County Superior Court Case No. RIC463483 was filed by an investor who claims to have suffered $3,000,000 in damages on her case alone. The plaintiff seeks to have the matter certified as a class action later this year because there are another alleged 400 investors in the alleged scheme.”
“The amended complaint, filed on January 12, 2007, alleges that the operators of the Jovane Investment firm of Murrieta, and related businesses, engaged in a real estate scheme involving perhaps as many as 5000 home loans in the Southern California region.”
“It is alleged in the complaint that defendants allegedly involved in the scheme would artificially inflate the values of the homes, complete 125% loan to value mortgages in certain cases, give escrow kickbacks to sellers who received as much as $100,000 more than an asking price, and sell the investors on the idea of giving up excess proceeds out of the sale to investment companies for a great profit over a period of years.”
“In some cases, $50-60k-a-year salaried employees had mortgage obligations that were more than $20,000.00 a month because they ‘owned’ 5-8 homes. The defendant companies are alleged to have taken money from other investors to pay the mortgages on behalf of plaintiff and others. The scheme is alleged to be a traditional Ponzi scheme.”
‘Local real estate agent Austin Dach is hoping that a certain property he is representing a house, built in 1985…one of three homes built by the late developer Harvey Knox that are modeled after castles, with distinct Moorish and Gothic influences. ‘They were Hollywood creations,’ Dach explained. ‘It is an ocean front property and that’s a rarity in California … that’s a big deal.’ With a newly reduced asking price of $800,000, down from the initial list price of $999,900, Dach said he is confident the property will soon find a taker.’
“Dach said he has shown the property at 2660 Kelly Ave. about twice a week for a year now, and has received nine offers, none of which were accepted by the seller”
Let’s see:
Nine unacceptible offers in one year.
Price now lowered by 20%.
Presumably, none of the offers were better than 800k (maybe, maybe not). But now its clear that, even though some people “love” the property no one has come close to meeting the seller’s price.
And we’re supposed to believe that, generally, “prices” have only fallen a few percent (at most)? My take is that this seller is only beginning to see today’s market reality. He blew it and the new price will turn out to be as much a dream as the original price.
Do I hear $650,000? $600,000?
What you wanna bet the seller turned down a $900k offer because the agent said he could get more. Sounds like the same song, different verse of “I wish I’d accepted but now it’s gone, gone, gone”
Someone ought to inform Mr. Dach that the list of available GFs is much shorter in 2007 in compared to 2006.
The list of greater fools on the California North Coast, where this property is located, is still quite large!
It is an ocean front property and that’s a rarity in California … that’s a big deal.
How long is the California coast again? Just checking.
Next on his list of things to sell: rare, flat, grassland in Nebraska.
Mountain views in Colorado are pretty “rare” too.
Yeah, the line we see here in N AZ is ‘views of Mingus Mt’ or the ‘Shakespear Peaks.’ Those things can be seen over 100 miles away!
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“How long is the California coast again?”
But they are not making any more of it!
Jas
In fact it’s being slowly pulled into the ocean, and houses along with it.
Bullshit is never in short supply at the NAR. They’re still making mounds of it
Just wait for the next big one.
Looking at the Blog today I was amazed by what I was seeing - go look at what we had a year ago vs what we have today. Lordy lord how things have turned. The mainstream of the media is still not singing the song, but they are starting to hum to tune.
And some of the gelded bulls are rather silent (e.g., Gary Watts…).
Gelded yes, but he was allowed to keep ‘em….
That’s what’s in the bag.
Wow. Such lurid… imagery.
Gary Watts said 15% is in the bag for 2006. He also said 2006 is back end loaded.
It’s time to check with Gary again.
He left out the ‘-’ sign
Did he really? I’ll take that bet.
Ken posts “Gary Watts said 15% is in the bag for 2006. He also said 2006 is back end loaded.
It’s time to check with Gary again.”
Gary and anyone that listened to him are getting “backend loaded”
You and AugerInn deserve your own thread.
Gary and anyone that listened to him are getting “backend loaded”
LMAO… Yes and a free cowboy hat too!
bahahahahahaha!!!! there should be a cartoon strip dedicated to this and followed by the Yahoo! yodel!
Riverside County Superior Court Case No. RIC463483 (Anonymous Investor v. Jovane Investments, et al.) was filed by an investor who claims to have suffered $3,000,000 in damages on her case alone.
