Bits Bucket For April 27, 2009
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The Housing Bubble
Examining the home price boom and its effect on owners, lenders, regulators, realtors and the economy as a whole.
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I’m up early — travelling to Daytona — hoping to see some more bubble carnage.
I talked to both of my sisters last night, and they’re both still sponging of my pops despite being married, having children, and each approaching 40.
I was goofing on boomers last night, but in all seriousness, I think one way that this will become a slow grind is boomer capitulation to their offspring. My dad honestly will do anything to prevent either of my sisters from having a bad FICO. He doesn’t give me money, and I don’t ask.
Someone here mentioned that boomers would have to open their war chest, and I have to say, 66% of my family is currently receiving boomer assistance. For my wife’s family, it’s 75%.
As always, I have no numbers, just anecdotes and informal observations.
wow…. and I’m trying to convince my 24 year old twin sisters that they should stop asking for Daddy to help them out with this and that. One’s in law school and therefore can’t really earn any money, so I understand. The other is a college graduate, at home jobless and not really motivated to do anything. But as long as Pops is willing to foot the bill, well, hey. Of course, Pops lost his job earlier this year (termination for cause - ill tempered) and now the entire house is jobless. And did I mention the $850k loan in Temecula in the middle of the California desert? I can’t wait until my dad is senile and I have to take over his financial affairs.
Look on the positive side, this may motivate your siblings to get serious. Some people have to hit rock bottom.
funny… the sarcasm tags on my last sentence didn’t come through. oh well.
“currently receiving boomer assistance”
LOL! Well, at less than 40 y.o I doubt many would consider them “boomers” but yeah, the “assistance” part is spot on!
I believe that means assistance from boomers, not assistance to boomers.
rainmayun,
Right, my bad. I just get a little sensitive when the definition of ‘boomer’ has broadened to the point where it now includes “anyone older than me!”
(Whomever ‘me’ might be? ) Muggy’s point is something though that I’ve long argued. Just look at how many WWII parents burned through cash pretending their boomer kids weren’t f@ck-ups?
How new is this? Before that generation, how many received help or wealth from their parents? Maybe it’s been common though out history?
Oh I’ve no doubt of that. It just strikes me that what we’ve seen over the last two gen’s in America is that it’s done without any strings attached?
Also it strikes me that “the bailing out” occurs primarily to spare the -parents- any embarrassment, not that there’s an immediate and dire need? Usually for bills on toys they’ve already run up, not food or shelter, although I’m sure that’s sometimes the case?
Even in THIS economy we’re finally seeing the LATEOTT where our own daughters are concerned. Not allowing them to marry a flake is probably a good start.
Ive watched several WWII generation co workers financially impale themselves on their children’s poor cash management. Its funny, but they seemed to enjoy forking over thousands every year; they usually stopped talking about it as they approached retirement age. Their “retirement years” were not pretty.
“Jobless in Temecula”
Sounds like a Merle Haggard song….
RE: I have to say, 66% of my family is currently receiving boomer assistance. For my wife’s family, it’s 75%.
It all simply correlates into what is espoused by various pundits, especially Clusterf*ck Nation’s Jim Knustler of what is going to be a drastic and dramatic demise in the standard of living in this country.
Meanwhile the US federal government relocates low skilled and marginally educated immigrants into one of New England’s most expensive small city, with non-profits screaming for more taxpayer funded social service counseling money. WTF???????
http://www.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles/2009/04/27/stresses_anew_for_refugees_resettled_in_vt
The country has lost it’s collective mind.
This is dummying down of America. US should offer citizenship to people who have some thing to offer. PhD’s from all over the world might want to come to the US and participate in cutting edge research but are now often times denied the visa. Here in CNY churches are bringing in uneducated refuges from third world countries by the thousands. Minorities born in the US with a high school education are having a tough time finding work as they have to compete with these minorities. I know of some people who have gotten into the US illegally are claiming to be refuges of different countries. There is a whole scam going on in this field.
You can not bring in more people than there are jobs
You can not some times take the person out of the country but not the country out the person. There can be problems ahead.
Please remember I am not saying anything about this particular case in this article. Peace
Exactly…people with H1-B Visas actually would add value as opposed to collecting social services–that would be desirable in the larger picture, no?
You have many of us Canadians doing that, albeit with an annual quota, yet we get mixed up in this whole illegal immigration and protectionism debate wrongly in my opinion. I think that people from Syracuse and Central New York would especially know this being in close proximity to Southern Ontario’s 12 million people.
In my family, four siblings. The oldest had 3 children, one of whom died tragically. The rest of us no kids. All of us siblings are college educated, brought up well in a happy family. Sisters had several boyfriends. I had several girlfriends. But remainder of us didn’t think having kids was important.
That job belongs to the poverty class, and the uneducated.
whoa, quite an ego there, Bill.
I’ve yet to see a talking head politician address the issue of businesses unlawfully using illegal immigrant labor. Meanwhile, unemployment skyrockets…
I’m convinced that some of these “non-profits” are going to be the downfall of us yet.
-Advocate bringing in low skilled and marginally educated (at best) immigrants.
-New immigrants are so FUBAR, more/bigger “non profit organizations” are needed to try to un-FUBAR them.
-New NPOs set up to deal with “discrimination” against the FUBARS.
-Additional “NPOs” formed to “help” people deal with the emotional/physical/economic damage done by the FUBARs FU-ups.
Sorta like the “Immigrant FUBAR Beverly Hillbillies”……..except these guys aren’t bring the money from an oil well to help pay for the transition.
In NYS more than 50 percent of commercial buildings do not pay property taxes as they are tax exempt due to their non profit status. The churches here are being run as a business and are making money by offering day care, book stores, coffee houses, steak houses, auto repair centers all in the name of god. The people heading the churches themselves know they are scamming the system and are motivated by their own greedy agendas which work against the community. Some churches are all about the money.
They suck in dumb people in the name of God.
Not a holly roller
The immigrants should learn the language before they look for a job. Don’t get me started on the language. I think we should have English only as the official language
High five. Someday maybe we will advance past this religion stuff.
In my region, CBN / 700 Club is HUGE. Who has the fancy buildings? Hospitals, lawyers, banks and churches.
Congress recently changed the rules to require non-profits to disclose the tax returns on which they report their unrelated business income (called 990-T). They are currently required to disclose their yearly information returns (called 990). Churches don’t have to file 990s but they are required to file 990-Ts if they have enough unrelated income.
990’s are available on a website called guidestar.org (registration required but you don’t have to pay to just view the forms). I’m not sure if guidestar will have the public 990-T’s when they start to come out, but it is a good guess.
The rule that non-profits don’t have to pay property taxes is, of course, a local issue, not a federal one.
I have no worries like that since I have no dependents. I’m hoping to spend all my money before my relatives have their hands out.
ah, life-fufillment. You have it all figured out, there, Bill.
Here’s another bubble that needs to die: the amusements parks/casinos will save us!
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article995349.ece
Have you ever seen Toddlers in Tiaras on one of the cable channels? That is an industry that has GOT to be falling apart. Where are all the grandmas going to get $2000 a pop for the dresses if it isn’t MEW? I’ve watched it a few times. It is fascinating in a similar way to a 40 car pile up on the Beltway would be fascinating.
The crazy costs aren’t just the dresses, though. It’s also hair, make-up, photography, choreography, dry cleaning, entrance fees, hotel rooms and a bunch of stuff I prob’ly forgot. There’s a whole money-making ecosystem devoted to these creepy pageants.
I’ve only seen “Little Miss Perfect” a similar child beauty pageant program on We TV. From my limited exposure, it seems like “Little Miss Perfect” is centered in the bubbly Florida suburbs (where else?) — there’s lots of pre-pageant footage set in hulking McMansions and oversize SUVs, with controlling moms and grandmas who know you can’t put a price tag on winning.
If nothing else, these shows serve to document a bizarre and disturbing subculture built almost entirely on illusory bubble wealth.
Yar. I’ve seen two or three of those kiddie beauty pageants and watched tarted up little girls sashay around wiggling their non-existent hips. Then the ‘behind the curtain’ peek, of the strained, anxious face of the chubby mom hoping and praying her weird little breathing dolly with the lipstick on it will win the glorious prize…
Disturbing, very.
You know, sometimes I think we’d all be much better off had our ancestors not decided to get mostly bald and grow lumpy brains and come out of trees to play with knapped-flint spears and channel changers and all that.
Then, other times I KNOW it.
LOL! Way to go Oly!
On a more serious note, I guess my wife and I should be grateful our kids have never asked us for anything once we paid for their four (and only four) years of college. It’s been over a decade ago now, but we visited one daughter a few months after she graduated from college and were shocked at the “low-end” apartment she had found to live in while she got completely on her feet.
I’ll be having a daughter in Aug. No way in hades will she ever be doing something like that. I find it shocking/disturbing…not sure what else to call it but I don’t think either of those words is strong enough to describe what I feel about those kiddie pageants.
Why not just go ahead and enroll them in porn classes? wtf.
Hey, congrats on impending parenthood!
The child pageant phenomenon is really disturbing. But those pageant reality shows will certainly make you feel better about your own parenting skills.
Yes, congrats, blu! How wonderful.
When she arrives you must post photos and tell us allllll about it. I already pester ET and Muggy to show us mini-ET and mini-Muggy because I like to look at cute babies,*
and their kids are unnaturally, freakishly cute.
You know, maybe there should be a gallery of new, little HBBer pics. Then we can all look and admire and acknowledge that, ‘Yes, HBBers obviously produce a superior product.’
*I don’t care if that’s girly. Because I am, in fact, a girl.
“I don’t care if that’s girly. Because I am, in fact, a girl.”
That could be true as you always insist and there is about a 50% chance of YOU being correct in this matter but WE demand proof !!
Do you have…papers ?
The “kiddie-beauty pagent” cult is only marginally different than the “dog show” cult, or the “horse show” cult.
The “horse” cult is especially disturbing, in that it owes it’s existence to brainwashed, slave labor 12-16 year old girls.
My ex-MIL was a heavy hitter in the local dog show circle-jerk. “Best in Show” didn’t cover half of it.
As the mom to three adorable little girls, I find those kiddie-tiara-monstrosities unnerving.
Accidentally stumbled across one of those shows while they were spray-tanning a child who could not be more than 4 years old. Spray-tanning! Poor child’s lungs will be rocks by the time she’s 20.
bluprint,
Congratulations. Looking forward to seeing pictures of the young lassie when the time is right.
Thanks for the good wishes. I’m sure I’ll post pics on my website, and I’ll be sure to post a link here.
Cause, you know, once I have a kid I’ll no doubt turn into one o’ those people who thinks EVERYONE wants to see pictures of YAK (yet another kid).
Like I haven’t seen enough of ‘em in my life already to know what one looks like. Plus I think they (when young) only come in like 8 shapes and 4 colors. So after seeing about 32 different ones, they all start to look alike.
*conflicted*
In any case, mine won’t be spray-tanned, thats fer shore. Nor will the little lady be wearing makeup at an absurdly young age. And she will be informed. In fact, just this weekend the wife and I settled the “allowance” thing (sort of).
See, my wife thinks kids should get allowance. FOR FREE! Or at least be paid for doing housework/chores. I of course, having been raised in a totally different fashion, think I’ll be having none of that garbage. No free lunch and helping around the house is contributing to the family, which does not reap monetary reward. However, I do recognize that kids should have opportunity to be exposed to earning and handling money…
Solution (this is an exposure draft and can still be modified): Kid can earn money by doing research on some topic and presenting it. Research (to an age appropriate degree) must be considerable and reward will be commensurate. So, I think besides the learning that will take place, this has the advantage of requiring planning. Need 20 bucks to see a movie with the friends this weekend? Tough, shoulda thought of that last weekend and planned ahead. Maybe you can spend this weekend doing research instead.
Genius, huh?
I approve of how you’re thinking so far ahead there, blu.
I mean, ‘allowance’? She’s not born yet! Take it from me, the oldest of eight (8), I who luckily did not see the screaming, snipping, initial part in the hospital, but who pretty much handled most of that childrearing stuff from that point on:
Your adorable daughter will look like a squished red potato with a little dark tuffet on top of her for awhile, and she will p00p an incredible amount, and she will THEN turn into an incredibly darling child, still p00ping, and then, still an incredibly darling little girl, STILL p00ping, but my point is; look, if you give her an allowance, she’ll just eat it, and then you’ll have to go to the hospital to get the dimes aspirated out of her lungs.
So I suggest you save the allowance argument until she’s at least 5. And by that point you will be her total slave— because I sense this about you— so there will not be any point in arguing about what you’re going to give her.
Hahahahaah! I’m, like, totally psychic today.
I couldn’t agree with you guys more on the freakishness of those beauty pageants for little girls. It seems like there is always some element of this freakishness in society, but I do think bubble money pushed it along. Crazy suburban moms who had previously only dreamed about spending insane amounts of money forcing their little girls into semi-prostitution in relentless pursuit of a CZ tiara suddenly had the means to actually do so. So now we have at least two positive developments to come from this housing crash: more affordable housing AND less child abuse. Win, win.
“I don’t care if that’s girly. Because I am, in fact, a girl.”
That could be true as you always insist and there is about a 50% chance of YOU being correct in this matter but WE demand proof !!
Do you have…papers ?
Perhaps NoSingleOne can tell you I’m a girl, when and if we meet this week.
Of course, I could be in disguise. As a Bigfoot!
Hey, yeah!
The word I like to use for the child beauty pageant set is.. proste-tots.
This is how I envision OlyGirl:
http://thegirlfromtheghetto.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/blonde.jpg
This is my worst fear:
file:///C:/Users/panderson/Downloads/FatManAtComputer-vi.jpg
Has anyone here actually met OlyGirl?
