Bits Bucket for February 20, 2014
Post off-topic ideas, links, and Craigslist finds here.
The Housing Bubble
Examining the home price boom and its effect on owners, lenders, regulators, realtors and the economy as a whole.
About Me
Name:Ben Jones
Location:Northern Arizona, United States
To donate by mail, or to otherwise contact this blogger, please send emails to: thehousingbubble@gmail.com
PayPal is a secure online payment method which accepts ALL major credit cards.
Links
-
November 2024 M T W T F S S « Sep 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Photo Submission: hbbphotos@gmail.com
View the HBB Photo Gallery *updated 4/13/2008
San Clemente, CA Housing Prices Crater 9% Year Over Year On Rising Inventory
http://www.movoto.com/statistics/ca/san-clemente.htm
How much does regular old metal duct cost? We live in a 1,350 sq. ft. house with 6 registers. We’ve been battling rats in the attic, and it looks like they’re gnawing into the flex duct. I have no idea why anyone would choose flex duct, especially in Florida.
Is it that much cheaper than regular old metal duct?
About $10/linear foot, installed.
http://www.homewyse.com/services/cost_to_install_duct.html
Rats in the attic? Yikes! What are they eating? And I thought your LL would take care of this?
Insulation. Galvi duct insulation is applied in field. Flex is done in factory.
U have a rat problem that caused a airflow issue.
Button Lock or Rigid duct takes some skill and tools to install.
Look into Alumaflex.
If you want to do it right, here’s your correctly specified material for supply air. And trust me when I tell you, it’s not “$10/linear foot, installed.” Think about it… and entire new HVAC package for a SFR is $12k. Do you really think the delivery system component of an HVAC package is $10/linear foot? LOL
https://www.acwholesalers.com/Fantech/FIDT-4-Flexible-Round-Insulated-Duct-4-inch-x-25-foot/12005.ac?gclid=COmhoL_k2rwCFREaOgodZSAA_Q
$1/ft, 15 minutes to install. Replace everything in the attic for $100.
Never trust a donkey.
I’d be more urgent about a decisive win in the elimination of the rodents! Bait the runways and seal every crack in the house exterior.
Be careful with expanding foam around window frames! Don’t ask me how I know this.
Lol, that expanding foam is some really. ugly. stuff. Looks like a fungus.
Or just tell your landlord that there are rats in the attic.
Had some rats in my 2005 - 2010 rental that was close to water. They seem to be pretty GD smart as opposed to mice who will look at their dead buds on a glue trap and figure he isn’t eating that peanut butter so I might as well. If rats see one of their buds with a smashed neck in a snap trap or stuck on a glue trap they aren’t gonna go for the bait.
However, those green rat bars they sell at Home Depot don’t kill right away and evidently taste pretty damn good to the rats who can’t put 2 and 2 together that their buds convulsions were coming from what they had eaten the day before. I finished off a family of rats with those bars because my DBLL couldn’t find the money for an exterminator in the $1,700 a month he was putting in his pocket every month without paying the mortgage.
One small problem with the poison bars aside from keeping them away from pets is the poisoned rats who are trying to seek water don’t make it out of the house. I had to whap 3 of them on the head with a broom stick handle while they were doing a Michael Jackson convulsion dance on the floor. My wife found one when I wasn’t home and scooped it with a shovel and put it outside in the garbage can to die a miserable South Florida summer convulsion death because she couldn’t bring herself to whap the poor little b@stard in the head with a broom stick. The last rat was found by smell, their nest was behind the dishwasher.
Best of luck
phony
Or maybe it just died a horrible death because you poisoned it.
My LL is aware and had been taking care of it. Trapper sealed up the house, but we can’t find what ever entry point we missed. Since I am a reasonable renter, I am helping as much as I can since we share a mutual interest of not having rats in the flex duct.
I am interested in the cost should I decide to buy this place in the future.
At this point, with the Orangeburg pipe under the slab, I’m thinking this joint is headed for a tear-down.
I was curious about the cost of real, regular duct, not flex.
If you want to live past 60, don’t be a couch potato.
eat your broccoli and stay away from the big gulps
And drink your zima beer.
Zima zucks.
I can’t say without carefully reading the study whether the researchers properly controlled for endogenous factors which would lead those suffering from terminal conditions to spend relatively more time on the couch.