ROTFLMAO. Greedy, stupid “investors” with a lot more cash than brains get fleeced by unscrupulous “investing” syndicates, as legions of litigators move in like pit creatures to rip the meat from the bones of RE industry miscreants. This is like the Iran-Iraq war: let ‘em both lose.
Could this BE any more entertaining?
cash? most of these specuvestors have NO liquidity, imho!
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“How long is the California coast again?”
Misery is the best breeder of humor! I see lot more misery ahead.
Jas
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Sorry, it was reply to “Could this BE any more entertaining?
”
Jas
Her lawyer had better received a retainer and $20k up front; oh, she can give him some of her equity in one of the f’d properties instead. lmaorotf
Wow, a Temecula law firm. Skadden Arps and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher better watch out!
Crutcher……………….
Now there’s a name that brings up a vivid picture
Personally, I use Dewey, Cheetem and Howe.
Aside from Dewey, Chetam & Howe, my favorite law firm name is ‘Payne & Fears’
Most appropriate for the upcoming correction.
http://www.paynefears.com/index.php
Actually used to be (I’ve been gone a few years) a lawyer in Escondido named Creep
“Wow, a Temecula law firm. Skadden Arps and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher better watch out!”
Skank en de Arse and Givesome Dunning & Crotchrotch
“In some cases, $50-60k-a-year salaried employees had mortgage obligations that were more than $20,000.00 a month because they ‘owned’ 5-8 homes. The defendant companies are alleged to have taken money from other investors to pay the mortgages on behalf of plaintiff and others. The scheme is alleged to be a traditional Ponzi scheme.”
blah blah blah that’s a loser IMO except for the law firm
I doubt anyone who has the intelligence to have a 50-60K job, acknowledging that is not much these days, but isn’t a waiter or Walmart greeter, will be able to convince a jury that they didn’t have any idea what was going on or that investment gains of the type promised in these schemes were normal or to be expected.
I read yesterday there were a lot of nurses, etc, involved.
Nurses ?????
Now why does the word “Enema” spring to mind……
Apparently a lot of Filipino nurses got taken into this scam from what I’ve heard. That group as whole in SD is really wrapped up in RE around the SD area.
The Korean government just relaxed their investment/currency regulations. Substitute the word Korean for Phillipeno and we’re rolling again. Woo woo woo.
I believe the crimes involved cash back at closing and fraud appraisals
No offense, but in California, nurses are some of the most overpaid employees there are, and many of them I would never want anywhere near me while I’m under the knife.
Well…considering the fact that there is a very severe nursing shortage — so severe that they have to go to the Philippines to recruit nurses — I’d venture to guess they are definitely NOT overpaid.
I always think it’s funny when people think others are overpaid, yet they aren’t chasing those jobs down. If nursing is so easy and lucrative, jump on in!
Personally, I think doctors and nurses are the most valuable workers out there. I would MUCH rather see doctors and nurses making millions per year, rather than athletes and entertainers who are being paid extravagant sums just to run around throwing balls and “acting”.
IMHO, one of the reasons our contry is sliding into the pit is because we cannot properly prioritize which industries are most important and deserve the most resources.
correct: acting = act
Let me see here. A typical Doctor has to study 4 years of premed, (in order to even get in he has to be almost a straight “a” student) 4 years of medicine, 2 years of an internship, take who knows how many godawfull exams, and then, in order to specialize, has to study 3 more years (at leat). I think that they deserve the money that they make, as they have in my mind earned it through hard work, study, and is one of the few professions out there that actually does something good for their fellow human beings. Nurses, also have some awful responsabilities, and have seen, and done things that most humans would have problems with. They also deserve all the care and consideration that is necessary. that is in stark contrast to anything related to a business, a bank, or wall street whose only purpose in life is to make money, standing on the shoulders of other not as informed people. Those people that scammed them, should go to jail, and sleep every night with bubba whispering in their ear.
A good nursing job that involves surgery has considerable barriers to entry. You need to complete a two year course and then several years on the job. Similar physicians assistant (4 yr).
Its not the six week course in real estate or two week broker training. Nor is it completely unskilled like Marketing.
Since when does changing a bedpan or drawing blood more skilled than marketing a Fortune 500 company??
If you are insinuating that marketing is more art than science, I would agree with you. Otherwise, I would either say that you know absolutely nothing about marketing, or you must work in the accounting department.
