June 29, 2011

Bits Bucket for June 29, 2011

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Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 02:56:54

Fiscal Uncertainty in Washington Shakes Small Business Confidence
By Shannon Bream | FoxNews.com

Small businesses are at the core of the United States economy, and their owners aren’t feeling so hopeful these days.

“Traditionally, we are led out of a recession by small businesses hiring people and creating jobs, and that’s not happening in this recession,” says Dan Danner, President and CEO of the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB).

His organization has just released a survey that tracks small business trends. The report shows that small business confidence was down for a third straight month in May, and that only 5 percent of small business owners think now is a good time to expand.

Economist Martin Baily of the Brookings Institution says the lack of investment, hiring and expansion by small businesses is one of the reasons the nation’s economy isn’t recovering as quickly as some expected. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows start-up businesses are at an all-time low.

“Even those that are starting are not hiring too many people,” Baily says.

Experts say Washington’s unresolved debt crisis – including questions about how to address the solvency of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security – is fueling a level of uncertainty that tends to bring many small businesses to a standstill.

“There’s enormous uncertainty about how the political process is going to grapple with those issues,” Georgetown University economics professor Brad Jensen says.

Economist Veronique de Rugy adds, “It paralyzes entrepreneurs and people who usually are willing to actually take risk and invest their own money in their business.”

Comment by CharlieTango
2011-06-29 04:33:38

i think i am like many small businessmen. i hire when there is demand for the services that i sell.

my contracting buisness is down to 4 employees and i expect it to shrink over the next year due to new 2011 building codes that make building more expensive.

in my web based business i have been shrinking for 10 years but i am creating new services that are leading to some growth. i might hire one person in the next year.

pretty bleak

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 04:55:46

The Evil Democrats in Congress TRIED to give you a tax break to help you hire in the US. The tax break was even paid for (like it’s supposed to be) by eliminating tax breaks on companies who offshored. The tax new tax break would have helped to pay for those new codes.

Your beloved conservatives filibustered it.

Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:25:59

Why do you think that was, aside from the epic struggle of good vs. evil? What was this bill called anyway?

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Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 05:43:20

“Why do you think that was”

Because the elite make good money offshoring jobs?

 
Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:54:30

Seriously, could this be the actual reason that somebody fillibustered this supposedly innocent and beneficial proposal? I’m suspecting there were barbed hooks in the legislation (which I know not of).

 
Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 06:20:37

“I’m suspecting there were barbed hooks in the legislation ”

It closed a corporate tax loophole, so the repubs opposed it on the “it’ll raise taxes” position.

I would love to see the bill come up again, without the tax thingie attached (it gives the repubs too easy an excuse). It would be a great election year wedge issue. The oligarchs would demand it be filibustered, while the Tea Partiers would be…confused… by the issue.

Anti-Offshoring Bill Blocked in Senate
Washington, D.C. (September 28, 2010)

By WebCPA Staff
AccountingToday

Senate Republicans blocked a bill on Tuesday that would have denied tax breaks to companies that move jobs offshore and provide companies with a two-year holiday from their share of Social Security payroll tax withholding for each employee they hire to replace a worker at a foreign-based facility.

The bill would bar companies from taking tax credits or deductions for closing a U.S.-based facility to move the operation overseas, but they would still be able to take deductions for severance and job placement services for employees who lose their jobs from a U.S. plant closing.

It would prohibit a firm from taking any deduction, loss or credit for amounts paid in connection with reducing or ending the operation of a trade or business in the U.S., and starting or expanding a similar trade or business overseas.

The bill would also prevent U.S. companies from deferring the payment of U.S. taxes on income earned by their foreign subsidiaries until that income is brought back to the United States. The bill would repeal deferral for companies that reduce or close a trade or business in the U.S., and start or expand a similar business overseas for the purpose of importing their products for sale in the United States. U.S. companies that locate facilities abroad in order to sell their products overseas would be unaffected by the law, however.

Republicans objected that the law would raise taxes on large U.S. companies.

 
Comment by alpha-sloth
 
Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 06:55:20

OK folks, I found it:

———–
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/D?d111:61:./temp/~bdylmX::|/home/LegislativeData.php?n=BSS;c=111|

S.3816 Sponsor, Durban (D-IL) + 8 co-spons.

“SUMMARY AS OF:
9/21/2010–Introduced.

Creating American Jobs and Ending Offshoring Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) exempt from employment taxes for a 24-month period employers who hire a employee who replaces another employee who is not a citizen or permanent resident of the United States and who performs similar duties overseas; (2) deny any tax deduction, deduction for loss, or tax credit for the cost of an American jobs offshoring transaction (defined as any transaction in which a taxpayer reduces or eliminates the operation of a trade or business in connection with the start-up or expansion of such trade or business outside the United States); and (3) eliminate the deferral of tax on income of a controlled foreign corporation attributable to property imported into the United States by such corporation or a related person, except for property exported before substantial use in the United States and for agricultural commodities not grown in the United States in commercially marketable quantities.”

(Two amendments were introduced by Grassley(R-IA), but they don’t seem to have any text — dummy amendments of some sort?)

(There is a link to the actual text: 18 pages of text in big print and very big margins.)
————–

In other words, this bill was not an amendment to some other crazy bill. There are no crazy amendments attached to it, no poison pills that I can see. It’s about as stand-alone as a bill can be.

So I ask again, WHY was this bill filibustered? Except for that “filibuster everything” mentality of the Senate Republicans?

 
Comment by butters
2011-06-29 07:58:21

I can’t speak for them but I am sure they had some sinister motives. Bottom line, the bill is useless because even with the tax breaks it’s way cheaper to go offshore.

And don’t even get me started with 2 years expiration……

 
Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 08:11:05

Thanks for filling in the blanks. I’d like to see it too, or something much stronger, incentive wise.

 
Comment by polly
2011-06-29 08:54:37

I’d just like to note that this sort of thing is notoriously hard to administer. I worked on a much simpler case involving a NYS jobs tax credit many, many years ago and it was horrendous to deal with.

Cutting deductibility of all the expenses related to doing something (like off shoring a business activity) is difficult for the person trying to follow the rules and the person trying to enforce them. Cutting deductibility for a kind of expense (mortgage interest, charitable deductions, etc.) is hard enough. Getting into why the money was spent is harder.

It doesn’t mean you can’t do it. It just means that when you do it, expect a lot of “aggressive” tax positions. We called them, “tax lawyer full employment acts.”

 
Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 20:26:20

Are the people of Ohio happy that John Boehner is voting to offshore their manufacturing base?

 
 
Comment by CharlieTango
2011-06-29 09:21:39

“The tax new tax break would have helped to pay for those new codes.”

that’s silly, the home buyer / home owner pays for the impact of the new codes.

what good does a tax break do me when i’m not making money?

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Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 11:49:43

If you didn’t have to spend money paying taxes, you could spend the money on absorbing the costs of the new codes. (money is fungible) Your prices to the customer would stay the same, so demand would stay the same, and your business would stay level. You get to keep business, and the customer gets a safer product for the same price. This is a win-win.

what good does a tax break do me when i’m not making money?

IT DOESN’T!! That’s the bloody point! If the government is going to stimulate business, then wouldn’t it be better to stimulate your CUSTOMERS into buying enough to make you hire somebody, instead of giving you a nebulous tax break and saying “here, hire sombody.”?

I see contradictions here: you want demand-side economics, but the talking points you spout are for supply-side voodoo economics.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 12:59:36

If he isn’t making any money on the old building codes, the tax break does no good as you suggest. He’s already not spending money paying taxes. He can’t move money from the tax line item to the increased building cost line item (because there is no money in the income tax line item).

Taxes are not a cost independent of profits, so assuming that tax breaks in some way make a business more profitable in light of other rising costs doesn’t work.

I do agree with you on your last statement…all the commentary from people saying that tax breaks will increase hiring is also silly. In the same way that tax breaks can’t compensate for higher costs elsewhere in a business, or weak demand.

If however, the government specifically reduces the cost of hiring (a subsidy as opposed to a tax break, a change in payroll tax, or worker’s compensation laws/costs, etc.) in some way, shape, or form, it could make a difference.

 
 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 13:15:58
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Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 20:21:04

Only a fool would want to be in the homebuilding business right now.

Comment by Pete
2011-06-29 21:40:24

“Only a fool would want to be in the homebuilding business right now.”

I tend to agree, but remember how the economy always overcorrects. When/if things truly turn around for the better, there may be a shortage of homes due to the lack of building today. This is assuming that the turnaround is sustained, and occurs ten or twenty years from now.

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Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 07:30:30

Maybe small businesses are having a hard time finding customers, since so many of their customers’ jobs have been yanked away and handed to Chindexicans.

Could that be it?

Oh no, it must be because we have laws against pouring poisonous chemicals into rivers. That must be the reason. Or maybe it’s the near-zero percent effective corporate tax rate. Or maybe it’s the fact that there a still a few union members left, or that sometimes an American asks for a benefit.

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 08:12:07

“Maybe small businesses are having a hard time finding customers, since so many of their customers’ jobs have been yanked away and handed to Chindexicans.”

The underemployed don’t go on spending sprees. Nor do those putting their kids through college (while they watch tuition rates soar into the stratosphere at State U’s), nor those paying the huge deductibles on their heath insurance while they try to fill the car’s tanks and bring home groceries.

 
Comment by cactus
2011-06-29 08:54:35

By DANA MATTIOLI wall street journal

“Multinational companies are taking extra measures to secure qualified employees in Brazil’s booming economy. To cope with a talent shortage, many are beefing up internship programs, spending more on training and salaries and relocating workers from flat or declining markets.

Particularly in demand: English-speaking managers and engineers, as well as those with experience in business development.”

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 10:07:04

Particularly in demand: English-speaking managers and engineers, as well as those with experience in business development.”

American citizens need not apply. These jobs are only for Brazilians.

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Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 20:28:54

“Maybe small businesses are having a hard time finding customers, since so many of their customers’ jobs have been yanked away and handed to Chindexicans.”

I’m sure they are. I, for one, am not buying anything I don’t need. I did buy some clothes this month- a few hundred bucks worth- but, other than that, nothing.

 
 
Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 08:30:25

“Traditionally, we are led out of a recession by small businesses hiring people and creating jobs, and that’s not happening in this recession,” says Dan Danner, President and CEO of the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB).

Perhaps the recession hasn’t been able to run its course far enough to get to that point yet?

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 12:03:19

Does that tradition take outsourcing into account?

 
Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 20:24:10

“Perhaps the recession hasn’t been able to run its course far enough to get to that point yet?”

Exactly. New businesses need to pencil out. High real estate prices have a habit of breaking the pencil.

 
 
Comment by measton
2011-06-29 11:53:47

The propaganda quote of the day

“”Experts say Washington’s unresolved debt crisis – including questions about how to address the solvency of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security – is fueling a level of uncertainty that tends to bring many small businesses to a standstill”"

The reason small buisness is not investing is that there are no F’n customers the easy money is gone. Many small businesses are service oriented. But this expert suggests its all due to medicare medicaid and social security. Let me help you out here expert if you cut social security and medicare there will be a lot more small companies going bk. The constant refrain of we need to cut benefits to the middle class and hand the elite bigger tax breaks is bombarding all news outlets. Make no mistake about it but this propaganda is being produced by the elite to deflect blame and help them gain even greater control over the wealth and power in this country.

Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 12:33:10

The constant refrain of we need to cut benefits to the middle class and hand the elite bigger tax breaks is bombarding all news outlets. Make no mistake about it but this propaganda is being produced by the elite

I can mostly only notice this in print journalism from down here. Is it in other media, and more than before?

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 13:22:50

Yes.

Thanks to the Internet, a large number of people know who created this FUBAR, so the PTB are pouring on the propaganda through the traditional outlets.

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Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 13:40:26

Yes, I agree. It’s a constant mainstay in the propaganda machine today. But there is just one problem with the propaganda machine: COMMENTS! All the news outlets have to have comments, or they will lose too much market share. The PTB have been hiring commentators to write in fake comments, but they are OVERWHELMED by the real comments, where everyone is saying “No way. Corporations only offshore their labor, so there’s no point in not taxing them.”

Now if we can only get some elected reps who will not pander to these out-of-style elites.

Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 21:01:02

I can’t wait till the old dudes die off.

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Comment by Hard Rain
2011-06-29 14:39:04

+1. I find the “uncertainty” argument particularly excruciating.

 
 
 
Comment by Muggy
2011-06-29 03:19:17

From yesterday, regarding rational decision making and the rent/own scenario:

I suspect that due to extend and pretend rental market pricing will not reflect shadow inventory pricing for quite a while. If there is one thing that has surprised me in all of this, it’s the duration.

In other words, I think there will an uncomfortable crossover of lower-priced houses and higher rents. This may be a good thing for some, but it makes the rent/own ratio harder to decipher, and raises the probability of losing some fingers, maybe even a limb, catching a knife.

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 05:16:42

Muggy, what is the rent/buy ratio in your neck of the woods?
In my nabe, PITI on a townhouse is significantly less (25%) than my rent — even at wishing prices of $270K or so. And each day I see more and more SFH for sale for less ($220K), to the point where PITI could be 40% less than my rent.

I suppose I could move back into a sardine flat, but the PITI on a sub-200K home is STILL less than the rent on a nice but cheaper 1/1 sardine flat far out of downtown.

Rents are NOT going to go down. We still have a lot of people moving in and out. We have Section 8, military housing allowances, and multi-gens willing to pack 3 incomes into one house. All prime excuses to jack up the rents. I can’t compete with that.

Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:28:12

Beware the aftermath of Peak Government.

Comment by combotechie
2011-06-29 05:39:08

“Beware the aftermath of Peak Government.”

Sound advice.

In my view government attracts power seekers. A shrinking government forces power seekers to consolidate, something they are not about to do willingly.

The stongest, most powerful and most clever power freaks will hang on and the weaker less clever ones will succumb, which means govenment will be left with a concentration of stong and clever power freaks.

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Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:52:13

And if the grow or die model of government spending fails, the concentration of flies on the honey pot will decline rapidly. I think it has already failed. I wouldn’t want to own a house anywhere in the fallout zone, especially not one that I could not afford to buy (without leverage).

Some will think that the FedGov cannot cannot ever stop growing. They should throw all in.

 
Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 06:25:57

“which means govenment will be left with a concentration of stong and clever power freaks.”

Sounds like a good argument against shrinking government.

Let’s keep it full of ineffective, lazy morons! For our own safety!

 
Comment by combotechie
2011-06-29 06:40:24

“Lets keep it full of ineffective, lazy morons!”

These power freaks are not ineffective, nor are they lazy, nor are they morons.

The are very effective of doing what they do best, which is to garner power.

They are not lazy in that they will expend enormous amounts of energy into gaining and holding onto power.

And they are not morons; On the contrary they are very clever.

 
Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 09:32:55

“On the contrary they are very clever.”

And you say as we downsize government, they will be the only ones left in power. Hence my joke that we should keep the ranks stocked with lazy morons, instead of winnowing it down to the effective psychopaths. (Did Hitler come to power as a result of government downsizing? Inquiring minds want to know…)

 
 
Comment by cactus
2011-06-29 08:55:36

How do you know it’s peaked ?

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Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 09:26:00

One can hope!

I think it has peaked in quite a few places around the edges. Just the beginning.

 
 
 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 07:39:33

Packing three incomes into one house will only put two houses back on the market.

Yes, Section 8 subsidizes rents, but that’s limited. Military housing subsidies are no different from any other type of income.

“Moving in and out” - There is an out for your in.

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 12:20:52

No, it won’t put any houses back on the market. The people who pack in don’t usually come from houses. Or the houses are in another state. Or the houses are hidden in shadow inventory.

NEW Section 8 may be limited, but there are enough who exist on it for years. Military subsidies ARE different from income, in that you HAVE to spend it on housing, right? You can’t bank it or guzzle beer. So of course you should spend every penny of it. If the allowance in $1900 a month, I guarantee you that rent will be $1899.

Moving out: Why should I move to another rental just to save $250/month, when I could move into a house and save $700 a month? And the mortgage payment never goes up.

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Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 20:32:32

Maybe you should consider housemates.

 
 
 
 
Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:30:46

Muggy, remember the NYTimes rent/own calculator? Put just a small depreciation number in there and it will scare you.

 
Comment by Jim A
2011-06-29 08:09:44

Well at some level, rents adjust more quickly than the prices for owner/occupied housing does. Large ammounts of unoccupied housing stuck in an REO/awaiting foreclosure netherland take housing out of the supply. But at some level, like rental apartments taken out of the supply to be converted into condos, we should anticipate that this is a transitory phenomenom.

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 11:52:18

I have yet to see my rent go down. And I’ve rented for the past 18 years in four different states. Rents do not “adjust” downward unless people move every year. At best, my rent stayed the same for 5 years, only because everybody was buying houses instead of renting.

Comment by Jim A
2011-06-29 12:05:16

Well yes, you usually have to move, although occasionally threatening to move is sufficient. But rental homes usualy have a higher turnover in occupancy than owner occupied homes. But if a tennant paying $780/month is repalces by one paying $740/month, then rents have gone down. And it is BECAUSE a higher percentage of rental housing is on the market at a given timethat rents are usualy more sensetive to supply/demand than housing for purchase is. It’s also true that experience landlords are usually better at estimating the market rates for rents than owner/occupiers are at estimatting the market price for their own house.

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Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 13:06:19

Muggy, I think it all depends on the vacancy rate in a market. If you are dealing with a 15%+ vacancy market, then you may very well be right, as empty homes are moved onto the rental market from shadow inventory, it could make things look quite different.