Being a couch potato linked to major disability after 60
The study focused on a sample of 2,286 adults age 60 and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Being a couch potato linked to major disability after 60
Science Recorder | Jonathan Marker | Thursday, February 20, 2014
According to a new report from Northwestern University, for each hour that people age 60 and older spend sitting, their risk of developing a major disability doubles – in spite of any amount of moderate exercise. The study is the first to offer solid evidence that sedentary behavior is a distinct factor for disability, separate from a lack of moderate vigorous physical activity. In truth, sedentary behavior is nearly as strong a risk factor for disability as lack of moderate exercise.
The study appears February 19 in the Journal of Physical Activity & Health.
“This is the first time we’ve shown sedentary behavior was related to increased disability regardless of the amount of moderate exercise,” said Dorothy Dunlop, professor of medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and lead author of the study. “Being sedentary is not just a synonym for inadequate physical activity.”
…
Read more: http://www.sciencerecorder.com/news/being-a-couch-potato-linked-to-major-disability-after-60/#ixzz2trodvGiq
And do like Ahhnold said, “pick the right parents.”
“If you want to live past 60, don’t be a couch potato.”
Yeah but…… lying on my back and consuming groceries is one of my favorite activities. Granted… the risk of becoming a Parade Float is high but this healthy eating sucks. If I eat any more nuts and fruit I’m gonna start chirping like magpie.
Got Cheetos?
And dieting makes a mild mannered man meaner than a snake.
I’m on a diet and I hate it.
You’re not a real man unless you’ve got 10 pounds of partially digested red meat in your colon.
Downlow Joe is a vegetarian, that’s why he can still fit in his twink jeans.
You’re not a real man unless you’ve got 10 pounds of partially digested red meat in your colon.
You are not a man unless you can win a free steak by eating a 72 Oz steak in Amarillo TX.
I read once that a 86 year old grandmother finished that steak.
“You’re not a real man unless you’ve got 10 pounds of partially digested red meat in your colon.”
I have a hard time digesting beef and eat very little as it is, but reading this makes me never want to eat beef again.
Excuse you, I don’t wear skinny jeans although I do occasionally wear some men’s leggings from uniqlo.
Twin lolas
(living in your skull, rent free. it’s pretty roomy in here too, btw.)
(also you make nycdj look like a genius if you think I really wear uniqlo)
Good grief Liberace…. have a little originality.
Is the U.S. economy sufficiently decoupled from Asia so a China slowdown will go unnoticed here?
Live Coverage: Clashes between police and protesters in Ukraine
China February flash PMI hits seven-month low, spooks markets
BY ADAM ROSE
BEIJING Wed Feb 19, 2014 11:36pm EST
An employee carries a tyre at a tyre factory in Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, January 27, 2014. REUTERS/William Hong
CREDIT: REUTERS/WILLIAM HONG
RELATED VIDEO
Video
China survey shows a job market under strain
RELATED TOPICS
China »
(Reuters) - Activity in China’s factories shrank again in February, a preliminary private survey found on Thursday, reinforcing concerns of a minor slowdown in the economy and spooking markets across the region.
The flash Markit/HSBC Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to a seven-month low of 48.3 in February from January’s final reading of 49.5, where a reading below 50 indicates a contraction while one above shows expansion.
…
Holy crap. This pic should win some kind of prize - it pretty much says everything about kiev:
http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20140220&t=2&i=843467242&w=&fh=&fw=&ll=700&pl=390&r=2014-02-20T135516Z_29_GM1EA2J05TD01_RTRRPP_0_UKRAINE
[Should be safe for work, relatively gore-free]
Looks like a statists dream date.
Moody’s sees China’s slowdown as risk for Korean economy
By Kim Soo-yeon
SEOUL, Feb. 20 (Yonhap) — South Korea’s economy is not negatively affected by the U.S. Federal Reserve’s tapering of quantitative easing, but its biggest risk stems from China’s economic slowdown, Moody’s Investors Service said Thursday.
“We see Korea’s credit fundamentals are not adversely affected by the ongoing Fed tapering,” Thomas J. Bryne, senior vice president at Moody’s, told a group of reporters in Seoul.
…
I’m sure there’s a backlog of crap to put out on the store shelves, so probably not. As long as people have smart phones in which to bury their pusses, and Facebook where they can demonstrate how awesome they are, life’s good.
