The Housing Bubble

“We’re the dot in dot com.” Still one of the better catchphrases in advertising.

Who put the bomp In the bomp bah bomp bah bomp?

“The network is the computer” is an even older one.

Only poor people pay taxes.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Oracle CEO Larry Ellison will get a $3 mllion tax break because his Japanese- style home in Woodside, California is “functionally obsolete.” Ellison’s Octopus Holdings LP bought the 23-acre site in May 1995 for $12 million.

He’s just mad because barking frogs invaded and naturalized his (huge) fake pond and make such a godawful racket he can’t hear himself think.

8.7 million X 1200/month = $10,440,000,000 going out each month and nothing coming in from these people. Many of them are not old and will collect for many years.

Individually they are not living extravagant life styles, but when you get enough of them it becomes a real problem…. sort of like ants in your cupboard, or illegal aliens in your school system and emergency rooms.

Well maybe they should do something about creating incentives for all of those “investor class” guys. Like cutting their taxes, so they will “invest more”.

Wait….we did that. The only investment/job creation they did was in China and Mexico.

What do you mean “nothing coming in”? Do you think that $10B exists in a vacuum? People eat, rent, raise their children– yes, even persons who can no longer work because their bodies don’t anymore. (You can’t get disability unless you’re, um, disabled– and it’s not as easy to qualify as the talking heads would have you think.) Also keep in mind that disability status is not granted forever; you have to be re-certified as unable to work at least annually.)

Most of those “unproductive” disabled have worked honestly and hard to build and protect our country so snips can sit around pronouncing and complaining about what a drain they are on their vaunted contribution to our society.

The children of those “ants in your cupboard” will be the ones caring for you in your dotage. Wonder what they’ll think of self-righteous old farts who begrudged their disabled Mom $1200/month while they were growing up?

Just another perspective. Cheers!

http://news.yahoo.com/obamanomics-more-ride-wagon-070000162.html?_esi=1

According to government statistics, 80,000 Americans found work last month, while 85,000 dropped out of the labor force altogether to collect Social Security Disability payments….

… There are very few jobs on offer. People are accordingly going where the money is. From the beginning of the recovery in June 2009, more Americans have joined the ranks of the disabled (3.1 million) than have found jobs (2.6 million). Record numbers have also filed for unemployment insurance, welfare benefits and food stamps, which 1 in 7 Americans now receive…

…By what logic does adding record numbers of people to the welfare rolls aid the economy? Fewer and fewer Americans are earning the money from which these expanded benefits are to be paid.

“You can’t get disability unless you’re, um, disabled–”

Unfortunately that is just not true. I am sure there are many who are but I know of several who are not disabled and get much more than $1200/month because they have children, children they play catch with and boats they work on too. They are bike riding yard working full of life disabled guys.

Anecdotal. Now, now, JS, you’ve occasionally demonstrated a tendency here to make assessments about your neighbors and acquaintances without knowing (or sharing) the whole story.

To get SSI disability one must first undergo a thorough and medically critical examination to verify eligibility. To continue to get disability, one must submit to an annual physical examination, ad SSI physicians are under increasing pressure to deny that eligibility.

Is there fraud in the system? Well, duh. But the fact that a disabled person plays catch with their kids or works on their old boat, doesn’t necessarily indicate that they not susceptible to unpredictable epileptic seizures, for example. Or have retinitis pigmentosa. Or have been diagnosed bi-polar. Again, there is more to the story. (Maybe.)

Seems like it would be pretty easy to take photos of them playing or working in the yard, and send them to the proper authorities.

I saw a news clip awhile back (can’t remember where/when so anecdotal) where they were charging someone collecting disability with fraud. They had video of him participating in an ultimate fighting tournament.

You have to wonder why there is such a high number of recent disabilities. Although most of us like to think we would rather take a menial job, how long until you get tired of some kid telling you that you are not cleaning the deep fryer well enough and fast enough. As long as you can pay the bills and eat I think it would be tempting to sit on my a$$ and blog all day and not have the hassle of working said menial job for a similar/better life style on SSI. Also may be some degree of saving face in that I am disabled rather than I can’t find a job.

I just did the math (and answered my own question) -

$8.00/hr min wage X 8 hrs/day X 5 days/week X 4 wks = 1280 /month

If I can also collect extra for wife/kids and get food stamps as well I could either spend my time in a miserable job with expenses such as commute, etc. or stay home, work on my boat and play catch with the kids. What to do, what to do?