Actually, maybe I don’t want to know - I prefer to go along with my vision - she sure is fun…I think
ExYank,
I use the term child pornography.
ExYank,
ExCellent neology.
I highly doubt it in that hillbilly country though…like one of the commenters said, just drive down U.S. 27 and every 60 miles somebody thinks something’s big coming to their podunk town.
Funny on the casinos though, they might as well admit to their gambling addiction in table games and slots, as opposed to real estate. All sacrificed in worship to the God of Get Rich Quick.
It is the third summerlike day in a row here in NY. Those for sale signs should be flying off the lawns now!
Blue Syke..i’m in queens, just saw my favorite band The Catholic Girls last night…check them out on my handle
All kinds of interesting things vome out of Springfield.
Does the style remind you of another group from the 80s?
vome? how about; come out of Springfield.
sounds like the GoGo’s. And the Bangles. Etc.
A cross between the Gogos and Jone Jet
They could have been the supergroup of the 80’s and a lot more rock and better quality of songs…not FLUFF like the bangles and gogos….
But America wasn’t ready for girls who Rock like boys…..
and still aren’t!
—-
Did you know that The Catholic Girls were scheduled to appear on Saturday Night Live in 1983 but then the producers of the show deemed them too controversial! Can you believe that? It would have changed the band’s destiny to have been on that show!
They’re that old??
People are too busy playing basketball, picnicing in the park, hiking in the Catskills, etc. The surrealtors can ALWAYS find a “better” explanation than “prices are still to high.”
That’s great if they’re out and about enjoying the weather instead of slaving to the real estate obsession. No way should anyone spend a wonderful spring day inhaling the over-perfumed stench of an agent.
The SFH across the street went For Sale a month ago. Yesterday was the first open house…four couples stopped by. The owners bought it 12 years ago for $165k….it is listed at $265k. it has been taken care of but no majpr upgrades.
Ah yes, I remember the stench well.
The head of our department was a woman who fancied herself akin to Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Pravda, except she had more of a hangdog face, and she was always just one year off in her choice of designer:
(If the current year’s designer was Versace, she was still in Armani, if it was D&G, she was wearing Versace…)
She affected a blueblood Main Line accent and speech pattern -what she thought, anyway - and instead came off sounding like Thurston Howell III. She didn’t grow up on the Main Line, she came from a steel town in western PA. But the real estate boom of the early 21c was her moment, and she was going to make the most of it!
If talking funny and being out of step fashion-wise were her only quirks, she could have been tolerable. But she embodied all the worst of what has been described on this blog in regards to realtors and realtresses, and was a manipulative and vindictive manager to boot.
I hear her little world is crumbling at the moment, her department is being phased out and she will soon be rendered obsolete. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer poseur.
R.I.P. stinky realtor manageress.
Tell us how you reaaaaaaaaally feel about this gal!
Words fail me.
And so did my typing, the Devil wears Prada, not Pravda.
And so did my typing, the Devil wears Prada, not Pravda.
No worries — it was funny either way ….
“In Soviet Union, Designer wear YOU”.
“…..svim wear…..evenink wear….”
but I thought the prevailing wisdom was it’s ALWAYS a good time to buy!
It’s ALWAYS a good time to buy and it’s ALWAYS a good time to sell because it’s ALWAYS a good time to make a commission.
Of course, that applies to Wall Street “investors” also.
True but it’s a question of scale.
$5 or whatever on an average trade is peanuts compared to 6% on $200K.
Yes, but…
How many shares are traded daily ….
Interesting comparison, actually.
Compare commissions (total) on Wall St for stocks, etfs, options…. versus the 6% on Real Estate in a year.
I think that the Real Estate guys will come out as petty thieves.
The competition + electronic exchanges have already collapsed the spreads in the equity markets. The bond markets - totally different story.
You might be surprised at the comparison actually.
It’s really a question of information + competition + size of market. The NAR has the first two sealed up via the MSM and a defacto monopoly on the spread - 6%.
Its nowhere near what any of you think. The interbank brokerage charges in most cases don’t cover costs. On the retail side, except for some clients, it probably isn’t any better. Consider execution, settlements, reconciliation, corporate actions processing, client service and E&O’s, its just not the cash cow you might think.
I stand corrected, thank you.
With the monopoly on the MLS, the 6%, and trademarking their own occupation name for chrissakes, Realtards make way too much commission in relation to their true value added worth.
MazNJ,
Right, that’s why they’ve stopped printing trade confirmations entirely. Postage etc. So know most just email your trade confirmations and some don’t even bother w/ that.
Even during the height of the dot.com boom, their “cost of acquisition” was actually higher than their revenues per account! If it was ‘that’ lucrative’ they’d be flourishing. They’re not, they’ve been consolidating since 2000.
What’s more is that they’ve learned ( rather quickly ) you can’t survive off of $7.95 trades and margin int. Chas. Schwab learned the hard way. It won’t be long before there won’t be much difference in price between discount and “full service”. It’s narrowing every year.
Seriously, those were always a waste of time and money even before the net came around. It wasn’t going to prevent anyone from ripping you off.
These days, just put it in a PDF and bung it on the website. I already think I get waaaaaaaayy too much physical mail.
Surrealtors….. added to The Great Housing Fraud lexicon.
New server: 15 - love.
BLAM!…mikey does a slick backhanded volley and charges Ben’s new and improved Purple Haze net…
exeter,
Right, as a derivation of “Surreal Estate”. After all, surreal prices needed surreal pitchmen?
One thing a lot of newbie on-line traders seem to gloss over is that, if you have a $100k account, and you rack up $10,000 in commissions, you need a 10% return just to break even. That’s wheter someone did that ‘to’ you or you did it ‘yourself’.
When you’ve no more effort than to click a mouse, it’s pretty easy to rack up commissions rather quickly. They seem to gloss over that until their account gets quite low. The ‘real’ way discounters stay in business is by charging margin interest. And when you get down, what else choice do you have? Their cost of acquisition is only marginally lower than their rev’s per acct.
So they only need to get enough trades out of you to show a nominal level of profit before they blow the acct. up completely.
In DC a storekeeper was complaining that we went from winter to summmer is 2 days. I paused, considered just agreeing and then decided that I wasn’t ready to keep giving in. I agreed that it was too summery for April, but then told her that 50’s and rainy IS spring weather. It is March and April spring weather, rather than May spring weather, but spring never the less. So all that weather the last few weeks she thought was winter, was, in fact, spring.
She looked confused. I had pity and told her I was from Mass and went to college in New Hampshire. Instant smile. Evidently I am a weirdo,
After a multi-year drought, this area is having a glorious spring, with cool days, chilly nights, and plenty of rain. The wild dogwoods have never looked better (since we’ve lived here) and our azalea and hawthorne bushes are blooming like crazy. The golf course even looks like a downscale version of Augusta National during Masters week.
You’re right ,Bill.We are having a perfect spring.And the never-ending drought seems to have let up.This won’t bring up more Florida half-backs,will it ?
Sadly, the daffodils are suffering in this 90 degree weather. Too hot for spring. But that will change after today. Just hope the flowers can bounce back.
Well, I wonder if the California drought is bigger than Carolina. Farmers on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley are not even putting seed in the ground. Lots of jobs lost because of the threatened Delta Smelt, that needs the water.
I remember the California drought of the mid 70s. Then St. Helens blew its top and ushered in El Nino. Fresno had double the normal rainfall the next year. The banana tree for the first (and last) time bore fruit. Then another drought…
I hated the droughts because I loved snow skiing at China Peak (one hour’s drive from Fresno, 294 ft elevation to 7,000 foot elevation at the base of the hill), which has been changed to Sierra Summit.
Bill in LA — could you explain (or provide a link that explains) how Mt. St. Helens ushered in El Niño? I have read that volcanic activity in the tropics might bring about ENSO conditions/episodes, but never heard of volcanoes in the temperate zones doing the same. I figured that even though a volcano expels CO2, the ejected SOx and particulates would cause negative radiative forcing. Who knew? Super curious about this one. Thanks.
MrBubble
PS: Found this one off of Wiki — Adams, J. Brad; Mann, Michael E.; Ammann, Caspar M. (2003). “Proxy evidence for an El Niño-like response to volcanic forcing”. Nature 426 (6964): 274–278, but the train pulled away before I could download…
I was in Scotland the summer of the eruption and it was bloody cold. Everyone said it was from the volcanic dust. Even Nessie couldn’t deal with it, I stood there on the banks of the loch for a long time and didn’t see a thing.
Even Nessie couldn’t deal with it, I stood there on the banks of the loch for a long time and didn’t see a thing.
She probably had her long neck all sneakily twirled around and up behind you and was actually looking over your shoulder to see what you were writing, the whole time.
Meanwhile, forget about Nessie and tell us about that Bigfoot/Jeebus hybrid who liked math and you, and who you brought out to the wilderness and had shot by a rancher. ‘Cause that sounds like a good story. Like, did he wear a cummerbund?
Bill in Los Angeles,
I noticed our weather here in the PacNW hasn’t ‘felt’ right since the mid-90’s? I did a little research and the head weather-guesser at U Dub estimates that we are in a PDO ( Pacific Decadal Oscilation )
What’s that you might ask? A cyclical period of 10 to 20 years of cooler and WETTER weather ( it ‘that’s’ possible ) after a 75-100 year warmer and drier cycle. We’ve had years of late where we basically didn’t have a summer? Or much of one. I believe it was 1997, Seattle had a 3 week long summer.
Any Seattle posters feel free to elaborate on that one please?
Oly, the rancher really wasn’t to blame, he thought the guy was a bear. The guy was in his field stealing what he thought were potatoes but turned out to be turnips. That rancher probably saved his life by shooting him, ever eaten too many turnips?
The only cummerbund I’ve seen for awhile was last summer when my brother and I went camping up in Nine Mile Canyon. He decided, since it was hot, to trim his little shaggy long-haired black poodle-terrier mix. He accidently cut into the little guy’s skin right on his tummy, so we went to the vet and got a few stitches. The little guy (Jasper) wore a red cummerband for awhile, I have some great photos of him next to some arches and all and he looks a bit Three Muskateerish for some reason, very dashing.
Losty, maybe he WAS a bear. A shaved bear. Did you ever think of that? After all, you know how full of crap bears are.
*shakes head sadly at the general duplicity and errant spiritual shadiness of bears *
See, then the shaved bear learned to do math thingies and went to Berkeley and fell in love…
Oh, and yes, I have eaten too many turnips. It took some doing, but yes. I accidentally grew 1.5 tons of them, and didn’t want them to be wasted, see.
The little guy (Jasper) wore a red cummerband for awhile, I have some great photos of him next to some arches and all and he looks a bit Three Muskateerish for some reason, very dashing.
Hahahaha! That’s funny. Cummerbunds are great! I bet all the lady dogs loved it and were smitten, and he was sad to see it go when he got all better.
Long ago my cat ‘Kissy-fur’ was bitten by a bad dog (it really was that very rare phenomenon, a ‘bad’ dog.) and had a big hurt on his back, so we rigged up a little cape so the ointment would stay on him and so he wouldn’t scratch it open. He seemed to like it. He certainly wore it with elan.
DinOR
I think Mark Twain said it best, “The nicest winter I ever spent, was summer in Seattle.”
That sucker Nessie sounds like the Original Serpent, and yer worried about bears? Actually ahansen should be worried about bears, but that’s beside the point.
Actually ahansen should be worried about bears, but that’s beside the point.
Actually, it’s the other way around, the bears should be worried about ahansen.
Mr. Bubble,
I don’t have a link to it. I only remember from the time back then. It was a winter or two after the blast and Fresno had 20 inches of rain total, which is double the normal amount. In fact the roof of my parents’ house leaked like mad and it went through the ceiling. I bought them a new roof.
My favorite thing about Fresno is the rainfall, when it happens. My next favorite is the conditions when the wind blasts the dirty air away and you could see the high Sierras from our living room doorway as crisp a picture as possible. Nothing better than that.
BTW: Next time you have the chance, google an Earthquake map of California. You will see the entire farm area of the San Joaquin Valley has significantly less earthquake danger than the coastline.
Dinor,
I never heard about those 10 to 20 year cycles. But I don’t doubt them.
When I was a kid, my family lived in the lower elevations of the Sierra Nevada near Yosemite Park. We were close to the pine tree line and above the “foothills” designation, about 2,700 feet. One June we had snow. I think it was 1964, when I was five years old.
As a comparison, it normally does not snow at the 7,000 foot level in the area in June. But it could happen in May.
It rained so hard and long in Wisconsin the last 4 days that the realtywhores looked like Samoli Pirates in drag this weekend.
looked like Samoli Pirates in drag this weekend.
Now, there’s a vivid image. Thanks.
true or not, it would have been nice if the temps had sat in the 70s for a couple of weeks before zooming into the 90s.
Beautiful day in SE Utah, and for those of you who know who Everett Ruess is, his body has just been found, which is big news here.
From Wiki: Everett Ruess (March 28, 1914-1934) was an artist and writer who explored nature including the High Sierra’s, California Coast and the deserts of the American southwest, invariably alone. At the age of 20, he went into the Utah desert with two burros and never returned. The horse corral he made at his camp (37°17′53.72″N 110°57′4.77″W) in Davis Gulch, a canyon of the Escalante was the only trace he left, and remains to this day. Some suspect he died accidentally by falling off a cliff or drowning, whereas others think he was murdered, which is a theory that may be confirmed by recent evidence. Still others believe he crossed the Colorado River to the Navajo Reservation in Arizona and married a Navajo woman. In any case, his statements on life and adventure, combined with his unsolved disappearance, have led to a kind of legendary status.
