A Learning Experience In California
The Daily News reports from California. “Now that some of the dire fears about adjustable-rate mortgages and sub- prime loans are proving true, lenders and nonprofit groups are rushing to come up with ways to slow down the defaults and foreclosures. But there’s also a growing call from mortgage brokers and other market watchers for struggling buyers to take some personal responsibility for their decisions.”
“Noemi Estrada became a homeowner in 2004 after securing an adjustable-rate mortgage to finance a $175,000, one-bedroom town home in Pacoima. The trouble started when Estrada received her first statement and noticed that the $600 payment she was being asked to make would cause her principal to keep on growing.”
“On top of that, her payments began climbing immediately, by $10 to $20 each month. Estrada had unknowingly signed on for a ‘neg am’ loan. Today, her payments are $800, and she already has one notice of default on her record. Estrada claims that the mortgage broker who sold her the loan lied to her about the terms.”
“‘If I knew all this would happen, I would go back and live in my mom’s house,’ said Estrada. ‘Right now, I’m about to lose my house. But if I let the bank take it, it would ruin my life.’”
“‘We’re going to give somebody a crutch all because they couldn’t spend a day in a seminar to find out about the loan products, and now they’re saying, ‘Nobody told me there was education,’ said Richard Pittman, director of a credit counseling nonprofit based in Commerce.”
“‘Come on, get your paycheck out and look at it next to your loan statement. You didn’t realize the $4,000-a-month payment was going to take 92 percent of your paycheck? … There’s a point to tough love, when you say this is a learning experience,’ Pittman said.”
The Ventura County Star. “Roxie Bajwa had an exciting Saturday. The Porterville resident made a trip to the Los Angeles Convention Center for an auction of foreclosed homes. She left with a new home in Port Hueneme.”
“‘I’m excited nervous and excited,’ she said just after placing the winning bid of $465,000 for the three-bedroom, two-bathroom house. ‘My husband wanted to go a little lower, but I didn’t want to let it go,’ she said.”
“Once someone won the highest bid, that person was taken to the area where they would work on financing and escrow documents. If something went wrong at that point if someone couldn’t qualify for the loan or didn’t have the down payment the deal would fall through, and the auction house would bring it back up for bid.”
“Prices often grew cheaper each time a home came up. A Compton home that originally sold for $285,000 later went for $235,000, then $220,000.”
“Frank and Mahi Hariri of Glendale placed a winning bid of $335,000 for a home in Santa Paula originally built before 1900. They found out afterward, however, that the home has several code violations. All homes in the auction are sold ‘as is.’ They backed out of the deal.”
“‘If I buy a property, I want to live in it,’ Mahi Hariri said.”
The Orange County Register. “Daniel Sadek played Orange County’s subprime lending boom like a card shark dealt the ace and jack of spades. Just five years ago he was selling cars. Then, in January 2002, he anted up $250 for a state lender license and started selling home loans through his company, Quick Loan Funding.”
“Quick Loan Funding’s name still crowns a Costa Mesa office tower. But Sadek, like the subprime lending industry, is holding a bad hand. His staff, once 700 strong, has shriveled to about 125. Monthly loan volume plunged to $30 million from a record $218 million in December 2005.”
“‘I’ve sold all my cars to keep the company going,’ says Sadek. ‘Every property I own is mortgaged to the max.’”
“Dinora Nava-Oleson of Yucaipa learned about Quick Loan through a late night TV infomercial in the summer of 2005. At the time she was desperate to refinance $524,000 in debt.”
“Within days of her call to the company, Nava-Oleson was offered a $530,000 loan to consolidate all her debts and refinancing costs. The papers she signed in September 2005 raised her total mortgage to $543,000, the total boosted by loan fees and a 9.75 percent interest rate. The rate was fixed for 30 years. Monthly payments were $4,678.45.”
“‘My attitude was just get me out of my mess and I’ll deal with the rest later,’ Nava-Oleson says. ‘I admit I’m partially to blame. But at the same time I don’t believe people should be taken advantage of.’”
“Nava-Oleson sued Quick Loan for predatory lending last year. Nava-Oleson settled the case to avoid foreclosure on her home, after working out a deal with two companies that had assumed Quick Loan’s mortgage. Quick Loan was not a party to the settlement.”
“Sadek says Quick Loan had to buy back $29 million in loans that defaulted in the first two months. That’s a number that’s likely to grow. Today he is $16 million in debt, he says. Sadek says he raised $13 million for Quick Loan by selling his cars and refinancing his Newport Coast mansion, an Irvine penthouse and a Las Vegas condo.”
“He believes the company is a good bet. ‘Tough times don’t last,’ he says. ‘Tough people do.’”
The Fresno Bee. “Fresno County’s unemployment rate rose slightly in April. A drop in financial services jobs related to home lending indicated that the negative effects of the housing slowdown will still be felt in the region in the months to come.”
“Fresno County lost 200 financial services jobs between April 2006 and last month. Doug Heffner, president of the Central Valley chapter of the California Association of Mortgage Brokers, said he thinks jobs will continue to be lost in the home lending and real estate finance sectors in the months to come.”
“‘We’re seeing a lot of mortgage brokers shrink their work force,’ he said. ‘I think that will accelerate in the coming months. I think we’re just starting to see the tip of the iceberg in this area.’”
“And continuing job losses in real estate-related activities could be a drag to the region’s entire economy, he warned. ‘For the last few years, real estate has been driving this market economically,’ he said.”
The Press Enterprise. “Families stood shoulder to shoulder at a busy Temecula intersection Saturday to warn passersby that they are facing financial ruin because of an ongoing investment mortgage scheme and to call for authorities to shut down and arrest the culprits.”
“‘We want them put out of business,’ said Mory Simmons from San Diego. Simmons, like most of the approximately 40 people at the rally, said they have homes in foreclosure because investment counselors persuaded them to take on far more mortgage debt than they can afford to pay.”
“Anna Richter of Rialto, said the victims, who have organized and formed their own Web site, chose to stage their first rally in Temecula because most of the properties caught up in the alleged fraud are in southwest Riverside County.”
“‘We want to get the word out to the Murrieta and Temecula communities that is why they have seen so many foreclosures and short sales,’ in which homes are sold for less than the debt owed on them, Richter said.”
“According to a lawsuit that Richter and another Rialto woman filed earlier this year, the defendants were not licensed financial planners or registered securities brokers but still put together investment groups in California, Arizona, Texas, Nevada, Washington and Oregon.”
“The suit claims that the defendants told prospective clients that by investing in real estate, stock and Iraqi currency, they could realize gains of up to 300 percent. But the suit says the promised profits never materialized.”
“‘I’m excited nervous and excited,’ she said just after placing the winning bid of $465,000 for the three-bedroom, two-bathroom house. ‘My husband wanted to go a little lower, but I didn’t want to let it go,’ she said.”
Another accursed winner is born…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winner’s_curse
Another sucker is born.
‘nuther one bites the dust.
Got 10% down?
This is my old neighbor (grew up with their boys). They’re both doctors and extremely intelligent. I guess just not about real estate.
Typically stupid cal Buyer. $465,000 for 3/2 in Port Hueneme! That is sandwiched at the very bottom end of Oxnard. Oxnard as we all know is a gangsville. PH does have some decent neighborhoods right at the waters edge but it is extemely adjacent to Oxnard slum areas, maybe a 10 minite drive north and east get you in the gang pockets.
