The Creep That He Is
-by the Mysterious Flying Miser
Not long ago, renters and real-estate naysayers were being told that “rich people” were responsible for the outlandish increase in house prices. Some of us tried to argue that rich people were in the habit of borrowing money, and that many of them were borrowing more than they could afford (just like everyone else). We all know who turned out to be right on that score. Just for fun though, let’s be a sport and check in on a few of the better-known members of the privileged and well-connected:
From the Wall Street Journal:
“The owners of the 400-room St. Regis Monarch Beach resort, the site of a maligned retreat last fall for top sales performers of bailed-out insurer American International Group Inc., turned over the beleaguered property to its mezzanine lender, Citigroup Inc.”
From the New York Post:
“The bank has been given the go-ahead to foreclose on Victoria Gotti’s palatial estate on Long Island — the same used in the TV reality show “Growing Up Gotti” — saying she owes a whopping $650,000 in mortgage payments.
“Gotti’s lender, JP Morgan Chase, claims the daughter of the late Gambino crime family boss John ‘Dapper Don’ Gotti — owes them the staggering amount after she failed to make payments for two years starting in September 2006, court records reveal.
“The 46-year-old former reality TV star, who used to own the Old Westbury home along with her former husband Carmine Agnello, became the sole owner in 2005, according to court records.
“Asked about Agnello’s involvement, (Gotti’s mother) barked, ‘The creep that he is, he took out a mortgage behind her back. She can’t afford to pay.’”
From the Denver Public Relations Blog:
“Ernie Bjorkman is in the news again this week, but it isn’t a New York Times profile or a guest appearance on Oprah. He and his wife are listed in the foreclosures section of the Denver Business Journal, with U.S. Bank foreclosing on his home in Englewood that carries a $367,470 balance. I stand by my last comment on the subject:
“‘Could someone please explain to me how former KWGN/Channel 2 anchor Ernie Bjorkman can make the rounds on national media talking about his financial struggles after losing his anchor job? Today it was the Oprah Winfrey show. The guy made $250,000 a year and, within five months of being out of work, he has to borrow $1,000 from a friend to cover his car payment. Seriously?’”
From Zillow.com:
“Actor Stephen Baldwin, one of the Long Island-raised Baldwin brothers who all went into acting careers, is losing his Old Mountain Road home in Nyack, NY to foreclosure. The Baldwin home will be auctioned off on June 24, according to LoHud.com.
“According to public records, Baldwin and his wife, Kennya, paid $515,000 for the circa-1850 home in 1997. He then listed the property for $3.4 million in 2006, with the desire to find a bigger property so he could keep horses, but it did not sell.
“LoHud reports that the Baldwins defaulted on paying $824,488.36 to mortgage holder Bankers Trust Co. and county filings show the Baldwins owe National City Bank money for a separate mortgage and may owe tens of thousands in unpaid state and federal taxes on the property.”
OK, so this one isn’t really rich or famous, BUT STILL! From TV38:
“Tammy Berry betrayed an entire community. Now Habitat for Humanity is in the process of taking back an opportunity Berry once had to help her and her family get back on their feet.
“The grass is overgrown and screens are knocked out of the windows. 22 Glenside Ave. in Billerica is a Habitat for Humanity house that was supposed to be a much-needed home, a dream come true for Tammy Berry and her family, but when the I-Team started looking into Tammy Berry’s habitat deal last February, we discovered she was breaking some of the habitat rules.
“Now Habitat of Greater Lowell is in the process of closing the door on the charity they gave to Tammy Berry.
“‘For us this is very difficult, we’ve had to do a lot of soul searching,’ said Dana Owens of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Lowell.
“Over the years, Berry’s friends and other family members have actually been the people who called the Habitat house home. During the I-Team’s investigation, we found Tammy Berry, Habitat’s client, living with her husband 12 miles away in Lowell.
“Not only did we find Berry living in a different house, we found a woman who says rooms at the house were once up for rent and a document backs those claims up. According to state records, Jessica D’Amico paid Berry monthly for room and board. ‘It’s just wrong what she does and she’s making a lot of money off people for something she was practically given.’”