If, however, you are in a market where vacancy rates are sub-10% (8%, 9%, etc.), then the concern that you have would be less of an issue.

Florida and Arizona are high vacancy rate markets, so it makes great sense to tread more carefully there than in lower vacancy markets. California is a low vacancy rate market (8% or so), and so I have somewhat of a lesser concern for your noted effect here.

You are in FL, right? They built a lot of homes there during the boom…

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 03:27:33

State and local tax revenue on the rise
State and local tax revenue is on the upswing.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — First the good news: State and local tax revenues climbed 4.7% in the first quarter, fueled by a surge in personal income taxes.

Now the bad news: Property tax revenues fell 1.7%, the second straight quarter of declines. This does not bode well for local governments that depend on property taxes to fund operations.

The new Census Bureau data, released Tuesday, shows that things are looking up for state governments. Revenues have increased for six consecutive quarters, thanks to the recovering economy and stock market, as well as tax increases, according to IHS Global Insight. But income and sales tax collections remain 1.5% below their 2008 peak.

Individual income taxes gained the most, up 11.9% compared to the same period a year ago. Sales taxes jumped 5.8%.

Several states are depending on higher tax revenues to balance their budgets. California Governor Jerry Brown and legislative leaders on Monday released a budget proposal that hinges on the Golden State bringing in $4 billion more in revenue in the coming fiscal year.

Municipalities, however, are still suffering from the economic downturn, particularly the collapse of the housing market. That’s because it takes several years for property tax assessments to adjust, so the drop in home values is only showing up now.

“With property tax revenues representing a predominant share of local revenues, the foreseeable future looks grim for local governments as their tax base will continue to shrink because of falling property values,” said Gregory Daco, principal U.S. economist with IHS Global Insight.

Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:37:27

Pretty weak reporting. He or she says income tax collections are up and adds that it is because income is up. I doubt that the reporter actually researched that. If incomes are up so much, that in itself would be a huge story and we would read attentively to learn where all this secret growth is happening. I think there is some BS here.

Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 13:10:22

I suspect this is a stock market effect…people getting nervous and taking some chips off the table. It explains the choppiness in the markets, it explains the higher tax revenue, and it is understandable given the worldwide turmoil/fear surrounding expiration of QE2.

I don’t think stock market gains are included in income numbers…are they?

 
 
Comment by salinasron
2011-06-29 07:04:08

Interesting:
“Individual income taxes gained the most, up 11.9% compared to the same period a year ago. Sales taxes jumped 5.8%.”
People loosing jobs and income taxes go up.

“Now the bad news: Property tax revenues fell 1.7%, the second straight quarter of declines.”
Did revenues fall because of reassessment? Or did they fall because people aren’t paying property taxes? Or if property taxes aren’t collected are they logged as revenue anyway and the problem of collection kicked down the road?

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 03:29:16

Malloy’s Plan B calls for 5,466 layoffs, cuts to cities and towns
Publication: theday.com

The state would lay off 5,466 employees and cut aid to cities and towns by 2.4 percent in a Plan B budget that Gov. Dannel P. Malloy sent to legislators today.

In addition, 1,000 open vacant positions would not be filled, leaving the personnel reductions at 6,466. Overall, the number of positions would be reduced by 14 percent.

“These are the recommendations that were sent to the legislature, and if enacted, it will be left to each Commissioner to determine how to achieve the savings outlined,” spokeswoman Colleen Flanagan said.

“Some commissioners might choose to lay off more people to get to that number, some might choose to lay off a lower number — and find additional savings elsewhere,” she said.

The layoffs would include 1,019 from corrections, 450 from judicial, 486 from the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, 817 from the Department of Transportation.

Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 06:42:33

Where? (One of the 5 w’s of journalism!)

Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 11:14:23

I think it is a local news publication, so they assume that their readers know. Malloy is governor of Connecticut.

 
 
Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 08:19:25

And yet we have plenty of money to waste:

The amount the U.S. military spends annually on air conditioning in Iraq and Afghanistan: $20.2 billion, according to a former Pentagon official…

http://m.npr.org/news/front/137414737?page=1

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 12:51:48

That amount is greater than the entire annual State Budget here in the Centennial State.

Let the Taliban have their stupid pile of rocks. The Russians figured out that it was a lost cause, so should we.

 
 
 
Comment by jeff saturday
2011-06-29 03:33:06

Lenders offer cash for short sales

By Paul Owers Sun-Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted: 7:07 p.m. Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Two of the nation’s largest lenders are quietly offering some delinquent homeowners a deal.

JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo say they give select borrowers behind on their mortgage payments $10,000 to $20,000 for agreeing to short sales, which means the homes are sold for less than what’s owed.

Most banks figure they’re doing homeowners a favor simply by signing off on short sales and forgiving the amount owed. But in some cases, Chase and Wells Fargo borrowers receive that and cash at the closing.

Lenders routinely hand homeowners a few thousand dollars if they leave the properties in good shape after foreclosure. That’s known as “cash for keys.” Also, home­owners are entitled to $3,000 of government money if they complete short sales through the Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative program.

But real estate agents and other industry observers say they aren’t aware of other major lenders offering such sizable incentives for successful short sales.

“It looked, to me, like it was a come-on,” said Allison Adler, an agent for the Keyes Co. in Weston.

But Adler checked and discovered it was legitimate. Her client, Sara Horowitz, received $10,000 last week from Chase when she completed a short sale of her Davie townhouse.

“I have to say, this extra bonus from Chase was a lifesaver for me,” Horowitz, 39, said. “I used it to help me get into a rental unit. ”

Wells Fargo and Chase don’t address why they offer the money for short sales. Rather, they explain they’re cutting their losses in forgoing the potentially lengthy process of foreclosure.

“Our goal is to help as many people avoid foreclosure as possible,” Chase spokeswoman Nancy Norris said, pointing out that the bank has completed more than 110,000 short sales nationwide since early 2009.

Wells Fargo offers the cash to homeowners in Florida and other states “where the foreclosure process is lengthening,” spokesman Tom Goyda said.

The lenders decide whether to make payments after considering individual circumstances, and they don’t disclose what those are. The banks won’t say how many people have been offered the cash.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/money/lenders-offer-cash-for-short-sales-1568027.html - -

Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 04:32:13

Bwhahahaha! It’s the old Carlton Sheets technique for getting rid of a deadbeat renter!

 
Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 05:56:23

That story is odd. Most people talk about how difficult it is to get your bank to approve a short sale, and yet here the banks are offering cash to encourage a short sale, to ’selected’ customers.

They must offer it to those whose titles have been completely lost in the MERSea- the ones that wouldn’t make it through a foreclosure proceeding without robofraud signing, and other acts of perjury, that apparently aren’t allowed anymore.

Comment by Jim A
2011-06-29 06:55:59

Yeah that’s my suspicion too. Selected by the banks view that it will have difficulty pursueing a foreclosure action.

Comment by polly
2011-06-29 08:02:19

and (possibly) that the person involved has discovered that the paperwork was lost.

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Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 12:54:51

If this is the banks finding their way out of the MERs mess, then I heartily approve. They created it, they should pay to clean it up. And it seems a reasonable way to help the FBs move on. I wonder how many will later find themselves facing a deficiency judgement.

 
 
 
 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 07:42:52

Perhaps this is behind the recent trend of declining foreclosure actions.

 
 
Comment by Professor Bear
2011-06-29 03:40:57

Shiller Says U.S. Housing Market `Stuck in the Doldrums’

June 28 (Bloomberg) — Robert Shiller, an economics professor at Yale University and co-creator of the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index, talks about U.S. home prices, and the outlook for the housing market and the economy. The Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities fell 4 percent from April 2010, the biggest drop since November 2009. Shiller speaks with Carol Massar and Matt Miller on Bloomberg Television’s “Street Smart.” (Source: Bloomberg)

 
Comment by jeff saturday
2011-06-29 03:48:27

UK faces mass strikes as civil servants feel sting

By JILL LAWLESS The Associated Press

Updated: 6:18 a.m. Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Posted: 5:21 a.m. Wednesday, June 29, 2011

LONDON — Thousands of British schools will close and travelers will face long lines at airport immigration this week when three quarters of a million workers go on strike — the first blast in what unions hope will be a summer of discontent against the cost-cutting government’s austerity plans.

The government hopes it will fizzle into a summer of hardheaded acceptance.

The first test comes Thursday, when 750,000 public-sector workers — from teachers to driving examiners to customs officials — walk out for the day, part of a growing wave of opposition to the Conservative-led government’s deficit-cutting regime of tax hikes, benefit curbs and spending cuts.

The unions say the strike is just the start of a campaign of labor action on a scale unseen in Britain for three decades.

“On Thursday we will see hundreds of thousands of civil and public servants on strike,” said Mark Serwotka, leader of the Public and Commercial Services Union. “We fully expect to be joined by millions more in the autumn.”

The government insists everyone must share the pain as it cuts 80 billion pounds ($130 billion) from public spending to reduce the huge deficit, swollen after Britain spent billions bailing out foundering banks. It is cutting civil service jobs and benefits, raising the state pension age from 65 to 66, hiking the amount public sector employees contribute to pensions and reducing the payouts they get on retirement.

Comment by rusty
2011-06-29 06:48:23

awesome! We are flying through London Friday morning. Sigh.

Comment by polly
2011-06-29 08:03:57

Good year to vacation in the western hemisphere, I think.

Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 08:08:17

north hemisphere

south hemisphere

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Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 08:14:43

halve it your own way.

 
Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 10:05:15

My son and some of his friends are already planning on going to Brazil in 2014 to attend the World Cup. Hope its safe then. I recall reading that a lot of people who would normally go skipped South Africa 2010 over safety concerns.

 
 
 
 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 07:45:23

They will be replaced by Muslims from the London ghettos.

Comment by MrBubble
2011-06-29 09:53:59

Interesting. Then the media (and history) will report that the riots, etc. that followed the replacement were based on racial/religious issues when, at the root of it, it was really an economic problem. It was just easier for the replacees to identify those who “took the jobs” than those who actually moved the jobs off-shore or broke the country with banking scams. I wonder how many times this sort of thing has happened before and then been misrepresented by history. Hmmm.

Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 11:19:59

I think it might have happened to the Jews one time.

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Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 13:37:30

<i.”I wonder how many times this sort of thing has happened before and then been misrepresented by history.”

Spain when they were THE empire.

There was a famous quote (sorry can’t find it right now) by the the then queen of Spain to the effect that the world was Spain’s “factory.” (I pretty sure I’m mangling the quote, but that was the gist of it)

Within a generation, their had suffered a sever economic depression due to currency collapse from “globalization” and had lost several key naval battles against England.

The parallels are far too similar to us, today.

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Comment by LehighValleyGuy
2011-06-29 16:17:17

Excellent point, Mr. B. Racial and religious tensions flare up in times of economic duress, and recede when the economy improves. It’s another case of the PTB succeeding in getting people to blame the wrong enemy.

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Comment by measton
2011-06-29 19:46:49

Islamamic leaders have created an art form of this.

We have a secular form of it here. Don’t blame the rich or the leaders blame the unions, blame the greedy elderly, etc etc

 
 
 
 
 
Comment by Professor Bear
2011-06-29 03:52:28

Shiller seemed puzzled at the focus on year-over-year interpretation of his own numbers. By smoothing out a year’s worth of trend residuals, the year-on-year figure tends to give a clearer reading of the long-term trend than a one-period blip in the data provides. Right now, the year-on-year trend is negative and steepening.

Economy
Case-Shiller Brings No Good News, More Bad News For Housing
Jun. 28 2011 - 11:23 am

Annual rates furthered their decline in April, with the 20-city composite accelerating its fall to -4% over April 2010, compared with a decline of 3.8% last month over its reading a year ago. The 10-city composite recorded a year-over-year fall of 3.1%, in line with its annual decline in March.

Index chairman David Blitzer put it bluntly: “For a real recovery we would need to see several months of increasing home prices, large enough to shift the annual momentum to the positive side. In short, better news, but still a lot of questions and a long way to go.”

And the bad news continues when one looks at individual cities surveyed for the indices. Every city but Washington DC, 19 out of the 20 surveyed, showed prices remaining below their values a year ago, with Minneapolis recording a double-digit annual decline of 11.1%.

Three markets, Cleveland, Detroit, and Las Vegas, recorded average prices below what they were in January 2000, while two other markets, Phoenix and Atlanta, were barely above that level.

From the indices peak in June/July 2006, the 10-city and 20-city composites are down 32.6% and 32.8% respectively. Both indices are barely above their April 2009 trough, with the 10-city up 1.4% and the 20-city barely up 0.7%.
,,,

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 09:12:06

I don’t know whether to believe the DC number. The low end appears to be dropping fast, and least in Montgomery County MD. The price increase is probably coming from the some other DC source: for every $210K house in MoCo, there is a $300K house in Northern Virginia — exact same type of house. (NoVa is where the DoD contractors hang out.) And new housing is still priced far too high. Probably developers with a little cash are raising wishing prices for their picket fence crapshacks.

 
 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 04:22:12

Realtors Are Liars

 
Comment by jeff saturday
2011-06-29 04:39:58

The Artificial Recovery

By David Rosenberg - June 28th, 2011, 12:30PM

Indeed, this 2009-2011 recovery and cyclical bull market has been as artificial as the 2003-07 expansion. That last one was fuelled by financial engineering in the financial sector. This one is being underpinned by unprecedented government intrusion in the credit markets. As of this quarter, your government has replaced the private sector as the largest source of outstanding mortgage market and consumer-related credit. So not only is the U.S.A. turning Japanese in many respects, it is also now resembling China where the government also redirects the flow of private sector credit.

When we said capitalism went on a sabbatical three years ago, we didn’t expect this to be a permanent vacation. In the past five years, private sector loans have deflated by $1.9 trillion, while public sector assisted credit has surged a similar amount. Roughly nine in 10 dollars of mortgage flow is being dominated by the Federal government — Fannie Mae, Ginnie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHA. That is amazing, and these entities have actually been tightening their scorecards to avoid political taxpayer backlash.

Be that as it may, in this new era of socialized credit, the private sector now accounts for 42% of outstanding residential mortgages, down from nearly 60% at the bubble peak in 2006. The only reason why consumer credit has not shown a complete implosion is because in the past three years, federally- assisted student loans have soared by $250 billion.

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/06/the-artificial-recovery/ - -

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 12:25:51

“Be that as it may, in this new era of socialized credit”

Or the government could have just gone Galt and let every single damn bank fail like Lehman did. I kinda wish that would have happened, just to shut up the free-market hypocties who wave the snake flag with one hand and take government cheese with the other.

Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 12:37:00

just to shut up the free-market hypocties who wave the snake flag with one hand and take government cheese with the other.

…and quote Ron Paul and Ayn Rand while making their living from sources that their hero Ron Paul deems unconstitutional.

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 13:40:30

We won’t mention any name.s *cough*BACHMANN*cough*

Comment by chilidoggg
2011-06-29 14:04:40

I think Rio was referring to someone on this board…

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Comment by Robin
2011-06-29 20:11:02

P.O.S.

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Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 04:43:29

HBB Brothers and Sisters… Just a heads up.

There’s a realtor/NAR apologist among our ranks by the name of “Rental Watch”. The liar will deny so but irrespective of that, the liar is using various memes of NAR lies that you all should be aware of. Most importantly, the lie that “houses are selling for less than construction costs.”.

Let me preface this by telling you that I’m in the construction business. I’m paid a very respectable salary because of my depth and scope of abilities as it relates to construction management, scheduling, estimating and managing subs. Have no doubts, SFR construction outfits are earning substantial profits even at $50/sq ft. They’re successfully competing with existing home-debtor resales and essentially driving prices down at the margin.

When you’re all looking at existing housing stock, keep this figure in mind while doing your rough calculations. Clearly a resale is worth less than new construction on a square footage basis. Set aside and evaluate each individual item. Cost the structures on a square footage value, land, well and septic if that is the case. Each one of these items has a value *less depreciation*.

And most importantly, realtors and their minions and apologists, one of whom is pretending not to be a realtor, is encouraging you all to ignore these facts that I mention in addition to the actual market conditions of supply, demand, sales rate, etc.

Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 05:18:34

OK, I haven’t been following RW’s posts particularly, but I have read them from time to time and found nothing particularly offensive. I’m sure there must be some houses that are selling for less than current construction costs. I think we have a few of those in the Tampa Bay area.

I really think an ad-hominem attack is unnecessary.

Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 06:26:06

A liar is a liar. If you choose to characterize calling a liar a liar as an ad hominem attack, that’s your choice. That choice is no different than lending credibility to said liar.

 
 
Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 05:46:17

Never mind the troll alert, there’s INFO in this post:

SFR construction outfits are earning substantial profits even at $50/sq ft.

OK, since you’re in the business:

1. Are these new houses the slapped-up crapshacks that we’ve saying that they are, or are they better built than we think?
2. Do they scrape all the good topsoil and sell it before they put the houses on the land?
3. Say I want to buy a newly-built 3/1.5 rambler on a quarter acre. Which construction companies are building these houses anymore? Or do I have to buy my own 1/4 acre (good luck with that) and order a pre-fab?
4. If they are making money on $50/sq ft, then why are they STILL charging wishing prices? For reference: http://www.arorahills.com/index.cfm/menu/page/stub/The-Homes
They don’t give a sq ft, but i’m guessing around $489K for 2500 sq ft. That’s $180-200 sq ft, with almost no yard, 25 mi from downtown DC, nearly uncommutable.
5. Unlike new homes, used homes tend to be HOA free, are free from amnities that I don’t want (pool/clubhouse) and have services (plow etc) covered by local government instead of profit-hungry private sector. What is the value of these features in your calucalation that used homes are of less value than new?
6. There is a contradiction on you post. First you say that builders are overcharging, then you say a resale is worth less than a new home. So are you advocating for new homes or existing homes? I don’t know.

Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 06:54:34

Oxy,

I’ll do my best to answer.

1) QA/QC of installation of materials is always an issue. The risk is there regardless of whether you’re buying in a development or you sign a contract with an small independent builder to proceed on your lot. Even with cursory review of work by building dept inspectors, defective work can and does get covered up. They can’t be there all the time.

2) I don’t think I understand this question. Stripping topsoil and spongy subgrade is necessary. Otherwise the the subgrade would impose differential settlement on the structure and would fail quickly.

3) Anyone will build you anything. Get a stamped set of drawings from an architect and approved by the building department where you’re building. Select a handful of contractors and give them half sized set of your plans and tell them to price it. Don’t let them add a bunch of “upgrades”. Get a base price from all three. Know your plans well when you authorize the contractor to proceed.

4) Why? I don’t know. It’s a good topic for the blog.

5) Services are provided by either local gov’s or HOA’s. They have nothing to do with construction except for final connection in the case of sewer and water. Generally those costs are one time and small. Otherwise, wells and septic systems cost money but they’re subject to depreciation too.

6) I’m not championing either new construction or a resale. I’m merely shooting down this lie that “housing is selling for less than construction costs”. It’s utter BS. A 50 year old ranch is selling for less than construction costs because it’s a 50 year old ranch. As an apples to apples comparision, I can build a ranch today for substantially less than the current asking price of a newer duplicate ranch. Furthermore, I could earn a very substantial profit if I were to find a buyer for it at the price of the used ranch.

We all know the incompetence of realtors. They don’t know much about anything and know even less about construction management, materials procurement, estimating, etc. So why would anyone one of us believe someone who states “housing is selling at less than construction costs”?

Don’t believe it because it’s plain *not true*.

Comment by alpha-sloth
2011-06-29 09:24:53

I think the topsoil thing is that in the Good Ole Days they would just scrape it from the building site, but leave it on the rest of the lot (the yard). Now they scrape it all from the entire lot, and sell it, and put down sod on the subsoil.

And I hate to sound like a you-know-who, but location does come into play with RE prices. Most of the new construction and vacant lots around here, and I believe in most places, are way out in the exurbs, where you’ll face long, expensive commutes to work. I’ve mentioned several times that prices haven’t really fallen much at all in most of the inner-ring suburbs around here. But they’ve dropped pretty good in the exurbs.

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Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 11:55:45

Also alpha, in the “good old days,” the house was a small part of the footprint of the standard 1/4 acre lot, and rarely built more than one street at a time. Build a street, sell it, repeat. For the Clarksburg development, they are very efficient. They scraped the entire 200 acres at once.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 12:59:09

Oxy,

Down there in that area stripping clearing and grubbing is done very efficiently with topsoil pans. I’ve used them down in Delaware and MD. You can’t put structures on topsoil or crappy subgrade.

 
 
Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 10:39:50

“As an apples to apples comparision, I can build a ranch today for substantially less than the current asking price of a newer duplicate ranch. Furthermore, I could earn a very substantial profit if I were to find a buyer for it at the price of the used ranch.”

If that’s true, then why are housing starts remaining at a historical low? Builders should be building if they can “earn a very substantial profit” at current pricing.

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Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 12:48:52

Why would anyone build given the level of inventory?

Look…. historically, in heavy and highway construction you can make a killing in a very big way. Alternately, you can lose you @ss. Building SFR’s was never the case except for one time in history and that was the bubble years. 4-8 unit/year builders were and still are family businesses and were never a get rich quick scheme. The Great Housing Fraud years were a mere aberration in that small builders truly made a killing for the first time ever. New guys entered, risked and lost all thinking it was typical. It’s not. We’re going back to the slow and steady pace.

New starts may be at historic lows but from the long term trend? Doubtful.

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 13:54:01

Actually RAL, there was huge bubble in the south in the late 1970s and early 80s before that recession.

US Homes and Fox & Jacobs were THE big names back then.

 
Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 14:16:37

“Why would anyone build given the level of inventory? ”

At the ppsf rates you quoted as “profitable”, builders could build and under-cut the existing inventory on price in many many areas. With a sufficient level of pricing-power, they would be able to sell eve in the face of high levels of inventory.

The SFH housing starts data appears to suggest that they are not doing so. Why not?

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:54:00

Why not?

Not enough buyers, that why.

However, the real explanation is a lot more complicated. It tends to involve favoritism among local governments for certain developers over others.

 
Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 15:04:09

“Not enough buyers, that why.”

When you have the lowest-priced offering, yours tends to be the ones that sells. It’s not like there are _zero_ transactions occuring; if they could under-cut on pricing and built at a profit, they would be.

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 17:21:57

Believe it or not, lowest price is no guarantee of sales or success.

Many a business has gone out of business thinking they could win by undercutting the competition.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 18:32:20

“The SFH housing starts data appears to suggest that they are not doing so. Why not?”

Look… how many times a week do we hear a HBB contributor say “they’re still building!” or variations of that. I wouldn’t trust NAHB data any more than NARscum. If it’s Census Bureau data, do they adequately capture all building permits?

 
 
Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 12:42:23

Thank you for the answers. I think you dodged Question #1, but oh well.

When I asked about who is building developments of 3/1.5 on 1/4 acre lots, that was a sarcastic question. The answer is NOBODY. No-one has built that since the 80’s. Attached product, townhome canyons, and SFH where you could spit into your neighbor’s bath is the norm today.

The developments I linked are building “stacked townhomes.” I kid you not. These are very tall rowhouses where one family lives on Floor 1 and 2, and another family lives on Floor 3 and 4. The only other places I’ve seen this arrangement is huge cities like NY or Chi. I can understand the sardine living if you’re deep in the city, but to live in a two-floor flat in the boonies across from a blueberry orchard? For $180/ sq ft? Who is buying this stuff?

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Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 12:50:29

For question #5, I’m not too concerned about servies. What I DON’T want is a conformist HOA that won’t let me put out a compost pile, but will charge me for cleaning up the pool after all the kiddies were in it. HOA fees go up…

 
 
 
 
Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 05:46:37

I do not find anything insincere about RW’s posts. I disagree with RW on the future trajectory of the RE market. He does not respond to differing views with personal insults, which is the hallmark of a pathological liar.

BTW, if you are not a “builder”, building costs are what the pedestrian pays the builder. IMO, a house should be worth less than construction costs the moment someone uses the toilet.

 
Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 06:18:08

The HBB shouldn’t be an echo chamber. Personally I’d welcome contrary points of view as long as they aren’t blatant dissemblers like most NAR types are, or mindless tools like the late and unlamented LV Landlord.

Comment by redrum
2011-06-29 07:09:25

Agreed- I would also like to hear a full spectrum of opinions and interpretations.

Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 07:14:07

There’s always trulia and active rain. You guys should spend some time there to get that full spectrum of “opinions” on construction. They’re pro’s there.

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Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 13:57:11

“Personally I’d welcome contrary points of view as long as they aren’t blatant dissemblers like most NAR types are, or mindless tools like the late and unlamented LV Landlord.

I do was well. It makes me double check my facts and exposes me to the latest in “talking points.”

 
 
Comment by SV guy
2011-06-29 07:23:16

I don’t find RW’s posts to be offensive or misleading.

I think the personal attack is unjustified.
Ex, you have to admit that you have a hair trigger.
From a smile to brandishing a Flamethrower in the blink of an eye.

I welcome all views here.

Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 07:34:39

I made no personal attacks. I merely called a liar a liar. You guys need to read RW’s posts made late yesterday in the bits bucket. Furthermore, I welcome any realtor willing to be honest. I will run the liars off the site with or without approval from anyone. BJ will shut me down if he sees fit.

Comment by Max Power
2011-06-29 14:29:32

You make plenty of personal attacks. I have no “history” with you on the HBB as you apparently do with Rental Watch, but your response to one of my comments yesterday is below. You referred to me as foolish, stupid, ignorantly pathetic, and dishonest in a single post. I’d be happy to have an intelligent debate with you anytime which I’m sure will quickly prove that I’m none of those things.

I’m not a realtor and unlike yourself, I don’t make my living in real estate. Never have and probably never will. Other than my personal residence which will be paid off in 3 years, I have very little interest in the direction of prices. Concluding that prices are “grossly inflated” because “sales are at 14 year lows” as you do below is absurd. You’d have to also then conclude that housing was grossly underpriced in 2006 when sales were at all time highs. Correlation does not equal causation.

I can provide hundreds links to homes on Zillow in the Phoenix area that sell for less than $35 per sq
“Dear Lying Realtor,

You’re here lying. All markets are grossly inflated. Your attempts to puke NARscum will be met with fierce opposition.

For instance, your LIE that “not all markets are grossly inflated is a lie. Your lies will be exposed.

And so typical of a thoughtless foolish lying realtor, you challenge me to profide facts to support my assertion that sales are at 14 YEAR lows because prices are grossly inflated, versus your lying realtor assertion that people are “afraid of future price declines”.

Are you really that stupid to draw a false distinction between the two? I

You realtors are ignorantly pathetic and completely dishonest and corrupt.”

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Comment by Max Power
2011-06-29 14:46:11

Got a little trigger happy on the post. Meant to also add:

…I can provide hundreds links to homes on Zillow in the Phoenix area that sell for less than $35 per sq… and were built in the last 5 years. They aren’t in the greatest neighborhoods, but that wasn’t part of the criteria. These are relatively new homes selling for less than $35 per sq foot including the land. They are a lot of things, but “grossly overpriced” is not one of them.

Also important to point out that I do NOT think prices are going up in the near term and rising interest rates are a significant risk. However, monthly housing costs in my area are very affordable by any reasonable measure relative to anytime in the last 50 years.

 
 
 
 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 07:50:14

Besides, what does construction cost have to do with it? When there is a glut of empty homes on the market, they HAVE to sell for less than construction cost. “Construction Cost” is NOT the lower bound.

Comment by CharlieTango
2011-06-29 09:38:26

the issue isn’t construction costs because they are lower than current values.

the issue is development costs, the cost of land is still in la la land and when you add land, fees and construction costs you get a number higher than current values.

Comment by redrum
2011-06-29 09:48:14

Also, construction/development “costs” might look a lot different to a builder than to an end customer.

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Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 13:00:17

Construction costs include profit. $50-$60/sq give or take includes profit.

 
Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 13:43:16

Construction costs include profit. $50-$60/sq give or take includes profit.

About how much would Latin America type mid/upper-end 100% cement “stucco” covered masonry with rebar reinforced concrete pillar framed, clay tile roof, ceramic tile and granite surfaces, high ceilings, no heat but A/C, 3bedroom, 3.5 baths with upper mid-level fixtures cost in the USA? (Per sq foot) Not including permits or land.

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:01:00

Even in my city, that’s $200+psf.

“IF”, and that’s a really big “if”, you can get it approved and find someone who knows how to build it.

 
Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 14:22:35

“About how much would Latin America type mid/upper-end 100% cement “stucco” covered masonry with rebar reinforced concrete pillar framed,[...]”

Rio, that sounds an awful lot like what I would like to build one day. I loved the solidity and simplicity of a place that I stayed in Guatemala, and want to emulate it.

I diff in some details (don’t want granite surfaces; do want a flat concrete full-roof deck instead of clay-tiled roof), but the broad brush-strokes are awfully similar…

 
 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 13:43:30

I appreciate reasonable feedback and debate, but RAL often overlooks refuting my facts and go simply to disagreeing with my opinions (which are based on my experience, and what I see every day).

To respond to RALs comments about construction costs.

I agree that hard construction costs are about $50 per square foot (I’ve even seen $45 psf and less).

However to say that you can sell for $50 per foot and break even is missing a huge number of other items, and misleads people who are not in the real estate construction or development business and don’t see this stuff every day:

RAL forgot (or omitted):

Land (which can vary widely in terms of cost)
City Fees
A&E
Infrastructure Costs
Development costs of the land (labor and fuel pushing around dirt–compaction, before putting in roads/utilities)
Cost of finance (if there is any borrowing while building)

We invested in a number of finished residential deals at less than the cost of infrastructure. The reason that we could do so is that builders could not pay more than that and make sense of the math. In other words, the builders could not buy finished land for less than finishing costs, and make it pencil given the prices in the market.

I did see a couple of cases where a builder wanted to buy land for ~$10k per finished lot (substantially less than hard costs, with underlying land being valued at $0), and then build homes and sell them at prices that competed with foreclosures. However that particular builder had a criminal record, so we passed.

However, the most compelling evidence of my comment is simply what we can all read in SEC filings of public homebuilders.

If builders could make a ton of money by building and selling homes, why wouldn’t they? If you were a consumer of a home, and you had a choice between either:

1) a foreclosure; or
2) a brand new home complete with builder warranty

and the price were the same, wouldn’t the consumer buy the new home? And so if everyone would choose to buy the new home, and builders could make a profit by building and selling the new home, wouldn’t new home starts be WAAAAAY above where they are today?

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Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 14:28:08

“If builders could make a ton of money by building and selling homes, why wouldn’t they?”

That’s exactly what I was trying to say above, RentalWatch.

If they could do it and make money doing it, they would be doing it. The fact that they are not suggests that one of the assumptions in the argument is not true. My guess would be that it is that they cannot undercut sufficiently on price.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 14:42:05

“My guess would be that it is that they cannot undercut sufficiently on price.”

Which means that they can’t sell for more than the cost to build (including all development costs, not just construction costs). This is what I was intending to say–even though someone could interpret “sell for less than construction costs” as “sell for less than hard costs” (ignoring land, development and soft).

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 15:42:21

RAL forgot (or omitted):

Land (which can vary widely in terms of cost)
City Fees
A&E
Infrastructure Costs
Development costs of the land (labor and fuel pushing around dirt–compaction, before putting in roads/utilities)
Cost of finance (if there is any borrowing while building)
——————————————————————-
You’re flailing.

Land- I’m guilty on this one. However considering how cheap land is outside metro radii, its’ cost is hardly prohibitive. $2500/acre max.

The rest of your “costs”? You’re flailing and flailing wildly.

AE= the cost of a set of drawings or roughly $3000 for 5 stamped copies.

“Infrastructure Costs”- You’re truly flailing on this one. Instead of BS like this to support your false assertion, provide a definition so I can shoot this one down too.

“Development costs”- It’s called site work and every bit of it is included in the $50/sq ft retail price.

“Cost of Finance”- Another fantasy number. It has no bearing on the price to the end user.

Look… Making stuff up doesn’t work well. Estimating is a fine science and remarkably accurate using RS Means. And there is no other. I can make Timberline puke out whatever price I want but it’s not founded in reality no different than these fantasy costs you came up with. The costs you claim I omitted either down exist or they are part of CSI specifications sections which are all imputs into RS Means.

You’re backpedalling by drawing a false distinction between “development” costs(whatever that is) and construction costs.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 17:17:56

Wow, you must be living in a much different part of the country.

$2,500 per acre? For approved residential land? Seriously? Show me a comp there. Agricultural value in the Central Valley, CA is more than that (where most of the development land is available). Drop dead pricing near the bottom for land was $30k per acre there–for unentitled residential land. Peak values were $300k-$500k per acre (entitled/mapped).

A&E–not a lot, you are right, but I’ve seen indirect construction cost estimates of more than $5k per lot (which includes items in addition to A&E.

Infrastructure/development–I’ve seen this number very high in some cases, upwards of $50-$100k per lot. More reasonable in today’s world, we are talking about $35k+/- per lot ($17.50 psf for a 2,000 square foot home). We conducted a market study for a project, where the homebuilding consulant estimated $80k to $200k depending on topography. We’ve seen $100k lots with rough topography (required blasting to get the roads built), I’ve never seen $200k…so I assume $35k to $60k is more reasonable based on conversations I’ve had with builders in CA.

City Fees? Can be tens of thousands per unit, depending on the City (school fees, park fees, etc.). Many Cities are looking to cut fees to spur development.

Where are you building? In CA, $40-$50psf gets you vertical off of a finished lot without fees and carry, doesn’t include land or anything else. Are you building as part of a subdivision annexed into a City (with roads that will be dedicated), or private roads/private water/sewer, etc.? Are there offsite costs required by the Cities you work with?

We clearly have experienced much different construction costs for residential development. Any other expert care to chime in? Charlie Tango?

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 17:22:16

Not to mention building code differences between states:

For new homes, CA is going to require that they are sprinklered, and in many cases “green building codes”.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 17:39:12

Warning, PDF–

http://www.stocktongov.com/files/DeferralProgram.pdf

As an example of the fees we see frequently in CA, and what cities are doing to spur development.

City of Stockton’s base fee for a new home is +/- $20 per square foot. They are offering a fee deferral until the home is closed.

And believe it or not, some of the neighboring cities are substantially more than this…

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 17:49:26

http://www dot stocktongov dot com/files/DeferralProgram.pdf

An example of what we experience in CA.

$20 per square foot simply for building permit fees. They are trying a deferral program to spur development.

Sorry if this is a re-post, but I didn’t sanitize the URL before.

And Stockton isn’t the most expensive kid on the block.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 18:05:06

http://usda dot mannlib dot cornell dot edu/usda/current/AgriLandVa/AgriLandVa-08-04-2010.pdf

Ag values for land in the US from 2010. Residential land is typically considered far more valuable.

In CA, the average is ~$9,000 per acre for ag land (crop land). Pasture land is much cheaper at $2,850 in CA.