At the time that Ruess explored the remote canyons of the Southwestern United States, aside from Native Americans, Mormon pioneers and local cowboys, he was likely among the first “outsiders” to venture so deeply and completely into what was then (and to some extent still is) largely an unknown wilderness.
The discovery of a grave site on Comb Ridge, near the town of Bluff, Utah, complete with bones and a few artifacts, may explain the mystery. The story of the discovery and the subsequent work of a forensic archeologist is as interesting, maybe even more so, than the answer to the 75-year-old question, “What happened to Everett Ruess?” The bones and teeth match the race, age, size, and facial features of Everett. DNA testing is underway (DNA from Everett’s nieces and nephew is available for comparison).
My husband and I just came back from 4 glorious days visiting Arches and Canyonlands. I didn’t know you lived in the SE of Utah! We brought along the latest Nat Geographic Adventure, which had a long article about Everett Ruess. It really resonated all the more with us, being in the area where his remains were found.
It was awfully windy around Moab on Friday and Saturday, but the warm sunny weather Tuesday through Thursday was fantastic. Beautiful country you have down there.
Yeah, this country’s a keeper.
That wind sank a boat in Lake Powell, several died. I just stood indoors and watched the red dirt blow by, it was exciting watching the ravens fly backwards. Too bad I didn’t know you were here in Moab, I would’ve met you downtown for a cuppa mud, if we could’ve got into any place, it’s been really busy here. Maybe next time.
The car show was interesting, but we were happy to get outta town on Saturday to drive to Grand Junction. Too much vroom-vroom for us, ha ha. I thought about all those lovingly restored vehicles covered in terra cotta colored sand. SW Colorado had the same red dirtstorm which, when it rained, came down as red mud splotches.
How do you like living in/near Moab?
I’m from Colorado, but I’ve lived here about 10 years. I love this country. The car show was one of the craziest days I’ve seen here, ever, it was worse than Jeep Safari. I buzzed through town and went out into some rugged canyon country where I saw absolutely no one. I was a bit shocked by all the people.
The car washes had long lines, my house is currently covered with those red splotches, waiting for another rain. Maybe not till next fall, it’s been really dry.
Elanor, come back in the winter, it’s gorgeous, you can still get out in the backcountry and you’ll see maybe five cars on Main. Plus you can get a motel room for $35 in a nice motel. Sort of a secret, the best time here. (Unless you’re a rafter.)
Elanor, I growed up in southern Utarr. You shoulda told me you was going there. You coulda stopped by my mom’s house, and she would have captured you and fed you til you was bursting and made you look at her greenhouse plans. You could even have seen that midget hairy ba*stard Shorty*, aka ‘The Nemesis of Olympiagal’, and who I understand recently tried to kick the Bishop when he came over to visit, since he’s such an irreverant creature. I’m sure he’ll go to H*ell. Heck, he could give Satan advice.
I hate Shorty. No, wait…I don’t hate Shorty.
No, wait….yes, I do too.
*Shorty is a mustang. He’s short.
“…..Kick the Bishop…..”
Whose ‘bishop”?
Aw heck, Oly, talk about a missed opportunity. I could have met your mom, met Shorty, and heard endless stories about you while consuming vast quantities of food (hiking in the Great Outdoors will do that to one’s appetite). I kinda figured you must be from the SLC area, because, well, that’s where most of the people in Utarr live. It did occur to me once I got there that I could have said something here. The last-minute whirlwind of getting cats, tomato seedlings and house ready for our absence must have spilled my brains out or at least incapacitated them.
Tell you what, next spring we’re going to visit Bryce and Zion NPs and then I’ll give both of you Utarrans plenty of notice. Even though they aren’t all that close to Moab.
I kinda figured you must be from the SLC area, because, well, that’s where most of the people in Utarr live.
Elanor, Elanor…. have you not heard me discuss becoming the town librarian when I was 17, in a town with no traffic-lights? Sunburning the he*ll out of my pale hide? Riding a horse* to go to work at the hardware store when I was a teenaged girl and if and when the jeep wouldn’t go? Visiting ghost towns and hearing the warm wind fondle the empty leaning gray wooden houses?
Well! Now you have!
*Not Shorty. Anyway, he’s not a ‘horse’, strictly speaking. He’s a stinky, cunning demon. We got him later, and I never have rid him. Not any longer than 5 seconds, anyway. But I shall show them, yet! Gonna teach him a lesson!**
**I’ve said that for at least 4 Christmases. But THIS Christmas, I MEAN it.
“…..Kick the Bishop…..”
Whose ‘bishop”?
It’s like the Mormon version of a pastor, except more smug.
Oly, I have friend in Price who was a bishop. He asked me if I knew why bishops had 5 year tenures. I said no, he said it’s cause they make 20% of the church people mad every year.
He’s a great guy with a great sense of humor, he even cusses once in awhile.
I served as bishop for 9 years. I guess that means I only offended a bit over 11% per year.
Mormon bishops are infinitely underpaid and overworked considering the crap they put up with. (they are unpaid volunteers)
I have a great g-pa who was a bishop in Snowflake for 23 years. I visited his grave last weekend.
As I reported here last week That tax assessments went down in Manassas Park, VA. For one owner the tax assessment for 2008 was 309,700 and in 2009 it will be 136,300. The current tax rate is 1.14 and I got word that the new one will be 1.68. The new tax assesment won’t take effect until later this year meaning the City of Manassas Park will keep the 2008 assessment in affect. Also I talked to another owner who’s own houses in the newer section and they have 100K cut in taxes. I talked to the city manager over the weekend and he stated that the city is on a hiring freeze and the city is cutting at least 5 positions.
The current tax rate is 1.14 and I got word that the new one will be 1.68 ??
A 47% increase in the rate…Good luck getting that back down if values recover…
I am just wishing for the day when a million dollars really means something again…
Suffering from winter rains in New Zealand with possible swine flu outbreaks in four regions. And this is the land people move to to get away from disasters.
Isn’t it ironic, don’t you think?
Like a black fly in your Chardonnay.
Like an Alt-A on your balance sheet.
Or ten thousand spoons, when all you need is a [falling] knife…
a free tax-credit when you’ve already paid
Or the good advice (from HBB) that FB’s just didn’t take.
Who woulda thought..
The swine flu reporting vs. financial reporting is interesting.
With the flu, the media are letting people know early so they can take action to protect themselves and even giving us little scare.
With the markets, the media and PTB are trying to only report good news that will hopefully lull people back into their normal routines.
Maybe the flu reporters should switch desks with the finance folks.
Good observation, Asparagus.
People can actually do useful things to protect themselves from a flu epidemic and it can be useful to avert the overall crisis. If everyone does stuff to protect themselves from an economic crisis (reduce spending, sell stocks, sell house, take money out of at risk banks, etc.) it can make the overall crisis worse.
I agree, sort of.
If the media jumps in today with all sorts of “get in your bunker” reporting, it could intensify a downward spiral.
However, if the media jumped in this in 2003-4, when a couple making 60k, bought a 500k home in California, that could have been very productive.
In finance, the needed reporting has happened when we reached the pandemic, level, not the isolated epidemics.
But as always if wishes were horses….
The media will work with society to commodify the fear - just like in 2003 with duct tape and panic rooms - only this time it will be flu remedies and foodstuffs.
Soccer moms are already frantically researching which OTC meds they can stock up on today on their shopping junkets to the local big box.
“If everyone does stuff to protect themselves from an economic crisis (reduce spending, sell stocks, sell house, take money out of at risk banks, etc.) it can make the overall crisis worse.”
Must disagree here… this is a Keynesian myth that needs to be buried once and for all.
If people save money instead of spending on immediate consumption, this does NOT mean that others are thrown out of work. It means that people are put to work on longer term projects (building capital equipment, etc.) rather than on gratifying immediate needs.
In macroeconomic jargon, peoples’ “intertemporal preferences” have changed, and in a free-market economy, manufacturing and production will adapt accordingly.
I consider health care, education, and basic science/engineering research to be longer-term projects. Problem is, they need capital investment.
I think there is now more swine flu in the media then there will ever be in the world’s polulation, just as was the case with ebola and bird flu. But such hysteria attracts news readers/listeners/watchers, thus the news organizations that offer swine flu stories win market share from those that don’t.
Hence swine flu stories is going to be all that we will hear about for a while.
The swine flu thing will likely prove to be a tempest in a tea pot, but you never know. It could also be the extensive media coverage and precautions (paranoia?) that keeps this bug from reaching the tipping point, and becoming the great plaugue of 2009/2010.
That must be Alad.
Interesting how this flu story came out right as the media were starting to examine Paulson’s actions regarding Bank of America and Merrill Lynch. Kind of stopped that news cycle in its tracks.
Oh please, just let it go.
That attitude is why we’re losing our Republic.
What?! Good laws, we have a Republic?!
I didn’t know we had one a them. Dadgummit, why don’t no one ever tell me these things?
Olygal,
Did I just hear a back handed slap?
Did I just hear a back handed slap?
Nope, ’cause I done dodged it, so it didn’t connect. See, she was holding so many copies of ‘Atlas Shrugged’ that it weighed down her city girl arms and impeded the slap follow-through.
The back handed slap wasn’t for you Olygal. I thought that was what you delivered.
+1
When we die of the flu, will our rents get even lower?
‘Tenants enjoying ‘lowest rents in a decade’
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/property/news/article.cfm?c_id=8&objectid=10568685
NZ Renter - interesting that so many rents are quoted as weekly. Does that mean they are resort-area properties?
What does a 2,500 sq.ft. house in a pleasant, safe neighborhood cost there? And are there a lot of expat retirees?
A smart man cashed out in ninety-eight
Sold his dotcom stock and died the next day
It’s the Chinese drywall in your Faux Chalet
It’s the Plunge Protection Team two months too late
And isn’t it ironic… don’t you think
It’s like rain on your open house day
It’s a free ride for FBs when you’ve already paid
It’s the good advice that you just didn’t take
Who would’ve thought… it figures
Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to buy
He opened his checkbook and kissed his assets goodbye
He waited his whole damn life to give home owning a try
And as the market crashed down he thought
“Well isn’t this nice…”
And isn’t it ironic… don’t you think
It’s like rain on your open house day
It’s a free ride for FBs when you’ve already paid
It’s the good advice that you just didn’t take
Who would’ve thought… it figures
Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
When you think everything’s okay and everything’s going right
And life has a funny way of helping you out when
You think everything’s gone wrong and everything blows up
In your face
A housing bubble when you’re already underpaid
A quarantine sign on the airport cafe
It’s like ten thousand aspirins when all you need is a Tamiflu
It’s moving to the country of my dreams
And then kissing my life adieu
And isn’t it ironic…don’t you think
A little too ironic…and, yeah, I really do think…
It’s like rain on your open house day
It’s a free ride for FBs when you’ve already paid
It’s the good advice that you just didn’t take
Who would’ve thought… it figures
Life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
Life has a funny, funny way of helping you out
Helping you out
LOL! Contemporary to this am. very creative. A+
I knew that was lad.
You did. I didn’t believe you until now
So New Zealand was the hiding place to ride out Armageddon!?
Hmmmm… good choice +1
except he didn’t prepare for swine flu.
Yah. Good choice.
But I bet Alad misses stomping around the Southern Sierra Nevada Mtns.
Not if he’s got Mount Aspiring in his backyard….
Here’s a RE-related horror movie coming out in a few weeks that some of us might want to see:
Drag Me to Hell (May 29)
Universal
Sam Raimi, director of the Evil Dead series, returns to the horror genre with this story of a loan officer (Alison Lohman) with a great job and a loving boyfriend (Justin Long). But when she has to evict an old lady, she becomes the subject of an evil curse. Pushed to the breaking point, she looks for someone to save her soul — and square things with the woman.
Standout scene: Lohman’s character gets into a nasty tussle with a senior citizen who is trying to get an extension on her home loan. The two speed through a parking garage, and nothing inside or outside the car is off limits: staplers, rulers, seatbelts, cinderblocks and other cars are involved in the cat fight.
WOOOO!!!
This could be a lot of fun since it’s Raimi (Evil Dead, Evil Dead 2, etc.)
Does anyone else besides me find this article extremely disturbing?
(some of the info is old, some new from the weekend’s meetings)
Finance Chiefs Back a Bolder IMF, Bigger Role for Emerging Nations
(in 4/27 edition of the Washington Post)
…
Global financial chiefs agreed yesterday to reshape the International Monetary Fund, moving to broaden its mission and accelerate plans to give developing giants including China, Brazil and India more say within the institution.
The IMF, which in recent years had become largely an advisory body to nations in crisis, will now be charged with aggressive monitoring of the global economy. Underscoring that role, Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said yesterday that Washington had consented to a rigorous IMF review of the U.S. financial system for the first time since the fund was created at the end of World War II.
…
Yesterday, the IMFC backed plans to dramatically increase the fund’s financial war chest to cope with the crisis. At the London summit, world leaders including President Obama called for the IMF, which has the capacity for about $250 billion in lending, to beef up its resources to $1 trillion.
That money would be raised in two ways. First, through $500 billion in pledges from major governments. But the IMF also has the ability to effectively print its own money, and has plans to issue about $250 billion in its currency, which has a value based on the dollar, the euro, the yen and the pound.
…
So the IMF now has its own currency, and is expanding it very rapidly. Nice. The U.S. is losing its financial sovereignty by leaps and bounds now. Never waste a good financial crisis, I guess.
Yes, I have had the same concerns for decades. All this world aid to third world countries have been going on since I could remember, and many have never paid it back. The taxpayers of the lenders have been holding the bag.