Wow. Apparently competitive spend pressure isn’t just a California problem, and not just for the “wannabe” crowd.
Does anyone outside this board live within their means??!!
One wonders. Call it the Hollywoodification of America.
“According to public records, Baldwin and his wife, Kennya, paid $515,000 for the circa-1850 home in 1997…the Baldwins defaulted on paying $824,488.36 to mortgage holder Bankers Trust Co. and county filings show the Baldwins owe National City Bank money for a separate mortgage and may owe tens of thousands in unpaid state and federal taxes on the property.”
This should never be allowed to happen again. Second mortgages should only be used for certain things, like college or starting a business or fixing the house or, perhaps, a medical emergency. Refinancing should only be to lower the rate.
Who is a bigger idiot? The Baldwins, the lenders, or the responsible taxpayers and younger generations who ended up with most of the tab.
‘Who is a bigger idiot?’
The countries buying long-term US govt debt?
It’s just wrong what she does and she’s making a lot of money off people for something she was practically given.
Well, in her defense, you cant give something to someone and they tell them what they can do with it. But then again, you also cant tell the morals a person comes with. Some people just dont have any. Everyone only cares about themselves. It’s so selfish. It actually makes me feel bad. I stand my assessment that you cant give anything of value to some poor folks, they just wont know how to act..
If you give it to them pending a contract, then you absolutely can tell them what to do with it.
Well besides some poor people, I would also include some middle class and some of the rich class that shouldn’t be given anything of value.
People who don’t earn what they have - or are given - oftentimes have no comprehension of worth of what they have or are given.
The outcome of Rodney King and the behavior of suburban white/asian kids from Chicago’s wealthy North Shore communities again comes to mind. As it always does. For me, anyway.
Things given = ill-gotten gains. Much of the time.
The countries buying long-term US govt debt?
——————–
Bingo!
Yeah, this will end well.
Sigh,
Leigh
I really don’t feel too sorry for these people (at least the decision makers):
Asia/Europe/etc would not have kept financing this Charlie-Foxtrot, if it wasn’t serving their political/business/national interests.
China: Selling low end goods built by $10/day labor, sucking up every low end manufacturing job on the planet, to provide employment for their citizens.
Europe: Selling overpriced high-end good to status-concious Americans, to support their various welfare states.
Nobody thought the party would end, least of all these highly trained economists we have on staff.
The way I see it going forward:
-Uncle Sugar tries to stiff all the foreign “investors” (by outright defaults, or indirectly by printing money, or both).
-Foreign investors use means both “legal” and “illegal” (depending on one’s perspective) to grab US-owned assets in their countries as compensation…….or they use their stacks of worthless paper money to buy US-denominated hard assets.
-During this process, their will be a miscalculation on someone’s part, creating a new crisis of it’s own. Results will be very bad.
I don’t see anyone in business or government anywhere on the planet, that has the finesse or talent to navigate this mess without error.
“China: Selling low end goods built by $10/day labor”
Isn’t that a little on the high end?
I picked that number out of the air…….figured that it was the “high-end” of the wage scale for Chao6pak
.figured that it was the “high-end” of the wage scale for Chao6pak
Although that is dang funny (did you make it up?), allow me to suggest Chu6pack - Chao6pak looks too much like “Chaos 6Pak” which I don’t know, sounds like a wrestler or an X-Man or something.
Went to “Common Chinese Names”, and found a common male Chinese name that sorta sounded like “Joe”.
Should I copyright it? How?
Should I copyright it? How?
Copyright, in the US, takes affect at the moment of creation.
You have to explicitly release something to the public domain.
Of course, if your real name isn’t X-gsfixr, there might be a problem.
Good analysis, GS.
“Second mortgages should only be used for certain things, like college or starting a business or fixing the house or, perhaps, a medical emergency.”
I disagree. Kids can get loans to pay for college and going forward, I’d bet education loans will carry much lower interest rates than HELOCs (non dischargable in bankruptcy).