I don’t understand how $2,500 per acre for residential land is a reasonable number (mapping costs alone are ~$500 per lot).

 
Comment by jane
2011-06-29 18:58:29

Rental and Primey,

Why would I want to subject myself to a continuing war with a crapshak thrower-upper in the matter of warranty work? You have both admitted that bilderz throw the shak up anyway they can make the most profit. If a little profit is good, a LOT of profit is better (”you can’t be there to see what’s going on 100% of the time”). Given that NO BILDERZ ADHERE TO A QUALITY ETHIC if it means they have to give up the incremental dime, why would I want to participate in being skroo’d with a smile on my face?

I AM TIRED OF BEING CANNON FODDER.

I would rather buy a used house that has stood the test of time. Any older house would long since have shown the signs of corner-cutting. AND up until the early 90s, we were still living in an ISO 9000 culture, where quality was a household word.

Aside from the low quality in the materials, fit and finish of the cr*pshaks they throw up, there are those HOA deals the bilderz are ALWAYS entangling new housedebtors into. No doubt it is because a HOA allows a bilder to gouge more profit from hapless housedebtors. It certainly isn’t out of the goodness of their hearts.

No, Primey and Rental, as far as I am concerned, bilderz are as slimy as realtwhores, and have been in bed with them, and the supposed inspectors, for a LONG TIME NOW. I want to get as far away from that lean and hungry look in their collective eyes (”ka-ching!”) as possible. I will not be the one to fund all of their failed hopes and dreams. I will not be the one upon whom they take out a decade’s worth of resentment at not yet having made it to the big time.

If you could tell me a bulletproof way to make sure I am not the next victim of a bilder who has the work ethic, quality mindedness and craftsmanship of a clump of black mold, I am willing to listen.

Fer chrissake, they even presume to design the houses themselves! And their only criterion is “most square footage for the least cost!” It is the effing bilderz we have to thank for the hideous brick front vinyl wrap garage-mahals with 2000 cubic feet of airspace to heat with no adjacent living space!

I agree with RAL, both of you are shills.

To the bilder/realtwhore/inspector triad, I am like a piece of raw, dripping meat before starving wolves. There’s plenty of evidence to support my position, and I am sticking to it until I have FACTS, not platitudes, to prove otherwise.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 20:17:56

“I don’t understand how $2,500 per acre for residential land is a reasonable number”

There’s alot you don’t understand but reality is going to assist you over the coming years.

 
Comment by GrizzlyBear
2011-06-29 20:55:05

One thing you may have a hard time wrapping your mind around, Exeter, is how outrageously expensive raw land is out west. $2500 per acre buys you dried up desert scrub out in the middle of nowhere with no roads or access to power, water, etc. The land bubble is alive and well.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 21:00:07

I know this to be true Grizzly although it’s secondary to the overall assertions. Nevertheless, all that means is land prices out west have much further to fall.

 
 
 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 15:55:22

“Besides, what does construction cost have to do with it?”

Nothing for now.

However, to the extent that the US has a growing population, and household formation, either:

1. More and more people will be crammed into fewer and fewer housing units (some do burn down or become uninhabitable every year); or
2. Home prices will rise to justify the development of new housing units

If #1 happens, I think we can all agree it will be temporary as long as there are some of the cramees who can afford to purchase.

Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 18:12:26

“extent that the US has a growing population,”

Another one of your beauts. The fact is the most recent US Census indicates that population growth for decade 2000-2010 was the lowest in US history. Secondly 70 million boomers have a foot in the grave and another on a banana peel. All of them are GONE in the next 20 years leaving 35 million excess empty housing units on top of the 20 million excess housing units.

Ya know…. you really need to read the tripe you’re writing. Its realtor vomit and you know it.

And I have another bulletin for you…. The fact that CA hasn’t declined to the extent other states have merely means CA has much further to fall. Todays price is your best price for decades to come so you better get selling now.

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Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 19:52:16

Show me a single reputable source that is projecting that the US is going to have a declining population over the next 20 years.

Just one.

This is not a realtor talking point. Any demographer will tell you the same thing.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 20:14:44

Nice try but I didn’t say population will decline. YOU are asserting that population growth will support current grossly inflated prices.

Stop digging. Your hole is getting deeper.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 20:19:34

For the data from the US Census

1900-1910 - added 16.3MM
1910-1920 - added 14.1MM
1920-1930 - added 16.6MM
1930-1940 - added 9.0MM
1940-1950 - added 20.1MM
1950-1960 - added 28.4MM
1960-1970 - added 24.4MM
1970-1980 - added 22.2MM
1980-1990 - added 22.2MM
1990-2000 - added 32.0MM
2000-2010 - added 27.3MM

RAL is correct. 2000-2010 is the lowest percentage growth decade (.07% less growth than in the 80’s on a percentage basis)–and we added 27 million to the population.

Any assertion that the next 20 years is going to be NEGATIVE 70 million is ludicrous.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 20:28:30

You’re flailing again. I said 70 million boomers are headed to the grave over the next 20 years.

YOU implied population growth with support the current grossly inflated prices. You go ahead and keep telling yourself that. Ride that depreciating shack of yours right to the bottom.

Enjoy.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 20:58:40

And you said that the 70 million headed to the grave would result in 35 million excess (unneeded) houses. You completely ignored the tens of millions of new households formed to occupy those homes.

Not to mention that the very first boomers are in their mid-60’s…you imply none of those first boomers will live past 85. And none of the latter boomers will live past 65.

You have yet to show me a source showing expected population decline (resulting in fewer housing units being needed than today).

I’m waiting…

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 21:07:16

And you’ve yet to refute the fact that 35 million excess housing units left by the death of the largest population block in history will magically be filled with new occupants.

Household formation is at all time record lows-FACT

Immigration is flat-FACT

Birthrate is lowest in US history-FACt

Currently there are 20 MILLION empty excess housing units-FACT

You’ve convinced yourself you didn’t overpay for your shanty. Enjoy that delusion. In the meantime, the rest of us will watch you ride that depreciating shanty to the bottom. And you’re many tens of thousands of dollars away from the bottom.

 
Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 21:14:54

You completely ignored the tens of millions of new households formed to occupy those homes.

Normally yes. Seems we’ve been hearing lately that they don’t form like normal when there’s no money. Also seems like even if they do form they may not occupy those homes at the current combination of home prices and starting salaries. If I’m right that would suggest either they won’t occupy those homes, OR, those prices will be much lower than they are right now due to the low salaries. Which brings us back to the original topic, I think…

 
 
 
 
Comment by Awaiting
2011-06-29 12:08:14

RAL
Just a quick THANK YOU for sharing your knowledge base and information. We’ve always bought new, and now are looking for the quintessential 1970-80’s rancher. Your posts are helpful.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:04:53

Be wary of aluminum wiring from that era. Do NOT buy if it has aluminum wiring.

Also to watch out for:
- “Fiberboard” siding
- Low quality mortar if brick and early Mexican bricks.

Comment by Awaiting
2011-06-29 17:56:40

ecofeco
THANK YOU for that reminder about the wiring and for the additional information.

In a housing market with so many escrows falling out, it’s sad that our Broker tried to tell us the seller pays the commissions and costs, when in reality the buyer funds the deal. We gave him an ear full of reality and handed his chutzpah back to him. We’re cash and close. Without the buyer’s dough, nothing happens. Amazing!

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Comment by lavi d
2011-06-29 12:13:15

Just thought I’d mention, for the newer readers, that Rental Watch’s (and all other’s) posts can be searched here

Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 13:51:47

Thanks lavi d.

RAL–please read my early commentary. Hopefully you will see that I’m expressing my sincere opinion, as I feel much of the correction we were all expecting during the peak has happened.

Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 13:54:31

By the way, RAL, I started commenting on this board FOUR years before you in early 2006…expressing my equally strong opinion at that point that prices were going to crash.

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Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 15:19:34

RAL = exeter. He’s been here quite a while. I don’t know if he went by any other names before that.

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 15:21:08

That’s interesting because I was here at Ben’s beta blog in Feb 2005.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 16:54:28

A comment of mine from 11/21/06, which is consistent with my view today:

“Do I believe we are going back to 20-100% increases after 3-4 years? No, but I don’t think that’s what Rosen is saying either. I think that we are going to see sliding prices for 2-4 years, and only after that will we hit bottom (which may be a multi-year bottom) will we start more moderate increases again.”

I think we are currently in the midst of the “multi-year bottom”, which is why, given current interest rates, and my view that one should not take interest rate risk on their home (fixed for 30 is a good way to go), I think now is as good a time as any to be looking to purchase (if you want to own).

There, I’m done defending myself.

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 16:56:24

Didn’t know RAL was the same as exeter…sorry for the mistake.

So as long as I was agreeing with you, I was just another HBB poster toeing the “housing is going to crash” line, but now that I think the worst is behind us, and prices are not too high, I am a lying realtor?

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 18:19:41

Think what you want. Ride that depreciating house to the bottom. It’s your funeral.

 
Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 21:51:17

Please.

Both of you are sincere I think. No one knows the future. I don’t think either one of you are spouting B.S..

“Can’t we all get along?”

 
 
 
 
 
Comment by jeff saturday
2011-06-29 04:46:10

Florida expected to lay off 1,600 state workers as new budget year begins Friday

By Dara Kam Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted: 6:47 p.m. Tuesday, June 28, 2011

TALLAHASSE — Pink slips are going out to more than 1,600 state workers by Friday, the human toll of the austere spending plan approved by lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott this spring.

Facing a nearly $4 billion budget deficit, the legislature cut thousands of jobs, froze hiring and forced state workers to contribute 3 percent of their salaries to their pension plans in the 2011-2012 budget year that begins Friday. Meanwhile, Scott continues to look for ways to shrink government spending.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/state/florida-expected-to-lay-off-1-600-state-1568020.html - -

Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 05:14:38

OK, look, Scott gets a lotta crap, some deserved, some not. I have to give him props for keeping that state parks open because they generate revenue. As to state workers, Florida’s gubmin really did get bloated during the bubble years. But sometimes he does some stuff that is really beyond the pale. I can’t even believe Rick Scott posted a form letter of praise for himself on his website, for Floridians to print out and send to media outlets. Sometimes you just gotta shake your head. Steve Colbert did a pretty funny send-up of it.

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/media/content/stephen-colbert-florida-gov-rick-scott-hed-be-doing-better-if-he-wasnt-trying-kill-harry-pot

Comment by Muggy
2011-06-29 06:02:09

“Gov. Scott attends private weekend retreat hosted by influential Koch brothers.”

http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/stateroundup/gov-scott-attends-private-weekend-retreat-hosted-by-influential-koch/1177733

Comment by Muggy
2011-06-29 06:18:12

One would think that the Koch brothers, being for freedom and all, would like to have people from all walks of life openly discuss freedom. It is odd how the TEA party advocates freedom, but then also seems to have an opinion regarding who deserves freedom.

Odd, too, that they often operate in obscurity. What is less free than transparency?

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Comment by Muggy
2011-06-29 06:47:14

“What is less free than transparency?”

You know what I meant.

 
Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 07:03:32

Takimag has an awesome send-up of Nostradamus this morning. Here’s an excerpt:

“NOSTRADAMUS PREDICTED THE SINISTER RISE OF KOCH INDUSTRIES IN RIGHT-WING POLITICS

From where they will think to make famine come,
From there will come the surfeit:
The eye of the sea through canine greed
For the one the other will give oil and wheat.
—Century IV, Quatrain 15

For nearly a year, dedicated leftist scribes have proved beyond a pubic hair’s width of doubt that Charles and David Koch of Koch Industries—who, as luck would have it, are involved in both “oil and wheat,” and you can be sure it’s Big Oil and Big Wheat—have, through their unparalleled “greed,” paid off a cadre of media “lapdogs” (hence the word “canine”) who bend to their every suggestion, and if you can’t “sea” that, your “eye” is blind, my friend. The brothers’ cruel, behind-the-scenes string-pulling will “make famine come,” and dozens of people who currently subscribe to the print edition of The Nation may be forced into such poverty, they’ll have to view it exclusively online next year. So when you rail against “the wealthy,” forget about George Soros, Ben Bernanke, or anyone named Rockefeller or Rothschild—these Kochs are your guys. They are, shockingly, the only wealthy people on Earth who have ever attempted to influence politics.”

 
Comment by butters
2011-06-29 07:33:28

Right has it’s villain in Soros and left found two in Koch brothers. The sad thing about the Koch brothers is I had never heard of them until last year and I consider myself a knowledgeable person in politics and current events. Suddenly the Kochs are ruining America. May be, just may be they are the new Bush/Cheney combo. Why go after one guy when you can go after two, right?

 
 
 
Comment by CrackerBob
2011-06-29 07:24:38

I have been receiving his idiotic robo-calls for the past two weeks touting his terrific job growth numbers. He is an idiot and a carpetbagger just like JEB.

 
Comment by The_Overdog
2011-06-29 08:07:10

OK, look, Scott gets a lotta crap, some deserved, some not. I have to give him props for keeping that state parks open because they generate revenue.
———————
Apparently, some of that revenue generated is due to Scott selling off portions of state parks to private vendors (to add concessions, food, and rv parking) in a backroomish deal.

That’s what all the kerfluffle is about.

 
Comment by howiewowie
2011-06-29 15:39:58

Kind of off topic, but did you know Rick Scott is soooo rich he has a whole second roof for his custom-built home in Naples, Fla., stored away somewhere in case a hurricane rips his off?

 
 
 
Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 04:47:51

So much for “too many” “insane” regulations…

A Little House of Secrets on the Great Plains.

“CHEYENNE/ATLANTA (Reuters) - The secretive business havens of Cyprus and the Cayman Islands face a potent rival: Cheyenne, Wyoming.

At a single address in this sleepy city of 60,000 people, more than 2,000 companies are registered. The building, 2710 Thomes Avenue, isn’t a shimmering skyscraper filled with A-list corporations. It’s a 1,700-square-foot brick house with a manicured lawn, a few blocks from the State Capitol.

A Reuters investigation has found the house at 2710 Thomes Avenue serves as a little Cayman Island on the Great Plains. It is the headquarters for Wyoming Corporate Services, a business-incorporation specialist that establishes firms which can be used as “shell” companies, paper entities able to hide assets…

A growing niche in the shell business is shelf corporations. Like paper-only shells, which enable the secrecy-minded to hide real ownership of assets, shelf companies are set up by firms like Wyoming Corporate Services, then left “on the shelf” to season for years. They’re then sold later to owners looking for a quick way to secure bank loans, bid on contracts, and project financial stability. ”

http://news.yahoo.com/special-report-little-house-secrets-great-plains-113759191.html

Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 06:19:33

Check the crawl spaces for missing hitchhikers.

 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 13:42:34

Some folks use corporations to maintain privacy. Especially interested in this practice are some women wishing to escape from stalkers or domestic violence.

How to Be Invisible by JJ Luna is an interesting read.

 
 
Comment by jeff saturday
2011-06-29 05:07:39

Chart at the top of this article clearly shows house price declines hitting an artificial floor in 2009.

Consumer confidence slips in South Florida, where home values aren’t rising as in other metro areas

By Jeff Ostrowski Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted: 10:12 p.m. Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Enjoy those falling gas prices - they’re one of the few glimmers of good news in an otherwise moribund economy.

Pump prices are dropping, but so are home prices in South Florida, along with consumer confidence in Florida and the rest of the United States.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/money/consumer-confidence-slips-in-south-florida-where-home-1568434.html - -

Comment by Muggy
2011-06-29 07:02:03

Again, why is housing the only freaking thing where “falling prices” is bad news. GAH!

Comment by Jim A
2011-06-29 08:23:06

On the contrary, people behave as if the same is true of equities. As if rising stock prices don’t mean that the purchaser is paying more to secure future dividends. So RE isn’t the ONLY asset class where higher prices are regarded as a good thing. Heck in Iowa, higher crop prices are also regarded as an unqulaified good thing too…

 
 
Comment by edgewaterjohn
2011-06-29 09:07:30

Oil jumped quite a bit this morning. Looks like the PTB has to accept that rosy news means >$100 bbl as the “off again on again” inflation trade ramps back up. The relief at the pump may very well be shortlived - and around my neck of the woods that relief wasn’t anything to write home about. Prices stayed well north of $4.00/gal. throughout.

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 10:02:31

“The relief at the pump may very well be shortlived”

Like I said before, I really doubt it will fall below $3 and I think that $4 will soon be the new baseline. Enjoy your F-150’s America.

Comment by MrBubble
2011-06-29 12:03:51

“Enjoy your F-150’s America.”

And your Expeditions that you use on your “expeditions” to the mini mart, your Explorers with which you “explore” your soon to be exurban hellscape, your Escalades while you escalade the walls of the nearest big box store, your Range Rovers when you… Well you get the idea. Weird that all of these models can only accommodate one person where I live.

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Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 05:10:06

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/beach-north-124629279.html

Chicago resident accuses Major, press of covering up mob “wilding” that forced closure of beaches during Memorial Day. Fourth of July is probably going to witness similar incidents. Being the good liberal bastion that it is, Chicago makes it virtually impossible for residents to legally carry concealed firearms for self defense, giving the criminal element free rein to caper at will.

Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 05:56:12

Those “wildings” are not limited to Chi-town by any means. I was watching the video yesterday of the flashmob attack on a Sears in Delaware outside of Philly. Charlotte also experienced some action over the Memorial Day weekend and there were others. These are reported as “youths who are making poor choices”.

Pray for rain.

Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 06:22:49

The visigoths, not just at the gates, but running amok in our urban centers as government and the MSM try desperately to pretend this isn’t happening.