Bono (of U2) loves this.
If this does not make you keep buying gold bullion, then I don’t know what does.
All this world aid to third world countries have been going on since I could remember, and many have never paid it back.
If it was aid, they don’t have to pay it back. Right?
Also people like Bono are against the kind of lending that has been going on to 3rd world countries, because they know that most of the money goes into the pockets of the rich, but most of the payments come out of the pockets of the poor.
BTW three guesses about which country is the all-time biggest recipient of US aid (not lending).
Israel, then Egypt second?
As of January 2007 at least (from Geographical magazine):
TOP 10
Largest recipients of bilateral and multilateral aid
(US$million)
1. IRAQ 4,658
2. AFGHANISTAN 2,190
3. VIETNAM 1,830
4. ETHIOPIA 1,823
5. CONGO-KINSHASA 1,815
6. TANZANIA 1,746
…
I smell gamed stats. “Bilateral and multilateral aid”?
Where’s Israel? Or do they merely get (forgiven) loans?
{wink-wink}
“BTW three guesses about which country is the all-time biggest recipient of US aid (not lending).”
The question is “US aid”–not the UN, NGOs, other countries, etc.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel-United_States_relations
‘Since the 1970s, Israel has been one of the top recipients of U.S. foreign aid.[17] While it is mostly military aid, in the past a portion was dedicated to economic assistance. In 2004, the second-largest recipient of economic foreign aid from the United States was Israel, second to Iraq. In terms of per capita value Israel ranks first.[18]
In 2007, the United States increased its military aid to Israel by over 25% to an average of $3 billion per year for the following ten year period, while ending economic aid.’
I realize did specifically call out “U.S. aid”, but the subject was the IMF, not U.S. aid.
Iraq
Waiting for the NAR to spin swine flu in a positive way. “Buy now before your Realtor dies!”
It will be the next excuse for why people aren’t buying.
Polly
Wait until our just in time deliver system gets overloaded by panic buying of staples; then you will see that some “useful things” people can do to protect themselves can be harmful.
That said, I will do my part and buy a month of staple, dried groceries tonight.
And Reflenza, too.
Is it too late to invest in Glaxo (Tamiflu)?
A while back I realized that the food in my Y2K disaster stockpile was expiring. Now my bird flu pandemic stockpile is starting to get long in the tooth. Fortunately the stuff in my financial-and-housing-meltdown-causing-urban-anarchy stockpile is still quite fresh.
Glaxo Babies put out a sonic stage noise in the 1980s.
Come on, guys. It is bad flu, not small pox. We aren’t talking about a threat to the food distribution system despite my discussion of the vulnerability of supermarkets from a public health essay test question yesterday (that was a small pox question, by the way).
Many of you know I am a federal employee. I am on my work computer right now. We haven’t even received a notice telling us to wash hands more often, never mind restrictions on travel. And no one has told me I can get out of my trip to Dallas this week, more’s the pity.
Agree that good reporting could have helped early in the bubble, but it would have LOOKED bad, because the change in behaviour would have popped the bubble that was already there. It is hard to get people to accept that a serious correction is good for them because without it there would have been a worse one. Not that it isn’t true - just that it is hard to get people to accept it.
Dallas is a-ok! No piles of dead rotting in the streets or anything.
“Bring out your dead”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grbSQ6O6kbs
“Bring out your dead”
We can’t bring out our dead now baygal…they’re all busy trying to refi in a zombie bank !
Time to reload the X-GS Disaster Emergency Kit:
-two boxes of Ramen (check)
-eight boxes of Girl Scout Thin Mint cookies (check)
-couple of cases of bottled water (check)
-Stock up on the 9mm (check) and the 30.06 (to feed the Garand)…..(check)
-One bottle of Everclear (medicinal purposes)….. (check)
-One bottle of good booze (medicinal purposes).
-24 pack of toilet paper
-Fill up the gas tanks
Bring on the Swine Flu……..I’m covered.
X-GSfixer, the 4-to-1 Thin Mint to ramen ratio marks you as a man of great survivalist wisdom.
One bottle of good booze
Are you freakin’ kiddin’ me? What will you do on the second night?
Contents of Major Kong’s Survival Kit
In Dr. Strangelove, the B-52 is approaching the target. Major T.J. King Kong (played by Slim Pikens) does a check list of the items in the standard-issue survival kit:
“Survival kit contents check. In them you’ll find:
- One forty-five caliber automatic
- Two boxes of ammunition
- Four days’ concentrated emergency rations
- One drug issue containing antibiotics, morphine,
vitamin pills, pep pills, sleeping pills, tranquilizer pills
- One miniature combination Russian phrase book and Bible
- One hundred dollars in rubles
- One hundred dollars in gold
- Nine packs of chewing gum
- One issue of prophylactics
- Three lipsticks
- Three pair of nylon stockings.
Shoot, a fella’ could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff.”
And you only have eight boxes of Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies? You really are depriving yourself.
Are you freakin’ kiddin’ me? What will you do on the second night?
Hahahahah! You beat me to it, Fasty.
Shoot, a fella’ could have a pretty good weekend in Vegas with all that stuff.”
A fella’, or even not a fella’, could have a pretty good weekend anywhere with all that stuff. But I’d suggest the addition of some funny hats, a mega-pack of Squaxin reservation fireworks, some pom poms, and maybe a lava lamp. Oh, and some sea-monkeys in a bowl. I love those.
“One issue prophylactics…..”
Damn……I knew I forgot something.
The LAST thing a dad wants to find in his high school daughter’s pants pockets, when he’s doing laundry.
At least it was unused……..
“One issue prophylactics…..” ??
Like the pussy said; What are you going to do on the second night ?? You don’t recycle do you ??
scdave,
They never think of the basics. They never do.
This is why they go wrong EVERY single time!
X-GS’s dDctonary definition:
One “issue”= 83 cases
(then I woke up…….)
dDctonary= Dictionary
Thain says BofA Merrill statements not true: report
“The suggestion Bank of America was not heavily involved in this process, and that I alone made these decisions, is simply not true,” John Thain told the paper.
“Kenny Lewis did it too!!” Thain blurted out to his mommy.
If I was Thain’s mommy I’d catch him and beat the livin’ crap outta him, and then make him stand in the corner for about, oh, about a year. At least.
Serious, that is one puling mewling candya*ss that did not get spanked anywhere near enough.
Actually, Glaxo is up today.
So is the WHO’s Blood pressure…
So is the WHO’s Blood pressure…
Horton hears a flu.
I remember “WHO’s NEXT”. Great Album.
Of, course, for many, “TOMMY” is still the sentimental favorite.
Nah - though both are excellent IMO they pale in comparison to Quadrophenia. That’s perhaps my single favorite album of all time.
Rain on me…
Quadrophenia is the best of the Who. But I still listen to others.
Back in the late 80s, yours truly would listen to that music while tanning in the raw at Black’s Beach with a bevy of naked beautiful women all around. I cranked up the music and watched the gliders to get my mind off the women’s bodies.
Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy
Watched CNBC’s “House of Cards” for a second time last night. I thought it was great and David Faber did a good job. I see they have some interviews at the CNBC website.
I too watched it again last night.
Can you #$%#$% believed that broad who didn’t give her father a decent burial and took the money to catch up on her ARM? Then she had the audacity to invoke God or whatever her excuse was. That money grubbing idiot needs to lose her shanty in a big way.
Sorry, I disagree. I told my husband and kids if they have any funeral at all I’ll come back and haunt them. Cremate me and have a really good drunken party……………Dropkick Murphys and whiskey
Cremate me and have a really good drunken party……………Dropkick Murphys and whiskey
You’re brilliant, and that’s a brilliant plan.
Heck, I’m ’bout ready to come kill you myself, just so’s I can participate in your wake.
(I’m teasing you, wickedheart, you know.
Anyway, as for me, if I ever die— which I will not, because I’ve decided not to— but if perchance I do, I don’t want to get all mushy and soggy and stinky in the dark. I want to be fed to the bright fire. I love fire.)
I agree. Don’t waste any money on a show funeral. Cremate me and remember me. But don’t blow any money on me!
God i am cheap.
Hear hear! I told my people to put me in a trash bag and haul me to the dump. Or send me to Papua New Guinea and let ‘em pull a John Prine “Please Don’t Bury Me” on me. Yeah, I’m five pints into the evening!
MrBubble
PS: Somebody tell me that GS is going to blink on CRE before I do. {Crying in my beer}
Heh, I watched the last installment of Dickens’ “Little Dorrit” last night on PBS. Verrrrrry timely indeed, with its 19th-century equivalent of Bernie Madoff as an important plotline.
Rats Feed Off U.K. Recession as Trash Mounts, Buildings Empty
By Scott Hamilton
April 24 (Bloomberg) — For British rats, the worst of times has turned out to be the best of times.
The vermin more associated with the Dickensian era than modern Britain are thriving, with shuttered shops and half-built housing sites to live in, rotting piles of uncollected garbage for dinner and fewer exterminators sent out to kill them.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=a7XWhB9as2Xg&refer=home
The Best Of Times
Tonights the night well make history, honey, you and i
And Ill take any risk to tie back the hands of time
And stay with you here tonight
I know you feel these are the worst of times
I do believe its true
When people lock their doors and hide inside
Rumor has it its the end of paradise
But I know, if the world just passed us by
Baby I know, you wouldnt have to cry
The best of times are when Im alone with you
Some rain some shine, well make this a world for two
Our memories of yesterday will last a lifetime
Well take the best, forget the rest
And someday well find these are the best of times
These are the best of times
The headlines read these are the worst of times
I do believe its true
I feel so helpless like a boat against the tide
I wish the summer winds could bring back paradise
But I know, if the world turned upside down
Baby, I know youd always be around
The best of times are when Im alone with you
Some rain some shine, well make this a world for two
Our memories of yesterday will last a lifetime
Well take the best, forget the rest
And someday well find these are the best of times
These are the best of times
And
So my friends well say goodnight for time has claimed its prize
But tonight will always last
As long as we keep alive memories of paradise…
-Styx
………I looked in the mirror at my pigeon chest
I had to put on my clothes because it made me depressed
Surely there must be a way
For me to change the shape I’m in
Dissatisfied is what I am
I want to be a better man.
Superman, superman, wish I could fly like Superman
Superman, superman, I want to be like Superman
Woke up this morning, what did I see
A big black cloud hanging over me
I switched on the radio, and nearly dropped dead
The news was so bad that I fell out of bed
There was a gas strike, oil strike, lorry strike, bread strike
Got to be a Superman to survive
Gas bills, rent bills, tax bills, phone bills
I’m such a wreck, but I’m staying alive
look in the paper, what do I see,
Robbery, violence, insanity
Hey girl, we’ve got to get out of this place
There’s got to be something better than this
I need you, but I hate to see you this way
If I were Superman then we’d fly away
I’d really like to change the world
And save it from the mess it’s in
I’m too weak, I’m so thin
I’d like to fly but I can’t even swim….
(as someone said, the more things change, the more they stay the same)
Tim Geithner Was Offered The Citi CEO Job
“Tim Geithner formed all his views of the financial crisis during his time as President of the New York Fed, where he worked side-by-side with many of the top banking CEOs. Because of this, and his conclusion that we’re still just in a liquidity crisis, he’s been an advocate of generous bailing out in order to get the credit flowing again.
But the NYT has done some excellent digging to shed more light on just how close to Wall Street and Wall Street-friendly Geithner has been.
For example, it says that early on in the crisis, he proposed a flat-out guarantee of all bank debt, a choice that would’ve put the taxpayer on the hook for trillions. It was quickly shot down… though in a sense it has now in fact become policy.
He also had extensive interation with Citigroup
Mr. Geithner was particularly close to executives of Citigroup, the largest bank under his supervision. Robert E. Rubin, a senior Citi executive and a former Treasury secretary, was Mr. Geithner’s mentor from his years in the Clinton administration, and the two kept in close touch in New York.
Mr. Geithner met frequently with Sanford I. Weill, one of Citi’s largest individual shareholders and its former chairman, serving on the board of a charity Mr. Weill led. As the bank was entering a financial tailspin, Mr. Weill approached Mr. Geithner about taking over as Citi’s chief executive.
But for all his ties to Citi, Mr. Geithner repeatedly missed or overlooked signs that the bank — along with the rest of the financial system — was falling apart. When he did spot trouble, analysts say, his responses were too measured, or too late.
For his part Geithner says he immediately rejected the offer and informed the Federal Reserve’s lawyers, who suggested Geithner remove himself from dealing with Citigroup. Geithner also served (unpaid) on the board of the National Academy Foundation, a nonprofit founded by Weill.
The story paints a similar picture to many of the the other Geithner takedowns that’ve been floating around. He joins the Fed after an unusual, non-Wall Street backround. Everyone in banking comes to like him. He gets close with bankers. He takes extensive criticism for his role in shaping the bailout.”
“But for all his ties to Citi, Mr. Geithner repeatedly missed or overlooked signs that the bank — along with the rest of the financial system — was falling apart.”
Allow me to edit that sentence: it should begin “BECAUSE of all his ties to Citi…”
Good job of editing Elanor.
It’s incredible to me that the article goes on for 7 pages, pointing out all sorts of conflicts of interest, yet fails to point out the ultimate conflict of interest that most NYT readers are still unaware of - that the banks = the Fed, they’re the shareholders. When will we have a manjor media outlet finally come out and say it?
Can we hope he still has all his citi stock?….BWAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!
—————
Sanford I. Weill, one of Citi’s largest individual shareholders and its former chairman,
Fed study puts ideal US interest rate at -5%
“The ideal interest rate for the US economy in current conditions would be minus 5 per cent, according to internal analysis prepared for the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting.”