So long as the all-cash Chinese investors keep snapping up Sacramento residential investment properties, we have nothing to fear.
Jan 10, 2014, 6:30am PST
Chinese investors coming to capital, SACTO’s Hayes says
Sacramento Area Commerce and Trade Organization CEO Barbara Hayes spent almost 10 days in China last year, listening to presentations and meeting with Chongqing’s business bigwigs to tout the Sacramento region.
Ben van der Meer
Staff Writer-
Sacramento Business Journal
Chinese investors, in a visit scheduled for March, will be looking for places to put their money in the Sacramento region — a visit stemmed from a move the city of Sacramento made nearly a year earlier.
Barbara Hayes, president/CEO for the Sacramento Area Commerce & Trade Organization, said Thursday the city made critical inroads last May, when officials opened a trade and investment office in Chongqing, a Chinese city of 27 million people.
“Honestly, we just started with China this last year, because it was such a huge market, we didn’t know where to start,” Hayes said at a market outlook event Thursday, in response to a question about whether SACTO was looking at China after seeing some strong interest from Japan.
When Sacramento opened the trade office, she said, it gave her team a starting point to make contacts. And while other cities have put such offices in larger Chinese cities such as Shanghai and Beijing, Sacramento is so far the only one to do so in Chongqing, she said.
The investors coming here could prove beneficial to construction projects that are otherwise finding trouble getting financing, Hayes said. Specifically, she said projects that were stalled because redevelopment agencies were shuttered in 2011 could find an investor willing to provide money to get them off the ground.
So Chinese people are supposed to lend money so that builders can create excess supply? OK, I’m down with that.
August 15, 2013, 10:29 AM
Report: Half of All Homes Are Being Purchased With Cash
By NICK TIMIRAOS
Associated Press
The Goldman Sachs analysis says that the all-cash share of sales has more than doubled over the past seven years.
More than half of all homes sold last year and so far in 2013 have been financed without a mortgage, according to an analysis by economists at Goldman Sachs Group.
The analysis estimates that around 20% of all homes sold before the housing crash were “all-cash” sales (or around 30% of sales by dollar volume). But over the past seven years, the all-cash share of sales has more than doubled, increasing by more than 30 percentage points, according to economists Hui Shan, Marty Young and Charlie Himmelberg.
…
August 15, 2013, 10:29 AM
Report: Half of All Homes Are Being Purchased With Cash
By NICK TIMIRAOS
Associated Press
read with one hand on your wallet.
Friend put his house on the market in La Mesa at $430k and got a cash offer for $400k within a week. The buyers were buying a house for their son. Insane.
Friend put his house on the market in La Mesa at $430k and got a cash offer for $400k within a week. The buyers were buying a house for their son. Insane.
Oooh! And in tony La Mesa! Why didn’t they buy in Santee?
The investors left PHX long ago and it has or will play out similarly elsewhere. CA is really it’s own brand though. I remember it being called the land of fruits and nuts when I was a kid. Now it’s the land of fruits and nuts and fraudsters.
California can be its own brand if it wants. It will still have the same boom/bust cycle.
Speaking of Facebook, Wall Street Journal reports that Facebook is buying WhatsApp for $19 billion.
Because we don’t need to build stuff here, we can just tweet our way to prosperity.
Facebook is not a real company.
Facebook is buying WhatsApp for $19 billion
That’s…unbelievable. It’s not a social network, it’s just a texting app that uses data connections instead of SMS. Now I realize that a texting app does have some value if everyone is on it, and that one is quite popular. But still…???
Interestingly enough I have some interest in the story, because I finally installed WhatsApp a couple of weeks ago because when I switched to T-mobile to make future overseas travel easier, the way their SMS texting worked was driving me crazy. Everybody was telling me that was the one to get, and it does seem pretty good. For a texting app. One thing to know about it is that the first year is free and after that it’s a dollar a year. Somebody must have run some numbers based on the idea that eventually billions of people will be ponying up for it. Except for the minor detail that someone else will come out with one just as good that’s free for another year or so. It’s not rocket surgery.
I thought Verizon just added free international texting to everyone’s plan. They sent me an e-mail saying that.
I just heard that ad today in response to T-mobile. But, phones on their network tend to not work overseas, or at least didn’t used to. Are they supplying phones that work on both now? And that still doesn’t cover unlimited data overseas like T-mobile does.