Nope. Engineer.
Beyond insinuating that marketing doesn’t require a degree. I’ll just state it. Marketing can be done by the average HS grad. Just like running a small company.
Drawing blood, reading and understanding medical charts and other skills associated with nursing tend to be a larger barrier to entry than to marketing.
Not to say that a large number of people have the creativity to be GOOD at the marketing job.
So try not to get in to a tiff. Its more about barriers to market entry.
Dang! I only make a little more than that, and thought I was doing pretty good here in FL! My boss tells me they can hire 3 people in India to take my place at that number…
God , I love this kinda sh*t!!!
please, tell me about more Ponzi schemes…I’m drooling over here!
time to bring out the ass-whacking paddle for these Ponzi-duped morons!
The scheme is named after Charles Ponzi, who became notorious for using the technique after emigrating from Italy to the United States in 1903. Ponzi was not the first to invent such a scheme, but his operation took in such a large amount of money that it was the first to become known throughout the United States. Today’s schemes are often considerably more sophisticated than Ponzi’s, although the underlying formula is quite similar and the principle behind every Ponzi scheme is to exploit lapses in judgment arising out of greed.
Robbing Peter to pay Paul. When debts are due and the money to pay them is lacking, whether because of bad luck or deliberate theft, debtors often make their payments by borrowing or stealing from other monies they have. It does not follow that this is a Ponzi scheme. From the basic facts set out, it is not, because there is no indication that the lenders were promised unrealistically high rates of return via claims of unusual financial investments. Nor (from these basic facts) is there any indication that the borrower (banker) is progressively increasing the amount of borrowing (”investing”) to cover payments to initial investors (as, again, Ponzi was not the first to do.)
I think this is a more of a Robbing Peter to Pay Paul scenario, maybe not. Why is it the Italians that get hooked to the scams, Irish were here first and they pulled this crap too. Oh well.
Ponzi schemes seem really well suited to America these days. That is because for the most part Americans are lazy, greedy, and stupid. Kind of makes me feel all warm and patriotic just thinking about it. George Washington would be proud.
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“for the most part Americans are lazy, greedy, and stupid.”
I thought that it was fat, lazy and stupid.
Jas
That too. Go into any Walmart and look around.
I sumbit that fat, lazy, greedy, and ignorant would apply to any culture, given the chance. It’s individuals that make any difference.
Funny, but my wife and I count the number of grossly overweight shoppers we see when we visit Wal-Mart. It helps keep us in line -
Why is it that they all seem to go to Wal-mart? I never went to one until I moved to Florida, and when I walk around in there, I am scared at what I see. Wal-mart customers have to be the oddest collection of defective human beings I have ever seen (They probably look at me & my wife, who are both obviously urban mesomorphs, as the oddballs!)
Walmart is the only place where my wife can buy underware big enough to fit her, and, eat McDonalds at the same time.
My favorite (in TX) are the fat women riding around in Wal-Mart “fat carts” with flab hanging off their arms almost to the ground……YEE HAW!!!!
‘Course, GW himself was heavily involved in land speculation. After the French got beat in the French and Indian War, removing the biggest threat to westward expansion, wealthy colonists blew a giant bubble speculating in western land, which they assumed would shortly be populated by hordes of settlers — the “boomer retirees” of their day. Then the Indians threw a fuss (Pontiac’s rebellion), which cost the Crown so much to put down that King George instituted the Proclamation of 1763, restricting frontier settlement and private purchases of Indian land.
That, of course, crashed the bubble, and started a colonial recession that was one of the main causes of the American Revolution.
So even if George Washington might not be proud of today’s speculative excesses, they sure would have felt familiar to him.
Go check out the Social Security program. When you get your fill of that one then go look at the Federal Reserve Act of 1913. Those schemes ought to keep you rolling on the floor for several weeks at least.
Yeah, OK. Life itself is a Ponzi scheme.
I thought “life is a highway”? I stand corrected. thanks!
Auger-inn posts I thought “life is a highway”?
It is. The Hershy Highway.
Social Security wasn’t too bad when your average american keeled over at age 67. “Ponzi scheme” is too nice a term for it now. I’d call it “intergenerational theft”.
How about inter-generational remote tyrrany?