SSD comes with swag, too.

There’s something decidedly totalitarian about all this.

Romney’s answer, of course, would be to expand the private prison system.

I feel like the choice is between a fascist and a communist.

As one blogger pointed out, regarding the Olympic “spectacle”, both fascists and communists seem to have a thing for massive parades.

There really is a difference between a fascist and a communist. National socialism (Nazi party) or communism in one nation, such as the Soviet Union is the same thing. Stalin try to exterminated numerous ethnic groups just like Hitler. Different ones but that is splitting hairs. Both countries were a top down control economy. In neither country did the people own the means of production. Sooner or later the government will try to keep people and their money from fleeing. It is going to be interesting to see how the socialists in France are going to keep the rich from fleeing to great britain. If the tactics get severe enough, well then you have communism.

should say no difference.

“no difference.”

ED ZACHARY!

You think Romney would deny himself the chance to be emperor? I doubt it.

The only hope there may be with Romney is for a less vicious AG.

Everyone calls this “Obama’s policy”.

It’s probably being pushed by all of the Afghan war cheerleaders, who don’t want their folly/poor judgement/criminal acts exposed. Especially since most of them won’t get lucrative Wall Street/Pentagon/Book writing deals after they leave government.

Obama needs them, so he backs up their decisions.

Not saying it’s what’s happening, but to me, it’s plausible.

” In neither country did the people own their means of production .”

Tell me, is the USA in control over their means of production anymore either if you consider all the other Country out-manufacturing taking place now ? Interesting
how its considered Commie to lose control of production by the people ,but losing production and manufacturing to Communist Nations like China and other Monopolies is just considered that productive Globalism stuff that everybody better get use to.

I’ve argued here before and will again that Wikileaks was part and parcel of the US State Department’s ME strategy. The “Arab Spring” began (gasp) two weeks after the docs were released– and how conveniently, just the parts excoriating the leaders of governments the US wanted deposed — starting with Tunisia and Pakistan.

Bear in mind that NYTimes and Guardian held ALL the 250K docs for 6 months before they were published in part. You can bet that State had access to and control of them during that time. Cue outrage from Obama and Hillary. Cue arrest, marginalization, and mind “cleansing” of stooge Bradley Manning. Pay a couple of gals to set Julian Assange up on disputed sexual coercion charges. Send in the “assets” to foment “grassroots” revolution, and up until the little snag in Syria, the Cheney/Saudi oiligarchy gets marginalized in favor of Pacific Rim interests– meshing nicely with the Obama administration’s new sphere of influence.

Okay, you can have your hat back now….

Sucks to be a black man in this country. Clinton climbed is way to presidency by groping women. Cain must have thought, what did Bill have that I don’t beside the race thingy?

Black? Naw, Herman just plain wasn’t as handsome as Bill.

Now if he had looked like Sam Jackson or…

He had a lot of other issues too. Does anyone even remember him saying that no bills should be longer than three pages? Or 9-9-9? Seriously. The man had no chance at all.

Even to this point I can’t figure him out. I’m starting to think he’s a deceptively brilliant man that was just pandering with his crazy over-the-top persona… or he’s fantasmigorically stupid. If anyone’s hasn’t seen the “what would President Cain do?” interview(s) on the Daily Show, they are hilarious in no small part because its hard to be 100% sure whether he’s playing along or not.

(hit enter accidently before finishing)

there are many reasons a liberal could dislike romney.

being rich is just hypocritical.

“being rich is just hypocritical.”

I am not a liberal. I dislike Romney. And not because he’s rich. I do, however, differentiate between the productive rich and the unproductive, parasitic rich. He falls into the latter camp, IMO. I also think he’s a weasel.

I dislike Obama as well.

What to do? What to do?

I vote third party.

In 2010, Romney paid 13.9 percent tax on income of $21.6 million.

What percent did you pay?

Don’t bother, lurkey. According to conservatives, it’s not the %, it’s how many absolute dollars. By that reasoning, Romney could have paid 0.15% in tax and still paid more absolute dollars than I did.

Because, you see, when all these fire breathing conservatives “producers” make their 23 million from “working hard” at their lucky ducky jobs, they want to pay 0.15% in tax too. How very American.

“where was all this anti 1%er crap when john kerry was running?”