“Prices often grew cheaper each time a home came up. A Compton home that originally sold for $285,000 later went for $235,000, then $220,000.”
Why pay $220,000? At the end of this year banks will dump Compton POS REO properties for less than $150,000, maybe under $100,000 for a really crapped out 2/1 gutted fixer. Unless of course that illegal alien Amnesty Bill passes, then Compton prices will instead shoot thru the roof, as will all LA inner city POS’s in the tijuana barrios, which comprise fully one-half of the LA Metro Region.
Isn’t compton a real hell hole? I would not be caught dead there.You could not even pay me to live there.
what you mean? Ice Cube sang it’s praises…
http://www.purelyrics.com/index.php?lyrics=utpmjhio
With advertising like that - (all together now)
Real Estate can only go up! (In Smoke)
“what you mean? Ice Cube sang it’s praises…”
Typical ghetto tasteless trashy lyrics, which unfortunately has made it’s way out of the ghettos and become imbedded in the pop culture of mainstream America. These lyrics are more than just violent ravings of the black ghetto youth underclass. The rants of Jacking, ho’s,guns,bitches,sticking it to the police, ect. are enacted in real-life on a daily basis in Compton and other LA ghetto pits.
One ‘recreation’of these ghetto punks is to cruise along the streets looking for someone to ‘jack’, and upon spotting their prey one or more would jump out with fists, pimpcane, or even a gun and pummel their victim, often just for kicks or more likely robbery.
Seen this s*it quite a bit when working in Compton back in the bad 80,s-early 90’s.
This is actually not true. If you listen to rap music BEFORE the record companies commercialized it, you would not find these type of lyrics (i.e., Will Smith, Sugar Hill Gang, Kurtis Blow, etc.). The problem is that the music became commercialized and these type of lyrics were selling the most because of purchases from the suburbs, not the inner cities (that is, 75% of gangsta rap music is purchased by middle class white kids). I actually did volunteer work with kids (8 to 12 year olds) at an elementary school in Compton. Believe it or not, they are not any different than kids anywhere else. Unfortunately, many have to grow up with violence around them and not much compassion from those who are not in their situation.
By the way, this is one of the initiatives:
http://www.foodfromthehood.com/2004-2005/food/Home/home.htm
These things don’t get promoted too much. I remember a project that I worked on with some of the kids. I called the local media to come and video what the kids were doing. I thought they could impress their friends and parents by getting on the evening news. The person I spoke with told me that this was not news. Funny, if the kids were shooting each other, the media would have been there first. Children have a great way of living up to expectations.
I’ve always considered myself a compassionate capitalist (even before I knew the term for it). There is a lot of money to be made in the inner cities. The problem is that it is not typically invested back into the inner cities.
This is one of the initiatives in the area: http://www.foodfromthehood.com/2004-2005/food/Home/home.htm
These things don’t get promoted too much. I remember working on a project and calling the local media to do a story on it. I thought the kids could impress their friends and families by getting on the evening news. The person I spoke with told me that this was not news. If the kids had been shooting at each other, the media would have been there quickly. Children have a great way of living up to expectations.
I have always considered myself a compassionate capitalist (even before I knew the term for it). There is a lot of money to be made in the inner cities. The problem is that it is not invested back.
guess who’s - don’t know if you watch ‘Bill Moyer’s Journal’, but he had Melissa Harris-Lacewell on, who was saying exactly the same thing about the commercialism in hip-hop.
You can check it here -
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/index-flash.html
I’m a huge fan of Old School hip-hop and rap, but became disenchanted with it, when artists turned their attention from social issues to ‘Benjamins, Bling and Biyatches’.
Thanks for passing this on. I had not seen it. The funny thing is that I grew up in an inner city neighborhood (on the east coast) and the first time that I heard gangsta rap was with a white male friend of mine who was playing NWA. I was a bit shocked when I heard it for the first time. I think NWA was a turning point.
I have to admit I love NWA. Although I’ve always thought of them more as ‘angry young men’ than as ‘lifestyle gurus’, more into politics than Escalades.
Sad to hear that Jurassic 5 are finally calling it quits.
“The problem is that the music became commercialized and these type of lyrics were selling the most because of purchases from the suburbs, not the inner cities (that is, 75% of gangsta rap music is purchased by middle class white kids).”
Typical. Bored middle-classers are always drooling over some fantasized Noble Savage. Goes all the way back to Rousseau — or Tacitus, even.
The present incarnation of the Noble Savage is the inner-city black man. (Or the romanticized American Indian.) It probably dates back to Norman Mailer’s essay “The White Negro.”
That said, Compton is still a wasteland.
Actually, I believe you would be “caught dead” there.
I had to do Jury Duty in Compton (drunk driving case) and it was just scary, though Compton is better than the surrounding LA city areas. I drove by Watts towers after jury duty one day and it was like being in a third world country.
yeah i agree there are plenty of worse places than compton in the LA area. the proof is when you ask black people and they wont go near some of these areas. who is buying in these horrible places?? i would leave the state if that was the only thing i could afford.
I am actually one of those black people and have worked in the area. I don’t speak for all black people, only myself. But, I did volunteer work when I lived and worked in California with several friends, including several white friends. None of us EVER had any problems and the children really appreciated the time that we spent tutoring them. I saw a lot of children with very low self-esteem and if someone doesn’t care about themselves, they will not care about anyone else. I know this is a real estate blog, so I will leave the discussion there.
guess who,
This is a real estate blog, but I appreciate your comments (and I think they were appropriate). I usually enjoy reading this blog since I’m watching the market in the NOVA/DC area. I’m also black which makes it hard to read it because of some of the incredibly racist and insensitive comments.
There are some smart people on this list, but there are also some jerks. It’s something that happens to some people who are really smart (but not accepted by others) that they become contemptuous and arrogant.
I am white but I work with black people all day long, both coworkers and customers. What some of these sheltered suburban whites don’t understand (the ones who gripe about “black people this, black people that” and, even better, since 50% of people on welfare are WHITE, “they just want handouts”) is that studies have shown that many black people have a better image of white people than they do of black people, even children, even as recently as last year (these studies were originally done in the 60’s I think).
The saddest thing in the world to me is some of the members of the public I work with, especially older people, who treat me as if I am better than them. I don’t mean insincerely kissing ass because it’s the South and even Gainesville used to be pretty racist. I mean they genuinely act as if they believe I’m a better person because I’m a white female with a Standard American English accent.
White people are good at loving themselves. They usually get tripped up in life because they really do think they can do XYZ, and either get delusional or depressed when it turns out they can’t. Black people–especially children–need to learn to love themselves and their self-image. And I agree, that’s not going to happen when television (which Black children get far too much of) is pushing this image of violent, crude, ignorant gangsters as an ideal for Black youth. Heck, almost makes the ignorant, mule-headed, reckless ball players the media loves so much seem like an improvement. At least they make their money scoring goals rather than pimping or selling rock. (Or selling a message of violence, intolerance, and ignorance via commercial rap.)
Well, keep fighting the good fight…. I really wanted to hurt that guy who kept posting that s*** about “jungle music” (find an apt complex with a noise ordnance, dumbass), but it’s the internet, and I’m no BOFH, so what am I gonna do?
Even if the amnesty bill passes, where are the illegals going to borrow the money to bid up those POS crackhouses in Compton? The subprime window is closed.