Any retirement program which is based on anything other than your retirement fund at a specific dollar number is a crock. It is not fair to folks who keel over at 66 and harldy collect at all and it is not fair to every one else when someone collects to 100. The bottom line is a person “contributes” X dollars which is invested at a given rate of return over some years has a specific entitlement and no more and no less … so if a person works for some city for 20 years there should be a specific dollar amount in that persons fund not paid with medical until you die. What if peopl estart to live to 120 one day?
If people regularly live to 120 then the retirement age (ie the age at which one is allowed to stop making manditory contributions and start taking withdrawals) should be raised to 85 or 90 or whatever makes the math work.
I would clarify my definition of SS to, “government-mandated intergenerational theft”. Or, as I might explain to someone from North Korea or some similar country who has zero idea how the US works, “a means by which the government steals from able-bodied, moderately successful people to reward old people for not dying.” If nancy pelosi et al. get their way I’d drop the word “moderately”.
There is no law that states you have to apply for a social security number and participate.
There is no law that states a citizen can not get a job without a social security number.
I’ve made numerous phone calls and sent numerous letters demanding the law. My letters were ignored and phone calls were palmed off. Finally a rep at the local congressman’s office admitted no such laws exists - “…but if you don’t have a social security number, how are you going to pay your taxes?”
well, what’s the differnce if Title 26 of the USC says that every employer/self employed person has to pay the social security tax. what do you expect the government to do file it by your name? They obviously have to have an accounting system …every accouting system in the world relies on account numbers…
whether you like ot or not the SS act was signed into law over 70 years ago, deal with it.
Deal with having nearly 8% of your money stolen from your income. Deal with the fact that you won’t see a penny of it when you retire.
“There is no law that states you have to apply for a social security number and participate. ”
Yeah, there is. The Internal Revenue Code, which mandates the payment of FICA or social security tax on any wage earned. Oh, I suppose you can opt to decline your benefit, but you can’t opt out of paying for it.
There are very few wage earners who can opt out of the system. Priests and Ministers come to mind. There may be others.
Jerry, IIRC, it’s not the social security benefit that’s actuarily in trouble — it’s the medicare benefit. Of course, part of FICA goes to the medicare fund, but the bulk goes to social security.
Yes, but since the SS “fund” is actually treated like slush money— the money that goes in is used at that time, and the money that is paid out is paid out at that time— I wouldn’t count on that being stable either. Literally, the money you’re paying in now is gone, either paid out to this year’s recipients or toward other federal projects.
The problem with Social Security is the coming Boomer retirement— the workers paying in : retirees taking out ratio is going to get very nasty very shortly. See Europe for examples of what happens when the worker : recipient ratio gets skewed.
so what you are saying is that ss is not really the problem. it is the government, how they squander the money we pay to the fund.
The social security trust fund is solvent for 47 more years, on paper. The government can just print up the money it borrowed from the trust fund, when it comes time to pay the entitlements. That’s what it does anyway, right?
jerry -
it’s 12.4%
plus 2.7% Medicare
or 15.9% if you’re self employed.
But rest assured those numbers were way way way higher before GOP took over Washington in 1994…
oops
“Any retirement program which is based on anything other than your retirement fund at a specific dollar number is a crock”
An optimal Social Security program should be exactly what it sounds like, a social program designed to provide security to the whole of society. To think about it in terms of what an individual contributes vs what an individual gets out is sort of missing the point. It’s not about the good of you, or the good of me, theoretically its about the good of all…
“priests and ministers come to mind”
once upon a time - yes.
Now the denominational pension fund demands participation in SS. Technically you can still opt out of SS but not if you want your pension.
And even then, the feds require you to sign in blood and/or the life of your first born child that you’re opting out because you are morally opposed to participating in the SS program in any way. yeah right.
So the only people who don’t participate in SS now are the ones responsible for ‘fixing’ SS in congress ….
guys lets all hope we start living to be 120… you make it sound like a bad thing
Jose and bdurbin:
The idea that Congress has “squandered the Social Security surplus” is a canard. The central problem of Social Security is, and always has been, that it’s a pay-as-you-go system. Benefits are, and have always designed to be, paid out of FICA tax receipts. That works great, as long as (1) retirees don’t live very long, and (2) each generation has at least as many children as its parents’. When either of those premises ceases to be true, the system becomes insolvent.