Kerry started it! I’m kidding, but he did have this habit during the debates of falling back on a short diatribe about how Bush II was too focused on Wall St. when he should be focused on Main St. I wish I remember exactly how he phrased it, but it was hilarious listening to him try to coax his voice into populist mode. And failing. Good stuff.

Not saying I’m a fan of Kerry, but rich politicians from the Dem side run on a screw the producers platform, so when the politician also falls into that category its easier to vote for them. Its much easier to trust someone who advocates against their self interest. With Gov Romney, even if you though cutting taxes on the super wealthy was good for the country the fact that its especially good for him is part of the reason people don’t trust him. While I don’t think we would ever see a poor presidential candidate, if I saw a poor Republican on foodstamps advocating for the elimination of foodstamps I would probably find it easier to trust them.

You should inform the bettors of this news. They’re putting their money on Obama. Current odds: Obama 4/9, Romney 7/4

It occurs to me that I have no idea what these numbers mean. I would normally think that I would just reduce the fraction to a %, but obviously 7/4 gives Gov Romney 100%+ chance.

The second number is how much you have to bet to win the first number.

Obama is close to 1-2, Romney is close to 2-1.

You are hoping?
BTW, those October surprises just are not as useful as they used to be. By election day 40% of the vote is already in, due to the increase use of early voting/absentee voting etc.

I follow Rasmussen as the best pollster. You do not find the wild swings in his polls and his record for accuracy is the best. He has Romney slowly building the lead. And I think today is a classic example why . Taken as a whole the rise in the unemployment rate is going to resonate more with the average voter than the creation of the jobs in one government measure and the decline of jobs in the other.

Yes the stock market was up a couple hundred points, I think more on a rumor that Germany was willing to go alone with QE over there than on the employment number, but that resulted in oil going up $4 a barrel which means 10 cents a gallon at the pump. Which do you thing lucky ducky is going to consider more important? Particularly, when the average wage of Americans was up only 2 cents an hour last month. Around 75 cents a week (average person working less than 40 hours aweek) does not cover food prices going up.

So what can Obama do with a little over six weeks to turn this around. I just don’t see it. Yes, Romney reminds me of some of the anal attentive people I work with on law review but in the end his supporters will turn out in greater numbers than Obama’s supporters who supported him with vigor in 2008, but now are playing video games in their parent’s basement since they do not have a job.

“Oh, and Scalia won’t retire either. He’ll die on the bench.”

Apparently Cheney is healthy and hunting again after the transplant. So there is another possible scenario.

He has to die someday. It could be decades from now, but he will still be on the SC if it is even remotely physically possible. Some people think they are too important to retire.

(In the Ryan plan) medicare became a voucher system with private companies competing for the right to cover BLACKBALL seniors.

Not sure about that. It probably would have a no rejection for pre-existing conditions requirement. Maybe not, but probably. However, all they have to do it charge WAY more than the value of the voucher and then no one would take it. Maybe a few reallly, really wealthy, but they are probably healthier at 65 anyway. No one else would be able to afford it.

Whoa that hurts small investors….make the first say $10,000 of CG’s tax free….

equalizing the marginal tax rate on ordinary income and capital gains.

Medicare vouchers would pop the healthcare bubble. And it would take care of the SS problem by killing off the unhealthy seniors - not all at once, but years ahead of their Medicare supported lifespan.

SB takes a lot of deductions away, lowers all tax rates (so highest marginal rate is in the 20’s), and equalizes CG and ordinary rates.

So, if the “small investor” is in a low tax bracket, that low bracket rate is what they pay.

Please don’t take simple and start to make more complicated by adding back in some special $10k exemption.

Technically true, but the majority of the commission voted for it. It may not be a “formal” rcommendation but it is a recommendation and it makes sense. True it does not balance the budget for 50 years but there is no absolute need to balance a budget just a need to keep the debt to GDP ration reasonable.

Ratio. Tough week. So what is your better plan?

The plan had bipartisan support with 13 of the 18 members voting for it.The opposition was also bipartisan. Ryan voted against as well as Andy Stern connected to the SEIU. It needed 14 votes to be sent to Congress as a “formal recommendation”.

The one that takes 50 years to balance is Ryan’s, and only with the unobtainable assumption of rapidly going to only 2% unemployement.

I think S-B got there in a heck of a lot less than 50 years and it used the standard assumptions for the scoring.

And OF COURSE Ryan voted against it. He is the biggest defender of keeping carried interest taxed at cap gains rates in Congress. Anything that equalizes cap gain rates and ordinary income rates is never going to fly with him.