Yeah, and parents can get loans for their kids too, so I don’t see the logic in the HELOC for college at all. The only thing that makes sense is that Jr. couldn’t get into any of the competitive public schools, so parents HELOCed to send the kid to a less competitive (but expensive) private school for which student loans were not enough.
When I first started doing stuff for lenders, I got a boat-load of inspections (which I don’t do anymore for reasons we discussed last weekend). After a couple of days, I realized these were all elderly owners and after talking with a few, I found out they were making draws for improvements to the houses, etc. So I guess these were HELOCs or reverse mortgages. What wasn’t so much fun was that these people got real nervous when I talked to them, and acted like they had done something wrong. They hadn’t of course and part of what I was to do was explain these inspections were routine. I can’t make any value judgements about how people borrow money, against a house or not. But the fact that they were uncomfortable about the whole thing speaks for itself.
Having done some time as an originator, I remember having to coach these folks pulling out equity that it was “for home improvement, right? I did NOT hear you mention anything about a bass boat”.
They may have done SOME home improvement, but lots of folks considered it to be “free money” and blew it on some “gottahaveit”. Perhaps feeling/acting guilty for good cause?
Who is a bigger idiot? The Baldwins, the lenders, or the responsible taxpayers and younger generations who ended up with most of the tab.
Hands down, it would be the imbeciles who election after election keep voting for the Democrat & Republican Tweedle Dees and Tweedle Dums, a.k.a. Republicrats, who have socialized risk and privatized profits.
The younger generations are at the receiving end of the greatest generational screwing in history. Something tells me they won’t be very forgiving toward the Baby Boomers - the most selfish generation of all - as the latter enter their dotage.
The younger generations are at the receiving end of the greatest generational screwing in history. Something tells me they won’t be very forgiving toward the Baby Boomers - the most selfish generation of all - as the latter enter their dotage.
I feel like I’ve been following the elephants in the parade much my life as I get to follow in the aftermath of the boomers. I’m not sure whether they’re more willfully selfish or just conveniently ignorant of their impacts on those around them. And while not all boomers are evil and some have been among the more insightful about the ongoing problems, they collectively have not left the world better off than they found it.
I always assumed they’d do whatever was necessary to preserve a gold-plated retirement for them, regardless of the impacts on those behind them. It now looks like they’ll take quite a hit too, but still nothing like those that follow them. While I suppose that is some small measure of justice for the collective damage they have done, it’s neither sufficient nor very satisfying.
It always pays to look out for your kids. They are the ones that will choose your nursing home.
“The younger generations are at the receiving end of the greatest generational screwing in history. Something tells me they won’t be very forgiving toward the Baby Boomers - the most selfish generation of all - as the latter enter their dotage.”
don’t worry about us, we will become expats and leave the BBs to pay those bills by themselves
We ain’t HOLLYWOOD here but EVERYBODY is RICH in Wisconsin.
Well it really is different here in Wisconsin….Everybody that owns a house REALLY IS RICH! Yup, that’s what they tell me.
Shacks that cost and sold for 80k — 175k in the 1980’s are NOW worth 300k — 500k no sweat. Yup, that’s what the RE Agents, sellers and the MSM tell me. Got a dilapidated 1879 farmhouse with 3-7 acres with a quaint, crumbling little red cow barn ? Apply a some paint, pergo and stainless steel, call it Country Living and ask for 600k. Hell, add some granite, throw 6-7 rocks together, call that a firepit and ask for 650k. Good a dark and dingy basement ? Put in a gaudy Green and Gold Packers Bar and call it a rec room and go after the Big Game. Yup, the Sky is the Limit here in Wisconsin! They’ll pay, yup, that’s what the all RE Agents, sellers and the MSM tell me, everybody in Wisconsin is really RICH.
But lately, I have been hearing nasty rumers and mutterings. It must be them pinko commies and liberals. But even the US Census Bureau has been spreading the UGLY rumor that the median income of Wisconsin is only $43,791. They say our major and minor banks are in big financal trouble with bad out of state loans and needed lots of Gubermint money big-time. Jobs are leaving and unemployment is up around 10%. Property Taxes have nearly doubled in the last 10 years. Yup, that’s what the nasty rumors and mutterings tell me. Must be those all Commies, evil doer’s and those malcontent renter type people.