___
Inflationary?
“-5%”
Hence cash rules.
“minus 5 per cent”
?
Welcome to the world of deflation, where cash is the king and debt sucks bigtime.
Unless you get bailed out of that debt by the taxpayers, then it’s golden.
True, but the bailout will have limits.
Then you will have debtors… and people with cash.
It means they’d pay me $5,000 to borrow $1,000,000? Sounds like a good thing. Yep, it would mean cash is king.
Bill,
What size mortgage do you think you’d go for at that rate?
Wife and I might like to buy the Rockefeller center. Or Maybe the entire state of Maine. We could probably swing the payments.
LOL.
Of course Bill, only by the time your maturity period expires (say, one week) your latte at Starbucks increase from $25 to $68.
Otherwise, your on to something.
I guess that’s how you fix the big banks. Free money to support the balance sheet. They still won’t lend though.
Next idea?
“Hence cash rules.”
Yep. Just better make sure you pick the right currency.
A joke right?
An ideal US interest rate
“The Financial Times reports today, that the ideal interest rate for the US economy in current conditions would be minus 5 per cent, according to internal analysis prepared for the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting. The analysis was based on a so-called Taylor-rule approach that estimates an appropriate interest rate based on unemployment and inflation.
The FT says a central bank cannot cut interest rates below zero. However, the staff research suggests the Fed should maintain unconventional policies that provide stimulus roughly equivalent to an interest rate of minus 5 per cent.
Fed staff separately estimated what size and type of unconventional operations, including asset purchases, might provide this level of stimulus. They suggested that the Fed should expand its asset purchases by even more than the $1,150bn (€885bn, £788bn) increase policymakers authorised at the last meeting, which included $300bn of Treasury purchases.
The assessment that the US central bank needs to provide stimulus equivalent to a substantially negative interest rate is unlikely to have changed ahead of this week’s policy meeting.”
I wonder what the Taylor rule’s underlying assumptions are for expected economic growth. One gets the feeling that if a similar rule were applied to population, then after a nuclear war the Taylor rule would be stating that each family needs to be having 1,422 kids so that we can get back to normal population growth.
It’s hard to believe that Greenspan actually outdid the Taylor rule in the early 2000’s.
(p.s. thanks for the follow-up)
In other words - apparently the Fed is also pulling a “see no evil” approach to economic policy, ala the banks and the recent FASB rule changes. At what point does the Fed actually mark-to-market based on a real economy instead of their fantasy wishes?
I supposed a banker can conjure up some amazing fantasies while dreaming on a mattress full of cash.
Yeap, then again the unexpected can happen, oh, let’s say an epidemic, or pandemic.
Maybe, a war?
Their inflationary strategy is not guaranteed to succeed, but they will try. And, try hard.
Whoever said “War is good for the Economy” was right.
It’s sure killing US
mikey, mikey, mikey,
You forgot a great ole song sang by Edwin Starr
War, huh, yeah
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Say it again, y’all
War, huh, good God
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
Ohhh, war, I despise
Because it means destruction
Of innocent lives
War means tears
To thousands of mothers eyes
When their sons go to fight
And lose their lives
I said, war, huh
Good God, y’all
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Say it again
War, whoa, Lord
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, it ain’t nothing
But a heartbreaker
War, friend only to the undertaker
Ooooh, war
It’s an enemy to all mankind
The point of war blows my mind
War has caused unrest
Within the younger generation
Induction then destruction
Who wants to die
Aaaaah, war-huh
Good God y’all
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Say it, say it, say it
War, huh
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, huh, yeah
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Uh-huh
War, huh, yeah
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Say it again y’all
War, huh, good God
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, it ain’t nothing but a heartbreaker
War, it’s got one friend
That’s the undertaker
Ooooh, war, has shattered
Many a young mans dreams
Made him disabled, bitter and mean
Life is much to short and precious
To spend fighting wars these days
War can’t give life
It can only take it away
Ooooh, war, huh
Good God y’all
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Say it again
War, whoa, Lord
What is it good for
Absolutely nothing
Listen to me
War, it ain’t nothing but a heartbreaker
War, friend only to the undertaker
Peace, love and understanding
Tell me, is there no place for them today
They say we must fight to keep our freedom
But Lord knows there’s got to be a better way
Ooooooh, war, huh
Good God y’all
What is it good for
You tell me
Say it, say it, say it, say it
War, huh
Good God y’all
What is it good for
Stand up and shout it
Nothing
Peace out SFgal!
Oh man, that’s some of the best of the 70s. I also liked “Cisco Kid,” “The World is a Ghetto,” “Low Rider,” and that one about summertime. And I liked the earlier team-up with Eric Burden ‘Spill the wine” - good old days and no DANGED DISCO in any of that!
Bill,
Those songs were performed by the group WAR. “Why Can’t We Be Friends and Summer are my favorites by them:
Summer:
Ridin’ ’round town with all the windows down
Eight track playin’ all your fav’rite sounds
The rhythm of the bongos fill the park
The street musicians tryin’ to get a start
‘Cause it’s summer
Summer time is here
Yes it’s summer
My time of year
Yes it’s summer
My time of year
Stretched out on a blanket in the sand
Kids of all ages diggin’ Disneyland
Rappin’ on the C.B. radio in your van
We’ll give a big “ten four” to the truckin’ man
‘Cause it’s summer
Summer time is here
Yes it’s summer
My time of year
Yes it’s summer
My time of year
Young boys playin’ stick ball in the street
Fire hydrants help to beat the heat
Old man feeding pigeons in the square
Nighttime finds young lovers walking there
‘Cause it’s summer
Summer time is here
Yes it’s summer
My time of year
Yes it’s summer
My time of year
In Atlantic City or out in Malibu
Or any where between, I’m telling you
When you feel those balmy breezes on your face
Summer time is the best time any place
-WAR
Here’s a “loan”. Ah, don’t worry about paying it back.
Easy as that.
Won’t this make it not worth saving U.S. money and cause a death spiral?
Also, just the general unfairness of punishing “savers”–one of the few innocent groups of people–to pay for Harry Homedebtor and the Banks that enabled him.
If the savers make the mistake of storing that value in non-interst bearing liabilities of the government, why should anyone shed a tear when the government changes the rules?
A quick deep denial story-
My SIL and BIL live in the high desert area of OR, both in the construction biz(both laid off), were house owners there since 1996 and saw the Great Housing Fraud grow and their pseudo fortunes with it. She never fails to state how great her retirement will be due to her RE investing acumen and takes pride in the fact that her shack includes 5 or 6 useless acres. And she’s convinced that the acres sets her shack apart from all the rest and the dirt(untillable) somehow has magical value. Deep denial and ol’ exeter was up for the challenge to prove her wrong.
3 months ago I found a number of different shacks near her with the oh so valuable dirt and alot of it for under $125k. Her response to my wife was “are you going to buy one of them?”, to which my wife said “we’ll wait until they fall under $100k. SIL said “you’ll be waiting a long time”. hahah
Fastforward to last week. Found a circa 1993 shack(with new double door high bay garage) on 7 or 8 acres down the road from SIL….. Price? $95k (with no buyer in sight). Printed and dropped in mail by wife to her sister. When brought to the attention of SIL yesterday, her reply was “oh there is something wrong with that place”. When pressured to provide evidence she changed the subject.
The point of the story? ….. the denial runs deep for those who worshipped the RE voodoo priests combined with the obsession with “acreage” (irrespective of how unusable it really is) is going to make for some hard adjustment for many.
Many people have mistake luck for business acumen in a bubble.
Ain’t THAT the truth.
Sounds like Bend?
Correct.
They have been very delusional in Bend…
I see that. Thick denial by the two knuckledraggers I mentioned anyways.
I learned that acreage doesn’t always = attractiveness to house buyers when we sold our place in 2005. I thought that the extra acre of ground would be a draw, you know, elbow room between you and neighbor, etc.
But no one in my area cared. They were looking for the McMansion monstrosities on the postage stamp lots. Who wants to do groundskeeping anyway? Plus my former house didn’t have granite countertops.
That fact is evident where I live in rural NJ. The town assessment records do not include pertinent information, ie square footage, # of beds/baths, etc. The only available information is property size.
The only thing Zillow has to determine value is property size. It’s actually hysterical. How do you put a value on a McMansion on a postage size lot when the only comparable is an old shack on 20 acres?
Not that it matters what Zillow thinks. I’m just sayin….
Zillow in my Jersey Shore area shows some funny stuff…. property values plunging off a cliff. Nearly across the board their “zestimates” are now coming in significantly under everyone’s asking price - though I’ll add there seems to be many knife catchers out there as most ofthe properties I’ve considered putting a lowball offer on have gotten offers and “usually” close at only a smidge under the asking. These are always high quality, relatively good value homes though. The run of the mill stuff or overpriced just sit there and get reduced several times.
Like the banks, a lot of people are still using “mark to fantasy” prices for their personal “investments/assets”
I want to be at your house for the holidays! LOL
I got it!: Sulfuric acid fumes from chinese drywall protect occupants from swine flu outbreak. Buy one of these exclusive flu-proof homes now or be priced-out forever.
Why didn`t they have problems with drywall in the Beijing Olympic Games 2008, did they import their drywall from the U.S.
Drywall and indoor pools don’t mix?
Didn`t they have dorm rooms and dinning rooms for the athletes?
Here is the house I put a bid on last week
6915 N 143Rd St West Palm Beach, FL 33418 $229,900 $974 per month | Personalize this estimate | Check local mortgage rates 3 Bed, 2 Bath | 2,862 Sq Ft | MLS ID #R3013043 |
I hope you didn’t bid more than $155K - anything over $54/sf is probably not a great deal…
What was your offer and was it accepted or countered?
I’m still pissed about my offer being rejected over the weekend. But a heartfelt “thank you” to all for your words of encouragement. I hope (and deep down believe) that Blue Skye is right - that I dodged a bullet.
eastcoaster
I am on my third written offer, when the first one was turned down I too was pissed. Now I kinda treat it like sport, I do my homework make an offer and if they turn it down I go on to the next one, if they ask for my best offer I say you already got it. As far as this house I should know this week. It is owned by countrywide and I think they are trying to unload it before it hits Bank of America`s books.
Jeff - are you sure it won’t hit Freddie’s or Fannie’s books instead? The last foreclosure that I looked at was a Countrywide that got flogged off to Freddie Mac.
I am not sure. They did make me get pre approved with countrywide before I could submit an offer, even though I was already pre approved with another bank. There questions were interesting, did I borrow any of the 20% down payment no did I plan on making this my primary residence yes along with the usual what do you make, how long have you worked their, are you a party to any law suits, did you ever file bk. It takes about twenty minutes to answer all their questions. I didn`t mind them making me get their pre approval because to the best of my knowledge I can apply for as many mortgages I want in one month with only one inquiry hit on my credit, and I don`t have to use them if I got the house.
how long have you worked their
there I am tired.
I like it!
Beware, flood zone.
Check the well.
What you offer?
$3,600.00 hooks up the city water, I am below asking price.
Nice on the city water!
Around $150K seems a strong buy to me. (This is from what I remember, because that’s not the area I’m currently looking at.)
Is it raised?
If it’s raised 3-4 feet that would be a strong positive for me.
Would maybe close me.
It`s high. 3 yr. old dimensional shingle roof, new ac and no appliances.
Nice…
Good Luck Jeff -seems like a very nice home and a great deal from what I can see.
Also good info for us to know loan people in Florida think 1999 prices are what it takes to quickly move property.
Update Manssas Park, Va
last week I reported the following
2008 tax assessment
309,700 @1.14
2009
136,300 @ 1.68 comfirmed by inside source
Newer home lost 100k in assessment
City manager comfirmed people are going to get layed off starting with 5.
benifits are being cut.
hiring freeze
Not that I have no sympathy for these people, but some of the choices they made or are making are questionable at best. Ultra expensive private college for a son when the dad doesn’t have a job? Apartment and luxury car rental when your temp gig is not permanent? Not taking money out of stocks and put into cash when you see a big recession coming? Living in a house with a $20,000 property tax bill to boot? Half of this guy’s problem are self-made.
Former finance pros find tough times, qualify for food stamps in tony part of NJ:
http://tinyurl.com/ccl3qy
Boomer Bows Out in Banking Shakeout That Brought Vermont Beard
Share | Email | Print | A A A
By Mark Clothier and John Helyar
April 27 (Bloomberg) — In early 2008, David Roberts’s morning routine at the Ridgewood, New Jersey, train station was as unchanged as the view from its platform, which overlooks a downtown anchored by the Daily Treat diner and a 77-year-old movie theater. Roberts would sip coffee, eat a corn muffin, scan the Financial Times and step aboard the 7:50 train.
This was not the same trip he had made for the 14 years he worked for three Wall Street firms. This was a commute to nowhere.
Roberts, 61, was bound for an outplacement center on New York’s East 37th Street, where he pursued job leads and the dream of starting a consulting firm with former colleagues. Like many of his neighbors in Ridgewood, Roberts had been thrown out of work after the credit markets seized up last year, joining thousands of commuters in the competition for jobs that don’t exist anymore.
Roberts, an economist at Dominion Bond Rating Service until January 2008, was fired 13 months after he predicted in a published report the recession that would end his livelihood.
“You can see a train wreck coming,” Roberts says. “But that doesn’t mean you can get out of the way.”
Roberts has suffered through a chain of unanswered job applications, an ill-fated relocation to Washington, and depression. As of April, he had lost or spent more than half of his $1.4 million in savings. One of the few risks he takes with money these days is at the poker table.