“So what is your better plan?”

I like this one:

The Do-Nothing Plan
How Congress can balance the budget in eight years by literally doing nothing. This is not a joke.

By Annie Lowrey
Slate

http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2011/04/the_donothing_plan.html

The Simpson-Bowles blue-ribbon deficit commission longs to slash Social Security and defense spending. The Bipartisan Policy Center’s Alice Rivlin and Peter Domenici yearn for a value-added tax. Rep. Paul Ryan’s politically deft, economically daft plan conspires to shift the burden of health care spending, cut taxes for the rich, and make up the difference with fantastical supply-side growth assumptions…

One might think that we need all of these big plans, these grand bargains, because of the enormity of the fiscal challenge the country faces. The United States is swimming in a sea of red ink, with trillion-dollar annual deficits and an unfathomably gigantic cumulative debt.

But the truth is we don’t need any of these plans. Every one of them is entirely unnecessary for balancing the budget and eventually reducing the debt. They may even be counterproductive. Thus, Slate proposes the Do-Nothing Plan for Deficit Reduction, a meek, cowardly effort to wrest the country back into the black. The overarching principle of the Do-Nothing Plan is this: Leave everything as is. Current law stands, and spending and revenue levels continue according to the Congressional Budget Office’s baseline projections…Miraculously, the budget just balances itself, in about a decade.

If you notice that is from a year ago. Nobody takes those CBO projections seriously. the AHCA is already expected to rise in cost about a trillion and it expected to make cuts to doctor’s reimbursement rates that no one expects to be allowed since many doctors would pass. Cut out the AMT break to twenty million people can’t see that happening.

However, it is a plan. But I think that that the 13 out of the 18 bipartisan expects would say that it is not nearly as viable as the one they came up with.

If you notice that is from a year ago

So what, it will just take a few more years to balance now.

Nobody takes those CBO projections seriously.

Really? I bet that’s what the Simpson-Bowles guys were using.

the AHCA is already expected to rise in cost about a trillion and it expected to make cuts to doctor’s reimbursement rates that no one expects to be allowed since many doctors would pass.

Expected, expected, expected. So what? That doesn’t mean it’s set in stone. If today’s doctors won’t work for these wages, we’ll add some more med schools and create a batch that will. That’s the reality everyone else in the country faces. Why shouldn’t doctors?

Cut out the AMT break to twenty million people can’t see that happening.

But you can see major cuts in Social Security and Medicare happening?

“The one that takes 50 years to balance is Ryan’s, and only with the unobtainable assumption of rapidly going to only 2% unemployement. “

Have we ever had 2% unemployment?

Liberal rich people are nicer don’t ya know. Conservatives are evil.

George Washington, and almost to a man, all the other Founding Fathers went broke from the war.

A rich man pays LESS percentage of his income as the average joe and this is a non-issue?

I believe I also mentioned his company off-shoring jobs, layoffs from corporate raiding and the stagnation of wages at the remainder of Bain’s portfolio of companies.

Like someone else here said: I have nothing against rich people, just the parasites who destroy jobs, stiff their vendors and don’t pay the same percentage of taxes the average person does.

Not that I like Romney, but can’t anyone come up with a better criticism of him than that he made a lot of money, and didn’t pay more taxes than he was supposed to?

IDK. Maybe if I think hard.
1. He’s out of touch with the middle-class.
2. He’s OK with rich paying a less percent in taxes than us.
3. He wants to spend more on the military.
4. He does not envision the new Europe.
5. His tax plan hurts the middle class to more enrich the rich.
6. He won’t release his tax returns.
7. He was a vulture capitalist.
8. He promoted off-shoring.
9. He will put more quasi fascists on the Supreme Court.
10. He is a hypocrite on Obama’s health-care plan.
11. He holds fundraisers overseas.
12. He is a goofball on the international stage.
13. He was a homophobic bully.
14. His political party has been hijacked by nutjobs
15. His political party does not compromise.
16. His political party puts politics above America.
17. His political party discounts science.
18. His political party is intolerant.
19. His political party is too influenced by Christian fundies.
20. His political party supports the Ryan plan.
21. His political overly worships the false god of mammon.
22. His political party puts money over country.
23. His political party’s supply side ideas are proven tripe.
24. His party’s backers backed Citizens United.
25. His party’s backers back “Corporations are people”.
26. His party’s backers back “money is free-speech”.
27. His party’s backers back AM hate radio.
28. His party’s backers back more offshoring.
29. His party’s backers foment hate.
30. His party’s backers foment hostile American division.
31. His party supports increasingly massive wealth inequality.
32. His party warmongers.
33. I have 23 more but I’m hungry.