“Even if the amnesty bill passes, where are the illegals going to borrow the money to bid up those POS crackhouses in Compton? The subprime window is closed”
They won’t be able to borrow but the Owners/ REO bidders of all the POS crackhouses in the LA slimezones will do rehabs and conversions of their properties into multiple unit properties and rent them out to newly-legalized illegals. If this Ammnesty bill passes look for a building boom in rehabbed SFH lots being rehabbed into apts, duplexes,tri’s, cheap section 8 twnhomes.
Seen a lot of this stuff going on all over the inner LA de-zoned areas such as Lennox,SCentral, bell, Hunt park, Wilmington,E LA, Inglewood,ect. Newly-constructed Apts, assorted Other multi-units crammed into formerly SFH properties/neighborhhoods to provide rental housing for the zillions of illegals /green carders living in the inner LA area .
This will allow owners turned landords to keep their POS LA properties from going into foreclosure by allowing them to do quick-fixes using cheap illegal alien labor and quickly rent out their premises. This will slow down the natural price declines of 2/1-3/1 older SFH’s in the inner LA crapzones as millions of suddenly legalized aliens come out of the shadows and become legalized lawful tenants.
BTW i am completely opposed to this bill and have already sent messages to my two CA senators.
I take it that the Building and Safety department is looking the other way? Or are they actually permitting these conversions?
Don’t they need to permission to go from R1 to R2? More fees to keep the city coffers going.
“I take it that the Building and Safety department is looking the other way? Or are they actually permitting these conversions”
Judging by what i see taking place in the really crapped out inner LA ring zones such as 90011 i’d say. yes, The LA city B&P dept looks the other way or is completely accommdating. I once saw a large Apt blgd/lot with 2-3 big rig cabs parked right on the Apt tarmac. Other run-down sections of inner LA such as Bell,SGate,Compton, Lennox,Vernon,Maywood, ect,have such corrupt inept city halls that code enforcement is simply no-existent.
Even in Sections of Carson, east Torrance and large parts of Gardena which are not quite inner LA slums(yet) there is evidence of extensive recent downzoning to r-2/r-3 to allow multi-unit contruction.
I actually have a birds-eye view of this process taking place in a downzoned R-3 section of long Beach 90810, which has resulted in all manner and sizes of SFH’s, stacked condos,4000 sq ft monsters, quick and dirty rehabs of 2/1’s, all manner of llegal unpermitted room/garage additions, ugly cheap apts shoved behind SFH;s on same lot, ect.
I”d say that in LA City proper, the doors are completely wide open for developers and owners to do teardowns and rehabs as they please, especially in the poorer rundown districts which are a joke as far as building code enforcement. just a drive thru S Central LA along Broadway, Avalon, main st,San pedro south from the LA DWTN, or east- west along Slauson,Florence, Jefferson,Vernon,gage off the 110 and you can see evidence of incredible neglect from LA City Authorities in these Third-work dilapidated LA slums, which makes the Housing conversions all the more easier.
“just a drive thru S Central LA along Broadway, Avalon, main st,San pedro south from the LA DWTN, or east- west along Slauson,Florence, Jefferson,Vernon,gage off the 110 and you can see…”
Erm, no thanks. My Hummer doesn’t have the armor panels and bulletproof glass installed. And my gunner just quit last week.
Wow! peter_m & G/S thanks for posting. This is what I thought would happen with the election of Villaroisa. Cali ought to be named “New Mexico” and New Mexico should just be renamed Juarez Norte.
~Misstrial
“Erm, no thanks. My Hummer doesn’t have the armor panels and bulletproof glass installed. And my gunner just quit last week. ”
What you need is a tricked up escalade with $1000 rims, the darkest tinted windows, and a monster Boombox belting out Snoop doogy dogg Crap-Rap. Or a lowered impala 2″ off the ground bouncing up and down like a yo-yo with A mexican Flag decal and an “YO Love Michoacan” on the bumper and belting out those Mariachi sonnets while crooning ‘Aheeeee-e-e-e-e-e-e’ in tune with the beat.
Wanted to add that in the event of fire/earthquake or disaster, insurance companies will not cover any dwelling or structure not built to Code or with an approved permit on file.
~Misstrial
“Wanted to add that in the event of fire/earthquake or disaster, insurance companies will not cover any dwelling or structure not built to Code or with an approved permit on file.”
yea, in the final analysis, insurance companies are the real code enforcers and government authority. 200+ years of case law and endless resources to make it stick.
someone in our neighborhood of houses that zillow for between $800-1mil sold their house to themselves for 1.5mil after buying it for 920k 6 months before. they gutted the entire place and did almost a completely new house with no permits. i wish i could call every single person who would do something about each of the frauds involved.
“…belting out those Mariachi sonnets while crooning ‘Aheeeee-e-e-e-e-e-e’ in tune with the beat.”
Would to God it was actually mariachi, which I kind of like (in appropriately small doses). Sounds like you’re talking about ranchero or norteno, about which nothing should be said. Whoever thought of crossing mariachi with German oom-pah band music was on some serious stuff.
“…where are the illegals going to borrow the money to bid up those POS crackhouses in Compton?”
Merill Lynch? Morgan Stanley? Goldman Sachs? Da Boyz have been snapping up subprime lenders at fire sale prices…
From an article in yesterday’s WSJ (”Did Merrill, Morgan Stanley Overpay?”):
‘Last year, Merrill Lynch & Co. and Morgan Stanley bought subprime mortgage lenders, with Merrill paying $1.3b for First Franklin and Morgan Stanley acquiring Saxon Capital Inc. for $706m.
…
Karen Weaver, global head of securitization research at Deutsche Bank AG, said that Merrill and other big firms are still pursuing a valid strategy of using their acquisitions to gain a supply of mortgages which they can repackage and resell to investors. Just two months ago, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. paid about $20 million for a small two-year-old subprime lender, Senderra Funding LLC, in Charlotte, N.C.
In the first quarter of 2007, Merrill has moved to become the No. 1 underwriter of subprime mortgage-backed securities, in terms of dollar volume according to Inside Mortgage Finance, a trade publication in Bethesda, Md. For all of 2006, Merrill ranked No. 4. Subprime issuance fell by 23% to $94.8 billion in the first quarter of this year from the same quarter of 2006, the publication said.
Merrill has moved into the top spot “virtually overnight,’ said Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, thanks to First Franklin. Morgan Stanley, aided by Saxon, ranked No. 2 in the first quarter, up from No. 3 for all of 2006.
The two securities firms are filling a gap created by the bankruptcy filing of New Century Financial Corp. last month, and the withdrawal from the market of other lenders such as Fremont General Corp. Merrill underwrote $11.8 billion in the first quarter, including deals of roughly $2 billion or more in each month of this year. The two Wall Street firms have surged past rivals such as Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc.’
THE BIG QUESTION: Are Merrill, GS and MS part of the PPT’s subprime “containment” strategy?
From you the Fed taxpayer via HUD and FHA re-writes…
It’s a sicko Congress out there.
Hueneme is also Gangsville with the Southside Chiques claiming territory there.
cept for Hollywood beach, wouldn’t want a piece of it…
The OC story summarizes what this mania was!
I noticed the register took away the readers comments on this story. Maybe they didn’t like the honesty their readers discusssed?
Just Googled it, the Chinese government owns the OCRegister.com website. Enough said!