$A falls on bad China manufacturing data
Date February 20, 2014 - 5:25PM
Why China’s Economy Will Topple and How This Affects You! Read More.
The Australian dollar has slipped further after China’s manufacturing activity contracted to its lowest levels in seven months.
At 1700 AEDT on Thursday, the local unit was at 89.54 US cents, down from 90.19 cents on Wednesday.
The Aussie fell sharply after a closely-watched gauge of Australia’s biggest trading partner showed China’s manufacturing activity has contracted for the second consecutive month, Easy Forex currency dealer Tony Darvall said.
He said already the Aussie was being weighed down by last week’s data which showed Australia’s jobless rate rose to its worst levels in more than a decade.
“The Chinese data gave people more selling impetus,” Mr Darvall said.
…
I thought all those po’ folks in the 3rd World were going to pick up the consuming slack for broke First Worlders.
The US is full of consumers only because of Medicare and Social Security. If you know you’ll have income after you retire, it’s easy to spend a dollar today. If not, you have no choice but to wear things until they wear out and hoard like it’s the Depression.
Why China’s Economy Will Topple and How This Affects You! Read More.
All I know so far about that is that I’m headed back in March to help them manufacture some more.
Carl:
Is your job going there too, or just you? Will you stay there permanently?
No plan to ever stay there permanently. But there’s no telling when this back and forth will end, since our fruity overlords always get what they want.
Is the EM crisis over?
G20 final document to address U.S. policy impact on emerging markets
BY LIDIA KELLY
MOSCOW Thu Feb 20, 2014 6:01am EST
Investors look at computer screens displaying stock information at a brokerage house in Qingdao, Shandong province February 10, 2014.
CREDIT: REUTERS/CHINA DAILY
(Reuters) - The world’s financial leaders will address the impact of U.S. monetary policy on emerging markets in a final document from their meeting this week in Sydney, but the wording has yet to be agreed, a Russian G20 official said.
Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 major developing and advanced economies, which acts as a steering committee for global economic policy, will meet on February 22-23.
Major policy breakthroughs, including on global growth, investment, financial regulation or cooperation in cross-border taxation are unlikely to emerge from the meeting, the first under Australia’s helm, the source said.
The focal points will be the slowdown in China’s economic growth and the selloff in emerging bond, currency and stock markets that erupted last month after the U.S. Federal Reserve began to run down its monetary stimulus policy.
Emerging market nations will demand clarity from the United States, said the Russian official, who is involved in preparations for the meeting.
“At this moment, we do not have a clear understanding of whether some responsibilities will be taken or whether there will be some agreements that will minimize the negative impact from these (U.S.) measures,” said the official.
…
If you were in Sochi, would you tweet your wolf?
Team USA’s Kate Hansen and an epic #Sochifail: ‘Wolf in my hall’
February 20, 2014, 1:48 AM
Just when you think you’ve seen it all at #SochiOlympics, something else comes along. In truth, things seemed to be calming down a little and everyone has been focusing on the actual games.
Then Kate Hansen, a member of the U.S. Olympic Luge team, posted a video from her hotel room early Thursday.
On Twitter, some are calling it the #SochiProblem to end all #SochiProblems. Stranger in my room? How about this:
…
The fail is that it’s not a wolf. Wolves don’t calmly walk around like that; they’re much more skittish and wary. Saw a few on a backpacking trip in BC as well as a few hybrids. It was pretty easy, based on behavior, to tell the difference.
A wolf once calmly walked right past me in a forest one time. It acted like I didn’t even exist. I was the only one worried about it.
Was probably a coyote. Wolves don’t just casually walk past humans. They stay as far away as possible.
Wolves are typically much leaner also. This thing looks like it was hitting the Alpo a little too hard last night.
The coyotes avoid me. The wolf didn’t care about me at all. Wolves know that they can easily kill us. Coyotes somehow don’t know that.
Maybe it thought you looked delicious. It was thinking to itself “I’m going to tear off a piece of that”, literally.
Yeah, that’s NOT a wolf.
Is the deflation scare back again?
Wouldn’t deflation serve to reward those who avoided miring themselves with excessive debt?
What a scary thought rewarding people who saved. What a bunch of radikals……off to the nearest FEMA camp for re-education!