Blue,

You see the conseratives “disagree” with the liberals.
Liberals “hate” the conservatives.

I know it’s hard to think about it that way but the only way for the left to really demonize the right is think that they’re all ugly, mean, hateful people. All of us.

Why can’t you guys just agree to disagree and then try to listen to the reasons?

Rio, nice list. It’s freaking hillarious, but nice. YOU really are a mind numbed robot. Where did you get that list?

Rio, nice list.

Thank you. It’s incomplete but I got hungry.

You see the conseratives “disagree” with the liberals.
Liberals “hate” the conservatives.

You are very wrong. The GOP is the party of hate.

GOP: Party of hate

http://metrotimes.com/columns/gop-party-of-hate-1.1304905

There are an alarming number of nasty and crazy right-wing nuts out there, many of whom clearly cannot tolerate that an African-American is the president of the United States.

They spew a torrent of lies and hate onto the Internet and the airwaves, when broadcasters let them on. They are spurred on by unscrupulous showmen like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and their imitators, and have been given aid and comfort by many Republican candidates, some at the highest level. Far from denouncing and disavowing them, which is what any decent Republican would have been expected to do a half-century ago, they slyly encourage them.

Take Newt Gingrich, a brawling, grossly pathetic has-been who is still running for the GOP presidential nomination, even though any chance of his winning evaporated weeks ago.

Newt recently told ABC News that he finds it “very bizarre” that the president is “desperately concerned to apologize to Muslim religious fanatics.” He added that the Obama administration was “going to war against the Catholic Church and against every right-to-life Protestant organization in the country.”

Both those statements are not even subjective; they are demonstrably untrue. Yet that is just the kind of rhetoric that could easily get some troubled young fanatic fired up.

Yet nothing will happen to Gingrich. Before Rick Santorum pulled out of the race, he took target practice at a shooting range where a woman hollered, “Pretend it’s Obama.”

the only way for the left to really demonize the right is think that they’re all ugly, mean, hateful people. All of us….. YOU really are a mind numbed robot.

I know. It’s crazy that some on the left think some on the right are ugly, mean and hateful.

I don’t know how you came up with #9 prediction. All the “his party” stuff is a stretch. By that you imply that have of all the dupes in the USA are evil.

95 % of the dupes are fools, IMO, for taking the party system we have seriously.

I don’t know how you came up with #9 prediction.

It’s a prediction if he gets the chance. Most of the latest decisions in the SCOTUS that impinge on our personal liberty and broaden corporate power (Citizens United) were 5-4 decisions passed by Republican nominated judges. This is what is at stake.

All the “his party” stuff is a stretch. By that you imply that have of all the dupes in the USA are evil.

Very few Republicans are evil and many are my friends however their Republican PARTY has been hijacked by the extreme.

‘It’s Even Worse Than It Looks: How the American Constitutional System Collided With The New Politics of Extremism’ by Thomas E. Mann and Norman J. Ornstein

http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/its-even-worse-than-it-looks-how-the-american-constitutional-system-collided-with-the-new-politics-of-extremism-by-thomas-e-mann-and-norman-j-ornstein/2012/04/30/gIQA2ohKsT_story.html

Their principal conclusion is unequivocal: Today’s Republicans in Congress behave like a parliamentary party in a British-style parliament, a winner-take-all system. But a parliamentary party — “ideologically polarized, internally unified, vehemently oppositional” — doesn’t work in a “separation-of-powers system that makes it extremely difficult for majorities to work their will.”

These Republicans “have become more loyal to party than to country,” the authors write, so “the political system has become grievously hobbled at a time when the country faces unusually serious problems and grave threats. . . .

….Today’s Republican Party has little in common even with Ronald Reagan’s GOP, or with earlier versions that believed in government. Instead it has become “an insurgent outlier — ideologically extreme; contemptuous of the inherited social and economic policy regime; scornful of compromise; unpersuaded by conventional understanding of facts, evidence and science; and dismissive of the legitimacy of its political opposition . . . all but declaring war on the government.”

Rio,

You need to add that he will be running for re-election from day one so that he will have to work to placate the rest of the party and his backers.