Really? wow
Well, they own a share via Blackstone…
In 2004, a family schism led to a sale of a majority interest in Freedom Communications to investors led by the Blackstone Group and Providence Equity Partners. Through a stock arrangement, the Hoiles family descendants retained control of the board.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Orange_County_Register
The Chinese government is making a major investment in the Blackstone Group
And the head of the Blackstone Group had Mr. Bush over for a fundraiser two weeks ago. That was the get-together at 301 Park Avenue. But don’t worry. They’re not using their influence within the administration. The whole system has become corrupt.
“And the head of the Blackstone Group had Mr. Bush over for a fundraiser two weeks ago.”
So is it a stretch to speculate that the Chinese govt will have a direct role in the bailout of the U.S. economy? Or is this to be expected?
I can’t imagine that this little love triangle has the well-being of you or I as the central aspect of its existence.
Crisp
When will Bakersfield implode? We have relatives up there and when they came to So Cal about 8 months ago they only shrugged their shoulders when I tried to discuss the housing situation up there.
Its imloding now.
We have 17.5 months of inventory, we are averaging 100-150 NOD’ per week (compared to 5-10 per week from 2002-2006), monthly sales are down 70% from their peak, etc…
You have to be kidding.
Of course I am.
We have been on here this long and you have to ask GS?
They have the comments back up now…
“Just five years ago he was selling cars. Then, in January 2002, he anted up $250 for a state lender license and started selling home loans through his company, Quick Loan Funding”
LMAO!
Ah yes, used car salesmen….what did we really expect? Thanks greenie for lowering the interest rates to effectively 0 and thanks China for keeping your currency pegged buying our USDs to keep the liquidity flowing. None of these idiots in real estate and mortgage brokering were real business entrepreneurs. They gamed the excess liquidity in the credit market and thought they were geniuses. “F” them and their ill-gotten gains. They get what they deserve for screwing up this country.
In the back of my mind I can’t believe that he didn’t put some money away beyond legal reach. He may look wiped out but highly doubt it.
Wait..the perp walks will happen eventually as people begin figure out what really happened. Hear about the protest in Temecula this weekend?? That’s just the tip of the iceberg.
That protest in Temecula is bull$hit… and your comments about screwing up this country must be a reflection of the many Mimosa’s you’ve had this afternoon. If you have ever seen this guys commercials on T.V.. The people he attracted weren’t exactly babes in the forest.
Must say I kind of agree Incomestream,
They slimeballs appeal to the slimeball in all of us. Like those poor protesters who invested $1M+ on whatever slimy scheme that they could get in on.
This country has been fertile ground for this sort of crap for centuries. Hucksters and shills are as American and apple pie. Only after enough people get burned to things change. This particular bubble episode will only be concluded when all the weasels who thought they could get something without working for it (be they specuvestors or ill-prepared and uneducated buyers or FED economists who want to save us from ourselves) get a good Auger-Inn treatment.
Mimosas?? That’s not my point Mr Incomestream. I’m not exonerating the morons who believed what the slimeball LO’s and realtors told them…I hope they burn as well. My point is that excess liquidity was going largely to those gaming the system. Please spare me your nonsense. Unless you understand the root causes of all this mess, your comments are nothing but visceral reactions to the criticsm of the industry that you participated in.
From your comments above it appears you’re solely blaming the REIC for screwing up the country based on a enviroment that was created by Greenspan and China. In my opinion that is a direct refection of one too many Mimosa’s this afternoon or a little too much sun or hell maybe a combination of both.
“Thanks greenie for lowering the interest rates to effectively 0″
EXACTLY!
The only perp walk I want to see, is the defrocked Greenspan being hauled off in an orange jump suit. Strung up like Mussolini would be my second choice (always prefer non-vioilent means of justice first)
Strung up like Mussolini
Ah…another who “almost” equates Greenspan as the Adolph Hitler of contemporary economics for the utter destruction he has wrought upon millions of bankrupt homeowners.
and property tax payers.
damn! if only i knew it was so easy..
“He believes the company is a good bet. ‘Tough times don’t last,’ he says. ‘Tough people do.’”
Hmmmm…in the last bust it took a decade in some places for values to reach pre’ ‘90/’91 levels.
My bet is he ain’t that tough…
If you are gonna be dumb, then you better be tough.
Guess he ain’t that bright!
“Friends said he got the idea of going into lending after selling so many Mercedes-Benz at Fletcher Jones Motorcars to customers in the mortgage business”
Looks like FJ Motor Cars might be losing some sales in the near future??
I’m pretty sure they already have.
What about the $75 million dollar Lexus store in Newport Beach?
That guy built this place at the peak of the Orange County economic bubble. The former owner of FJ Motors went BUST in the last downturn, after his airline business and local economy hit the skids…
You mean Jim Click? He went bust?
~Misstrial
Worst part about being an auction amateur?
“‘I’m excited nervous and excited,’ she said just after placing the winning bid of $465,000 for the three-bedroom, two-bathroom house. ‘My husband wanted to go a little lower, but I didn’t want to let it go,’ she said.”
For every item auctioned off, there is a clearly defined winner (Roxie & beau) and everybody else by definition, is a loser…
This plays with the plebe’s minds, they get caught up in auction fever and a selected few are sitting ducks…
Like waterfowl to the abattoir~
‘placing the winning bid of $465,000′
Typically, there is also another 5 % due to the auctioneer $23,250.
I like the “victims” picketing in Temecula. They thought they’d be getting 300% gains and they expect people to feel sorry for them?
Gawd. What is this country becoming. Is it any wonder we have the candidates we do.
It’s like picketing in the streets if you lost money in the stock market. They knew what they were getting into. They didn’t have to sign the DAMN PAPERS!!!!
I have not heard about this story.What are they picketing for?
I got it now.They should arest the morons and throw them in jail.
Chill out. They’re exercising their right to free speech, regardless of whether or not you agree with them.
Their incompetence deserves jail time. I don’t give a sh@t what you think.
Yea, they are “victims” alright - have no problems with investing in Iraqi currency taking advantage of the current situation over there. But yet cry when their mortgage payment doesn’t quite work out. Gimme a break…
Oh, yeah. Speculating in Iraqi currency sounds like a safe bet to me.
Where do I sign? I wanna go all in on that one.
Not.
I’ve known three people from Temecula who over the past several years have been telling me about their net worth. They, from their own mouth, were millionaires. One is a deputy sheriff who works in SD. I can’t wait to hear their new tales of woe. Another sold in Temecula and moved to LV to move up.
I’d love to show up at one of these “victim” rallies with bullhorn in hand. These whiney hiney-holes were classic marks - their greed made them vulnerable. Now they’ve been well and truly vulnered….
Wow, lot of actions already.
Save this Temecula protest for the bubble book.
I’m sorry Ben, but you missed the best part of the OCR story. Ms Nava-whatever, who apparently is too stupid to read the paperwork for her own loan, is now a ‘mortgage account executive’. Bout blew my morning coffee out my nose this morning at Denny’s.
Oh, and her ‘predatory lending’ issue was over $2100 in fees. She’s definitely a prime candidate for Mr. Pittman of the credit counseling firm (ROCK ON DUDE!). Tough love, read it and weep babe.
That just proves how deep the mass housing psychosis really is. It’s going to take external events to make J6Pack really get it. Tightening standards in the lending industry, CDO premiums adjusting to reflect real risk, China de-pegging their currency.