An economist that blew threw/lost $700k in 15 months?
Hmm…
So by June of 2010, the other 700K will be gone, and he’ll be living on Social Security?
Err…ummm…
The “poker table” may have something to do with it.
I have no sympathy whatsoever for this idiot.
Gamblers UnAnonymous
Seems like a pretty typical economist to me.
Actually a luxury apartment and a luxury car rental are not too bad for a temp employee. If he loses his job he would be holding the bag for 2 months of rent (based on laws in many states). And if his car rental is week to week, not necessarily bad. He could have $200,000 worth of Series I bonds yielding $11,000 per year, which would offset the car rental anyway.
I’ve done this when I worked in Maryland. I wanted to keep my own car in Phoenix and use it when I went back home every other weekend.
That’s right, you could see me coming, but couldn’t get out of the way? This is not like Groundhog Day dude, where you get to play chicken with the oncoming train while drunk saying “I’ll bet he’ll swerve first!”…
Back to business as usual for the banksters?
http://tinyurl.com/d45jmc
“The rest of the nation may be getting back to basics, but on Wall Street, paychecks still come with a golden promise. Workers at the largest financial institutions are on track to earn as much money this year as they did before the financial crisis began because bank profits have started strong this year.”
“Even as the industry’s compensation has been put in the spotlight for being so high at a time when many banks have received taxpayer help, six of the biggest banks set aside more than $36 billion in the first quarter to pay their employees, according to a review of financial statements.”
“Of the large banks receiving federal help, Goldman Sachs stands out for setting aside the most per person for compensation. The bank, which nearly halved its compensation last year, set aside $4.7 billion for worker pay in the quarter. If that level continues all year, it would add up to average pay of $569,220 per worker – almost as much as the pay in 2007, a record year.”
Part of the recovery process should be to let these corrupt institutions fail and die. They are a cancer. We do need a banking system, just not many of these corrupt financial firms.
What? And destroy our largest industry? (fraud)
“The ideal interest rate for the US economy in current conditions would be minus 5 per cent, according to internal analysis prepared for the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting.”
I am picturing a huge carpet with a ten trillion dollar hump in it and Ben Bernanke standing there with a huge broom with a big smile on his face.
I’d say more like an Alan Greenspan - sized hump.
“Stocks decline on swine flu concerns”
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Stocks-decline-on-swine-flu-apf-15040018.html?sec=topStories&pos=main&asset=&ccode=
You got to be kdding me!
It’s about time they named a flu after bankers. About time.
ha ha … best line of the day.
Stocks open off; swine-flu worries dent recovery
By Kate Gibson
Last update: 9:37 a.m. EDT April 27, 2009
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks started Monday sharply lower, with investors anxious about swine flu and the prospects for the virus outbreak to deepen the recession.
Are “investors” really worried about swine flu deepening the recession, or is this just today’s excuse for stocks taking a plunge that’s overdue? Let’s see, the fear is that everyone is going to go directly home, lock the doors, cancel all purchases or vacation plans, and hide until…when? When the WHO sounds the all-clear?
On the other hand, if this outbreak scares some sense into the world of finance and the markets, it could be a good thing. Especially if it results in the rebound of SRS.
Seriously. Overblown house prices - no problem. Flu? Duck and cover!! *roll eyes*
And just like that - *bing* - not a problem.
Wouldn’t this be the optimal time for AIG and Goldman Sachs execs to meet at a resort in Mexico City?
LOL.
Why yes - what better way to instill confidence in our health care system?!
I am guessing they won’t let swines into Mexico without quarantine.
LOL - Yanqui swine.
Just returned from Lake Havisue in Az.
It was the biker run to Laughlin and the boat races in Lake Havisue.
The boat races were packed. Million dollar boats everywhere and Joe Six Pack had his $100,000 boat to watch. The channel was filled with boats and the typical beer drinking boater. One guy next to me said “I guess these guys have not heard about the recession.” I had to laugh and we traded banter back and forth. I really enjoyed this guy. The boating weekend was conspicuous consumption at it worst. One thing I did see for the first time was $100,000 boats being drive around with $1 for sale signs taped to them. Also, two boat makers Magic, Advantage and some others went bankrupt. These were boat makes in California that were the choice of Joe Six Pack. Some Joe’s were worried about their warranties on their $100,000 dollar boats. So much for that 10 yr. warranty!
I did not go to Laughlin, but there were Harley Davidson on the highway everywhere.
It looks like the veneer on the economy is still in place. Some day this recession has to start hitting, but I have not seen any outward signs so far.
Sounds like the repo-guy needs to hang out at the Havasu boat ramp. Also, in the age of Onstar and Lojack why can’t the dealer install something that disables the car, boat, or harley as soon as the payments get more than thirty days past-due. Wow! Now there is a patentable invention created on this blog.
Actually, that has been done. A couple years ago, in fact, but I can’t remember the name of the company who was doing it. For the life of me I can’t figure out why it isn’t more popular. The cost-to-risk factors certainly should have changed to the device’s favor over the past two years.
I think that I heard something on the radio - maybe on Marketplace - about such a device existing and being used by lenders.
Anyone catch that?
yes on consumerist
http://consumerist.com/5215896/payment-late-lenders-can-remotely-disable-your-car
Someone has invented a device that will disable your car when the payments are overdue…
http://consumerist.com/5215896/payment-late-lenders-can-remotely-disable-your-car
love the illustration with the consumerist story
There are a number of them.
Some use a keypad in the glove box. They pay and get a code to enable the car for another month.
Some have a system where it can be shut down remotely nationwide. Was looking into it because it’d be interesting to figure out how to lock all of the cars on the system.
Everytime I try to buy the hardware on the local craigslist I get flagged off. Heh.
Moab, Utah, has been packed to the gills. I thought it would be the opposite.
DeNile runs deep, and it’s not a river in Egypt, but it’s running strong in Lake Havasu City AZ!
Helicopter Ben has too many fat folks hanging on the skids reaching for free money. Either his chopper goes down or the country…maybe it’s past the point of no return…for both.
“It looks like the veneer on the economy is still in place. Some day this recession has to start hitting, but I have not seen any outward signs so far.”
The recession doesn’t impact everyone. Those making the hiring and firing decisions aren’t impacted. The lower level guy who’s been working his butt off for 20 years and making all the right decisions is the one getting laid off.
Bankers are still getting their bonus. This is a great time to be wealthy.
Yeah that’s the thing that fascinates me. Every time we get in a recession and I happen to be driving I-8 or I-10 east toward the Colorado River, I still see these good ol’ boys in big rigs towing boats or with several ATVs. Some of these are “kids” in their 20s. I always figure, “I guess they didn’t know there is a recession.”
Is anyone interested in purchasing a La Jolla area foreclosure home? There appear to be nearly 1000 of them available within a 10-mile radius, according to the ForeclosureTown dot com web site. The prices still seem too high. Here is a smattering (92109 is Pacific Beach, just south of La Jolla):
Go to Results Page: First Prev 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 Next Last (Displaying 901 - 920 of 927 Results)
Address
Property Type
Beds Baths Price
COLLINGWOOD
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 2 $995,000
COLLINGWOOD
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 2 $995,000
THOMAS AVE
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 3 $1,050,000
THOMAS AVE
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 3 $1,050,000
BUENA VSTA
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
4 2 $1,050,000
THOMAS AVE.
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 3 $1,050,000
GRESHAM,
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,150,000
GRESHAM,
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,150,000
GRESHAM ST.
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,150,000
QUEENSTOWN
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 3 $1,185,000
QUEENSTOWN
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 3 $1,195,000
ARCHER
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 3 $1,199,000
SANTA RITA
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,228,000
SANTA RITA
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,228,000
OCEAN BLVD.
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,250,000
GRESHAM,
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,385,000
GRESHAM,
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
2 2 $1,385,000
RIVIERA DR.
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 1.5 $1,499,000
FORTUNA RANCH
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
4 5 $1,799,000
OCEAN FRONT WALK B
SAN DIEGO , CA
92109
For Sale by Broker
3 * $2,300,000
Pick any one & I’ll pay $65K right now.
that’s a nice collections of small la jolla homes.
when can we expect 450K?
Anyone see the Census Bureau’s vacancy numbers for first quarter? The renter vacancy rate is 10.1%, unchanged from a year earlier, and the homeowner vacancy rate is 2.7%, down from 2.9%.
But that only includes vacancy units “for sale” or “for rent.”
Total housing units up 1 million, a figure that will be going down based on recent permit and start numbers.
Occupied housing units up just 544,000 — a huge slowdown in household formation. Current permit and start numbers are merely matching this. Moreover, owner-occupied is down 200,000 or so, with renter-occupied up.
Vacant up 498,000. Vacant seasonal up 183,000, vacant “other” up 384,000, for a total increase in vacant NOT for sale or rent of 567,000 houses in one year. The number of units for sale or rent fell 71,000, for sale down more than for rent is up.
19 million vacant units. The occupied units where the occupant can’t cover the mortgage, or want to sell and move, are in addtion.
Wow. Interestingly the total units actually went down - by quite a bit - this past quarter, from 130,840,000 to 130,429,000.
FWIW - the census data seems to have some big unexplained discrepancies. I sent this to them on 3/4 - a case was created and it was forwarded, but I haven’t heard back yet.
This sort of shows the difference between a place like NYC and other places.
In NYC there are all these people living doubled, tripled, quadrupled up or with relatives because they cannot afford the overpriced housing. The price has killed demand, and if it were to fall enough someone would occupy the units, even assuming a big decline in the economy.
Elsewhere, there may be oversupply at any price from the demand side, with the only way out actual reductions in supply via abandonment.
There is a small phenomenon like that in DC, though much much smaller than in NYC. Young things with big student loans live in “group” houses. The local free paper runs long articles about how to interview people to fill in the spaces of your group house, how to make a good impression during a group house interview, which bus systems to live on (anything near a metro stop is too expensive for these situations), etc. I think that a lot of these may empty out when the massive condo over supply inevitably gets bought out for apartments and rents are forced down for the small units. I have to believe that even college kids would avoid someone else’s dirty dishes if they could, never mind sharing the bathroom.
Then there are the kids bunking in with parents.
‘But that only includes vacancy units “for sale” or “for rent.”’
Do they have a ‘discouraged sellers’ category (akin to the ‘discouraged workers’ category which is used to understate unemployment rates)?
Maybe. It seems like the MSM is onto the key data here. Rather than report that the “vacancy rate” for homeowners went down, the Bloomberg headline is:
Home Vacancies Rise in U.S. to Record Amid Recession (Update2)
April 27 (Bloomberg) — A record 19.1 million homes stood unoccupied in the first quarter and the U.S. homeownership rate fell as the recession sapped demand for real estate.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601213&sid=am4VMDGoSAPY&refer=home
I’d bet Suzanne would see it differently.
“19 million vacant units. The occupied units where the occupant can’t cover the mortgage, or want to sell and move, are in addition.”
I’d say you are on to the key data — awesome work, WT!
In Houston, everything is down including apt rentals. (see yesterday’s Bit Bucket, near the bottom)
People really are doubling up.
Oops. Wrong day on the Bit Bucket.
Stats can be found at http://www.chron.com
At the end of May I will be joining the ranks of the unemployed. I am a 61 yr old civil engr. The wife is still working for one more school yr…teacher. We will be fine and have been expecting this. House, bills, and cars all paid off.
Am so sorry Laurel. Doesn’t matter how prepared you are this is still a situation that sucks. At least you are in a much stronger position than most. Take care of yourselves.
I’m sorry to hear that, but I am glad that you have what you need to get by for a while. Good luck to you.
Sorry to hear about this. Hopefully you can enjoy the “vacation”, even if it isn’t completely on your terms.
Sounds like you’re in a good financial position to weather the storm. Best of luck!
Ditto.
Laurel,
I’m sorry to hear you will be soon unemployed. Are you a veteran? If you are don’t forget to contact your local VA and get yourself registered for medical benefits.
Sorry to here that Laurel but glad you are well set. There is a heck of a lot to do here for a fairly young retired person. Stuff that I keep missing. But I am NOT missing the air show this year. Andrews AFB. May 15-16 (one day may be only for military). I was so pissed to miss that one last year.
Laurel, I am sorry to hear the scythe has got you. It is indeed a terrible time - thank heavens you and your wife have one another and can regroup. My most supportive thoughts to you and yours.
I’m currently working on a possible documentary storyboard about the cult mindset and how hoaxing feeds on our desires to believe in something. It has a working title of “The Bigfoot Religion.” I’ve joked about BF here before, and it is possible that it exists, but the jury is out until we have evidence that science will accept (a body or live BF). The documentary uses BF as an illustration of how people grab onto a paradigm and see what they want to see.
I mention this here because this same mindset exists in many forms, including real estate (thinking of Exeter’s example above).
If you’ve ever heard of the 1917 “Cottingley Fairies” hoax (that fooled even Arthur Conan Doyle), you’ll understand what I mean, a movie was made on this a couple of years ago (Fairies in the Woods?). A couple of young British girls hoaxed the entire world with some photos of themselves with fairies. They admitted it was a joke and illustrated how they did it and people said they were lying, it was no hoax. When asked if they felt guilty about the hoax, one of the women said: “It’s our dear believers who came up with reasons for the Fairies to be real. We didn’t even have to lie to them. They invented it on their own.”
To me, this really illustrates much of the thinking behind people’s foolishness in real estate and life in general. It underlies this entire mania.
(If you’ve ever seen a BF, no offense meant, it’s really about belief and religion, not BF.)