 
 
Comment by Elanor
2011-06-29 07:30:54

The mobs of young thugs aren’t carrying firearms either, Sammy. Not so far, anyway. Illinois is the only state left that doesn’t allow concealed carry of firearms. This fact is astonishing to many, and the legislature is considering a repeal at this very moment. Personally, I shudder to think what might happen if guns were to enter into the mix at city beaches.

Mayor Rahmbo has beefed up the police presence in the areas that have suffered these attacks. You can count on Chicago being on high alert over the holiday weekend.

Comment by whyoung
2011-06-29 08:19:23

I can’t imagine that a mob will give much consideration to gun laws.

Comment by Elanor
2011-06-29 08:53:04

Sorry, didn’t mean to imply that a mob would ever be stopped by consideration of the law. For whatever reason, the mob attacks so far have not involved guns. One of the most vicious attacks I can recall was done with a baseball bat.

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Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 08:31:27

“Personally, I shudder to think what might happen if guns were to enter into the mix at city beaches.”

People get shot and kilt. Happens here on the Bradenton beaches on the occasional Easter weekend when the gangs have their little rumbles. Recently happened on the boardwalk in Brighton Beach, New York.

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 10:00:39

Back in the early 90’s (IIRC) a new shopping mall opened in North San Diego County (North County Fair). I recall that the place had been open just a few years before they had their first gang shoot-a-thon there.

It was one of the many reasons we left SoCal and never looked back.

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Comment by edgewaterjohn
2011-06-29 09:13:56

CPD busted a group of youths coming out of the tourist-centric Water Tower Place mall two days ago. One of them was carrying a loaded handgun. The commander on the scene had the sense to confront them - and the guy with the gun took off running.

So, a loaded handgun found its way into one of the most visited venues in the city - a city and state where handguns are illegal. Thankfully that gun did not find itself in any trouble.

 
Comment by drumminj
2011-06-29 09:22:11

I shudder to think what might happen if guns were to enter into the mix at city beaches.

Just because it’s not legal doesn’t mean people aren’t bringing guns to beaches.

Think about it — by definition, criminals don’t follow the law.

Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 12:44:48

It’s gotta be hard to conceal a gun in your speedos.

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Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 12:46:53

Well, a weapon anyway.

 
 
 
Comment by Steve W
2011-06-29 12:18:20

actually, they caught a guy in one of the packs yesterday coming out of water tower place who had a gun. Story in the Tribune

 
Comment by jim
2011-06-29 13:53:55

There are a few others that technically allow it, bu tnever actually issue permits.

 
Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 17:35:57

Personally, I shudder to think what might happen if guns were to enter into the mix at city beaches.

You shudder away, little lamb, and count on the Chicago PD to protect you. I, however, have a concealed carry permit and a .38 loaded with hollow points, and am highly proficient in its use. If some wilding thug or mob poses an iminent danger to my family or I, the vermin count of this planet is going to drop by at least one.

 
 
Comment by edgewaterjohn
2011-06-29 09:38:45

The city is my lifelong home. My bike commute route takes me through the heart of the very areas you all are reading about. Each day - Chicago & State, North Ave. Beach, Uptown - 11 miles each way. Not being shielded in the protective bubble of a BMW or an Audi really puts things into perspective. My own fiancee doesn’t even know what the streets can be like.

What people here are experiencing today resonates with me becuase it is very much like the city of the 1970s. My conclusion is that the 80s-00s were an aberration around these parts. Slowly we are heading back to the days when a Cubs’ game didn’t even draw 1,500 in the middle of July. The signs of deferred maintenance are multiplying - the examples are too numerous to recount. But again, being on a bike you’d be surprised what you see. AZ Slim, Bubble and Slim can attest I’m sure. The city looks and feels different from just 2006.

As for these attacks - it’s a complicated story. Offical crime statistics and local accounts vary sharply. Firsthand, there is no question that large groups of youths are assembling and they are restless and looking for trouble - why each ride home in the afternoon requires some vigilance - for more than just the crazy driver of which there are plenty. Still truth be said, to date a lot of the victims have had one thing in common - they have brandished iCrap at some point immediately before their attack. Not that that makes any of the attacks justified.

These incidents started two summers ago. Now we will get to see what this all means for a large city and its housing market. This city saw coastal pricing during the boom - pricing locals bemoaned. Still they came and bought, and shockingly enough those that paid some of the highest prices were not equity locusts from the coasts, they were young adults from Madison, Grand Rapids, Elkhart, Appleton, Cedar Falls - “the Heartland”.

What plays out here will be very telling for our society. Stay tuned, and if you have family visiting here this summer tell them to keep their iCrap in their pockets, don’t walk alone at night, and in other words use those street smarts many thought to be relics of the 70s.

Comment by whyoung
2011-06-29 10:20:33

“they have brandished iCrap at some point immediately before their attack.”

This reminds me of years ago when some kid would be killed for his fancy jacket or shoes…

As to the I-stuff, I see a lot of hipsters on the NYC subway “plugged in” and oblivious to their surroundings with an apparent sense of safety that is IMO potentially dangerous. The days when people were vigilant about not showing valuables on the train seem to have gone away (temporarily). As young recent arrivals they seem to have not ever acquired any of those 70’s and 80’s street smarts. NOT that things aren’t better in NYC, but can’t assume those changes are permanent.

Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 11:06:48

Hmmmm, iCrap-induced obliviousness and the risks flaunting of same…

This is why my get-around-town bike looks like, well, a junker. It’s a 25-year-old bike and looks like it too. Add to its age, my propensity for plastering it with stickers that *I* think are cool, and you have a machine that the thieves avoid.

And I don’t plug music into my ears when I ride. I don’t have a full set of hearing ears anymore, and I need to keep them focused on what’s around me.

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Comment by MrBubble
2011-06-29 10:39:20

Thanks for the bike shout out edgewater! And thanks for the suggestions about my tire/spoke problems. I got the 36 spoke wheel rebuilt on the touring commuter and I’ve done 20 miles to work every day for ~three weeks with no problem. Then the road bike got a hole in the rear tire and the tube was coming out like a hernia and it went out of true. I put a larger 25mm Gatorskin on the rim, got it trued and did 43 miles on Saturday with no issues. I may be good to go for a bit.

Unfortunately, I can’t concur with you vision of what is happening on my ride. I live in a well-to do area in Marin County (although we are not really) and bike on bike paths that used to be train tracks, go through Mill Valley wetlands ($$), Sausalito ($$), over the Golden Gate through the Marina distinct ($$), Fisherman’s Wharf (tourists although it’s early in the morning), the Embarcadero and the Financial District ($$).

It’s so weird. I know that things are bad elsewhere and I see it when I travel (rare since the bambino came), but it’s as though I live in the land where the Greater Depression did/has not hit. Is it a Potemkin village? I have a co-worker who is buying a $735,000 mortgage with her wife in Bernal Heights in SF. No worries here, mon. So effin’ bizarre…

MrBubble

PS: Do you snow bike in Chicago?

Comment by edgewaterjohn
2011-06-29 12:46:08

Try to Bubble, four of the last five winters. Can’t say I care for it much though. Tried studded tires this past winter, they help a little - especially with confidence if anything.

Yeah, broken spokes have been vexing. Now that it appears I’ve found a good spoke/wheel combo I’m tempted to have a spare built for back up. 36H, but maybe with one of those coaster brake hubs from the Czech Republic I’ve read so many good things about.

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Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 13:52:13

broken spokes have been vexing.

What about like my semi-light mountain bike with those tires mostly made for streets? I know they are slower but much tougher. A road bike in Rio would have a lot of wheel problems I think.

 
Comment by MrBubble
2011-06-29 14:15:58

Hard core! I ask about snow biking because I was doing some “research” on different kinds of bikes and randomly ended up on snow bikes (love the interwebs). I have come across a lot of folks using a larger bottom bracket (155mm vs. 110 - 120mm) which affects the Q-factor or tread and larger tires (up to 4 inch!) with snow specific rims and wood screws for studs and drum brakes over disc brakes to avoid ice build up.

All I have to worry about is chilly rain here, so fenders and a rain suit/boots/gloves do me fine. I feel like a wimp.

Oh, what is 36H?

 
Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 14:56:28

Oh, what is 36H?

36 holes. As in, 36 holes in the rim. That used to be the most common spec for rims.

But in these days of radial spoked wheels for the masses, not so much. There’s a lot more diversity in both wheel diameters and in the number of spoke holes.

 
Comment by MrBubble
2011-06-29 17:41:17

Ah, then that’s what I have: 36H. Thanks. And I’m getting on it right now.

 
 
 
Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 12:51:26

I think New Yorkers perfected the art of walking fast and looking mean.

 
 
Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 10:12:32

FWIW, I’m the holder of an AZ CCW permit.

One of the things that kept being repeated during my CCW certification class was the importance of being sure of your target. And what’s around it.

In a wilding situation, there’s a good chance of drawing your weapon, firing, and hitting the wrong person(s). Which can have very tragic results. Would you want to live with that for the rest of your life?

Harking back to the January 8 shootings here in Tucson, there was an armed man at the scene. He drew his weapon and came very close to firing it. Good thing he didn’t, because he would have shot the people who were subduing Jared Lee Loughner.

Last I heard, the man who came close to shooting the innocent people was still having trouble dealing with what he *almost* did.

 
 
Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
Comment by butters
2011-06-29 06:34:18

Idiots and their wet dreams

 
Comment by CharlieTango
2011-06-29 10:19:32

i’m glad ranger spoke up on palin

she is the only one out there that makes sense to me.

Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 12:38:04

You mean rancher? I have very mixed feelings on her. I get that she’s flawed, but I don’t think those on the urban side of the urban/rural divide understand how well she speaks the rural language…and how much their choice of candidates inevitably don’t.

Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 12:41:37

I love Sarah Palin because she’s hot.

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Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 12:53:11

I think she looks smart in glasses.

 
 
Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 12:44:11

You betcha!

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Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:16:49

She doesn’t speak “rural”, she speaks “redneck”.

Big difference.

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Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 15:22:25

I’d have to know your exact definition of each term to know whether to disagree with you or not. All I know is that in Wyoming (whatever you consider them) she comes through crystal clear, even with the funny accent.

 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 16:14:56

Population of Wyoming = 563,626.

Percentage of population in urban areas with population over 200K = 58% (2000 census).

% of urban population = 82% (wikipedia)

She needs to learn how to talk to city folk, too.

 
Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 16:35:05

I’m not saying she doesn’t. I’m just saying I think the city folks underestimate:

1. How well she speaks to “them”.
2. How many of “them” there are when you include all the metro Jethros who are living in/near the city because that’s where the jobs are.

I don’t know whether she really has a chance or not, I just think it’s possible that there could end up being dumbfounded people after an election saying “she couldn’t have won, nobody I know voted for her”.

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 17:50:38

Yes Carl, I was insulting her.

Most rural people I’ve met had a good amount of common sense. The ones that didn’t were always the rednecks, hence, the name, ‘redneck”.

Palin is an idiot. Period.

 
Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 18:38:10

Palin is an idiot. Period.

I’ll be curious to see whether the people saying that actually help get her elected in the end.

 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 18:51:24

“I just think it’s possible that there could end up being dumbfounded people after an election saying “she couldn’t have won, nobody I know voted for her”.

Got it.

I felt this way about Nixon. Proximity bias. We tend to hang out with people that are like us. I was in college in 72, hence my proximity bias was definitely unfavorable to Nixon.

And your point about Metro Jethros is apropos.

A lot depends on what happens between now and the election. McCain was gaining on Obama until the financial crisis in September 2008. He might have won if not for that.

 
 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 16:04:44

How well will she do if she loses the urban vote? Urbanites are also “real Americans”.

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Comment by Carl Morris
2011-06-29 16:39:58

Who wins is who wins, regardless of who thinks who are “real Americans”. Probably depends on where the majority of the suburbanites end up. In the end they went for Reagan, and I think he and she share some common characteristics. Every piece of news in the next year like the stuff coming out of Chicago lately would work in her favor. Do we expect more or less of that in the next year?

 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 18:55:06

I would guess more.

The election will also hinge on who can get out the vote. This is why Republicans like wedge issues like gay marriage and abortion. If they can get a referendum on the ballot in key states, they can turn the tide by getting out their base.

 
 
 
 
 
Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 05:24:13

New community of crapshacks coming to an outer suburb near me:

http://www.clarksburgvillage.com/homes-overview.html

I was driving on this road last weekend. The field was scraped to the pale reddish-brown soil, and a bunch of bulldozers were all lined up, ready to make belch diesal exhaust and noise for the next couple years to build yet another development.

 
Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 06:29:21

http://www.dailytech.com/Obama+Administration+Fights+to+Allow+Warrantless+GPS+Tracking/article22021.htm

More Orwellian assaults on the 4th Amendment. So enlighten me: how exactly is Obama a change from Bush?

Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 06:49:51

At least Bush was upfront about being a dickhead. Obama comes with vaseline up to his elbows.

 
Comment by polly
2011-06-29 06:58:10

Supreme Court nominees.

Comment by butters
2011-06-29 07:20:44

Meaning reliable lefties on the court? Sotomayor and Kagan are not there for their intellectual prowess but for predictable left wing votes.

Comment by Elanor
2011-06-29 07:32:12

Gee, thanks so very much for your insulting opinion of their intellect.

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Comment by butters
2011-06-29 07:39:18

I am just being honest. Supreme Court like any other institution in America is nothing but a shallow playground for R vs D.

 
Comment by aNYCdj
2011-06-29 07:56:50

Polly….I would differ

If you BUY a gps or a phone and make your location public, then shouldn’t the police have legal access to your location just like anyone else?

#2 define property. If your car is on private property then the police cannot step on your driveway or a neighbors or Walmart and put the device. But once you are on public property, then it should be ok , make sure you take pictures.etc…

———————————-
However, the D.C. Circuit Court went in a different direction ruling that modern 24-7 GPS monitoring was far more invasive than the beeper monitoring of the 1980s. Thus the court threw out the verdict, saying the suspect’s Fourth amendment rights were violated.

They argued that the fourth amendment protections should be nullified and law enforcement be written a blank check to sneak onto your property, plant a GPS tracking device on your vehicle, and monitor you 24-7.

 
 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 08:03:11

The Supreme Court has delivered nothing but ABSURED pro-corporate and pro-government decisions for years now. They are more than just conservative. It’s almost as if they’re being paid, or senile at best.

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Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 08:04:36

absurd

 
Comment by polly
2011-06-29 09:07:05

It doesn’t matter how bad you think it is now.

It could be a lot worse.

 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 09:22:36

Yeah, polly, it does matter how bad it is now. It could be a lot better. And believe me, the decisions made by these people recently have already paved the way to making it “a lot worse”.

 
Comment by polly
2011-06-29 11:59:31

Those rulings aren’t like an economic analysis where a better understanding of what happened in the past can inform policy in the future. We are stuck with them. And we are stuck with a lot of the justices that made the decisions for years or even decades.

Electing officials that won’t load up the court with even more justices that think that there is no difference at all between a person and corporate entity when it comes to rights is worth doing even if you don’t love the rest of what that administration does.

If you ever come across a situation where you think you will agree with the economic/military/social/etc. policies of one candidate but suspect you would prefer the judicial nominees of another candidate, then you have a problem. I’ve never seen it happen. And if you don’t think you will agree with the general policies of either candidate, you are in luck. You can make the decision based only on likely judicial nominees.

And for any of my fellow readers who decide not to vote, it isn’t really a protest under our system. It would be if a certain percentage of eligible voters had to vote for the election to be valid, but that isn’t the system we have. Not voting is just a statement that you think other people are more qualified than you are to make the decision.

 
Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 12:39:35

Electing officials that won’t load up the court with even more justices that think that there is no difference at all between a person and corporate entity when it comes to rights is worth doing even if you don’t love the rest of what that administration does.

+1

 
Comment by Kim
2011-06-29 13:07:59

“Not voting is just a statement that you think other people are more qualified than you are to make the decision.”

+10 million, Polly!

 
Comment by chilidoggg
2011-06-29 14:10:13

“justices that think that there is no difference at all between a person and PROPERTY/STUFF when it comes to rights”

 
 
 
 
Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 07:38:51

So enlighten me: how exactly is Obama a change from Shrub?

Compare US Taxpayer/citizen expenditure cost$:

Cheney-Shrub:
War I + War II = $1.5 Trillion$ +

Obama:
Libya NATO Nation remodeling lite: $100 billion$

Comment by butters
2011-06-29 08:10:20

You forgot Pakistan/Afghanistan/Yemen.

 
Comment by Steamed Bean
2011-06-29 08:23:14

Obama: Federal Spending % of GDP = 24.6%
Federal Revenue % of GDP = 16.1%

Bush: Federal Spending % of GDP = 19.9%
Federal Revenue % of GDP = 17.9%

Bush was a bigger taxer than Barry

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 09:24:59

And don’t forget that Bush technically didn’t “spend” any money on the war. He never wrote that number down in the budget. That’s where a lot of Obama’s supposed deficit came from. He starting writing the war numbers into the budget. (And the US is slowly pulling out of both wars at this time, thank you.)

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Comment by edgewaterjohn
2011-06-29 10:47:50

C’mon highway, that doesn’t make it right, or even any less wrong. Heck, a story is floating out there that the wars really cost us $4T. I believe it - war is expensive…and profitable.

My question is what do the people think? Do they feel any safer for it? I don’t (reference earlier posts). These wars cost trillions and here at home there are problems aplenty.