‘His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party…’

Here’s a tip; the other party is just as bad.

Here’s a tip; the other party is just as bad.

I disagree if only for the potential Supreme Court nominations.

with a better criticism of him than that he made a lot of money,

Blue, the criticism isn’t the money that he made, it was HOW he made his money. Remember that scene in Wall Street where that company guy talks about how Gordon Gekko had bought majority stock in Blue Star Airlines for the sole purpose of liquidating it for cash: “We’ll pass the planes off on the Mexicans, got the assets sold down to the typewriters, and that *oh man* that overfunded pension… wow that’s beautiful… *drool*. ”

This is how Romney made his money. Even if Romney paid full taxes on his income, it’s still despicable, if legal.

‘His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His political party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party/His party…’

Not if you are a one issue voter. (abortion, gay marriage) The rest of the stuff barely registers for them.

4. He does not envision the new Europe.

What the hell is that one about? You mean the new Muslim Europe?

“But a parliamentary party — “ideologically polarized, internally unified, vehemently oppositional” — doesn’t work in a separation-of-powers system that makes it extremely difficult for majorities to work their will.”

The Founding Fathers we’re VERY clever men.

34. He’s a tax dodge/cheat who has or had Swiss bank accounts, offshore accounts in several other tax havens, and an impossibly large 401k.

Rio,

I am sorry I flew off the handle. I slipped. I believe everything I said but it came out in way that’s probably not going to convince you of anything.

You see I believe both parties are at fault for our current fiscal mess. They both have good people and they both have a$$holes. They both have lovers and haters. They both suck!!!

My main concern is that the US of A is broke. Some day, maybe soon, the creditors that buy our crappy paper are going to say enough. Then where will we be? Just look at what’s happening in Greece and think that it could happen here.

I have always liked Romney because he has the business knowledge to look at what’s going on, decide what’s good and what’s bad, and then to make a decision that will improve the situation. He did it with the Olympics and he did it with Bain Capital.

At Bain Capital he bought companies that had already been run into the ditch and were on the edge of closing. He came in, got rid of the dead wood, and many of those companies came out of it thriving. Using the analogy of a tree, some dead wood has been be pruned if the tree is going to grow efficiently.

And our US government is a bloated, fiscal mess. They have hundreds of agencies with hundreds of programs that do the same thing. They don’t have metrics that they need to decide if they’re being successful.

We need someone like Romney to come in, make the hard decisions and get us back to where we should be. I do not and I will not agree with everything he does or says, but I do believe he’s better than the current President.

Lip

My main concern is that the US of A is broke.

Six Policies Economists Love (And Politicians Hate)

Don’t know if this has been posted recently. I haven’t been reading here lately. Very mildly NSFW - picture of someone rolling a joint.

“I am sorry I flew off the handle. I slipped. I believe everything I said but it came out in way that’s probably not going to convince you of anything.”

I was just about to respond to your original post, glad I scrolled down first. Well said! I doubt that Romney is able to “make the hard decisions”, but I know that Obama hasn’t.

Based on my experience in the private equity business and the way we made money for our MD’s I do have some concerns about what could be going on with Gov Romney’s finances and it impacts a number of things, such as why he’s been so insistent on when he left Bain, how he has up to $100MM in an IRA with contribution limits, offshore accounts, and why he won’t release his tax returns.

I’ll start with the IRA first because its the most strait forward. The kind of IRA we’re talking here aren’t exactly what most people think of as they go through offshore “blocker corporations” which are used to effectively invest in kind to match what the PE is doing for their clients (effectively to give their clients a tax deferred way to invest). This ultimately results in the IRA’s being invested in early stage ventures with a huge upside (personally I don’t find anything wrong with this practice).

Things start to get a little bit more dicey when you understand that owners/affiliates of these blocker corporations are not eligible to participate in these IRA’s. So the timing of Gov Romney’s departure from Bain is critical as I suspect that in when he left to “save the Olympics” he had his money moved to the blocker IRA where it was tax deferred. Now if he didn’t actually leave Bain at that time there would be some serious explaining to do to the IRS.

Cratering demand won’t crater prices? Seriously? lol

Ox-

I’m concerned with what will happen when/if judicial states change their procedures to allow foreclosures to happen more quickly. I think this is far and away the biggest bottleneck holding back the “flood” in those states. I’m less concerned about non-judicial states as a whole, where foreclosures have largely continued without the same hold-back as in judicial states.