‘If you’ve ever heard of the 1917 “Cottingley Fairies” hoax (that fooled even Arthur Conan Doyle), you’ll understand what I mean, a movie was made on this a couple of years ago (Fairies in the Woods?). A couple of young British girls hoaxed the entire world with some photos of themselves with fairies. They admitted it was a joke and illustrated how they did it and people said they were lying, it was no hoax.’
Not the same movie with Ben Kingsley in it?
Dunno, didn’t see it.
Bigfoot is pure fantasy.
I dunno, you should ask Grizzly Bear, he lived right in the middle of BF country, maybe he’s seen something…
Now you’ve done it! You two are in BIG TROUBLE with Oly!
Totally. I was thinking about fighting them both, but I decided not to, and to instead be magnanimous and forgiving today.
But I can’t speak for Bigfoot. He’s a serious hothead, as you know…
Oly, I NEED the coordinates of that shed…
Go check out ChristianForums.com sometime. People endlessly arguing over the meaning of obscure passages in the Bible. I happened to mention that of the 3000 some odd denominations of Christianity, exactly 0 or 1 could be correct. Boy, talk about some unChristian comments sent my way…
Humans love believing in things that they want to believe in. The more impossible the better. I don’t think there is any better evidence for the Theory of Evolution than how people come to believe in oddball things and how desperately they will fight to hold on to those beliefs. If there is a perfect God I don’t think He could have screwed us up this badly.
I believe the stars shine even when I’m asleep…
L.I.U.
God was invented the same way.
Well, the teeny-tiny cutie-pie house in my ‘hood, that was on the market for less than a week and didn’t even have an open house, has been sold.
Asking was $540K (they bought it last year for $465K) — I don’t know what the final price was, but LESS THAN A WEEK?!?!?
A nearby neighbor was excited that this might “pump up the values for the block!” I bit my tongue. My significant other had to talk me down later.
So in summary — inside the DC Beltway, not in PG county and near a metro? Prices are holding up.
So when do those Alt-As reset?
Anything inside the beltway is within easy brainwash distance.
That plus - follow the money. There is lots of new $$ flowing through DC these days. It’s natural that a fair amount gets “lost in the shuffle”.
DC metro prices have actually fallen quite a bit - IMO we’re definitely at the U cusp (or L cusp whatever) here. It’ll be interesting to see what tomorrow’s February data shows. For background:
Month YoY % change
1/2008 -10.74
2/2008 -12.62
3/2008 -14.23
4/2008 -14.76
5/2008 -15.35
6/2008 -15.56
7/2008 -15.82
8/2008 -15.66
9/2008 -17.12
10/2008 -18.78
11/2008 -19.47
12/2008 -19.60
1/2009 -19.34
Prices still falling dramatically, though I’ll bet tomorrow’s data shows a significant lessening in the rate of decline.
Hmm . . . I hear about this easy money flowing in, but not to me, my friends and family!
Those price declines are for further out, or in the hood. IMO, prices WILL drop inside the beltway, but it will be a long, drawn out water-torture type process.
Just a few blocks north of me, outside the beltway, is a whole different story.
Per MRIS, DC median values are:
Mar 2006: $490k
Mar 2007: $561k
Mar 2008: $499k
Mar 2009: $475k
Prices have fallen a *bunch* inside the beltway, but the rate of decline has slowed.
Don’t pay attention to anecdotal evidence of just one or two places.
FWIW I do think we’re in the middle of a bit of a dead-cat bounce in real estate, so while prices are leveling off somewhat, I think the usual fall drop-off will also occur as it becomes clear that the economy isn’t really recovering yet after all.
Care to provide a link for this unsubstantiated sale?
Sure, here it is:
http://tinyurl.com/dy32xo
And don’t forget — it was sold by Tamra Kucik — an HGTV real estate expert!!!!!
Hmm . . . I did provide a link but it didn’t show up.
I will try again:
tinyurl dot com / dy32xo
Neighbor here has a 3/1 ARM. The first 3 years expired last month and (this time at least) the interest rate just went down by the maximum 2%, so their mortgage payment also went down.
I’ve always wondered if agents sold houses to each other to “fix” prices…
Good question.
Around here, another fix is in play. Realtors make sure they get contracts to list their neighbor’s properties, then publish them at absurdly high prices. This naturally is an effort to prop up their own house prices.
In the nicer areas, the would-be selling neighbors, some of whom have moved out of state, have yet to catch on to the shenanigans. So the homes languish on the market. And the fantasy world continues to spin.
MC, where is “around here”?
Exeter:
This is the Fresno, Calif., suburbs, within the city limits.
I am seeing several sold signs around here (Huntington Beach, CA) too. I’m not surprised as this is the season. We’ll see how things go in a few months. But I think this is the first bounce. I think we will have at least 3 of these dead cat bounces before we really bottom.
If I can get the right deal I may actually pull the trigger. To me, that is below replacement cost, safe area, and affordable payment. The way I look at it, if things implode and I lose it I won’t be out much, as long as I stick to an FHA loan (3% down). And there is a great chance the government will bail me out when that happens. I am also very concerned that inflation is going to take off, crush the dollar and cause interest rates to skyrocket. So my savings are worthless anyways.
But who the heck knows what is going to happen tomorrow. Total crap shoot IMO.
BEIJING (Reuters) – A U.S. business group said on Monday it was worried that protectionist sentiment could rise in both China and the United States as the global economy shrinks.
The American Chamber of Commerce in China also said in its annual white paper that China was still crucial as a base for manufacturing and increasingly as a market, but the regulatory environment was opaque and sometimes worked against foreigners.
“The risk is higher in an economic downturn” that governments will turn to protectionism, AmCham China Chairman John Watkins told reporters.
“We want to highlight that risk in both countries,” he said.
On Friday, China approved a postal law that could severely restrict foreign companies such as FedEx Corp and TNT in the fast growing express delivery sector.
That law comes only weeks after Beijing blocked Coca-Cola Co from buying China Huiyuan Juice, a case that sparked widespread nationalist sentiment in the mainland. A “buy American” provision in U.S. President Barack Obama’s stimulus plan attracted criticism from trading partners around the world.
- Another story this week was US and Europe imposing steal tarrifs on China.
It’s easy for them to say we are all in this together at meetings but when they get home it looks like protecting local jobs may become job #1.
Gee….. we wouldn’t want anyone protecting themselves from the international banking cartel now would we?
I say treat China like Cuba. Full trade embargo. Nothing in, nothing out. Trade will only keep the Communists in power longer.
Yeah, that embargo really taught them damn Cubanos a lesson! They got through the Special Period through the power of their community and all we got was a bill from OPEC and massive alienation. Awesome!! Chuck Fina! America… f— yeah! Go jingo, go jingo, go!
MrBubble (giving two s—s about Commies or the Corporatocracy or the new boss, same as the old boss)
Anyone who thinks there isn’t any protectionism already in China is smoking crack. Genuine American goods, when available, are extremely expensive in China. The other day there was this big Rockport display on the street in Shanghai selling shoes for upwards of USD 200. Yeah that was probably the monthly take home for many of the visitors. I could buy the very same shoes in the US for half, and at the outlet store for about a third. On the other hand, Chinese made shoes that are semi-decent are cheaper in the US than in China.
Same applies to just about anything else - fruits, foods, beer etc.
The credit-card industry, which is already under fire from the Obama administration, is getting hit with a double-whammy these days: losses are growing even as fewer people use plastic.
In the last six months, record numbers of consumers have stopped paying their credit-card debt. On top of that, many other consumers are cutting back on their credit-card spending. Both trends are leaving banks that issue credit cards with huge losses.
“Revenues for issuers will be impacted not just by cardholders carrying smaller balances in the future, but even more by a decrease in transaction volume,” says Greg McBride, chief economist with Bankrate.com. “Card issuers profit from interchange income every time a cardholder swipes the card.”
Though the credit-card problem isn’t nearly as big as the housing crisis, experts think it will continue to grow as long as the economy-especially employment-remains weak.
“Credit card delinquencies mimic the unemployment rate,” says McBride. “As jobs go away, as they have, so too does the ability of people to pay their debts.”
Calls in Congress and the White House for stronger and tougher rules over how banks handle their credit-card business won’t help, either.
“The banks don’t need more regulation,” says Karen Garrett, a counsel at Bryan Cave, a global business and litigation firm. “The Fed rules that go into effect next year should be enough to help. Banks have to make a profit and people don’t have to take that extra credit card just because it’s offered in the mail.”
Wrong Karen banks to “Have to make a profit” they are supposed to make a profit. We shouldn’t guarantee a profit by allowing usury. If they want to make a profit, try cutting CEO/management compensation. Try not bribing our government to allow huge asset bubbles to form. Let these banks fail and allow smaller, or new banks to pick up the pieces.
Sheila Bair is, right now, expressing the importance of relieving the banks of their toxic assets (on the taxpayers dime) so as to create healthy banks which investors will want to put their money in. Furthermore, leverage is good, and we need the banks to start lending again for a recovery. How does this help the economy? Perhaps some healthier bank balance sheets can juice the stock market, but I see no correlation between that and the gainful employment and financial well being of the masses.
BB&T discloses more stress in home equity loans
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Winston-Salem, N.C.-based regional bank disclosed that certain charge offs were inadvertently excluded from the calculation of gross charge off rates in the company’s earnings report on April 17. Charge offs are loans the bank considers won’t be repaid.
Home equity loan charge offs totaled 1.90 percent of home equity loans, not the 1.09 percent originally reported, the bank said.
Earlier this month, BB&T reported a 37 percent decline in first-quarter profit, as loans that were overdue or written off as unpaid surged and the regional bank put aside more cash to cover souring credit. But results beat Wall Street’s expectations.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/BBampT-discloses-more-stress-apf-15042507.html?.v=1
new zealand renter is ladinsane.
What, are you a forensic linguist? Any proof? Interesting observation…
He’s just cunning.
Hey, you may be right! Hope so…
Why would our Government do this to its people!?!??
NYC financial workers see low-flying planes, panic
NYC financial workers evacuate building after seeing low-flying planes during gov’t photo-op
NEW YORK (AP) — A Boeing 747 used by the president was escorted over lower Manhattan by two Air Force fighter jets Monday as part of a government photo opportunity, causing a brief panic among office workers near ground zero.
Workers from several office buildings poured out onto the streets before they learned that the flights were innocuous.
John Leitner, a floor trader at the New York Mercantile Exchange Building, said about 1,000 people “went into a total panic” and ran out of the building around 10 a.m. after seeing the planes whiz by their building, near the World Trade Center site.
“Apparently, nobody in the building was informed that this was going to happen,” he said. “Everyone panicked, as you can certainly understand.”
He said the workers gathered along the Hudson River esplanade until a security officer with a bullhorn told them it was a planned exercise.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/NYC-financial-workers-see-apf-15042306.html?.v=1
Hahahaha.
If that’s not a metaphor for the current administration, I don’t know what is.
Oh, man - that is rich.
One of the most distinctly painted aircraft in the world and they didn’t recognize it.
So they panicked.
Works for me.
There’s a moral here.
Same thing happens in the markets. Doesn’t matter what the “rational” response is - what matters is what others will do.
Insert the anecdote about Keynes and the beauty contests here.
Same principle for the plane.
Is it really THAT irrational?
An unidentified aircraft acting in what would probably be considered an unusual or erratic manner.
Given that information the probability is higher compared to a usual over-flight that there is something bad about to happen, although in some absolute sense its still very low probability. BUT the cost associated with an event is potentially very high (death).
It’s a bit like coming in outta the rain. The probability of being hit by lightening is still pretty low, but you might as well go indoors and let the rain pass.
Also I should add that “herd mentality” isn’t really all that irrational either. In fact, it is what has allowed herd animals to survive for so many years.
Reread what I said. It was quite rational.
But conquering the herd mentality can make you rich (= opposite of poor) as anyone on this board will attest.
Yeah, I misinterpretted what you were getting at. I get your point now. And I agree.
Keynes’ beauty contests?!
Wouldn’t you rather play a nice game of backgammon?
:-))
Well, I do that anyway.
I swear I am getting worse. I need to up my skills.
“Is it really THAT irrational?”
Absolutely. What? 3000 people have been killed by jumbo jets in NYC in all of its history. People see a jet & panic.
3000 people die every month, month after month, in car accidents, and people get in their car and think nothing of it.
9/11 took 3000 American lives. Our reaction, the wars in Iraq & Afghanistan have taken 5000 American lives.
Most people have absolutely no ability to assess risk much less form a rational response to it. And we all have to suffer to some degree because of that.
Irrational? Try criminally stupid.
You can tell it’s Air Force One literally a mile away with that paint job. No exaggeration. A mile away.
All this proves is WHY the economy is in trouble…because stupid people are in charge.
We ARE “Idiocracy”. (the movie)
I sincerely hope someone had an “accident” in their pants. Especially the traders.
I don’t know what AF1 looks like and I’m a reasonably informed person in most things.
“You can tell it’s Air Force One literally a mile away with that paint job. No exaggeration. A mile away.”
OK smarty - answer this - just how long does it take a 747 to travel a mile?
Don’t try and defend it. It was insanely stupid - period. Especially since the prez wasn’t even on board. Therefore a “security reasons” excuse is not valid.
It was stupid.
It’s not exactly easy to see the paint job of planes flying overhead, without binoculars at least. AF1’s paint job, while certainly unique, is also quite muted. The bottom of the plane is in fact light blue. It’s not like the thing’s fire-engine red.
Another Ponzi scheme to add to the growing list.
5 charged in $70M mortgage Ponzi scheme
WASHINGTON (AP) — Five people were charged with fraud Monday in what prosecutors say was a mortgage scheme that defrauded over 1,000 people of more than $70 million.