Yes, but we can’t have THAT, now, can we?
I guess it depends on whom you ask. What would Angela Merkel say, for instance?
“I vant to be alone?”
The Opinion Pages|EDITORIAL
Europe Flirts With Deflation
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD
FEB. 17, 2014
Some analysts and public officials say the beleaguered euro zone is finally on the road to recovery. Unemployment has decreased slightly, though it remains high at 12 percent, and the euro zone as a whole grew by 0.3 percent in the last quarter of 2013.
But theirs is an overly optimistic view. Recent data show that the economies of many European countries remain very weak, and the euro zone as a whole could soon experience deflation, a decline in the general level of prices, if government officials and central bankers do not take steps to bolster the economy. Last month, inflation in the 18 countries that use the euro was just 0.7 percent, down from 0.8 percent in December. That is far below the European Central Bank’s target for an inflation rate of just under 2 percent.
Deflation is a pernicious and self-reinforcing phenomenon that debilitates economies, as Japan experienced for much of the past 15 years. When prices fall broadly, consumers put off purchases and businesses see little value in investing for the future, creating a downward spiral. Deflation also makes it more difficult for governments and other borrowers to repay their debts.
Earlier this month, the central bank’s president, Mario Draghi, dismissed the fear of deflation, but his words were hardly reassuring. “There is certainly going to be subdued inflation, low inflation for an extended, protracted period of time, but no deflation,” he said. If the bank believes that prices will increase so slowly, the right thing to do is to lower interest rates and pump more money into the economy through bond purchases. Yet it announced no new policies at its February meeting.
…
“the right thing to do is to lower interest rates and pump more money…”
The people cannot repay their debts, lend them some more money!
Holy crap dude, that’s exactly what it is right?
IMF Warns G-20 of Deflation Risk, Emerging-Market Turmoil
By Sandrine Rastello Feb 19, 2014 1:43 PM CT
Risks of prolonged market turmoil in emerging markets and of deflation in the euro area are threatening the world’s improved economic prospects, according to the International Monetary Fund.
The IMF, in a staff report prepared for central bankers and finance ministers from the Group of 20, said the recovery is still weak and “significant downside risks remain.” A January global growth forecast of 3.7 percent for this year, from 3 percent in 2013, hinges on recent market volatility from Turkey to Brazil being short-lived, according to the report.
“Capital outflows, higher interest rates, and sharp currency depreciation in emerging economies remain a key concern,” according to the report prepared ahead of the G-20 Feb. 22-23 meeting in Sydney. “A new risk stems from very low inflation in the euro area, where long-term inflation expectations might drift down, raising deflation risks in the event of a serious adverse shock to activity.”
…
Wall Street Journal - Why You Are Spending More and Enjoying It Less
“You may overspend because you’re bored, you have no budget or you want to keep up with your neighbors.
Or you may be letting your emotions dictate your financial decisions.
Whatever the reason, you may be setting yourself up for a financial disaster.”
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304888404579380811070068606
And because everyone decided the correct strategy was to market their goods as a luxury brand.
Have you seen the prices on outdoor clothing lately?
You have to pick your hobbies carefully these days. Well, not you goon, as you have so much money left over after throwing money away on rent that you don’t know where to throw it.
Methinks that goonie has the spare cash because he has neither wife or kids.
‘prices on outdoor clothing’
i hit the rei garage sales for that sometimes. there is a consignment store in downtown denver called wilderness exchange that has good stuff and 10 or 20 percent off coupons on a regular basis.
when i see someone wearing a $500 arcteryx jacket that has never been touched by snow or mud i just have to laugh.
when i see someone wearing a $500 arcteryx jacket
+1. I was going to quote Arc Teryx and Kjus in my post but just about everybody thinks they can market their product as worth the price. I’ve hit a few REI weekend garage sales but it’s usually XXLs and XSs. And people get in line early for that.
I wait until the season is over and trawl online clearance sales.
Ski/snowboarding, cycling, windsurfing, kayaking - you name it it’s all gotten incredibly expensive.
People used to just wear clothes for all that stuff.
Now you’re officially a dork if you ski in jeans. Unless you’re in Wyoming :-).
I’m not just talking about the clothes.
I think only Texans still ski in jeans.
Skiing in jeans is retarded- unless you like frostbite. It’s not acceptable insofar as protection is concerned.