The “baby boom” was the result of the Depression/WWII generation’s having more children than their parents. The result was that, unusually, there has been a (relatively small) surplus of payroll tax receipts coming in from the boomers, above the amount flowing out to their parents. The problem is the very size of the boomer generation means that not only are their payroll tax contributions substantial (which caused the temporary surplus), their benefit entitlement is absolutely huge — dwarfing the surplus from their tax payments. If the boomers had had as many children as their parents (which would have been unlikely in any event; the baby boom represented an abnormally high birth rate), the system could have continued. As it was, not only did the boomers not match their parents in fertility, their fertility dropped off a cliff (thanks to the Pill, women joining the workforce, delayed marriage and childbearing, etc.)
That creates a huge unfunded liability for the boomers’ retirement payments, against which the accumulated surpluses in the Social Security Trust Fund’s legendary “lockbox” are a drop in the bucket. Even if the Trust Fund had been allowed to invest in something other than Treasury securities (which is the only investment they are allowed under federal law, which is a stupid idea for a whole ‘nother extended argument’s worth of reasons), there wouldn’t be enough to cover the boomers’ retirement.
me sooo greedy…. me soo greedy!
Read about $2250 / 4br - OWN this Equity Share Property for LESS Than Rent.
Is this the latest scam or has equity share been around for awhile?
Not enough info. Perhaps a way to share the downside risk (certainty) with some future bagholder…
Own a share… you have a share, I have a share, everyone has a share… I dunno, sounds like Milo Minderbinder’s behind this one.
Nice one, passthebubbly! Or should I say Major Major Major?
“What’s good for M&M enterprises is good for the country”
equtiy share has been around for a while. As far as it being a scam, it depends on how the investor/owner of the home structures the agreement. Sometimes the owner may structure it very tight and almost make it impossible for the tenant to share in the equity build up while other times it becomes a win win for both parties.
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“San Diego County housing prices dropped in 2006 for the first time in 11 years, apparently driven by a weak condominium and new-housing market, DataQuick reported. The overall median stood at $490,000 for the year, 0.8 percent below 2005’s $494,000. It was the first time since 1995 there was a year-over-year drop.”
The price peaked in Nov’05 at $520K; it was $517.5K in Oct’05 and $515K in Sep.05.
Jas
DataQuick reported -0.8%. My figuring says -5%.
Where did I go wrong?
Yeah, these preliminary numbers look odd. We’ll see what comes out tomorrow. There wasn’t a release on the DQ site that I could find.
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See the reply below. The 2005 Annual number seems to have been revised down from $500K to $494K.
DQ should post all the data over the next two weeks for various areas and for the state as a whole.
Jas
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The data for the YEAR is different than for year-end month of Dec. The former is the median for all the sales that took place during the calender year. You will see a much larger decline for YoY for Dec. than for the whole of 2006 over whole of 2005. OK?
Jas
Yep. But either way, the worm has turned and a lot of people are already underwater, with many more to follow.
Or am I mixing my metaphors? Ah, who cares! The brown stuff has not only hit the fan, it’s now being flung far and wide as the roller-coaster goes vertical. Yippee ki-yay, motherflippers!
“The data for the YEAR is different than for year-end month of Dec. The former is the median for all the sales that took place during the calender year.”
Ohhhh … I get it now. So, this is the formula the NAR will use to say that ‘06 prices were up v. ‘05, even though 12/06 was down v. 12/05? Do I now understand correctly?
In that case, I have no doubt in my mind that ‘07 will be the first national decline in median prices since the Great Depression. Too bad it’ll take another 12 months for that to play out.
do we have any other data about the median house itself, such as, sqft and its *peak* dream price.
One after another, the Frauds are revealed.
This whole freaking market has been like building a subdivision on a landfill.
Dig down just a little bit deeper…you find out it’s all made of $hit.
Keep diggin’, Ben.
Dig down just a little bit deeper…you find….
A Saint Joseph Statue.
OT commercial: anyone know any good blogs on commercial
ALSO does commercial usually lag 18-24 months vs residnetial ?
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Here are the monthly prices for San Diego County that I saved:
June 2005 $510,000
July 2005 $516,000
Aug 2005 $515,000
Sep 2005 $515,000
Oct 2005 $517,500
Nov 2005 $520,000
Dec 2005 $516,000 ?
June 2005 $510,000
July 2006 $507,000
Aug 2006 $505,750
Sep 2006 $498,500
Oct 2006 $500,000
Nov 2006 $495,000 (Revised down to $482K?)