The two party debate is mental masturbation. Who cares which party fillibusters which bill, what matters is the aggregate effect of their actions. And in aggregate, the wars keep going, the bankers avoid trial, and the people are at each other’s throats.

There are so many good political books out there, and they detail the extent to which the Rs and Ds scratch each others’ backs and how they go to each others’ funerals and weddings. Again, consider the aggregate effects of their showboating.

Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 18:47:57

Who cares which party …shoots x2 44 caliber holes in the milk bucket, what matters is the aggregate effect of their actions.

The bucket is leaking mightly…how many steps in to the near future before it’s empty?

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Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 08:29:46

Obama sign an order to close Gitmo two years ago and is still keeping civilians locked up without a trial.

Bush would have never signed that order.

I bet President Bachman might even have some show trials in a few years.

Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 10:49:05

Your MAMA!

 
 
 
Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 06:48:43
Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 07:04:44

Ouzo!

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:21:12

OPA!

 
 
Comment by Sammy Schadenfreude
2011-06-29 17:41:04

Empty insincere promises to mend their ways, followed by demands for a new and bigger bailout six months from now.

 
 
Comment by WT Economist
2011-06-29 07:26:23

We’re back above the Eddie line for now.

Comment by palmetto
2011-06-29 08:28:57

Last gasp, IMO. Apres moi, le deluge.

Seriously, I do believe this is the last time we’ll see this in a VERY looooong while. Enjoy it while you can. Just in time for the holiday weekend, no less.

 
 
Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 07:29:42

Old school: Justice delayed is…justice delayed is…ju$tice delayed.

Filed: The “invisible clicks of the free-market$” ;-)
By Jonathan Spicer / Reuters News

NEW YORK | Wed Jun 29, 2011 10:01am EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - One of the biggest oil market manipulation cases undertaken by U.S. regulators is entering a new phase in which a judge will mediate settlement talks, three years after the case was launched.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission case against the U.S. unit of Optiver Holding BV, a Netherlands-based hedge fund, has been referred to U.S. Magistrate Judge Theodore Katz for settlement, according to a filing in the U.S. district court in Manhattan.

reaped a $1 million profit in 2007 by “banging the close.” This is an illegal strategy in which a firm accumulates a large position just before the market closes, and offsets that position at the close itself, manipulating prices through sheer volume of trades.

The case revealed details about computer software called the “hammer” that rapidly entered a series of orders to allegedly manipulate markets.

It also included emails and phone recordings showing efforts by traders at Optiver’s Chicago branch to “move,” “whack” and “bully” oil prices — providing rare insight into the dark side of high-speed electronic trading, which has grown rapidly in the last decade.

The June 15 order marks a departure from a long series of legal submissions since the CFTC in July 2008 charged Optiver with using a rapid-fire trading program to manipulate crude, gasoline and heating oil prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:57:12

Supply? Demand? “Invisible Hand” of the market?

Fairy tales for the rubes.

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 07:46:59

“The euro will not exist in a year. The whole thing was dysfunctional from the beginning.” ~Charles Gave, French economist.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:24:06

I’ve been hearing about the demise the Euro since the day it was first proposed.

Yet, somehow, it’s still around and seems to stay strong over the long run.

Not bad for something on its “deathbed”.

Now what could be behind this constant attempt at undermining the Euro? Hmmm, I wonder…

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 07:54:19

Contracts to buy homes rose sharply in May
Buyers sign more contacts to buy homes in May after hitting 7-month low; market still weak

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people who signed contracts to buy homes rose sharply in May. But the influx of spring buyers wasn’t enough to signal a rebound in the struggling housing market.

The National Association of Realtors said Wednesday that its index of sales agreements for previously occupied homes rose 8.2 percent last month, to a reading of 88.8. The increase followed April’s seven-month low of 82.1.

A reading of 100 is considered healthy by economists. The last time the index reached that level was in April 2010, the final month when buyers could qualify for a federal tax credit. Signings are now 17 percent above June’s reading of 75.9, the lowest figure since the housing market went bust nearly four years ago.

Contract signings are typically a reliable indicator of where the housing market is headed. That’s because there’s usually a one- to two-month lag between a sales contract and a completed deal.

Comment by salinasron
2011-06-29 08:31:08

“The number of people who signed contracts to buy homes rose sharply in May. ”

Just what does this statement mean? Am I to assume that a signed contract to buy actually means a completed sale, or is this just more RE hype to get free press by the willing MSM?

Comment by Kim
2011-06-29 13:18:51

“Am I to assume that a signed contract to buy actually means a completed sale”

No. I believe it just counts purchase offers that have been accepted by the seller. Its usefulness as a leading indicator has waned of late, when more and more contracts are falling through due to buyer’s financing issues, rejection of short sales by lending institutions, failed home inspections, etc.

“there’s usually a one- to two-month lag between a sales contract and a completed deal”

Based on my recent observations, the closing process - especially if a mortgage is involved - is taking at least two months, and three+ isn’t uncommon for short sales.

Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 14:02:16

Just signed contract, no close. Some sales can be faster than 2-3 months if there has been a pre-approval letter. We closed in 30 days after signing, as we had already gotten our financial information to our lender.

Brokers and builders would say the home is “sold” once it is in contract.

We used to always laugh at that and refer to them as “in contract”. They are only “sold” when money has changed hands and title transferred.

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Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 08:00:21

Maybe China has > x1+ interest in buying US Treasurie$ ;-)

Bridge Comes to San Francisco With a Made-in-China Label:

DAVID BARBOZA, On Sunday June 26, 2011 / NYT
SHANGHAI — Talk about outsourcing.

At a sprawling manufacturing complex here, hundreds of Chinese laborers are now completing work on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

California decided not to apply for federal funding for the project because the “Buy America” provisos would probably have required purchasing more expensive steel and fabrication from United States manufacturers.

The new Bay Bridge, expected to open to traffic in 2013, will replace a structure that has never been quite the same since the 1989 Bay Area earthquake. At $7.2 billion, it will be one of the most expensive structures ever built. But California officials estimate that they will save at least $400 million by having so much of the work done in China. (California issued bonds to finance the project, and will look to recoup the cost through tolls.)

In New York City alone, Chinese companies have won contracts to help renovate the subway system, refurbish the Alexander Hamilton Bridge over the Harlem River and build a new Metro-North train platform near Yankee Stadium. As with the Bay Bridge, American union labor would carry out most of the work done on United States soil.

American steelworker unions have disparaged the Bay Bridge contract by accusing the state of California of sending good jobs overseas and settling for what they deride as poor-quality Chinese steel. Industry groups in the United States and other countries have raised questions about the safety and quality of Chinese workmanship on such projects. Indeed, China has had quality control problems ranging from tainted milk to poorly built schools

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 09:56:02

Wow, so we offshored that one to save a measly 5.5%, not to mention who knows what the final quality will be. Sheesh, the mutiplier effect would have more than paid for that difference.

Americans are stupid.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:31:53

IT’S WHAT PLANTS CRAVE!

 
 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 10:00:57

Where are Californians going to get the money to pay the tolls? Jimminy Cricket, what is wrong with people?

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:30:47

Marie Antoinette didn’t get it either.

 
 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:29:40

“California decided not to apply for federal funding for the project because the “Buy America” provisos would probably have required purchasing more expensive steel and fabrication from United States manufacturers.”

Says all you need to know right there. They didn’t even research the costs.

Effing traitors. Highest unemployment in the nation and they still go and eff their own citizens.

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 08:04:32

This will have plenty of moochers panties in a wad, here in S.C….

Haley vetoes school, ETV, primary money from state budget
Jun 28, 2011 6:13 PM

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has issued dozens of vetoes, blocking state funding for public television, the state Arts Commission and $56 million for schools.

The Republican governor announced 35 vetoes on Tuesday to save $213 million. They are the first issued since she took office in January.

Haley also vetoed the GOP-majority Legislature’s proposal to use state money for the 2012 Republican presidential primary.

Legislators need to muster two-thirds votes in the House and Senate to override a governor’s vetoes.

If the vetoes hold, South Carolina ETV and the Arts Commission could still raise money or get federal funding, but not state tax dollars.

Haley also vetoed state budget measures that would have covered part of the costs of the high-stakes, first-in-the-South 2012 Republican presidential primary.

The Republican governor’s vetoes Tuesday were expected. She had told legislators in March not to use taxpayer money to cover the cost of a political contest that the state GOP should cover.

State GOP Chairman Chad Connelly says the party will raise money to put on the contest that the state Election Commission estimates will cost more than $1 million.

The party already has collected $160,000 from filing fees and expects more from candidates who want to take part.

Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 16:33:44

Some things only a Republican governor can get away with. Vetoing funding for a Republican primary would have raised a real ruckus if it had been done by a Democratic governor.

Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 16:40:18

BTW, similar proposals have to be made by congressional Republicans if they really want to cut the deficit.

Shared sacrifice means Congress will have to risk their jobs as well as ours by proposing and voting for cuts that their base may disapprove of. Increasing taxes across the board would be such a move and would open the door to restructure Social Security and Medicare.

By saying that taxes are off the table, they demonstrate a lack of commitment to cutting the deficit.

 
 
 
Comment by CarrieAnn
2011-06-29 08:54:57

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!

Onondaga County May YOY

Sales -27.4% (YAY)

Prices +2.3% (Boo! Hiss!)

Comment by Blue Skye
2011-06-29 10:54:11

Inventory! We need inventory!

Comment by CarrieAnn
2011-06-29 14:05:46

Larger down payments would allow that to happen.

 
 
 
Comment by CarrieAnn
2011-06-29 08:57:15

On my last post, I posted too soon.

Onondaga Cty, May 2011 vs May 2009

Prices +5.2%

http://nysar.com/content/press/statistics.htm

 
Comment by butters
2011-06-29 09:10:49

The Real Story Behind the Market ‘Boom’

Commentary: Companies are buying stock, but insiders aren’t

A new report from TrimTabs, the investment analysts, has blown the whistle on what really went on behind the stock-market “boom” we saw in the first quarter, when the S&P 500 Index rose more than 5%.

No wonder everyone turned bullish by the end of March — just before the market started tanking again.

So who was driving up the market? What was creating this boom?

Turns out it was the companies themselves. TrimTabs says companies spent a thumping $124 billion in the first three months of the year trying to boost their share prices by buying up stock.

That works out at about $2 billion for every day the market opened.

Meanwhile, according to Trim Tabs, guess who avoided buying stock during the first quarter? Company executives. The “insiders.”

These are the guys whose stock purchases tend to strongly signal bull markets and genuine booms. They were spending investors’ money buying their stock, but weren’t spending their own.

TrimTabs says insiders’ stock purchases came to less than $2 billion for the entire quarter, a comparatively low level.

“We’ve never seen such a sharp contrast between what insiders are doing with their own money and what they’re doing with the money of the companies they manage,” TrimTabs Chief Executive Charles Biderman wrote in a note. Stock buybacks outnumbered executive stock purchases by the highest ratio TrimTabs has seen since it started tracking the numbers back in 2004.

“While insiders are willing to use corporate cash to try to support the value of their stock-based compensation, they don’t seem to think their stocks are attractively priced,” Biderman said.

No kidding. When it comes to insiders, follow what they do, not what they say.

When company executives are spending their own money buying stock, it’s a bullish sign. After all, who better knows their companies’ prospects? But when they are sitting on their hands or cashing out, it’s not so good.

As for companies buying up their own shares, this needn’t be a bad thing. After all, if you drive up stock prices, all shareholders benefit.

Share buybacks also are a pretty good way of returning cash to investors. They’re not as good as paying dividends, but they are a better investment than most of the other things management likes to do with the money — like investing in pet projects, or providing more executive perks or making ill-timed acquisitions.

Alas, in this case, there’s another chapter to this story.

Where did the companies find the money to buy back their stock? In some cases the money came from profits. That’s a good thing. But in other cases they just borrowed the funds.

According to the latest data from the Federal Reserve, corporate debt surged again last quarter — to the highest levels on record.

Debts for nonfinancial corporates hit $7.3 trillion by March 31, reports the Fed. That’s up more than $100 billion since the start of the year.

The total at the end of 2007, at the peak of the so-called “credit bubble,” was just $6.7 trillion.

This borrowing spree has pushed overall gearing for nonfarm, nonfinancial corporates to hefty levels. The Fed says that U.S. nonfinancial corporates now have debt equal to 50% of their net worth. It’s near record levels for modern times. As recently as 2006, it was just 40%.

When a company borrows money to bolster its own stock price, it makes me wary of the bonds. When the executives aren’t even willing to invest their own money, it doesn’t exactly make me enthusiastic about the stock either.

Brett Arends is a senior columnist for MarketWatch and a personal-finance columnist for the Wall Street Journal.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:33:26

Wait. Companies are not insiders?

Say what?

 
Comment by combotechie
2011-06-29 20:47:00

“Companies are buying stock, but insiders aren’t.”

Insiders don’t have to buy stock because stock is awarded to them, either in the form of below-market price options or outright grants.

This is a form of compensation awarded to officers in addition to their salaries and other perks.

IMHO if a company can buy up shares in itself at prices that are below intristic value then it is smart that it does so, even if it has to borrow money (within reason) to do so. Nobody complains when companies buy stock in other companies so it doesn’t make sense to complain when they buy stock in themselves.

The bottom line question should be: Is this buying up of stock a good investment by the company or is it not?

 
 
Comment by salinasron
2011-06-29 09:18:09

AZslim,

Just for you since you take care to update our reading lists I wanted to update you in the science field with a couple of great videos on where we are headed. The first being on chemistry (my field of choice) and the second on medicine for the consumer.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/angela_belcher_using_nature_to_grow_batteries.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_kraft_medicine_s_future.html

sorry I don’t remember how to make them self directing (blue)

Comment by aNYCdj
2011-06-29 13:42:16

Or using a tobacco virus to increase lithium batteries 10 times:

http://newsdesk.umd.edu/universitynews/release.cfm?ArticleID=2302

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:35:00

Good find!

Battery research has been progressing by leaps and bounds.

 
 
 
Comment by polly
2011-06-29 09:18:26

NYTimes article about down payments. Specifically requesting comments at the end as to how large they should be. I think some HBB input is called for.

http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/06/29/whats-a-reasonable-home-down-payment/?hp

I especially like the quote where someone says that downpayments should be set by the market when she is talking about the dowpayments that will be required when the person making the loan will sell off the entire loan and retain no risk. The bond market hasn’t shown itself to be very good at setting minimum standards on loans allowed in securitization pools.

Comment by oxide
2011-06-29 09:44:35

Lots of good points in the comments, but they are long winded.

Lots of other comments say the lender should set down payments…well lenders ARE setting down payments, as long as they have to hold that loan themselves. You know, you break it you bought it…

Also, commenters certainly aren’t looking at DC prices (or metro NY). “A $33K teacher has no business buying a $173K house.” Well in DC metro, there AREN’T any $173K houses, unless you get lucky with a foreclosed trash heap that needs $30K of work anyway. So teachers in DC should rent until they die? When i was growing up, ALL the teachers bought houses, often on one income.

 
Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 10:06:04

How can anything be set by the market when the seller is too big to fail and backed by the government?

That’s it, ima comment. Lemme at em.

Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 10:14:15

Never mind. I don’t feel like logging in.

 
 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 14:06:05

Two requirements that I would like to see are:

1. “if more than 5% of a loan pool is made up of borrowers without documentary evidence of income sufficient to pay the mortgage at the highest possible interest rate, it is illegal to opine (provide a rating) on the quality of the loan pool.”

and

2. all purchase money loans full recourse to borrowers.

With those two things, no jingle mail without recourse, no liar loan pools, or exploding ARMs.

Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 15:18:11

I like (1). I would generalize and improve it, though, by suggesting that the rating agencies can still opine on the quality of the pool, but can only assume that _documented_ portion of the loan pool makes payments; so securitizers could put any proportion of garbage in it, but the raters then can only assume that the documented portion pays.

In other words, they could put 20% garbage in, and the raters would have to assume that only the other 80% make payments. Problem solved–the ratings would be cr*p if there is much no-doc, and so only a small portion of any pool would ever be no-doc.

I gotta say I hate (2). It reduces the risk for lenders, since all mortgages would always be recourse. I am for increasing the risk that accrues to the lenders, not decreasing it. Decreasing it increases their incentive to take part in risky behaviors.

BTW, I don’t see how either of your ideas prevents “exploding ARMs”.

Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 21:04:27

The only prevention for exploding ARMs is that the income documentation needs to prove an ability to pay the ARM at the highest possible rate.

There will be exploding ARMs, but presumably the borrower will be able to pay the mortgage.

The personal guarantee will ensure that they do. Other countries have recourse loans…seems to work.

The problem was multifold this time around:

1. Too many lenders with poor standards (primarily because they were selling the paper based on BS ratings, and not keeping it on their books); and
2. Too many borrowers speculating on home price appreciation, and not paying attention to how much they were borrowing.

My points are efforts to address both of them–you gotta lend to people who can make the payments to sell the paper as a lender, and you gotta make the payments if you can if you are the borrower.

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Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 09:22:32

I do wonder what the point is to reports like this. Everyone knows the debit ceiling will be raised. The D.C. clowns will dance around saying stupid things, but they will do what they do and that is drive us deeper onto hock, that is a fact.

IMF says U.S. should hike debt limit to avert global shock

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Failure by U.S. lawmakers to agree soon on a deal to raise the government’s borrowing limit could deliver a “severe shock” to a still fragile recovery and global markets, the International Monetary Fund warned on Wednesday.

In an annual review of U.S. economic conditions, the IMF said the key challenge the country faces is finding a way to stabilize its debts by mid-decade without derailing growth, which is likely to remain modest for some time.