People did it for decades. If it’s warm don’t fall. If it’s cold wear snowpants over them.
Unions - the terrorist arm of the democrat party.
Imagine how bad this got if the obama Feds could no longer ignore it.
——————-
10 leaders of Ironworkers Local 401 charged in racketeering indictment
Philadelphia Inquirer | 02/13/2014 | Jeremy Roebuck
They called themselves “the Helpful Union Guys” - “THUGS” for short - and woe awaited any contractor who dared cross them by hiring non-organized workers.
For, federal authorities alleged Tuesday, this “goon squad” of members of Ironworkers Local 401 set fires, started riots, and took crowbars to the competition in an effort to protect union jobs.
FBI agents arrested 10 of the union’s leaders Tuesday morning, including longtime head Joseph Dougherty, in a racketeering conspiracy case that appeared to affirm long-standing business complaints over the tactics employed by Philadelphia unions.
Prosecutors alleged that Dougherty and others have cost contractors hundreds of thousands of dollars over at least three years, and were indiscriminate in choosing their targets - equally willing to break skulls with baseball bats at a Toys R Us work site in King of Prussia or torch a Quaker meetinghouse under construction in Chestnut Hill.
At the meetinghouse work site, prosecutors said, three union members cut steel beams and set fire to a crane in December 2012, setting the project back weeks and costing the contracting firm, E. Allen Reeves Inc. of Abington, more than $500,000.
Violence was not just a tactic in the ironworkers’ toolbox, prosecutors said. It is deeply ingrained in the structure of their organization.
Members earned spots on the union’s board based on their involvement in work-site attacks, and leaders relished their reputations as strong-arm enforcers, according to the indictment.
Local FBI special agent in charge Edward J. Hanko joked that the leaders’ brazenness reminded him more of his past investigating mob cases in New Jersey.
Prosecutors also claimed that Dougherty (no relation to electrical workers union boss and Democratic heavyweight John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty) relied on the union’s considerable ties to state and local officials to further his aims.
Asked to elaborate Tuesday on a potential political component to his investigation, Memeger remained tight-lipped and stressed that the probe was continuing.
At least two candidates sought to distance themselves from the indicted officials.
U.S. Rep. Allyson Y. Schwartz, a Democratic candidate for governor, announced that her campaign had donated to charity the $10,000 contribution she received from the local.
State Auditor General Eugene DePasquale quickly followed suit, giving up $7,500 he took from the group in 2012.
One candidate, though - State Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Democrat running for Congress in Pennsylvania’s 13th District - defended the ironworkers’ contribution of $10,000 to his campaign last year.
“Unions - the terrorist arm of the democrat party”
Um, ok. How about:
The 0.1% - the terrorist arm of the republican party
And to quote our esteemed blog host, “Romney, BAH!”
Los Angeles Times - Sen. Dianne Feinstein defends NSA and need for intelligence gathering
“Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) offered a full-throated defense of the government’s collection of data on billions of American phone calls, saying Wednesday that the National Security Agency’s practices have safeguarded the nation without trampling on civil liberties.”
http://www.latimes.com/nation/politics/politicsnow/la-pn-feinstein-nsa-foreign-policy-20140219,0,7661713.story
We’ve got Repugs espousing the virtues of amnesty for illegals, and Demorats defending rogue military operations. Welcome to the United States of Rot.
washington post - how much salary you need to buy a home in the d.c. area
‘you need to make more than $63,000 a year to afford to buy a median-price home in the d.c. metro region, according to a study by hsh dot com, a riverdale, n.j.-based mortgage information web site.
san francisco topped the list. in the bay area, you need to make $115,510 to afford to buy a median-priced home there. san diego ($81,570) was the second most expensive, followed by los angeles ($72,127), new york city ($66,167) and boston ($63,673).’
http://m.washingtonpost.com/blogs/where-we-live/wp/2014/02/20/how-much-salary-you-need-to-buy-a-home-in-the-d-c-area/?tid=hpModule_34d54128-919e-11e2-bdea-e32ad90da239
From the comments section:
For 180k - you get a crack shack in the metro dc area.
For 180k - you get a crack shack in the metro dc area.
And Lola as a neighbor.
lolololololola
Not to be confused with Lolo Jones.