What’s important is that we’re not forcibly taxed to be killed from malpractice.

We’re free to be overcharged and then bankrupted and THEN killed by malpractice.

THAT’S what important.

Darn those facts.

Rio, move to Israel then.

Wouldn’t you think that a USA regulatory body (like FDA )would test the products themselves rather than take the data from the Drug Industry on their own tests ,only to find out years later that the data was fraudulent
, or data suppressed on drug dangers ,as they discovered recently on one of Big Pharma Companies being busted . I guess they said everybody was doing it and they didn’t realize the harm it might do ,or was it the Bankers that said that ?

I’m just saying that the regulations on the Drug Industry have been just as inept as it was in the financial sectors ,and this allowance of self-regulation has proven to be at the expense of Main Street, as in the financial industries .

I think when everything stated to unravel ,the corruption should of been exposed and busted ,rather than maintaining the status quo .I guess the drug industry is to big to fall also .

Lip, Rio has already moved to Rio, where they have also have a state-sponsored health care system. Rio has already put his money where his mouth is. When are you going to move to regulation-free Somalia?

cactus,
Thanks for the priceless feedback. No second, but the first is high. We were told 90 days (ish) to get approval, and we went with a 20 day escrow since were all “fiat” money.

I am assuming the comps your short sales was evaluated to, were 60-90 days old?

Did they come back quickly wanting more money?
(I remember your second wanting $5K and you ignored.It worked! We’re a non-recourse state.)

Did the structual attic ladder issue get resolved?

Maybe this is our time!

Did they come back quickly wanting more money?”

yes about 1 month later and I was told it was “lighting quick” for a short sale

Did the structual attic ladder issue get resolved?”

yes the builder put it in all to code and I got to learn about roof trusses though interesting stuff

Maybe this is our time!”

hope it works out I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you that all other bidders are flakes

cactus
I originally thought you were nuts to do a SS or you had nerves of steel, and here we are.

You let the listing agent get dual agency. Smart!

Did they jump a lot in price or was it minimal?
(Did they justify it with comps that were objective?)

Thanks for the information. Much appreciated. We will do our second round Monday, and know on Tuesday.

I remember your stress level back then, and you not hearing from anyone. I bet it made you bonkers.

I like to be aware of the sale date on the court house steps. I know the bank can extend, but it’s comforing if the sale date is far enough out. Or maybe an NOD has not even been filed. You just hate to have a transaction erased because the bank has become fed up, and “pulls the trigger” on the courthouse steps. We are not seeing that happen as much as a few years back. You sound well armed with information. That’s the best way to enter negotiations. Good luck!

Rental Watch
I read your great feedback and advice on Saturday, Aug 4th and THANK YOU.You’re terrific!

Oh, and here’s another free hint, Peasant. Do not spend any of your own money on publicity. Structure your life in such a way so that others will use their own money to do all the promoting for you. Become famous like I am and numerous talk and news shows will invite you to become a spokesman - an expert - on any subject in the universe. Do this correctly and your ratings will go way up and so will theirs!

You’ve got to admit he attracts beautiful women. Evidently, he know how to get a woman. Trouble is, once they get past his money, they realize he’s an empty shell.

“Trouble is, once they get past his money, they realize he’s just an empty shell.”

And they, these women, aren’t?

Lol, one of the best things that can happen to a guy is to be dumped by a gold digger.

No. Thanks.

And yet the kids are lining up to enlist.

I you have to waste youth then it is easiest to waste it on the young.

And yet the kids are lining up to enlist.

This is what happens after 30+ years of evaporating economic opportunity.

Explain to a young guy what the military is all about and you’ll get: “Where do I go to sign up?”

Do the same with an old guy and you’ll get: “Say, what?”

“This is what happens after 30+ years of evaporating economic opportunity.”

Yup

I know a couple of guys in their 50’s who were hired by IBM straight out of high school and placed in white collar jobs.

Today you need a Master’s degree to get your foot in the door if you have no experience.

Maybe (s)he was talking about someone else on the blog whose balls really do jingle?

Sorry Polly, I was unclear about what was meant by “favoring the buyer.”

The total PI payment is level for the full 30 years. But in the first years, more of that payment is interest and less is principle, i.e. it’s frontloaded in interest. Over the years, the amount paid toward principle is more than the amount paid toward interest, i.e. there is less frontloading and therefore there is less (relative) profit toward the bank. At the equalization point the mortgage favors the buyer. I checked Bankrate’s amort calculator:

At 7%, the P and I equalize (starts favoring buyer) at Year 20.
At 4%, the P and I equalize (starts favoring buyer) at Year 13.