They say bad loans and forclosures are coming due soon, that the State of Wisconsin has a really large deficit and it’s going to raise fees and curtail services. Yup, that’s what the nasty rumors and muttering tell me. I think they are rocking the boat because …they may really be tourists and not like us RICH people here from Wisconsin.
But who am I to question or reason why when the all the RE Agents, banksters, sellers and MSM say Pay Up or Die? Heck, I live in Wisconsin and everyone KNOWS that anybody who owns a house in Wisconsin IS RICH. Yup, that’s what they ALL tell me!
I like your anger.
I was in Wisconsin in June. My buddies, whom I’ve worn down relentlessly over the years, see things the same way I do. A long time ago they didn’t but they do now. They talk of layoffs in many of the manufacturing plants. My buddy’s company is on their 4th round of layoffs. One of his options to keep his job is to do an awful commute to and from Chicago each day. That would not be fun.
But it sounds like they are still plowing under farmland to build McMansions. It seems insane to me what people THINK their houses are worth.
Keep up the reporting. Midwestern anger is the best anger there is. I should know.
Hi NYCityBoy,
I meant to say congratulations on the really nice job that you did the other day but I was was on the run. My LL (and friend), pulled the trigger on a country property and his friends and I were helping to throw his ugly butt out the door along with his tons of toys and assorted belongings.(boats, atv, snowmobiles, hunting equipment, deer heads, stuffed turkey–the whole midwest Jeremiah Johnson syndrome, a real man-child resettlement drill)
I also want to say thanks to DinOR and all of the others here for their moderating influences and fine imput on Ben’s blog. We really have a good gang of people here and I have forgotten more than once to say thanks to everyone when I should have.
As for what you saw as anger, it’s not really, more like my dry sarcasim or the frustration with the “here we go again” thing. I do have a warped sense of humor when it comes to this type of thing as my family is from northern Minnesota and I have been a long time Wisconsin resident. Being older, I have seen the Boom and Bust cycles in business, industry and housing in the mid-west and other parts of the country before.
Again thanks for the good work and the comments. Take care in the big city.
I’ve found that North Midwesterners are kindred souls……we’ve been thru enough boom/bust cycles to have never bought into the “real estate always goes up” crap.
A lot of the Texas/California crowd (not a majority, but enough to keep you on edge until proven otherwise) have a tendancy to believe their own BS. Maybe that’s why so many Californians feel comfortable in Texas.
In my experience, Texans used to brag big, but would then bust their a$$es to back it up.
Nowadays, a lot of them suffer from “alligator mouth backed by hummingbird a$$” syndrome; overpromise, underdeliver, then make excuses.
Now that I think about it, it is more of a nationwide problem.
You have an interesting point about midwesterners and our familiarity with the boom/bust cycle.
My spouse and I sold our California home in early 2005 after seven years to move back to the nation’s interior. When we first moved to the Golden State, houses were definitely expensive, but they were still doable given traditional loan standards. Our 1200 sq. ft. home was almost exactly 2.5x our initial family income.
We started getting uneasy about real estate prices in 2003 when we realized that we could not afford to purchase a basic starter house in the North Bay, even at $150k/yr!
By 2004, the housing market had evolved into a three-ring circus. Agents were calling our house almost daily to see if we were interested in selling and moving up.
Shortly thereafter, we secured jobs in another part of the country and contracted with an agent. By the end of the first day, we had a dozen offers, all above asking. We took the one with the most secure financing package and never looked back.
Several families from our circle left about the same time, and every single one of them was also from the rust belt. I think we all knew it couldn’t last.
You should have taken the worst one, and bought your old house back at 1/2 price in a year when it was in foreclosure
—————————————————-
We took the one with the most secure financing package and never looked back
Thanks, but no thanks. Believe it or not, there are some great and affordable places to live between the Appalachians and the Sierra. My family is quite happy here in the center of the country.