Dec 2006 $483,000
Jas
And remember the figures do not include concessions and kickbacks from sellers . I bet the sellers net was another 5% off at least .
Jas,
I definitely remember 2005 numbers being over $500K. Thanks for posting that!
OT: Ben for the win!
Congrats Ben
So, what do you plan to do with that $25 Visa gift card?
Congrats, and well deserved.
P.S. My vote pushed you over the top. Can I have your gift card?
Ben that gift card kinda made it all worth while… I would frame it. Then brag about it to everybody that vists your house…. Well that’s just me.
I would spend $24.99 from the card on the frame, then frame it. But you are probably right, the conversation piece is worth more the the gift card.
Congrats, Ben. Well deserved.
The kick is up …. it’s good!
I voted early. And …
Woo-hoo!!!! Congratulations, Ben!!!
Very much deserved!
Housing bubble bloodbath…………
http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_1635.shtml
I wonder if Alan Greenspan takes a copy of the business page along with him on the chairlift at Aspen, so he can read about the plummeting housing market before swooshing down the well-groomed bunny-slopes at his favorite ski resort. After all, no one played a larger role in inflating what the “Economist” called the “biggest equity bubble in history” than the retired Fed-master. His low interest-rate bonanza triggered a stampede of speculation in the real estate market sending prices through the stratosphere and setting the stage for the biggest economic bust in American history.
The whole catastrophe was cooked up Sir Alan and his coterie of brandy-drooling elites at the Federal Reserve.
Fookin’ aye right, me bucko!
More likely takes it into the John and uses it to “swoosh” about a couple of other slopes.
Wierd!!!!!!!!! checkout the front page of Drudge last story in the middle column. Theyre reporting the collapse of the condo market in our favorite suspect cities like its a sudden and suprising thing that will be over in the morning…….Wierd……oh yeah but the story is developing
http://drudgereport.com/
well, the developing part is true. It’ll take a good 10 or 15 years for all the inventory to get absorbed. And the developers are still developing too; that’s part of the problem, isn’t it.
Does seem a bit silly. Did they all of a sudden just fall down? I wonder which to which “paper” this refers.
Wonder which paper?
posted ” reporting the collapse of the condo market in our favorite suspect cities like its a sudden and suprising thing that will be over in the morning…….Wierd……oh yeah but the story is developing”
AS a long time reader of thr Drudge Report, I can assure you “developing” with no link means they don’t know poop and are not following it unless they get run over by a ten ton truck. I should write for Matt Drudge that was a nice run on a sentance.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/16/realestate/16rentals.html?ei=5065&en=c551d19d50f5b8bd&ex=1169528400&partner=MYWAY&pagewanted=print
Drudgr finally linked up the story…..Cute, but nothig really new or groudbreaking (literally. Just more cannon fodder for the collapsing bubble debate. I do love these antecdotes though
“They have a choice of how they want to lose it,” Mr. Murphy said of investors and condo developers. “Drip by drip or in one slap.”
You might want to check that link out again!!!
http://tinyurl.com/yycedb
does he still post that link to Talon News?
From Russ Winters blog:
New Century Unit Downsizes
A branch reduction at a New Century Financial Corp. subsidiary resulted in hundreds of mortgage employee layoffs.
http://www.mortgagedaily.com/
Crispy’s link also has an article about a new Tennessee law prohibiting balloon payments and negative ammortization. Went into efffect today.
things are happening so fast now it’s getting difficult to keep track.
(I also posted this on an earlier thread today - but it applies here too)
Perhaps Ohio is the first state to “get it”. We shall see…
http://forum.brokeroutpost.com/loans/forum/2/85819.htm
Slightly off-topic, but I cannot help wondering what would happen to our federal budget deficit if the IRS had a look at some of these stated-income loans, and then compared them to the W2’s and 1040’s from these people. Seems to me if someone is willing to claim an income of 100k to take out a loan, they should then have to pay taxes on that income - (real or fictious). (p.s., one takes a heck of a risk by trying to cheat the IRS - one takes an incredible risk by then telling a lender about it)
CHeck out the comments that follow the article linked here. All mortgage brokers claiming that this law is going to set the Ohio housing market tumbling….