“And of course, the federal debt ceiling should be raised expeditiously to avoid a severe shock to the economy and world financial markets,” the IMF said in a statement.

The U.S. Treasury already has hit the existing $14.3 trillion legal limit on the nation’s debt and has warned the debt ceiling needs to be raised by August 2 to avoid a default on the nation’s obligations.

The IMF said a failure to raise the ceiling in time could lead to a downgrade in the United States’ coveted AAA debt rating and send interest rates soaring. “These risks would also have significant global repercussions, given the central role of U.S. Treasury bonds in world financial markets,” it said.

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 09:26:51

“Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership.”

– Senator Barack Obama in 2006

Comment by CrackerBob
2011-06-29 11:00:30

I guess it still does.

 
Comment by chilidoggg
2011-06-29 14:13:45

“You know, Paul, Reagan proved deficits don’t matter,” he said, according to excerpts. Cheney continued: “We won the midterms (congressional elections). This is our due.”

Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 15:03:12

Fun Paul O’Neill story: When he got canned in late 2002, he was supposed to go over to the White House and do a lovey-dovey announcement with Bush.

O’Neill wouldn’t have had very far to go for this event. After all, the White House is right across the street from the Treasury Department.

But he just wasn’t into fakey farewells. On his last day at Treasury, he walked out of the building, got into his car and drove back home to Pittsburgh.

You can read more about O’Neill and his numerous clashes with the Bush Administration in Ron Suskind’s book, The Price of Loyalty.

With regards from your HBB Librarian…

 
 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 09:38:17

Hispanics Flee Alabama’s Immigration Law (Bloomberg)

“They’re leaving now, right now,” Evan Duarte said during pause in a pick-up soccer game in a neighborhood gym. “I know people who are packing up tonight. They don’t want to wait to see what happens. It started last week. Our league had 12 teams the week before that. Last week, it was eight.”

Gary Phillips, a former Tuscaloosa City Council member and president of a local contracting firm, Premier Service Company Inc., also said he foresees problems. “What happens to that large, multistory building going up at that time and the sheet rocker is halfway through his thing and the job is stopped?” He said. “All of ‘em are gone. They’re under contract and what are they going to do?”

When Tuscaloosa, Alabama, begins rebuilding more than 7,200 homes and businesses leveled by an April 27 tornado, it may find itself missing a workforce capable of putting the city together again.

That’s what Ever Duarte, head of the city’s Hispanic soccer league, said after losing a third of his teams in a week. Tuscaloosa County’s 6,000-strong Hispanic population –including roofers, Sheetrockers, concrete pourers, framers, landscapers and laborers — is disappearing, he said, before a law cracking down on illegal immigrants takes effect.

Governor Robert Bentley signed Alabama’s 72-page measure June 9, calling it “the strongest immigration bill in the country.” Alabama became the fifth state to enact sanctions against undocumented workers, following Arizona, Utah, Indiana and Georgia, where a federal judge yesterday blocked part of the restrictions. Tuscaloosa is getting an early gauge of the law’s effects in its state.

“Hispanics, documented and undocumented, dominate anything to do with masonry, concrete, framing, roofing, and landscaping,” said Bob McNelly, a contractor with Nash-McCraw Properties, during an interview at a coffee shop near a destroyed gas station and bank. “There are very few subcontractors I work with that don’t have a Hispanic workforce.”

Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 10:08:38

Hire Americans, you thieves.

Comment by Neuromance
2011-06-29 11:01:51

Yes, but the salaries are too high :)

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 12:40:55

So true, those poor contractors won’t be able to buy a new F-350 every year.

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Comment by CarrieAnn
2011-06-29 14:08:53

If housing, insurance, heating/fuel was cheaper they wouldn’t need to be asking those “too high” payments.

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Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 12:57:11

And pay workman’s comp??

 
 
Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 10:22:31

“Hispanics, documented and undocumented, dominate anything to do with masonry, concrete, framing, roofing, and landscaping,” said Bob McNelly, a contractor with Nash-McCraw Properties, during an interview at a coffee shop near a destroyed gas station and bank. “There are very few subcontractors I work with that don’t have a Hispanic workforce.”

The recent Hispanic immigrants are generally not found in many other trades than ones listed above. And they’re usually not in the highly skilled areas within these trades.

In other words, you’ll seldom find them designing the landscapes, but you’ll certainly find them doing the installation. Same goes for concrete. They’re there doing the pouring, but they’re not at the planning stage of the project.

The reason? Lack of proficiency in English. It’s a real game-stopper when it comes to moving up the career ladder in the trades.

OTOH, here’s a tip from Tucson: If you encounter a Hispanic man or woman whose family has been here for a generation or two, and they’re in the trades, grab ‘em. They’re craftsmen of the sort that we seldom see in this country anymore. Very good masons — especially for fine brickwork. Not to mention welding or soldering pipe in plumbing jobs.

Comment by rms
2011-06-29 21:09:03

A contractor friend in California says no human alive can outwork a Mexican, and he’s been in business for decades.

 
 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 09:41:04

Nice to see crude back over $95.00 looks like that release of our reserve oil really did the trick.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:38:15

As I’ve said: Supply? Demand? Only the rubes still believe in that.

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 09:43:53

Emanuel offers choice: 625 layoffs or work-rule changes
Chicago Tribune - June 29, 2011

Mayor Rahm Emanuel today revealed that he’s offered City Hall labor unions a choice: Agree to $20 million in savings through work-rule changes or face 625 layoffs.

“If you don’t, that will be the choice left to me on behalf of the taxpayers,” Emanuel said at a news conference to announce Walgreens will add 600 jobs in Chicago over the next two years.

Labor leaders will take 10 days to two weeks to put together their own package of proposed cuts, the mayor said. He would not say whether he will issue the layoff notices in the meantime. “I’m not just going to sit here and wait. I’ll make certain decisions,” he said.

Emanuel is looking for ways to fill a $30 million budget hole left behind by his predecessor, Richard Daley. The former mayor’s final budget was contingent on unions agreeing to continue earlier concessions beyond a Thursday deadline. But Daley did not negotiate that extension before leaving office last month.

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 09:52:30

Going to be a long hot summer, this “austerity” thing really bugs people.

Item: UK faces mass strikes as civil servants feel sting
Sizzle of fizzle? Britain faces mass strikes as unions try to increase the heat on government - June 29, 2011

LONDON (AP) — Thousands of British schools will close and travelers will face long lines at airport immigration Thursday when three quarters of a million workers go on strike — the first blast in what unions hope will be a summer of discontent against the cost-cutting government’s austerity plans.

The government hopes it will fizzle into a summer of hardheaded acceptance.

The first test comes when 750,000 public-sector workers — from teachers to driving examiners to customs officials — walk out for the day, part of a growing wave of opposition to the Conservative-led government’s deficit-cutting regime of tax hikes, benefit curbs and spending cuts.

The British government believes about a third of schools will close, with another third likely to face disruptions.

The U.K. Border Agency has warned travelers could face delays at British ports and airports when passport officers walk out, and said “passengers who can do so may wish to travel on other dates.” The government says there is no risk to Britain’s security.

“On the borders, we have been considering contingency plans for some time and we have plans in place to deal with the issues we are anticipating as a result of strike action by U.K. Border Agency staff,” Prime Minister David Cameron’s spokesman, Steve Field, said Wednesday.

The unions say the strike is just the start of a campaign of labor action on a scale unseen in Britain for three decades.

Comment by edgewaterjohn
2011-06-29 12:50:14

“The government hopes it will fizzle into a summer of hardheaded acceptance.”

Which government are they talking about? All of them?

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 10:02:56

IRS increases gas mileage deduction at midyear
Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service is increasing the tax deduction motorists can take for using private vehicles for business, a rare midyear move sparked by high gas prices.

Gas prices over $4 a gallon helped persuade the IRS to make the change.

Starting July 1, motorists who use their personal vehicles for business will be able to deduct 55 cents a mile from their taxable income, the agency announced Thursday. That’s an increase of 4 cents from the first six months of the year.

The rate is also used as a benchmark by the federal government and many businesses to reimburse their employees for mileage. Workers who receive the reimbursement don’t have to report it as income, as long as the payments don’t exceed the IRS benchmark.

High gas prices have hit consumers, slowed the economic recovery and put increased political pressure on President Obama. On Thursday, the Obama administration said it will release 30 million barrels of oil from the country’s emergency reserve as part of an international response to lost oil supplies caused by turmoil in the Middle East and Libya.

 
Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 10:24:26

University of Arizona surveys teens. Finds that they don’t trust banksters.

Fun quote:

High school students are overwhelmingly distrustful of banks, credit card issuers and other financial institutions, according to a survey released Thursday from the University of Arizona’s Take Charge America Institute, which creates financial literacy programs in partnership with non-profit credit counseling firm Take Charge America, and consulting firm The Financial Literacy Group. More than 70% said they believe businesses try to trick young people into spending more than they should, and 60% said they think credit card issuers entice people into taking on more debt than they can handle. A whopping 83% think banks are “mostly interested in getting my money through hidden fees.”

Comment by CarrieAnn
2011-06-29 12:08:25

Hence the banking sector layoffs. Once the Ponzi is exposed good luck getting more suckers to keep it going.

 
Comment by salinasron
2011-06-29 13:57:24

Slim,

Did you have a look at the videos I referred you to above.

One was on building batteries and other things with viruses, the other was fantastic updates on medical tech and how it should help the consumer by quality care and costs, etc.

Comment by Arizona Slim
2011-06-29 14:23:59

I didn’t see any captioning with the videos. So, I didn’t watch ‘em.

I find most online videos to be very difficult to hear. Not so much due to my having a hearing loss, but due to the muddy sound quality.

 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:42:03

“IF” they come to market.

You would be shocked at all the technology that never makes it to market. Some is bought and shelved, others never get the funding to get started, some don’t have enough funding to stay on the market. The successful remainder often takes years to decades.

The “better mousetrap” myth is just that; a myth.

 
 
 
Comment by Neuromance
2011-06-29 10:41:41

When in doubt, Follow The Money. I wonder how much the bill sponsors get from the drug companies.

Before leaving town for ten days last week, the House of Representatives found time to pass an amendment designed to help a single drug company, and it enjoyed broad bipartisan support.

The amendment ensures that the “medicines company” of Parsippany, New Jersey, keeps control of the patent for its blood thinning drug “Angiomax,” fending off competition from generic drugs at a potential profit of up to a billion dollars.

“This is a special fix for one company,” complained Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Tx.

Special fixes are par for the course in Congress, which gave breaks to Nascar track owners and rum distillers in the most recent tax bill.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/06/28/eveningnews/main20075218.shtml

Comment by Mike in Miami
2011-06-29 11:57:20

The best laws money can buy!

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:43:40

You betcha!

 
Comment by Prime_Is_Contained
2011-06-29 15:10:28

Note that only the best _lawmakers_ that money can buy are able to produce the finest works—the best _laws_ that money can buy.

 
 
 
Comment by Neuromance
2011-06-29 11:06:25

When in doubt follow the money. This program purportedly helped the “low income” - those making under 75,000 dollars a year - get housing. Of course, how the county did it was to buy 3000 housing units at bubble prices, helping some local politicians and realtors and lenders. And then renting the units out at reduced rates.

Is this the sort of thing local governments should be involved in? It matters not though - as long as bribery is legal, you’ll get this kind of behavior.

WASHINGTON - A renewed debate was sparked in Fairfax County recently after a report was released calling the county’s subsidized housing program “subsidized luxury.”

The report from the non-partisan Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy highlights what it calls a “gold-plated” program that helps people who make under $75,000 a year move into more expensive homes.

But county Board of Supervisors member Pat Herrity (R - Springfield) says the program costs the county $1.5 million per year, a portion of which goes to what he calls luxury units.

“I don’t think we should be going out and buying units at the high end of the market,” he says.

Lack of affordable housing has been a continuing problem in the county, which is why it purchased more than 3,000 units several years ago that are rented at reduced rates to those making less than $75,000 annually.

DC News radio link: http://www.wtop.com/?nid=41&sid=2440968

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 11:10:34

Extreme tuition hikes ahead -CNN Money
Colleges increase tuition after state cuts

Attention college students: Get ready for one heck of a fatter tuition bill.

As state governments face one of their toughest fiscal years yet, higher education is on the chopping block, and public colleges are being forced to pass on more of their costs to students.

Earlier this year, 25 governors proposed slashing college funding, marking $5 billion in potential cuts nationwide, according to the National Association of State Budget Officers.

While many of those cuts have since been tweaked through budget negotiations, most of these tough decisions have to be finalized this week as the fiscal year comes to an end.

Already, staggering reductions in funding are leading colleges in some states to boost tuition as much as 22%.

Comment by Big V
2011-06-29 11:24:51

It is a waste of time to educate American citizens. It’s much cheaper for corporations to simply hire people who have been (kinda) educated in other countries.

 
Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 11:41:46

It is projected that in 3 years or so that our local State U’s and Colleges in the Centennial State will no longer receive any state funding at all. Colorado State U, a land grant school, is toying with the idea of privatizing.

Comment by Steve J
2011-06-29 13:01:49

Won’t they have to give the land back to the Feds?

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 14:36:52

Apparently not.

From wikipedia:

“With a few exceptions (including Cornell University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology), nearly all of the Land-Grant Colleges are public. (Cornell University, while private, administers several state-supported contract colleges that fulfill its public land-grant mission to the state of New York.)”

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Comment by polly
2011-06-29 15:10:41

Dartmouth is a land grant college. However, the land grant was a royal one (1769) so I don’t know how that affects any obligations under the charter.

 
 
 
 
Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:45:17

As I was saying…

Good find, wmbz.

 
Comment by rms
2011-06-29 17:47:29

“Earlier this year, 25 governors proposed slashing college funding, marking $5 billion in potential cuts nationwide, according to the National Association of State Budget Officers.”

That’s roughly one month in Afghanistan war spending.

 
Comment by aNYCdj
2011-06-29 21:35:06

Maybe we don’t need so many colleges I would like to see at least 1/3 close. Oh no not more real estate flooding the market!

Then take the teachers and stick them in middle and high school, and tech training and kick up the standards so all HS school grads must be able to read and understand the New York Times and be able to fix things…like putting the rubber belt back on a vacuum cleaner instead of giving it way free on CL.

Having any kind of remedial education to get into college is just plain embarrassing to our country

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 11:13:57

Poor counties these two, to many bills going unpaid.

Bamberg County Hospital Files for Chapter 9 Bankruptcy
by Jaimie Oh | June 29, 2011

Bamberg (S.C.) County Hospital’s board has voted to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, according to a Times and Democrat news report.

Although the news report did not include specifics on the hospital’s dire financial situation, Danette McAlhaney, MD, chair of the Bamberg County Hospital board, confirmed filing for bankruptcy was necessary.

Meanwhile, the hospital is working with nearby Barnwell County and Allendale County hospitals to create Tri-County Regional Health System. The proposed health system would call for a new acute-care hospital and three multi-specialty ambulatory centers. Health Care Management Partners in New York City has been hired to manage the three hospitals and restructure their debts.

In accordance to the agreement with Health Care Management Partners, Barnwell and Allendale County are also expected to file for bankruptcy protection.

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 11:15:31

Credit Suisse to Cut 600 Jobs
By JULIA WERDIGIER - NYT

Credit Suisse plans to cut about 600 jobs across its global investment banking operation because demand for its products and services have dropped, said a person with direct knowledge of the scheduled layoffs.

It is the latest financial firm to announce cutbacks amid a lackluster market and weak earnings on Wall Street. Goldman Sachs and Bank of America are planning to reduce their headcounts. Barclays Capital, the securities unit of the British bank Barclays, recently eliminated 600 jobs. Morgan Stanley has started layoffs as well.

The cuts follow a consultation process during which the Swiss bank examined its staff numbers as trading and other market activities slowed, said the person, who declined to be named because the job cuts had not been made public.

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 11:19:35

Boy they drag out this old dead horse every single time and beat the crap out of it once again. Gotta get the old folks stirred up…

Debt-limit delay would jeopardize Social Security payments
By Richard Wolf, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Social Security payments to millions of retirees and people with disabilities could be threatened if President Obama and Congress can’t agree to increase the government’s debt limit by Aug. 2, a new analysis shows.

Although the Treasury Department likely could avoid delaying Social Security checks, the analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center points up the depth of the cuts that would be needed if the $14.3 trillion debt ceiling isn’t raised.

It shows that in August, the government could not afford to meet 44% of its obligations. Since the $134 billion deficit for that month couldn’t be covered with more borrowing, programs would have to be cut.

If Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment benefits, payments to defense contractors and interest payments on Treasury bonds were exempt, that would be all the government could afford for the month. No money for troops or veterans. No tax refunds. No food stamps or welfare. No federal salaries or benefits.

Comment by WT Economist
2011-06-29 11:51:14

How about we exempt payments to the troops, interest payments, basic medical care so we don’t have an epidemic of some cheaply contained disease, and food stamps and aid so no one starves.

And cut the rest by whatever percent is needed, perhaps 60 percent? It might teach the “I want tax cuts and more benefits and don’t borrow the difference” crowd a little lesson. Generation Greed in particular.

If the Republican game plans if for this to happen to younger generations later, let it happen now. And if mass bankruptcy wipes out the paper wealth of the wealthy, perhaps that would be to the good in the long run.