Hey mikey….I’m starting to see new houses in Rock Co that would have been listed at 180K as recently as last year now listed at $165K. Oh, no granite (or granite-ique) countertops or stainless steel appliances.
I’d have to look at all the housed I’ve been tracking, but I think the square footage is less, too. This might be promising, except Rock Co. has almost 20% official unemployment, so I think the homes are still over priced. UHS continue to be quoted saying “it’s a better deal than Madison” but for the price of many of the housed their talking about (listed at 250K+) you can buy a house in Madison (I still think 250K is too much for Madison).
OTOH, persons that have bought a house in the past ten years in Rock Co are underwater - I am seeing about 10 years of equity wiped out for most places. If a person bought at least seven to ten years ago, they might break even. Less then that, they better be prepared to bring a big check to the closing table.
dark and dingy basement? - don’t you mean “spacious lower level just waiting for your finishing touches to double your amount of living space?
Hey MadBoy, so great to catch you posting as I was guessing that you have been busy.
You have some good observations.
Both Rock and Jefferson Counties have been giving in a little on their prices. Dodge County has tremendous inventories and some towns like Beaver Dam will be crushed with job losses and forclosures. RE agents are still plying the BS it’s an EZ commute to Madtown anywhere from 30-40 miles out either direction.
Along the 151 Hwy trail west through and passed Madtown and Mt. Horeb area to the west into Iowa and even Grant Counties, I still see HouseDebters with rose colored glasses and the 2005-07 money dreams in their eyes. It may tale a little more time but it is going to get REAL UGLY in the State of Wisconsin. Rising Property Taxes and energy bills are already making a lot of people believers.
It’s a shame as this is a really one heck of a wonderful state to live in despite the long winters. Not many states can rival the beautiful Indian Summers and Falls that we have in southern Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin. I just which that the core economics outlooks for these states looked better.
Again, nice to see you and keep on with the great posts about your area. You know the market observations and psychology around there. I think the Madison area is “hardcore” as far as price change goes. Lots of “we can afford to wait it out” thinkers there.
We’ll…see !
Spent three years one month in Shebogyan. Thankfully we have Prop 13 in California. The only way to go. Public sector here is over paid with too many and excessive benefits. SEIU terrorists control the Dems and the legislature !
Packers room should now be repackaged as the new trendy,
‘ManCave’. That oughta bring the guys onboard.
desertdweller
These the mere terms “Packer rooms or Man Caves hardly describes these Wisconsin Subterranean Green and Cold Palaces. 54 inch HDTV’s with expensive Surround Sound Systems, Custom Packer carpets, Murals, bars, expensive memorabilia, custom Packer leather furniture, these places a just a wonder to behold.
One wealthy contractor I know totally revamped a really big 1939 cream city brick McMansion and created a fantasically functional gourmet kitchen for his wife that any chef I ever knew would have killed for 9 times over.
Then he took me downstairs for the rest of the nickel tour. All of these Packer Backer people have too much time and money but his place was the Holy Shrine of the Green and Gold. He saw my surprise, laughed and said he went a little overboard and it may have cost more than his wife’s high end kitchen. I didn’t know if he was serious or just kidding. Packer labled sauna and hot tub down there too !
It’s not just him, even the modest homes of the Wisconsin “Faithful” easily drop several thousands into their underground Packer Shrines. I am surprised that these people sell these homes or if the do, they don’t remove their entire complete basements slab by slab or brick by brick and leave the upper house on blocks.
Some of these Packer Fans are quite insane or at the very least, medically certifiable. I enjoy a good football game as much as anybody but I hate to feel that I should remove my shoes, kneel down and face Lambeau Stadium and Pray to the Gods!
but I hate to feel that I should remove my shoes, kneel down and face Lambeau Stadium and Pray to the Gods!
What the hell’s the matter with you?
“He and his wife are listed in the foreclosures section of the Denver Business Journal, with U.S. Bank foreclosing on his home in Englewood that carries a $367,470 balance.”
U.S. Bank is really looking for deposits these days. I got a whole flyer of them earlier this week. The one that especially caught my notice was the $20 cash they were willing to pay for you to turn in the debit card/checks from your old account. Yeah, right. Pull the other one.