1. Bob sled vs. Luge
2. Lola wears a mini skirt and high heels much more often.
3. Lolo has no connection to downlow Joe. To put it politely Lola and downlow are often joined.
4. If you are still having difficulty telling the difference, Lolo is a Sheila. The Crocodile Dundee hand test may be used to tell the difference.
http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/arnade/8583322938/
‘Sen. Rob Portman says President Barack Obama needs to “step up” in Ukraine and reassert the role of the U.S. as a global leader. “The United States needs to step up and be counted” in Ukraine, Portman said…“When you say something as America you need to stand behind it. When you draw a red line you need to stand behind it,” he said.’
“I think we need to stand with people who are supporting democracy and freedom. That’s a red line that we’ve draw historically.”
“If we’re not involved, things tend to get very chaotic very quickly,” he said, and the U.S. will soon begin to suffer from its diminished role in the world.’
http://www.politico.com/story/2014/02/rob-portman-us-ukraine-103715.html?hp=r4
‘If we’re not involved, things tend to get very chaotic’
Like weddings! These people may have weddings and no one is there to blow them up. Can’t have that.
“Can’t have that.”
Yesterday I contacted my congresscritter’s office on this matter. To his credit, he took a fairly principled stand on Syria. Now I’m asking him to do the same for Ukraine. This is the Fedgov’s doing, sending in proxies to stage violent protests. Disgusting. People are getting killed and maimed here, with neighborhoods and livelihoods being destroyed and for what? So Washington can stick its angry engorged dick out at Russia because of Snowden? Ukraine wanted to ally with Russia rather than the EU. It’s their choice, but I guess the hard-ons in Washington need more enemies.
It just frosts my naked patootie. WASHINGTON is creating the crisis and then calling out the Ukraine over it. Hasn’t Ukraine suffered enough after the number Stalin did on it?
It is in Russia’s backyard. I do not think we would like Putin to be messing with Mexico.
I think we would prefer Mexico if it were Russia.
Washington Bureau0 2.06.14
State Dept Official Caught on Tape: ‘F#ck the EU’
The origin of the recording is unclear. It was upload by a user named “Maidan Puppets,” a reference to the Maidan Square in Kiev where protesters have fought the government and the Russian accusation that the protesters are puppets of the United States and the West. The video was first reported in the Kyiv Post.
Nuland told Pyatt she had discussed the plan with U.N. Undersecretary for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman, a former senior U.S. Department official, and that he would appoint a U.N. representative to help move it forward. Vice President Joe Biden would also be brought into the plan at the right time, according to Nuland.
“That would be great to help glue this thing and to have the U.N. help glue it,” she said. “And you know, f#ck the EU.”
“I think we’re in play,” Pyatt tells Nuland about a plan to join the opposition and government into one unit, apparently being attempted by the U.S. government behind the scenes. The tape may have been referring to a late January power sharing deal that has since been rejected by opposition leaders. After Pyatt worries that there are “troubles in the marriage” inside the Ukrainian opposition, Nuland warns Pyatt against the idea of appointing Klitschko to be deputy prime minister and suggests the former boxer should stay out of any new Ukrainian government.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/02/06/state-dept-official-caught-on-tape-fuck-the-eu.html - 191k -
Exposed: Ukrainian ‘Protesters’ Backed by Kony 2012-Style Scam
Viral video produced by company linked to ‘regime change’ NGO
Paul Joseph Watson
Infowars.com
February 20, 2014
As they seize weapons, take over government buildings and fire on media outlets, the US-backed Ukrainian protesters are being afforded legitimacy with the aid of a Kony 2012-style viral video which triumphs the grass roots nature of the demonstrations yet is linked to shadowy NGOs that have been directly involved in staging phony ‘color revolutions’ in the past.
The video, entitled I am a Ukrainian, already has over 3 million views. It features an attractive woman insistently claiming that the Ukrainian uprising is solely about freedom and democracy.
The video is typically glib and simplified emotional propaganda which purports to explain that “there is only one reason” behind the protests in Ukraine, a bald faced lie which ignores the multi-faceted geopolitical factors behind the uprising, which center on the tug of war between the United States, the EU and Russia.
The woman encourages viewers to “help us only by telling this story….only by sharing this video,” thereby framing the debate around the naive narrative that the crisis is solely about Ukrainians wanting “freedom,” and in essence blacklisting the real reasons behind the western-instigated revolt, which focus on the geopolitical isolation of Russia.