JWM, oh yeah Jsix will be feeling it soon, intelligent post
He will when he can’t refinance since long term rates are going up because China doesn’t want to buy USDs and treasuries anymore because it’s overheating their economy.
“He believes the company is a good bet. ‘Tough times don’t last,’ he says. ‘Tough people do.’”
I have to admire the guy for selling off some assets and refinancing others to keep his company alive, but c’mon… Does he not see the writing on the wall? His industry is going to cycle down for many years. It does not matter how tough he is.
Either way, Quick Loans are likely to go BK. Dumping his personal fortune into the company now only assures he will go BK, too.
Poetic justice? Yes. Entirely stupid? Absolutely.
Maybe not, some has to finance all the foreclosures coming back on the market. Although he did say he primarily did refinancing. But the type of license he holds is perfect for FHA/VA financing so it will be interesting to see if he goes BK or not. Time will tell how smart he really is…
From their website:
We offer the following loan types:
- First time home buyers
- Refinancing
- Debt Consolidation
- Home Improvement
- Cash Out for Any Purpose
Sounds like your typical chop shop to me…
The buy-backs will just keep coming given the typical “borrower” this company seems to target.
The way he is set-up it’s easy to change directions. If I’m reading the article right he is not beholden to wall street and he’s a small shop. Like I said time will tell if he’s smart or not.
You think anyone of his customers will qualify for a re-fi?
LOL
“The suit claims that the defendants told prospective clients that by investing in real estate, stock and Iraqi currency, they could realize gains of up to 300 percent. But the suit says the promised profits never materialized.”
I was on the fence. If only they’d included currency from Zimbabwe and Nigerian bank futures in the investment options and promised gains up to 500 percent, I’d have been in.
If some Nigerian 419 scammer didn’t sneak into the Temecula “victims” rally and make off with a copy of the sign-up sheet, I’d be surprised. These fools are sheep waiting to be fleeced.
LMAO! Sammy it is clear that you see the complex intricacies in todays scammer/sheep laced world. I always enjoy your posts, thanks!
WHO would listen to someone telling them their gonna make them 300%? That percentage should raise a flag, maybe?
“We want to get the word out to the Murrieta and Temecula communities that is why they have seen so many foreclosures and short sales,’ in which homes are sold for less than the debt owed on them, Richter said.”
No dummies the reason why there are so many foreclosures and short sales is because becuase you overpayed on $500-600,000 homes that never should have been priced at Above $300,000.
Anyone with even a smidgin of a brain should have known of all over overbuilding going on in SW riverside county last several yrs, which would sooner or later put pressure on developers to lower prices on all those new units thrown up in Temecula(extremely overbuilt with new inventory),Murrieta, L Elsinore, Sun City, Menifee,Canyon Lake,S corona,Hemet,Perris,S Jacinto, Moreno Valley, ect.
PLus there are few jobs out there and the entire area generally a scorched barren frypan 3-4 hrs from LA /OC which does wonders with the household budget with $3.50-$4.00/gal gasoline.
So true. Even a small amt of time spent in other states gives you an idea that there are equally good houses at half the price in places that charge half the income tax, and whose weather is not much worse than inland CA.
Not to slam my beloved state of Cali, but gas here in southern New Mexico is presently $2.98/gal.
~Misstrial
It’s more like $3.60 here in SoCal , but you probably already knew that. OTOH, I bought gas in Las Vegas a few weeks ago for about $2.50.
Whoa - then its gone up. I’m going to be in Cali for about one month. I was told to prepare for $3.51/gal (Central Coast).
~Misstrial
Per Vegasgas.com, Las Vegas low is now $3.09, high about $3.25 (for regular).
AZ,
It used to be that everyone I spoke to about CA vs anywhere told me that the price differences were worth the mark up because of the climate. Now when I tell people I’d really like to leave the state, everyone asks how I’ll handle the religous pressure. I find it interesting how these arguements against out migrating from CA have turned to trying to instill fear in me. Before the arguement was about how could I leave nirvana.
That’s funny, Gwynster, I get the opposite when I tell people I’m moving out. Lots of congratulations, talk of joining me. Most of the talk revolves around the absurd cost of living in LA, particularly in West LA and how it makes life here nearly impossible.
Amen to that brother. The wife noticed a starter condo on Centinela, where one would be sucking fumes from the SM airport, had been reduced from 610 to 599 today in the paper. I told her to let me know when it’s 300K and then we’ll start talking.
“The wife noticed a starter condo on Centinela, where one would be sucking fumes from the SM airport, had been reduced from 610 to 599 today in the paper. I told her to let me know when it’s 300K and then we’ll start talking. ”
That section of Centinela from National blvd all way to washington ave , thou still a somewhat decent area, has lots of apt units, some of them a bit ragged and in need of an upgrade. Condo units are way outnumbered by the apts. This area is close to if not part of Mar vista. Also Commute traffic really heavy along Centinela.
South of Washington ave all way to 90 fwy Centinela ave starts getting a bit ragged, at least by Westside standards.
Note” there is a lot of new Multi-unit contruction taking place all over Mar Vista -palms area. Mostly apts but also condos/Twnhomes. Condo prices should be dropping eventually, thou the westside is a tough housing nut to crack.
There were soooooo many really nice homes in Murrieta when we lived up that way in 99 which were selling at $129K - 200K. For prices to be where they are now is just insane. We are easily talking 4X increases across the board. Rents have gone up about 30% in the same time, and incomes may have gone up 15 - 20%There is no way prices do not fall a full 50+ % up there from todays levels. and with the price of gas continuing to go up. Nuts!
3-4 Hrs is a bit of an exaggeration dude…
It is 75 minutes to Murietta from Irvine on a typical weekend afternoon including the 15 South congestion, maybe a bit more on weekdays depending on time. I know this stat from visiting my sister and her family over there in Murrieta in their rapidly falling in price, low quality “wanna be” McMansion.
I think the rest of your argument is spot on though.
“3-4 Hrs is a bit of an exaggeration dude”
I may be using the worst case scenario. Going from Irvine to Murrieta(OR vis versa) on a Friday late afternoon or on one particularly nasty traffic-clogged weekday morning/afternoon could take at a minimun 3 hrs, IF THERE ARE NO SIGALERTS ON THE 91 OR THE 15. The best case is on the lightly trafficked weekend, preferably sat/sun morning when yes it can done in half the time. Monday mornings are also usually the lightest commute day so it probably could take just over two hrs best time.
Coastal LA timetable still stands-min 3 hrs to get to dwtn/westside/SBaY from Murrieta/Temecula normal commute period.
Traveling from such really far-out SW riverside Areas as hemet,perris,S jacinto,menifee,banning,romoland could take at least 3 hrs to get to S OC or to LA, in normal coomute traffic.
BTW If I had the OC tollroad pass i could get to Irvine from Murrieta, or Vis versa, in a little over an hr in light traffic periods.
The Press Enterprise. “Families stood shoulder to shoulder at a busy Temecula intersection Saturday to warn passersby that they are facing financial ruin because of an ongoing investment mortgage scheme and to call for authorities to shut down and arrest the culprits.”
“‘We want them put out of business,’ said Mory Simmons from San Diego. Simmons, like most of the approximately 40 people at the rally, said they have homes in foreclosure because investment counselors persuaded them to take on far more mortgage debt than they can afford to pay.”
I suppose that personal responsibity and stupidity IS much easier to HIDE shoulder to shoulder IN A CROWD.