Prosecutors say the company marketed the mortgage program at luxury hotels in Maryland, Washington and Beverly Hills, Calif. The company pitch was that, for a $5,000 investment, people could buy homes and not worry about the price because Metro Dream Homes would make their mortgage payments.
Investors were told they were investing in ATM machines, television advertising and calling card kiosks. But prosecutors say those businesses never made any real money.
Instead, prosecutors say, the investments were used to pay company salaries of up to $200,000. The company maintained a fleet of luxury cars and a staff of 10 chauffeurs, prosecutors said. And company officials allegedly traveled to the Super Bowl and the NBA All Star game with investor money.
“The name Dream Homes was truly a nightmare for so many people in the state of Maryland,” Douglas F. Gansler, the state’s attorney general, said.
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/5-charged-in-70M-mortgage-apf-15042105.html?.v=1
Fraud. Our largest industry, bar none.
Historical stock charts seem to show that it took more than 25 years for the market to recover from the 1929 crash — a dismal statistic that has been brought to investors’ attention many times in the current downturn.
But a careful analysis of the record shows that the picture is more complex and, ultimately, far less daunting: An investor who invested a lump sum in the average stock at the market’s 1929 high would have been back to a break-even by late 1936 — less than four and a half years after the mid-1932 market low.
linky
Yep.
All the more indication that the stock market is a very poor gauge of the actual health of the economy. After the 1929 crash even though the stock market recovered within this 7 years (assuming Hulbert’s right, which I think he is), civilian employment took 20 years to recover.
That being said - Hulbert also doesn’t mention the following bear market from 1936 - 1942, when the DJI lost half its value again - from 187 to 95, including the crash down to 106 in early 1938. So while yeah the brief pop up in 1936 may have technically been a recovery back to 1929 levels, it was a short-lived recovery. It was perhaps the ultimate sucker rally.
but, if they dollar cost averaged…
Short story
I have been enlisted/convinced/cajoled to go back on the HOA board in my hood, a decent gated circle with little common area and lowish fees.
One thicket awaits.
The current board got miffed with a homeowner who owns three houses here. She combative, but a nice lady. Seems she fell behind on dues. A board member went to see her, they had a meeting of the minds, and she wrote a settlement check after negotiating late fees. Check was for around $500.
Sounds like a done deal, right?
Well, the board also had also authorized a previous property manager to send the amount to collections. For reasons unknown to me, or perhaps because the settlement came late, the mess was sent to an outside attorney. Small claims?
Nope. The attorney filed an action in Superior Court, over a debt that was in the mid hundreds of dollars, and got liens filed. So the board says no, we got a settlement, can’t you get out the Wayback Machine and undo those mean legal things? Attorney now is presenting the board with a $6,000 ($6,000) bill for legal fees. The liens have not been released. The woman subject of these actions is angrier than a yellow-jacket, happens to be a “minority” (if there is such a concept in California), and is making harassment lawsuit noise. She is a practicing attorney.
A bit of a tempest in a teapot.
The liens are a stickler for everyone else because I believe they have to be disclosed to lenders and borrowers with other properties that may change hands. A cloud on here titles becomes a cloud over the hood.
Here’s hoping cooler heads will prevail.
Oh, well. It’s almost swimming season.
Cannonball!
Whoops!
My neighbor got into a tiff with the HOA. The HOA declared his landscape plands “dead” and demanded their removal. My neighbor claimed they were merely dormant and had new green shoots to prove his point. The HOA was not satisfied with new green shoots and was going to take him to court. He’s a “minority” for sure but his daughter is a lawyer. I hope he wins - he’s always had one of the best maintained properties yet he doesn’t fuss when his lazy neighbors don’t quite keep up (I’m one of the lazy ones).
I’ve sold my house so I don’t care a whole lot except that he has been a good neighbor. Plus the HOA has to prove it’s not “biased” so they’re picking on myself and the other folks who used to be under the radar.
Climber:
Here we have dustups over plants, too.
Changes in landscaping are sposed to be reviewed by a committee, though common sense usually prevails.
Not always.
My daughter and I once planted corn, eggplant and tomatoes in a sunny area in front visible to street. Got notices that they were inappropriate. I told them if they wanted to explain to a grade-schooler why corn tassles were out of bounds with the public weal, have at it. They never did.
Temporary changes such as annual flowers - petunias and the like - are encouraged. Maters are temporary (and even bloom), too, so I don’t know why bias exists against veggies (or fruits, in that case).
But I’m just pointing out some of the excesses.
Traffic is slow, junked cars are non existent, and I don’t have to fool with chlorine levels and mold to swim. So for now, it’s an OK place to be.
229 comment at 11:30? Wow - we’ve come a long way.
Anyone care to check Barney Frank’s list of “supporters” on this one. Maybe Chris Dodd will co-sponsor the legalization of on-line gambling.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/30434793/
“A study by PricewaterhouseCoopers says the U.S. government could raise more than $50 billion over 10 years from taxes on legalized online gambling.”
Boy - $50 billion will go a loooong ways towards relieving that $20 trillion debt. (especially since 90% of it will probably just be revenue taken from other gambling revenue sources like Vegas)
Anyone care to check Barney Frank’s list of “supporters” on this one. Maybe Chris Dodd will co-sponsor the legalization of on-line gambling.
Online gambling is already legal it’s called the stock market. As with the typical Vegas game the house has the advantage.
Unlike the typical Vegas game, they aren’t required to either post nor fairly represent the actual odds.
Not only do they have the advantage, they are playing with your money! It’s soooooo fresh!
MrBubble
PS: Just bitter ‘cuz I think that GS is trying to bury SRS and I am looooong and drunk.
5% a year????
So, I’m watching a city council meeting on cable access… The mayor is very frustrated… Back in 2004, 2005, she demanded that “windfall” property tax increases from 20% and 50% annual real estate price increases not be put into the budget… She demanded the budget be based on the “normal” 5% we experienced from 1995-2003….
Now she’s angry that our property tax are way below budget. How can this be, she asks, if we based the budget on 5% a year?
Hello???? 5% a year real estate price increases with 2-3% inflation and wage increases?
Had we increased at 5% a year for 9 years since 2000, we’d be 55% above 2000. We’re actually at 17% above 2000, and still falling like a rock.
Your 5% a year was INSANE!
Now they are trying to explain math to her…..
Tax receipts jumped 56% over 3 years. Then they dropped 34% over the next 2 years. She doesn’t seem able to understand that 56% increase then 34% decline is less than 5% a year over 6 years….
hmmmmmmm let’s see…. 100 * 1.56 * .66 = 103
100 * 1.05^6 = 135
Guess what… 103 < 135.
Arg….. she’s still arguing…. They can’t convince the mayor that 34% drop undoes a 56% increase.
Our educational system live in action!
This is how she sees the problem:
56%-34%=22%. 5% every year for 4 or 5 years means 2% surplus or break even.
Many people cannot think that way, that a percentage on the way down is a lot more money than the same percentage on the way up. I suppose that if everyone comprehended this clearly, there would be many more heart attacks about the extent to which house prices have already dropped, much less where they might end up.
Maybe someone should sell a small plastic card with the percentages on it, similar to the one for tipping.
NEW YORK – The Fox network is sticking with its regular schedule over President Barack Obama this week.
The network is turning down the president’s request to show his prime-time news conference on Wednesday. The news conference marks Obama’s 100th day in office. Instead of the president, Fox viewers will see an episode of the Tim Roth drama “Lie to Me.”
It’s the first time a broadcast network has refused Obama’s request. This will be the third prime-time news conference in Obama’s presidency. ABC, CBS and NBC are airing it.
Who was it that was saying FOX was a good news source. The economy is in turmoil and we have a pandemic on our hands, but FOX viewers won’t be bothered with that and instead will view an educational drama. The title Lie to Me seems appropriate for what FOX does.
What’s wrong with that? They are in a numbers game and hit them big time. Every other news group will cover Barry’s talk, he’s already been covered by the media more than both Clinton and Bush combined. Lots of people don’t need to be spoon feed drivel continuously.
The Fox Force runs deep with this one…
They’ve pre-empted Obama’s news conference for live coverage of Sean Hannity being water boarded for charity. He offered, since it’s no big deal, ya know.
Old paradigm = feeding the squirrels
New paradigm = eating the squirrels
LOL!
It is getting too expensive to even die anymore…not just in the US, but in China, too.
Chinese face rising cost of dying
By Jamil Anderlini in Shanghai
Published: April 27 2009 18:37 | Last updated: April 27 2009 18:37
When Lin Yuanjing’s husband died of liver cancer in February she was prepared with the wads of cash she knew would be needed to navigate the bureaucracy of death.
The first people she paid were the hospital nurses and orderlies so they would clean her husband’s body and treat it with respect when they moved it to a freezer cupboard in the morgue. Then she paid an orderly to help her register the death with the public security bureau and Shanghai government and contact the state-owned funeral parlour.
At the parlour, the grieving widow was confronted by a baffling menu of goods and services intended to smooth her husband’s departure – from jade urns costing Rmb40,000 ($6,000, £4,000, €4,500) to paper money to be burnt for her husband’s use in the afterlife.
With a couple of devastating comments about piety clearly intended to shame Ms Lin into coughing up more for her husband’s cremation, the funeral parlour official ran through the long list of options – would she like her husband to be transported in a minivan or a Mercedes-Benz hearse? Would she like him to wait in a VIP room before cremation? Wouldn’t that jade urn make the perfect final resting place?
While basic prices for transporting, storing and cremating bodies in China are supposed to be set and regulated by the state, “extras” including coffins, urns, wreaths, funeral processions and graves are all set by “the market”.
I had to witness just such a disgustingly sleazy sales pitch here, when a close relative died. These nationwide companies that buy up every small funeral home in sight have outrageous fees for everything. I’m glad I’m a veteran, so my family will get my money and not these shysters who I think of as a twist of the term “grave robbers.”
“These nationwide companies that buy up every small…”
homebuilder in sight?
From an obituary published in the Arizona Republic 23 April 2009: “Chuck was the Director of Marketing for the Lund Cadillac Group. We are sure he would still want all to know that 0.9% financing is still available on all New 2008 Hummer H2’s.”
When did the onset of the Great Recession begin in Japan, anyway? If memory serves, it was 1989 or so (twenty years ago)…and it is still getting worse!
Financial Times
Japan predicts record fall in output
By Michiyo Nakamoto in Tokyo
Published: April 27 2009 05:30 | Last updated: April 27 2009 19:24
Japan’s government yesterday tore up its latest growth forecasts and instead predicted a record drop in output this year as it sought backing from the Diet for a fresh fiscal stimulus to revive the battered economy.
Tokyo said it expected gross domestic product to fall 3.3 per cent in the fiscal year that began on April 1 and warned that the economic picture was worsening. The government in December forecast flat growth for the current fiscal year.
It was a year after Nakasoni arrogantly told the world that the average American worker spends each Monday discussing what he did during the weekend and spends each Friday discussing with his colleagues what he will do during the weekend. I was happy that the Asian arrogance was answered in kind.
Crap! Conde Nast is pulling the plug on Portfolio. Dang that was a pretty good magazine.
Portfolio somehow managed to burn through $100 million dollars in two years.
Interesting business model for a business magazine.
And now for the dumb question of the day: Why didn’t Big Hank ask Goldman Sachs to swallow up Merrill?
Oh and by the way, did you guys realize that the Federal Reserve Chairman can boss around holders of Cabinet-level posts in the executive branch of the U.S. Government?
Wall Street Journal
* REVIEW & OUTLOOK
* APRIL 28, 2009
Busting Bank of America
A case study in how to spread systemic financial risk.
The cavalier use of brute government force has become routine, but the emerging story of how Hank Paulson and Ben Bernanke forced CEO Ken Lewis to blow up Bank of America is still shocking. It’s a case study in the ways that panicky regulators have so often botched the bailout and made the financial crisis worse.
In the name of containing “systemic risk,” our regulators spread it. In order to keep Mr. Lewis quiet, they all but ordered him to deceive his own shareholders. And in the name of restoring financial confidence, they have so mistreated Bank of America that bank executives everywhere have concluded that neither Treasury nor the Federal Reserve can be trusted.
Mr. Lewis has told investigators for New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo that in December Mr. Paulson threatened him not to cancel a deal to buy Merrill Lynch. BofA had discovered billions of dollars in undisclosed Merrill losses, and Mr. Lewis was considering invoking his rights under a material adverse condition clause to kill the merger. But Washington decided that America’s financial system couldn’t withstand a Merrill failure, and that BofA had to risk its own solvency to save it. So then-Treasury Secretary Paulson, who says he was acting at the direction of Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke, told Mr. Lewis that the feds would fire him and his board if they didn’t complete the deal.
Wall Street Journal
* REVIEW & OUTLOOK
* APRIL 28, 2009
The Big Barofsky
Someone in Washington is standing up for taxpayers.
A high-five is due the Special Inspector General for the government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program. In his quarterly report to Congress last week, Neil Barofsky promotes a reform to help prevent the next credit disaster.
Mr. Barofsky criticizes the New York Fed’s Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) for relying on the major credit-rating agencies to determine if securities are safe enough for taxpayers. Under the TALF, the New York Fed provides nonrecourse loans to private firms to buy AAA-rated pools of mortgages and other assets. But can you trust that triple-A rating?
Mr. Barofsky notes that credit ratings on residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) “have proven to be unreliable and largely irrelevant to the actual value and performance of the security. Arguably, the wholesale failure of the credit rating agencies to rate adequately such securities is at the heart of the securitization market collapse, if not the primary cause of the current credit crisis.” Hear, hear.
Could this message finally penetrate the crania of senior U.S. officials?