I think that was the same day I got the pre-approved Chase credit card application. Sigh. My shredder gets lots of exercise these days….
You won’t believe this, from US bank, received a flier yesterday stating they would deposit $150 to the account if you opened a checking account with a re-occuring regular direct deposit.
“Sigh. My shredder gets lots of exercise these days….”
That’s odd. My shredder got a paycut because it is being used so little nowadays. I would say we get 1/5 the credit card offers we used to get.
Hi Polly and NYC’b!
My shredder is laying back for awhile, as we moved and they have not located us - yet.
We did a sneaky thing - we did not fill out a postal card for forwarding.
I have a rolodex of those I chose to disclose.
Wish me luck!
Leigh
My shredder is laying back for awhile, as we moved and they have not located us - yet.
I shred everything that has my name and address on it that I would otherwise throw away.
(spins hat-propellor for luck)
Me too. I even pull the pre-printed hard copy order form from the center of paper catalogs. I feel a little weird doing it as I am sure that information is available on the internet somewhere, but it seems like the right thing to do.
Ditto lavi -
The credit idjits haven’t found us yet.
My husband thinks I’m…er…touch for doing the very same thing - shredding all evidence of name and address - even birthday card envelopes (so okay, maybe I’m a bit touched.)
Happy Birthday to me!
Wheeeeee (clinks red wine glass to HBBers.)
Leigh
Happy Birthday Leigh!
I’ll hoist an adult beverage in your direction in a bit.
Cheers!
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday dear Leigh
Happy Birthday to youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu.
And many more
Happy Birthday Leigh!
Ooops !…Happy Birthday Leigh
good luck Leigh!
Good idea, thanks.
testing.
HAPPY DAY, Leigh.
Tank you very much ladies and gents…burp -
Clink third glass of wine at chewall
Leigh
Happy Birthday Leigh,
Just happen to have a glass of Sangre de Toro at hand
*clink*
“burp”
don’t you mean “hic“?
or were you drinking beer with your wine?
whatever, it’s your birthday, do what you want
My credit union sent me a letter yesterday saying that they had dropped the interest rate on the Visa CC to 9.9% for high scoring FICO members. Very interesting, because I haven’t used their card in oh, about 8 years!
“‘It’s just wrong what she does and she’s making a lot of money off people for something she was practically given.’”
Awesome.
I worked on several Habitat for Humanity projects back when I was a college student, until I figured out that most of the recipients were poor for a reason: They were low-lifes. Not all, but the great majority. It wasn’t external circumstances that did them in, it was their own low mental and moral caliber. They were black holes for charity and always will be, and most had no compunction about taking well-meaning do-gooders for a ride.
WOW. First hand account of the truth.
A bit cynical, but true for the most part…
Here’s a good one
http://gawker.com/5326608/the-coming-annie-leibovitz-fire-sale
Art Capital has loaned Leibovitz a total of $24 million since September of last year. They took as collateral the negatives and copyright to all of Leibovitz’s photographs, as well as her homes in Rhinebeck, N.Y., and Greenwich Village.
Hahahahah. She mortgaged her houses AND the rights to her pics? Well, easy come, easy go, I guess. No worries, though. If any of her famous actress clients want me to, I can take replacement pics. Just stand there naked, I’ll take the pictures, and then pay me like $2MM each. Kewl.
Yeah, that’s beautiful. Isn’t it? She lives in my neighborhood. Of course I’m just a lowly renter. I don’t “own” my home the way Annie does. If I see her on a street corner begging I will give her a can of canned potatoes or maybe some sardines. I sure won’t give her something good like Fancy Feast. The cats would kill me if I gave that away.
I have always hated her photography. Every pitch must start with, “I’m Annie Leibovitz. I want to photograph you naked.” Ooh, there’s some clever work. “Tomorrow, tomorrow. I love you tomorrow. You’re only a day away.” Bwahahaha. Keep singing Annie. Maybe Daddy Warbucks will bail your a$$ out of the mess you created.