As if these borrowers didn’t know it was a investment scheme to sell to a greater fool because they could not afford the payments for very long . Not that I think it was wise or any thing but fraudulent for lenders/REIC to put people into liar loans they couldn’t afford .They all deserve each other and they will all be in the court system pointing the finger at each other or protesting in the streets. They were all greedy or stupid trying to get a piece of the action .I feel more sorry for buyers who could afford the payment and bought because of trust in a industry that convinced them that they had to buy or be priced out forever . Those people will lose equity ,but they might be able to ride the long term down cycle .First time buyers were the biggest dumb group that I think the industry sold the concept of the can’t lose RE investment to. Man is this going to get ugly .
From that same story:
“Investors said Pacific Wealth Management — a Nevada company unrelated to another investment firm with the same name based in San Diego — promised to make the monthly mortgage payments for the multiple houses they were advised to buy. But the investors said late last year the payment assistance stopped.
Steve Lanuzo, a 40-year-old medical technician at the Naval hospital at Camp Pendleton, said when money stopped coming from Pacific Wealth in October, he and his wife, a nurse, wiped out their savings in a vain effort to keep up $40,000-a-month payments on their mortgages. He said the eight houses they bought as investments and their family home in Temecula are in foreclosure and they and their four children are waiting to be evicted.”
Oh, boo, f**king hoo. Dude recklessly overleverages and rolls 7’s on the RE craps table and I’m supposed to feel sorry for this assclown? Now he’s facing giving up his “dreams” of money-for-nothing and returning to a bleak existence as… a renter and wage-earner. Like me.
Oh, wait, I forgot Steve has four children (all probably as stupid as he is). That changes everything –call HeliBen and get him to turn those machines back on!
Color me unimpressed by the claims of “victims” of investment fraud schemes. The one mentioned here sounds like a classic Ponzi scheme. Didn’t we all get taught - “If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is”? Guess not.
A partial long-term solution (one thing I would *love* to see made part of the Jr/Sr High School curriculums in the US) is instruction in basic “life skills”, like basic personal finance, how to save, doing taxes, how to read a contract (and when to seek help from a pro), comparing returns on investments, etc.
I agree a good share of this could have been prevented with good life skills training (not all though-many if not most of the “victims” had both eyes wide open). There are related issues where emotion clouds the economic issues. For example, my wife just heard a show on the radio about the costs of choosing to be a stay at home mom. She is finally paying attention and thinking about this. As the husband, I have tried to advise her, but I have had to bite my tongue or be branded a child hater. I have loved having her home with our son for several years, but the reality is that there is a cost and rather than emotional, fuzzy platitudes about the joys of “home ownership” or “motherhood,” or whatever, folks should be taught how to evaluate the financial trade offs in hard, rational terms.
There is a new book out on this very subject by Leslie Bennetts titled, “The Feminine Mistake.” This book explores the financial aspect of being a stay-at-home mom (i.e.: financially unsound)
She was perhaps listening to Dr. Laura??? - she lives in Hope Ranch in Santa Barbara and lives just up the way from her best friend Wendy McGaw who is living with (or, “shacking up” as Dr. Laura would derisively state on her radio program) her boyfriend. Talk about being a hypocrite.
~Misstrial
Yea,
I think that was the book. I think a frank conversation on that topic is probably valuable, but Bennetts sounded kind of alarmist. Yes, financially it is a big decision, but not necessarily a disaster. The main thing is one can’t have it all. Earn a degree, bury the spouse with student loans, buy a house near the sea in a “good schools” or private schools neighborhood, get the new SUV with airbags, and then stay at home and make lunches. Something has to give. Same with the middle class idiots that insist on buying a house anywhere in coastal California. Simply insane at the moment.
Good points!
~Misstrial
That is a a point I have been trying to impress upon my younger nieces, sure you can “have it all”, (career, marraige, kids etc.) but just not all of it at the same time! That, I think, is the lie about feminism. You cannot have/do all those things at the same time and do them well. Somethin’s gotta give.
Guess what, the schools would still have to pass people regardless of their performance. In other words, even if there are competent teachers, they are under pressure to push the kids to the next grade. IMO, unless there is a serious change in the thinking of kids achieving the minimum grade (no curving) the kids will not learn anything. Those that want to learn will eventually learn.
I agree about the negative impact of automatic promotion. Where failure is impossible, success is meaningless.
i think there would be some good to teach a student how to do their taxes. i also think that younger people should be able to vote.
but why cant any responsibility be put on the parents to help their children learn? i can only feel sorry for someone up to a point, since there are many many people that dont have everything spoon fed to them that come out on top.
“Noemi Estrada became a homeowner in 2004 after securing an adjustable-rate mortgage to finance a $175,000, one-bedroom town home in Pacoima”
Can you imagine buying a one-bedroom Twnhome for $175,0000 in Pacoima! I wonder if that unit is adjacent to the 118 0r 5 fwys:truly a wonderful slice of gangland, or as i often call it, the ass-end of the SVF.
The SFH-zoned neighborhoods of Pacoima,Arleta, Sun valley, San Fernando, Sylmar are generally ragged, decaying and overrun with illegals. Imagine how depressing the neighborhoods are in Townhome, apts, and condo R-3 zones.
Note: Sylmar may have the highest number of foreclosure/NOD’s for it’s rather small zip area and population. There was a hugh no of new housing developments put up in Sylmar(almost all townhomes and Condos), but the general area has always been very ragged, rundown, with extensive poverty pockets.
Anyone who overpayed for housing units in Sylmar really did not research the area at all.
“Noemi Estrada became a homeowner in 2004 after securing an adjustable-rate mortgage to finance a $175,000, one-bedroom town home in Pacoima. The trouble started when Estrada received her first statement and noticed that the $600 payment she was being asked to make would cause her principal to keep on growing.”
(begin sarcasm)
Isn’t just amazing how these borrowers can suddenly read statements and understand interest rates AFTER they have signed the papers and agreed to the loan(s).
(end sarcasm)
Only politicians are dumb enough to feel sympathy for them.
~Misstrial
begin sarcasm)
Isn’t just amazing how these borrowers can suddenly read statements and understand interest rates AFTER they have signed the papers and agreed to the loan(s).
(end sarcasm)
Bingo, Now if only a few Judges would embrace this wisdom…
LOL!
~Misstrial
From the same article: Her savior..
“Don’t blame victims
Bruce Marks, CEO of the assistance corporation, said placing any blame on homeowners who took out bad loans is wrong.
“I will not accept the theory of blaming the victim,” he said. “Lenders have a legal responsibility to make affordable loans to people. ”
Wonder how much a year he makes by “not accepting the theory ” ?
“legal responsibility to make affordable loans to people.”
This is news to me…
““legal responsibility to make affordable loans to people.”
This is news to me… ”
You and the rest of the free world.
Here is my quarterly report of house values in Chico California. Values of resale homes have dropped 12.5% in the last three months. Prices are down over 26% from last year.