This one is the worst:
Thanks, This will only hurt the people of Ohio, look at how many banks have already closed their doors, RE and LO professionals will be unemployed and people are still going to lose their homes. Instead of doing things to improve the economy (cut taxes, give breaks to companies going into Ohio, offering programs for first time home buyers, etc) they think that they can solve all of the foreclosures by simply making it harder to get loans. Everyone will suffer. Years ago you could not buy a house unless you had 20% down, Ohians, welcome back to the 70’s. When everyone else in the country is experiencing home ownership at record level people in OH won’t even be able to sell their homes because no one will be able to afford them, not because they can’t get the loans, the govt. wont let them. It’s crazy.
No offense to these mtg brokers, but this is **exactly** what the market needs. Yes, “the market” will correct on its own, but if it takes too long, more people will get sucked in on the downswing, and more people will end up losing their homes.
Best to fix the problem quickly (stop sub-prime/no-doc/neg-am, etc.), so we can get on with business.
I also read through the string of comments by the brokers. It is amazing, though not surprising, that the only thing these guys think about is how the change will affect their ability to make money (i.e. churn out loans to people who can’t afford them). Not that it actually helping protect people. The Ohio law seems very prudent and reasonable. The minimum “doc” that should be presented when getting a loan for a self-employed person should be your last couple years of W-2s. No one should be wanking about not getting a No-Doc loan. The whole concept of No-Doc loans stinks from the get go. In regard to how the mortgage brokers think, I like this quote I pulled off of Bens blog a few months ago, “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!”
I thought the marketization of housing was so criminal. The idea above is that returning to ration credit standards hurts the little guy. True but the little guy should be able to do basic math and plan his budget. Also the banks will begin to crumble under the weight of all this mess. The zero down guy has spent to much money has to move out in to a cheaper place. The bank absorbs hundreds of thousands in losses per house.
People see the bank as this “big money black hat guy”. In reality its a collection of the community money and everybody suffers. The banker is a well paid proffesional (you hope) like a doctor or lawyer but he probably gets laid off as well.
anyhow…
I don’t know if this has been posted yet but . . .
Congratulations, Ben!
http://www.housingwire.com/2007/01/15/announcing-the-2007-reba-winners/
After counting, recounting, and counting some more — we’re pleased to announce the winners of Housing Wire’s first annual Real Estate Blogging Awards!
Each REBA winner will receive a $25 Visa gift card or a $25 iTunes gift card. We’re posting the top three in each category today. Sometime this weekend, we’ll release the full results for those curious to see how everything played out.
Category: Best Overall
Winner: The Housing Bubble Blog
2nd place: Mortgage Fraud Blog
3rd place: Calculated Risk
Thought about posting this in the Bits Bucket, and then about waiting until tomorrow. Suppose we should offer our congratulations now AND tomorrow. All the best, Ben for your hands-down top performance. Wonder if there will be a REBA statue, to go with the nominal monetary award. Wish there were a better way to applaud on a blog!
I think the main stream media should announce that BEN WON . Anyway ,you deserved it Ben .
Ben has won a major award. Congratulations Ben! Perhaps you could display it in the front window of your residence. The neighbors would love it.
Should have been presented to him at the Golden Globes!
I am proud to say that I voted for Ben in every category available. Congratulations Ben. Great work as always, and you deserve (as well as all fellow bloggers) the publicity and recognition. Very important word to try and save a few people from the life of slavery. Also, congratulations to many other related and great blogs in and of themselves.
I love hearing stories about CA going down the drain (picture holding the nose from the smell). So worth it after all of the years of CRAP I got when I was the only rational one.
And to celebrate Ben’s REBA win, he gets a gift card and a professionally mounted upside down St. Joseph statute!
Rock on!
stood at $490,000 for the year, 0.8 percent below 2005’s $494,000.
hmmmmmm I can buy anything I want for 12-15% off peak
Regarding the San Diego #’s, the only significant line is that prices in Solana Beach have declined 20% even though the yearly average rose 6.6%, this from a realtor no less! This proves that the average prices do not in any way reflect the price movement of the average house. I track some townhouses in Carmel Valley called Andalucia, it’s an utter bloodbath. Anyone can go to the San Diego assessor’s site and see the carnage, just enter “Mykonos Ln” and look at all the sales of the 1202sqft model. The peak was $589,000 and the most recent sale was $429,000! I’ve visited these and believe me, there is no view or location premium whatsoever, these things almost down 30%, and there are still tons left for sale.