“Keep singing Annie. Maybe Daddy Warbucks will bail your a$$ out of the mess you created.”
Wow. Maybe Hank Paulson will pay her $45 mil to photograph him in the nude.
They’d have to pay me at least a mil just to take a look.
Hi. I read that article. Unfortuately there was no comment section. THe reporter seems astounded that someone with high income can go into debt simply by outspending the income. WTF ? If there was a comment section I was going to point-out the US Fed Gov. as good example as high income entity that manages to outspend its income.
Just found this and haaaaaaad to post.
Must see to believe.
http://guests.themls.com/profile_page.cfm?mls=09-383887&tab=search
Only $5.5MM! Hurry up and snap one up, before they run out!
Lot’s of rich people foreclosure stores these days. Take our local glitzy resort, Tamarack. Please.
All sorts of rich people were part of the land rush there, but it’s now in foreclosure. They may even disassemble the ski lifts and sell them as parts to other local ski resorts.
At least Andre Aggasi/Stefi Graf were smart enough to bail before things completely fell apart.
Is anyone else sick to death of “victims”? Seems like we’re becoming a victim-centric society. And even the rich and famous can play. I’m not talking about people who might occasionally get caught up in bad circumstances and might need a helping hand to get them back on their feet. I’m talking about the many professional victims out there and the various people in the rackets that cater to them.
Is anyone else sick to death of “victims”?
I hate/enjoy the endless parade of stories that go:
“They bought their house in 1995 for $175k. Now, they are about to lose it foreclosure - they had some financial setbacks and now they can’t keep up with the $3400 mortgage”
I enjoy the story because I know there’s a refi/HELOC in there which is the major source of the problem, but I hate the fact that the reporter never asks about it.
agreed… sometimes I wonder whether the media is just hyping to story to sell the story or is just clueless…
Update on the “Saga of X-GSfixr”
Got word late last week that our fate would be decided on 9-24-09…….so, here was the deal:
-Immediate termination
-No Severance package (employed there 6 years)
-All PTO time (sick/vacation time, about 6-7 weeks of pay) went bye-bye when the company filed Ch 11/reorganized in April.
BUT……they graciously offered to let me work 2 hours a week as a contract employee to “keep things up……”, until next year, when they MIGHT rehire me to start up the department again.
Told them I wasn’t interested. (Memo to self: Go to plastic surgeon, get the birthmark on my forhead that says “STUPID” removed).
That’s the thing that pi$$es me off most about this whole thing………the PTB/Corporate America have things so screwed up, and about 98% of the population over a barrel big enough, that they think people are broke/stupid enough to thank them for whatever crumbs they feel willing to throw out there.
This whole deal has been the biggest Charlie-Foxtrot I’ve been involved with in 30 years in the business……..shortsighted/stupid decisions are being made all over the country, by people that are not only unqualified to answer the questions, but don’t even have enough knowledge about the issues to ask the right questions to define the problem.
I was cleaning out my desk and packing tools on Tuesday, when the facilities manager for the client came by. Was surprised when I told him that I was done, and was packing stuff to get out……told me that everyone at HQ was told/were assuming that I was staying on as a 1099 employee.
If they do things the way they are supposed to be done, they are going to have to bring in someone from Chicago or Dallas (nearest people with proper certification) to work/run this thing…….not betting on that happening.
I was cleaning out my desk and packing tools on Tuesday
You have my sympathy - been there, done that too many times in the last 25 years.
That’s why I never take personal items to work except for a few pictures, I can be ‘packed’ and out of there within 10 minutes of being fired/laid-off. LMAO
I was cleaning out my desk and packing tools on Tuesday
You have my sympathy. Been there, done that too many times in the last 25 years.
Hey X, I am really sorry to hear about that. What a bunch of heartless zombies. Keep your head up man, not everyone is like that.
Good luck. I hope the best for you. Maybe Meredith Whitney will call you and ask you to be her personal towel boy. I believe that is your dream. Keep dreaming your dreams.