From the Financial Times:

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/28e2d3e2-a1b5-11e0-b9f9-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz1QgzQYgi8

“Few doubt there is excessive private sector debt in a number of high-income countries. But how is it to be reduced? The BIS notes four answers: repayment; default; higher real incomes; and inflation. Let us rule out the last and focus on the first. Repayment means spending less than one’s income. That is what is happening in the US private sector…Who is taking the opposite side? The answer is: the government. This is what a controlled depression means: every sector, other than the government, is seeking to strengthen its balance sheet at the same time.”

The author argues in favor of socializing debt in this way to maintain a “controlled depression” rather than a downward spiral. Real incomes are not going to rise. How about default or inflation instead?

Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 20:59:17

“It might teach the “I want tax cuts and more benefits and don’t borrow the difference” crowd a little lesson. Generation Greed in particular.”

I am still not sure who you refer to when you say “Generation Greed”. I am a boomer who says raise all taxes, raise the debt limit and let’s see what needs to be done to preserve SS and Medicare, so I guess I am not included. I also expect to work until I am 85, so I will be in lock step with those who are 20 years younger who expect to retire at 65.

“If the Republican game plans if for this to happen to younger generations later, let it happen now.”

I have come to agree with you. Let’s see if it flies now instead of in 25 years when I will really need SS and Medicare. The Republicans’ plan is to split the generations and then kill SS and Medicare later when enough of the older folks die off.

 
 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 12:14:58

Cool so how will congress “require” that you pay for it, if your broke.

ITEM: Federal appeals court in Cincinnati upholds Obama health care law, becoming 1st to rule By Associated Press Wednesday, June 29

CINCINNATI — In the first ruling by a federal appeals court on President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, a panel in Cincinnati affirmed Wednesday that Congress can require Americans to have minimum insurance coverage.

A Republican-appointed judge joined with a Democratic appointee for the 2-1 majority in a victory for Obama’s signature domestic initiative. The White House and Justice Department hailed the ruling; opponents of the law said challenges will continue to the U.S. Supreme Court.

A conservative law center had challenged the measure, arguing on behalf of plaintiffs who said potentially being required to buy insurance or face penalties was subjecting them to financial hardship. They warned that the law was too broad and could lead to more federal mandates.

The Thomas More Law Center, based in Ann Arbor, Mich., argued before the panel that the law was unconstitutional and that Congress overstepped its powers.

Comment by RioAmericanInBrasil
2011-06-29 12:48:13

Federal appeals court in Cincinnati upholds Obama health care law,

I think nowadays most laws that mostly benefit corporations over the people (in this case the Health Insurance companies) will be upheld in the end by the Supreme Court. (by 5 to 4)

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 14:32:48

For the 1%ers sake, I hope there isn’t a God.

 
 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 21:15:15

I really wish we had gotten single payer, federally funded insurance instead of this mandate.

Barring that, I prefer 2-tiered system. I think we can afford to cover basic health - immunizations, infectious disease, and emergencies. In most years, most people will not spend more than a few hundred dollars on this kind of care. A few people will have expensive accidents or be attacked by feral animals (2 or 4 legged). This could be accomplished through free clinics and public hospitals - simply expand the network that exists now.

Let the private insurance market continue to cover everything else where market forces have a chance to operate.

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 12:44:59

“We had to do something drastic,” says Jerry Flowers, a city councilman in Alto, Texas. ~ Clipped from The 5Min Forecast

Lately, we’ve find ourselves in the curious habit of collecting stories of impending calamity from around the nation. This morning is no different.

“The police department,“ the curiously named Mr. Flowers goes on, ”being a nonmoney-making entity, was the easiest to get rid of while we catch our breath and build up some cash.”

And just like that, Alto did away with its police force.

The chief and his four officers put a padlock on their offices two weeks ago today. They’ll be back in six months, assuming the town’s balance sheet gets the love it needs.

In the meantime, for protection against ne’er-do-wells, petty thieves and outright criminals, citizens of Alto will have to rely on the Cherokee County sheriff’s office, headquartered 12 miles away.

“I’m going to try,” commented the county sheriff when notified, “but I can’t guarantee you there will always be an officer in the town.”

Until recently, drastic cutbacks like this were the province of down-and-out medium-sized cities like Camden, N.J. — where half the police force has been let go. Or Oakland, Calif. — where the cops no longer answer burglary calls.

Alto’s population in the 2000 census was 1,190. Yet “Everybody’s talking about ‘bolt your doors, buy a gun,” says Mayor Monty Collins.

There’s no dramatic story about how things got to this point — no boondoggle sewer system as in Jefferson County, Ala., no six-figure city salaries as in Bell, Calif.

It’s simple: The economy’s hurting, property and sales tax revenues are down and the city’s chief source of revenue — a natural gas distribution plant — needs expensive repairs, for which city fathers obviously didn’t save up. Now the cops have been sent home.

“Can you imagine,” we ask in a new special report, “being the victim of a robbery… and knowing the police won’t be there to answer your 911 call?”

Big city, small town, doesn’t matter. It can happen almost anywhere. But how vulnerable are you, exactly?

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:49:11

Less than 2K population? They shouldn’t have had a police force to begin with.

Comment by CrackerJim
2011-06-29 15:37:34

We have more people than that in the mid-scale housing development where I live; we certainly don’t have a police force!

 
 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 13:29:41

World’s most expensive razor goes on sale for $100,000… and it has SAPPHIRE for blades ~ By Daily Mail Reporter

The world’s most expensive razor has gone on sale for $100,000 (£62,460) - boasting two blades made out of sapphire.

Researchers spent three years developing the Zafirro Iridium, which has a handle made of 99.9 per cent pure iridium - the most corrosion-resistant platinum metal, found only in meteorites.

Close shave: The two blades are made from white sapphire grown at a former Soviet Union lab in Ukraine

They are just 80 atoms thick on their cutting edge - around 1/10,000th or 5,000 times thinner the width of a hair and far sharper than any of common blades on the market.

Just 99 Zafirro Iridiums will be made by American manufacturer Bright Light Ventures.

The company claims the sapphire blades will stay sharp for about a year and offer complimentary cleaning and re-sharpening for an entire decade.

A spokesman said: ‘Each Zafirro Iridium is custom made from the strongest, purest, and most durable materials available anywhere.
Expensive price tag: The Zafirro Iridium is being sold for $100,000 and only 99 of them will be made by the American manufacturer

Expensive price tag: The Zafirro Iridium is being sold for $100,000 and only 99 of them will be made by the American manufacturer

‘Every component is designed to last for generations.’

The company claims it has used experience gained in fields such as rocket engine manufacturing, nanotechnology and particle physics to have created the new blade.

Each will be engraved with a serial number and monogrammed to the individual client’s specifications.

The inflated price tag is due to rare and expensive materials used for the handle and screws, all made of platinum.
Shaving technology: The blades are housed in a medical-grade stainless steel cartridge with the cartridge is held in place by 16 neodymium magnets

Shaving technology: The blades are housed in a medical-grade stainless steel cartridge with the cartridge is held in place by 16 neodymium magnets

Iridium, usually used in space rockets, is ten times rarer than platinum and highly resistant to heat so theoretically it can be dropped it into lava, and it will not melt.

The blades are housed in a medical-grade stainless steel cartridge with the cartridge is held in place by 16 neodymium magnets.

Bright Light Founder Hayden Hamilton also plans to introduce an entry-level model that costs about the same as a compact car.

Comment by In Colorado
2011-06-29 14:30:37

Do the sell replacement foils at WalMart?

I could buy a top of the line Braun shaver and throw it away after a month for the rest of my life and it would still be cheaper.

 
Comment by Neuromance
2011-06-29 17:06:09

They need to start selling silk toilet paper.

Some of the rich will buy it. If Tyco International CEO Dennis Kozlowski (now cooling his heels in Mid-State Correctional Facility in Marcy, New York) would spend 6000 dollars on shower curtains (versus the 20 or so that those who manage to keep their wits about them spend), some joker with more money than brains is sure to buy silk toilet paper.

Comment by aNYCdj
2011-06-29 18:52:00

$20….man do you throw money away…we just bough a nice pair for $3.99 at some hole in the wall Bangladeshi joint with no AC on….

It was worth waiting in line with the anchor moms/babies and having sweat drip down my — .

 
 
Comment by aNYCdj
2011-06-29 19:02:14

WMBZ…world rarest metals:

http://www.curiousnotions.com/home/metals.asp

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 13:54:30

“Be thankful we’re not getting all the government we’re paying for.”
-Will Rogers

Comment by chilidoggg
2011-06-29 14:17:28

Did he make that remark around the same time Ronald Reagan was campaigning for Hubert Humphrey?

 
Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 19:19:09

Wow wmbz, you are able to teach yourself an old Injun dog trick, I’m impressed! ;-)

 
Comment by chilidoggg
2011-06-29 21:34:03

Eventually some of these guys sink into obscurity.

“Employing crude language, wild exaggeration, pungent images, and incongruity, the writings of such early American humorists as James Kirke Paulding and George Washington Harris paved the way for the later success of Artemus Ward, Bret Harte, and Mark Twain.”

“Paulding’s View of Slavery in the United States (1836) was a comprehensive defense of both Black slavery and America’s claim to be a bastian of liberty against the attacks of abolitionists and European critics.”

 
Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 22:13:08

Will Rogers also said, “I don’t belong to any organized political party. I’m a democrat.”

 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 13:59:11

Hoping for change…

Debit-Card Swipe Fees to Be Capped at 21 Cents: Fed
Wednesday, 29 Jun 2011 | By: Reuters with CNBC.com

The U.S. financial industry won a massive lobbying fight in getting the Federal Reserve staff to recommend almost doubling a proposed cap on the amount banks can charge retailers when a debit card is used.

Under the staff proposal to be voted on by the Fed board later on Wednesday, banks would be allowed to charge 21 cents per debit card transaction.

That is 10 cents more than the cap that was proposed in December. There also is a one cent allowance for meeting certain fraud prevention standards, which would effectively raise the cap to 23 cents.

In addition, banks would be allowed to charge 5 basis points per transaction to accommodate for fraud losses.

Comment by ecofeco
2011-06-29 14:50:25

It’s GOOD to be the Banksta!

 
 
Comment by jeff saturday
2011-06-29 14:49:58

This article has a “load” of great quotes.

“If the poop matches the pooch, the owners can be fined up to $1,000.”

Who was the previous owner of these dogs, Michael Vick?

“Dogs are defecating and urinating in elevators, in stairwells, on carpets and in the lobby, as well as common areas outside.”

DNA samples will determine if Jupiter residents aren’t picking up behind their pooches

By Bill DiPaolo Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Posted: 7:45 a.m. Wednesday, June 29, 2011

JUPITER — If your pooch poops, you pay.

Plagued with pets that do business in all the wrong places, dog owners in the Village of Abacoa, a condominium association of 458 units, must pay a $200 fee starting Aug. 1. The money will pay DNA Pet World Registry to take the dog’s genetic fingerprint and keep the information on file.

Doggie droppings found in condo common areas will be collected and mailed in a plastic tube to the Knoxville, Tenn.-based company. If the poop matches the pooch, the owners can be fined up to $1,000. If they don’t pay, a lien can be placed on their home, said Susan Nellen, property manager for Versa Property Management, which manages the condo near Roger Dean Stadium.

Not everyone supports the policy.

“This is nuts. They will be testing all kinds of poop. Is this America?” said Troy Holloway, who owns one of the condos.

But managers say they have no choice. Dogs are defecating and urinating in elevators, in stairwells, on carpets and in the lobby, as well as common areas outside. The condo association is spending $10,000 to $12,000 a year replacing and cleaning, said Matthew Brickman, president of the Village of Abacoa Condominium Association.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/dna-samples-will-determine-if-jupiter-residents-arent-1568967.html - -

Comment by polly
2011-06-29 15:20:57

Umm…are they going to do anything to make sure that Mrs. Smith doesn’t borrow her sister’s cocker spaniel to take to the original DNA test so that poop from her own dog will never show up as a match? Seriously. Pure breds don’t all look exactly alike, but a lot of them are pretty similar.

Comment by Happy2bHeard
2011-06-29 22:15:26

I am just not devious enough. I would never have thought of this.

 
 
 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 15:50:44

G-Sucks whacks a handful in NYC… Got better places to rape… Lets go boyz!

Goldman Sachs to cut 230 New York City jobs

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS +0.09% said it will cut 230 jobs in New York City between September and March next year, according to a N.Y. Department of Labor filing Wednesday. While the cuts represent less than 1% of Goldman’s global workforce of 35,700, they come on the heels of reports that the bank is hiring thousands of employees in Singapore, Brazil and India.

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 15:53:50

Ah, they’ll get over it.

Minnesota braces for a government shutdown

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Only a limited array of state services would continue in Minnesota if there is a government shutdown Friday, a judge ruled.

Ramsey County Chief Judge Kathleen Gearin decided Wednesday that the state must continue funding basic custodial care for residents in prisons, treatment centers and nursing homes, as well as public safety and immediate public health concerns.

Also, it must provide benefit payments and medical services, as well as maintain state aid to schools and municipalities. And the state will continue funding programs and services that are paid for by federal dollars, such as food stamps, Medicaid and Temporary Aid to Needy Families.

While many residents can breathe a sign of relief, others will have to suffer through a government shutdown that grows more likely by the hour. Though Governor Mark Dayton and Republican legislative leaders continue to meet, they have not reached an agreement on a budget for fiscal 2012, which starts Friday.

Without a last-minute deal, many state services will be suspended. Highway rest stops will close during the holiday weekend, as will the state zoo. Road construction projects will cease, as will licensing for teachers and businesses. Funding for services such as job training and homelessness support will be cut off.

And up to 23,000 state workers could be laid off, though they will continue to get health benefits and can return to their jobs when the budget impasse is resolved.
Minnesota prepares for shutdown

“A lot of people are going to be hurt by a shutdown,” said Christina Wessel, deputy director of the Minnesota Budget Project. “A lot of key social services will not get funded.”

 
Comment by wmbz
2011-06-29 15:57:07

If Lurch had been elected we would be sucking on the same sh!t sickle.

John Kerry: “I Would Have Been A Good President, Maybe Even A Great One”
Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) tells Don Imus this morning he thought ht would have been a “good President.” In fact, he added, “a great President.” Transcript below:

DON IMUS: “I think you would have been a much better President than the guy we have now, don’t you agree with that?”

SEN. JOHN KERRY: “You’ve asked me that before. Every time I come on you try to get me to –”

IMUS: “– I’m not trying to get you to do anything. I’m trying to get you to be honest.”

KERRY: “I’m always honest.”

IMUS: “Well, you would’ve been a much better President.”

KERRY: “I would have been a good President. Maybe even a great one. How about that?”

Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 19:15:36

“If Lurch had been elected”

I’m cornfused, you still believing wmbz that “Mr. Lurch” has less “purple hearts” than you? Your’re quite the Patriotic American critic t’ain’t you! ;-)

 
 
Comment by Muggy
2011-06-29 16:01:02

Just caught CBS News… segment on housing… at least four million houses in the “shadow inventory.”

Yes, “shadow inventory.”

Ben, you really should write the FDIC again and see what they say this time.

Combo, it’s that time of the year when I need you to tell me to go lie down somewhere until I get my senses.

Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 18:35:52

Yeah muggy…. but thats ok because massive population growth is coming to soak up all that inventory according to RentalWatch. Even though a full 25% of the current US population is headed to the grave over the next twenty years.

Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 19:57:41

“…Even though a full 25% of the current US population is headed to the grave over the next twenty years.”

Sounds like a “fix” for the “evil” $$ is baked in the demographic$ cake!
;-)

 
 
Comment by combotechie
2011-06-29 20:16:19

Muggy, get someone to tattoo “FOUR MILLION HOMES ARE IN SHADOW INVENTORY” on the inside of your eyelids and then go lie down somewhere.

 
 
Comment by Awaiting
2011-06-29 18:40:18

Muggy -Thank you for the one up. The entitlement is unreal.
I’ll be writing LPS to introduce us. 4,000 homes in shadow inventory is an understatement, imho.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/06/29/eveningnews/main20075524.shtml?tag=cbsContent;cbsCarousel

 
Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 19:11:42

If America is going into financially implode by Christma$ 2011 /2012 /2013 /2014, sitting on the San Diego dock of the bay, watching the U$$$$ military come & go, watching the WWII elderly dog walkers smile & say hello, I place my bet$ opposite of the fear monger$ & also the lil’ Opie (the non-hawaiian) is a destroyer of America meme believers. Any takers? :-)

 
Comment by Hwy50ina49Dodge
2011-06-29 19:54:40

“The wealthie$, they’re $uffering $o!” :-)

Obama: Deficit deal must end tax breaks for wealthy
Combined News Services ???? (never seen this before>) / The Salt Lake Tribune.

“And the revenue we’re talking about isn’t coming out of the pockets of middle-class families that are struggling,” he explained. “It’s coming out of folks who are doing extraordinarily well”

Obama had a message for those people: “You’ll still be able to ride on your corporate jet. You’re just going to pay a little more.”

 
Comment by Realtors Are Liars
2011-06-29 20:31:19

California Realtor Charged With Scamming Elderly Homeowners
Century 21 agent allegedly chiseled seniors, banks out of more than $10 million

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/09/california-realtor-charged-with-scamming-elderly-homeowners.html

 
Comment by Rental Watch
2011-06-29 21:12:27

The new LPS mortgage monitor:

http://www dot lpsvcs dot com/LPSCorporateInformation/ResourceCenter/PressResources/Pages/MortgageMonitor.aspx

Released today. Takeaways:

Very slight decrease in number of delinquent homes and those in foreclosure;
East Coast foreclosure completions have generally slowed far more than other states; and
More negative equity=higher probability of foreclosure

 
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