But I think the “7 years” doesn’t refer to favoring the buyer. It refers to relative profit. At 7 years, there is still more interest being paid, and the mortgage is still profitable for the bank, yes. BUT the bank would make even more profit if the house was sold to a new buyer, because the new mortgage comes with brand-new profitable front-loading, when the proportion paid toward interest is at it’s maximum.

The 7 years was probably calculated when interest rates were higher. The time is a lot shorter now (see the comparison between 20 and 13 years). Hence the increased motivation to sell the mortgage to Fannie for a fee and quick cash, than to hold the mortgage hope the buyer sells in 4-5 years to re-start the clock.

Oops, I need to clarify this part: “Over the years, the amount paid toward principle is more than the amount paid toward interest.”

What happens is that the first few mortgage payments are almost entirely interest. This is the time of maximum interest (frontloading) and therefore maximum profit. Each month, that total payment is a little less interest and a little more principle. At some point the two equalize, and then you have more principle than interest.

The yada goes on from there.

Of course you are paying more interest in the early years. You have more money outstanding on the loan in the early years.

Of course you are paying less interest in the later years. You have already paid back a lot of the principle by the time you get to the later years.

It is JUST arithmatic.

If you have a chart that shows how much of your payment is going to interest and principle, you can figure it out by yourself. Take your total amount borrowed. Subtract the sum of all the principle you have paid. Multiply that by your interest rate. Divide by 12. That should be the amount of interest you are paying in the next month.

And it isn’t that there is less “profit” in the loan in later years. It is less loan. You have paid some of it back. Also, it has been a while since you paid them the fee for originating the loan.

Why you would decide that paying a tiny smidge less than half your payment to the bank is suddenly to your advantage where a tiny smidge more than half your payment to the bank isn’t is very confusing.

And the business model of the banks is to always sell the loans if they can. They make their money off the fees. They might try to hold on to the loan if we were in a situation of rapidly declining interest rates because then they are getting “above market rate” interest on the loans, until the borrower figures it out and refinances. But your understanding of this is absurd. The rate of the loan and therefore the amount of profit per dollar loaned out is always the same (save for a few pennies of costs for processing).

But do you mean gay as in joyful or gay as in men who decorate really well

Both!

And gay as in: fairies? That’s so gay!

Wow. I am speechless.

20K interest-free loan, forgivable after 10 years if I stay with the school district. Forgivable if I get laid off.

70K down payment assistance from the city interest free (qualified because my income being low enough), deferred payment for 40 years or shared appreciation with the city if I sell before paying off.

Strings attached: First time home buyers only, have to live in the house as a primary residence until the loans are paid, cannot rent the house out. Our income had to be below a certain level, no more than 25K in savings left over after purchase, house could not have more bedrooms than people in our family.

The other 15K is from WISH, which is a federal program.

4th loan is conventional 30-year fixed.

Kudos, and congrats, may you enjoy it forever!

Putting that set of packages together, for loan subsidies and down payment assistance - that had to be a full time job on top of your regular job. I can’t imagine how time consuming it must have been, even AFTER you researched to find the programs. You must have iron will. My hat’s off to you for perseverence.

Again, congrats and best wishes.

I’m thinking pink leotards, butterfly wings on their backs, the frilly things they wear around their waist, and safety yellow vests and hard hats.

With sledge hammers instead of wands.

“When the only wand you have is a hammer, every wish looks like a nail.”

So, you’ve seen the new Disney fairy videos too? My niece loves them. Fortunately, her favorite character is the goofy enthusiastic athletic fairy, not one of the prissy fairies, but the thing is enough to make you want to gouge your eyes out. Tinkerbelle is sort of an engineer in the series.

I’m thinking pink leotards, butterfly wings on their backs, the frilly things they wear around their waist, and safety yellow vests and hard hats.

OK now THAT is the gayest thing I have ever heard. And I’ve heard a lot.

Stay at the Y- F-C-A….

Methinks they will be few and far between.

How about a percentage of each of your years’ salary (adjusted by inflation)?

So, if you are police chief for 25 of 25 years, then you get a pension based 100% on being a police chief.

But if you are a police officer for 20 years, and then a chief for 5, you get a pension based 80% on being a police officer, and 20% on being chief.