Sorry about that X-GS. If you still have some contact with people who are surprised to hear you are leaving completely, make sure to say (in a light hearted way if you can pull it off) that 2 hours a week of pay isn’t enough to be worth the commute, or losing eligibility for unemployment or giving up your flexibility to take pizza delivery shifts or whatever. The people who assumed you were going to be staying on as 1099 probably expected you to be around enough to get something done. Someone may be able to talk some sense into the “geniuses” who decided that 2 hours was all they needed to keep you from moving off..
Make sure to take a day to remind us of a few more of your details. We could take some time to brain storm ideas for you.
I’ve done the out of work thing. I know how hard it is. I wish you all the best.
I guess I got lucky. I took a buyout in late ‘07 after my company agreed to an LBO scheduled for early ‘08.
Everybody who stuck around for the LBO got whacked between 11/08 and 06/09.
Corporate America has no scruples and no shame.
I wonder if they would be open to a counteroffer. It would cost xxx to bring in the nearest certified people. I would do it for xxx - 10%.
Don’t forget to include travel and relocation costs for people from out of town — hotels, meals, etc.
Agree with this suggestion, if you can pull it off, x-GS.
Sorry to hear about the job situation. If you don’t stay with your current employer on a part-time/consulting basis, would you have to move to a different city/state?
Best of luck to you!
Good luck on a new job: May it pay well and be run by people who appreciate what you do.
Victim should have a narrow definition. Like finding out your girlfriend is a tranny.
If that comes as a surprise, you’re not a victim, you’re just stupid.
ATE-UP,
My mom says thank you for your kind thoughts.
That is sweet, I appreciate it, and give her a kiss for me.
Tell her that the cats are pulling for her. Then play her some Mozart. Little Amadeus always makes me feel better about things.
Sorry for missing whatever is happenin with you mom, please accept my good wishes for her.
FFGAB..I’m pulling for Mom and you as well . Know how you feel .They do have success with cancer you know ,I know a lot of people that
beat that monster ,or kept it in remission .
Just so you guys know, Monarch Beach was full of Wannabes. It was such an average course, but they charged $250 for a round because it had a couple “peak-abo” ocean views and was in the souch OC. They had a clubhouse that would impress the Belagio, fitted like a sick McMansion. The only time I played there was for a CAMB golf event that my company sponsored. How fitting that a bunch of Socal’s best Mortgage Brokers would be playing a $250 golf course, on a monday, during the housing boom. Now the place is in foreclosure haha, I wonder if they put a sheriff’s notice on the 35 foot tall mahogany stained glass doors?
hey guys- i have some old broken gold jewelry to exchange for cash. Any advice so i dont get ripped off? I live in Baltimore. Thanks in advance for any insight you can give
I’ve purchased some gold over the last year and found that real physical gold is quite a bit more than market spot prices. Hard to find something decent also. At least, that was my experience at several shops around Sacramento, CA. Ended up with the best deal from a guy at a gun show (buying, selling, trading).
A friend of mind who owns a thrift shop turns her gold into a jeweler. Before she goes, she separates everything (14K, 24K, etc.) to make it easier when you walk in. She also weighs it. She gets close to spot on the 24K stuff and a little less on < 24K. Maybe try selling at a gun show, although those guys like coins or bullion. Don’t forget to check kitco dot com before you head to the buyer. Good luck.
Has anyone else noticed that Zillow has gone nuts in the past week?
My old cheap house in San Jose was slowly deflating down from the $670K I sold it for in 2006 to around $485K. It just zoomed up $70K in the past 30 days to $555K. What’s that all about? That’s a 7% rise in a month!
Several other houses I’ve checked have done the same.
Green shoots, man! Geez, haven’t you been paying attention?
(that’s sarcasm, in case you didn’t notice)
Personally, I think **everyone** is in on the psychological manipulation/propaganda operation. It doesn’t matter where you look, they are shoveling the BS as fast and furiously as they can.
This is the time to stay on our toes, so we don’t get sucked in. It is not over, by any stretch of the imagination.
I also have noticed complete BS from zillow lately, one house that was recently on the market for 6 months at $499K which never sold just jumped from zestimate of 490 to 570, what a friggin’ joke.