1Q1 $138,000 1858 Bedford
1Q2 $145,000 2065 Rochester
1Q3 $151,000 1825 Devonshire
1Q4 $146,500 1837 Devonshire
2Q1 $148,000 1869 Devonshire
2Q2 $150,000 1865 Devonshire
2Q3 $167,000 1868 Devonshire
2Q4
3Q1
3Q2 $198,500 1829 Devonshire
3Q3
3Q4 $239,000 1882 Bedford
4Q1 $270,000 1884 Devonshire
4Q2
4Q3 $265,000 1869 Devonshire
4Q4 $279,000 1821 Devonshire
5Q1
5Q2 $334,000 1880 Devonshire
5Q3 $323,000 1865 Devonshire
5Q4
6Q1
6Q2 $311,000 1837 Devonshire
6Q3
6Q4 $280,000 1858 Bedford
7Q1 $245,000 1882 Bedford
I am critical of the use of Average home sale price or mean sale price because they don’t accurately show the true value of homes. If you have a lot less people buying homes then the values will skew higher when using averages and means as a analysis tool. This is because the only people who are buying homes are the rich. So of course it will seem that values are holding or may even appear to be gaining when in fact the bottom is dropping out.
Chico’s inventory is much higher than last year. According to Realtor.com, this time last year in Chico we had 542 properties for sale. Today we have over 700 and growing.
Prices will continue to drop. Manufactures of homes are now being forced to rent instead of sell. This has caused the price of Rent in Chico to drop slightly for new homes.
Just trying to interpret your post. I guess you are saying these houses on Devonshire and Bedford are essentially identical, so that the prices shown are prices all for the “same” thing. Not too surprised to hear that rent is also falling.
Went to an open house today. 800 sq ft bungalow in a pretty nice part of Sacramento. Asking $309K - agent says owner priced it “low” for a quick sale. Hmm. Sales history on Zillow: sold for $150K in 2000; sold for $275K in 2004. Can you say “short sale”? Should show up soon on “Sacramento Flippers in Trouble” website, which now shows more than 1000 underwater flips. Prices falling very slowly . . . .
Yes, these houses are all 1320 sqft and look identical.
Glad to hear prices are returning to earth in Chico.
A great town with an underwhelming job market. Guys manning leaf blowers can’t swing $400k homes.
Thank you for your report. I will share it with my husband who is a Chico alumni.
~Misstrial
I just posted a new topic over on SDCIA called “When Flippers Become Floppers“, using the name BetterRenter. Hopefully it won’t be axed by a moderator, but you know how those fliptards hate to hear anything negative about their Master Race — I figure it’s got a 50% chance of staying.
Here’s what I posted, just in case the flipstapo axe it:
“I’m thinking of starting up a suicide watch site (ByeByeInvestards.com, FatalFlippers.com or something) for people like Casey Serin, “Taco Bell” Jeff, and other yuppie morons who thought they knew it all — despite all the logic, data and outright common sense that was contrary. There seems to be a need since there is a marked interest in their ongoing lives, and they have set themselves up to be such huge losers that suicide is a statistical likelihood. I can form betting pools and perhaps make a little money off it, which is a better thing to do than buy overpriced housing and then hope some greater fool will buy it. There could also be degradation setpoints, where we watch for these guys to go through divorces, evictions, seizure court actions and (in one recent event) shootouts with police. What ideas do you all have which would help to form such a site?”
I’m EAGERLY AWAITING their viewpoints.
We’ll have to stop calling “flippers”, too. It’s FLOPPERS now. They’ve flopped, big time.
That won’t last on SDCIA…
Well, the thread is still going, and it’s hilarious (I’ve been accused of being “Ohio academia” and coming from an “unusual domain”), but when I tried to post again, it said “thread locked”. I’ve emailed moderator “Greg” for advice.
BTW, I got a laugh with my “Investards” label. He hee!
Don’t miss this one:
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_21/b4035053.htm?campaign_id=rss_magzn
Fascinating story, txchick. Thanks for posting it.
“From Arizona to Arkansas, dozens of small- and midsize builders have filed for bankruptcy over the past six months. ”
“Moody’s credit analyst, Joseph A. Snider, notes that 11 of the 21 large builders whose debt his firm rates had negative cash flow in 2006 as many were stuck with higher-than-expected inventories of homes they couldn’t sell.”
How long until one of the big national homebuilders files for bankruptcy? How can we get to the end of this year without at least one of them going under?
And barring a total collapse in the market, lenders are also likely to offer a safety net, making concessions to keep the larger builders afloat in the near term. “I expect the lenders will be willing to work with them,” says Fitch Ratings analyst Robert Rulla. “They’ll want to maintain that relationship for when the turnaround comes.”
Yeah, no worries. The lenders are very sensitive about the feelings of the home builders and will gladly lose money to keep the relationship, lest the builders get upset and, God forbid, decide to borrow from elsewhere, a decade from now.
Credit rating agency shills are the worst of financial industry’s fluffers.
There is such a ‘Dis-connect’ from the real world for the builders listed on the stock exchange. I don’t see them going under. The dis-connect runs through wall street, so why would they not support the builders … maybe they can declare them necessary for the security of the nation.
Isn’t that rich?! These guys pocket more change over the last few years than any time in the history of the republic and they belly up after a few lean months. I thought some guy said ” Tough times don’t last, but tough guys do…..!”
A really nice article just came out in Big Builder. They have compiled ‘report cards’ for the financial statiblity of public builders.
http://www.bigbuilderonline.com/Industry-news.asp?sectionID=360&articleID=496343
(The report cards are linked at the bottom of the page)
http://www.bigbuilderonline.com/content/special-reports/BigBuilder-2007publicreportcard.pdf
I have never laughed so much in my life. This truly epitomizes our current culture.
I share this with my friends knowing that they would not appreciate it, because they themselves know that they are guilty !!
Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECIuteQB8hw&mode=related&search=
Part2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33OE65bNclc&mode=related&search=
Part3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxylHPnoloI&mode=related&search=
LMAO!
I thought of at least 6 friends to send it to … but then they would be my new ex-friends.
I love hearing California housing sob stories. Gives me so much pity for these asshats. $600 a month for a payment. Even in a gang infested area, that is still way to cheap and they know it. They couldn’t rent a crackhouse for that. This chick is now playing the victim card because her gamble of forever appreciation stopped. She wanted to pass it to another GF down the road at a $50, 100K, + profit. Too bad it didn’t work.
So funny, I love it. This truly epitomizes our current culture.
I send this to my ferinds and family members knowing that they would not appreciate it. Because they themselves know that they are guilty.
Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECIuteQB8hw&mode=related&search=
Part2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33OE65bNclc&mode=related&search=
Part3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxylHPnoloI&mode=related&search=
“Once someone won the highest bid, that person was taken to the area where they would work on financing and escrow documents. If something went wrong at that point if someone couldn’t qualify for the loan or didn’t have the down payment the deal would fall through, and the auction house would bring it back up for bid.”
“Prices often grew cheaper each time a home came up. A Compton home that originally sold for $285,000 later went for $235,000, then $220,000.”
Boy, talk about a sham - even as auctions go. So, if I understand it right, they have shills to help bid up the prices against the neo-Donald Trumps. If the shill ends up with the “winning bid”, then the shill pretends to not qualify and, just like magic, the house is put up for bid again. If the dingbat investor wins, then HA, the joke’s on him. It looks like a shill won twice for that Compton house before a dingbat took the bait.
Like I said - what a sham. This one is the best I’ve seen yet.
“Dinora Nava-Oleson of Yucaipa learned about Quick Loan through a late night TV infomercial in the summer of 2005. At the time she was desperate to refinance $524,000 in debt.”
“Within days of her call to the company, Nava-Oleson was offered a $530,000 loan to consolidate all her debts and refinancing costs. The papers she signed in September 2005 raised her total mortgage to $543,000, the total boosted by loan fees and a 9.75 percent interest rate. The rate was fixed for 30 years. Monthly payments were $4,678.45.”
I smell CCs resetting back to zero balances. Now this dumb biatch is going to have ever more “priceless” moments.
I pay the full balance of my CCs every month. Who’s the chump?
Got 10% down?
Bu, bu, but,…(pause)…how will she “live richly” (quoting CitiGroup’s ads)???
“‘I’m excited nervous and excited,’ she said just after placing the winning bid of $465,000 for the three-bedroom, two-bathroom house. ‘My husband wanted to go a little lower, but I didn’t want to let it go,’ she said.”
I’d love to be a fly on the wall in that harmonious household in about a year. The recriminations are going to be flying fast and furious.
Now THAT is plain mean. Funny, but mean.
but, Suzanne researched it!
LOL
Suzanne didn’t research that one. They went hook line and sinker all be themselves
“Within days of her call to the company, Nava-Oleson was offered a $530,000 loan to consolidate all her debts and refinancing costs. The papers she signed in September 2005 raised her total mortgage to $543,000, the total boosted by loan fees and a 9.75 percent interest rate. The rate was fixed for 30 years. Monthly payments were $4,678.45.”
“‘My attitude was just get me out of my mess and I’ll deal with the rest later,’ Nava-Oleson says. ‘I admit I’m partially to blame. But at the same time I don’t believe people should be taken advantage of.’”
We were the ones getting taken advantage of, back in 2005 I believe I was getting 1% interest in my checking account, while the banks were charging 9.75% to people like this.
“‘I’m excited nervous and excited,’ she said, ‘My husband wanted to go a little lower, but I didn’t want to let it go,’ she said.”
Sounds like something else, when written this way. lol
Gloom settles over housing market
By Greg Robb, MarketWatch
Last Update: 12:01 AM ET May 20, 2007
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — The spring housing market is turning out to be something of a dud, dashing hopes of a turnaround.
http://tinyurl.com/375u87
“The spring season typically sets the tone for the last half of the year. This year, that tone is pretty gloomy.”
Not to worry — the market will bottom out at the end of 2007
Ha!
GS, you must be prepping for your interview for that “chief economist” position they have open over at the NAR.
NAR already has a new chicken-licker “senior economist.” Scott McIntosh is in Lireah’s old spot.
Didn’t take them long, did it?
“Not to worry — the market will bottom out at the end of 2007 ”
Great, a post Super Bowl rally??
Pre-Souper Bowl!
Just wanted to throw a little post in about real estate investing in California vs. the fly-over country ……Ben questioned me on this once long ago, and I would like to…. uh….make his point I guess.
Had breakfast this morning with a friend and long time Chico,CA resident. He is probably the most interesting and accomplished man Mrs L and I have met since moving here 6 years ago. He has bred Arabian horses, as well as Doberman’s for many years, and is/has been, an international Arabian horse judge for many years. While he has had some successful Arabian “Champions”, he says the dogs have probably been as lucrative.
To the point….. A man from Muncie, IN who bought a Doberman several years ago from our friend, recently lost the dog to old age – and was interested in another from a recent litter. The man sent pictures of his own property, updating our friend on where the dog would be raised (apparently this is expected, unlike human adoption).
In addition, the man updated our friend on what he and his wife have been doing the last several years….. which, knowing my RE interest, is how the topic came up:
They have, for the last several years, been buying rental property in and around Ball State University, and now have 12 rental homes. The purchase prices were about 50k – 80k, and most accommodate 4-5 students who pay about $350/month each. I asked if they were “fixers”, and our friend said no, the man claimed most are in good shape, and always rented. He sent pictures of several properties and they are nice.
The California brain here is wondering:
Why aren’t other “mummy & daddy’s” buying those homes for junior or diddums? The California parents have no problem paying 500k for an inferior property here to house their offspring and a friend or two. It’s always done under the guise of it being a great investment. What is wrong with this picture?
$1400/month return on a 60k investment…..where else do I sign up for this deal, assuming Muncie has been taken?
Yeah, that’s what was going through my end when I moved to SD from Chicago in late ‘04. I couldn’t understand how these Clownifornians were buying these ridiculously overpriced houses on mediocre incomes.
Paladin’s Angels!!
From the NYTimes-Tracking Mortgage Fraud-The “All Broad Fraud Squad”.
“Today, the three women — Ann Fulmer, Alicia Sheppard and Julia Barrette — are helping train F.B.I. agents, speaking to lending associations across the country and lecturing college students on how to identify mortgage fraud.
“For us in the industry, we could deal with mortgage fraud during the day but go to our homes at night and forget about it,” said Matt Wade with Fannie Mae in Atlanta. “But for these gutsy women, it was personal.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/21/business/21fraud.html?hp
“For us in the industry, we could deal
within(?) mortgage fraud during the day but go to our homes at night and forget about it,” said Matt Wade with Fannie Mae in Atlanta.On that note, has anyone seen any posts from or heard from Paladin recently?
Sadek is more than a poster child for the riches produced in the Orange County-centered subprime industry.
Repeat after me until convinced beyond the shadow of a doubt:
SUBPRIME IS CONTAINED.
SUBPRIME IS CONTAINED.
SUBPRIME IS CONTAINED.
…
Most of these dopes need to be thrown out in the street. they are the ones along with the scum of the REIC who bid hopuses up to foolish levels.
Now can’t get one so called expert to admit to the problem. AFFORDABILITY!
Prices need to tank by 50% in bubble markets
“Absurd cost of Living in California” — No Kidding! This weekend, my brother-in-law, his wife, my wife and I went out on the town to celebrate my wife’s becoming the new Senior Vice President in her department. It’s quite an accomplishment for someone her age. In her industry, she’s about 7 years ahead of her piers in this promotion. Anyway, we went to a bar in Santa Monica… our bill for 4 rounds of drinks… $345 with tip! Being from a blue-collar town in central Maryland, I was quite taken aback as I was not privy to the menu prior to order… we let my brother-in-law order the drinks as he frequent this particular bar a lot on business. WOW! I said, “That tab could provide a month’s rent back in my hometown. Good thing, I only drink on special occasions.
Other, more mudane things taking their hits to our wallets in California — the price of Groceries. There was an article last week about how supermarket prices have inflated 5.7% in the first four months of the year. Do I think were on the verge an economic event like a downturn in the stock market? Hell, yes!
Housing prices are starting to fall…. they’ve not come down as much percentage wise as some other parts of the country but you are seeing $25,000 to $40,000 reductions from original list prices on homes in the $575,000 to $750,000 range in Simi Valley. Prices are still out of the “affordable and comfortable” price range for us… and we were in top 1%
income bracket for california taxpayers in 05′ and 06′. Right now, were renting a house that was purchase last september 2006 for $765,000 and paying $3,125 per month including HOA fee of $150. I think our landlord is about 1,400 per month underwater on our house. Investing in real estate in CA right now is not for the lite hearted.
Today’s gas price was down 2 cents from the weekend… Now, $3.43 at the Shell Station off the 118 in Simi Valley.
$3,125 per month …. you may be able to negotiate that down a bit. We were looking at renting out our place which had a Sept 06 ‘value’ of right around 1MM for less than 3k per month…. probably $2600.