The origins of the video are not quite as ‘grass roots’ as is portrayed. The clip was produced by the team behind A Whisper to a Roar, a documentary about the “fight for democracy” all over the world, which was funded by Prince Moulay Hicham of Morocco. The “inspiration” behind the documentary was none other than Larry Diamond, a Council on Foreign Relations member. The Council on Foreign Relations is considered to be America’s “most influential foreign-policy think tank” and has deep connections with the U.S. State Department.
Diamond has also worked closely with the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The National Endowment for Democracy is considered to be the CIA’s “civilian arm” and has been deeply embroiled in innumerable instigated uprisings, attempted coups and acts of neo-colonial regime change since its creation in 1983, including the contrived 2004 “Orange Revolution” that brought US puppet Viktor Yushchenko to power in Ukraine.
Larry Diamond also played an instrumental role in the Arab Spring under the auspices of the NED, a series of supposedly grass roots revolts that were in fact organized and managed by some of the most powerful western institutions on the planet.
Diamond’s connection to the viral “I am a Ukrainian” video clearly suggests that the clip is a crude effort to convince an unthinking public that the Ukrainian uprising is completely organic and is not being instigated by western powers, when the opposite is in fact the case. The clip is reminiscent of the Kony 2012 scam, where a viral video utilized simplified propaganda and emotional manipulation to convince millions of people of the necessity of U.S. military involvement in Africa.
In a Huffington Post interview, the creator of the video admits that he was in Ukraine “preparing a film on democracy” before the protests even started.
Providing absolute confirmation that the video is a carefully thought out public relations stunt, the woman in the video was immediately invited to appear on CNN with Anderson Cooper in a segment that will be broadcast tonight. Cooper and CNN aggressively pushed the Kony 2012 hoax until it fell apart when one of the directors had a public breakdown. Cooper was also heavily involved in promoting the fake “Syria Danny” hoax that relied on staged footage to push for U.S. military intervention in Syria.
With clear evidence of protesters being paid amidst accusations that they were armed by the United States, the narrative behind the Ukraine crisis is clearly more complex than a mere grass roots revolt against corruption. The pro-EU protesters are bizarrely seeking closer ties with a European Union infamous for its institutionalized corruption, malfeasance which costs almost the same each year as Ukraine’s entire GDP.
Many of the activists taking over government buildings in Kiev are also from the Spilna Sprava group, which is an organization funded and supported by billionaire globalist George Soros’ Open Society Institute.
The stage was set for the Ukraine revolt to become violent in December when US Assistant Secretary of State for Europe Victoria Nuland announced that the U.S. would invest $5 billion in order to help Ukrainians achieve “a good form of government.” The true nature of that government was revealed earlier this month when leaked phone conversations emerged of Nuland conspiring with US ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt to pick Ukraine’s future puppet leaders, making good on John McCain’s vow to neutralize Russian influence.
Millions of people will never know the truth behind the Ukraine uprising because it is somewhat more complex than an attractive girl making glib statements about freedom and democracy for 2 minutes on a YouTube video. This is how propaganda works – the simpler the better. The video below provides a wider overview of the true agenda behind the crisis.
http://www.infowars.com/category/featured-stories/ - 70k
We have meddled both in Syria and in Libya. Due to the instability we have caused more than 1.5 million barrels of production is presently offline in both countries. Now, perhaps OPEC would have adjusted production to keep the price high but such agreements tend to be elusive unless there is a true crash in prices. Thus, I would argue that oil prices are ten to twenty dollars more per barrel higher than they would have been if we would have left things alone. This translates to 25 to 50 cents more a gallon for gasoline and heating oil. So when you fuel up at the pump, you are paying an intervention tax or a drone tax, so enjoy.
Due to the instability we have caused more than 1.5 million barrels of production is presently offline in both countries
For clarity, that is about 375,000 in Syria and 1.125 million in Libya.
Dude, take the Alex Jones crap somewhere else. I guess Alex never heard the saying “never attribute to conspiracy that which can be explained by sheer incompetence.”
And what was the hoax behind the Kony thing? The director went a little nuts in San Diego, but the fact that children are being forcefull conscripted(read: kidnapped) by African Warlords like Kony is definitely no hoax.
I haven’t fact checked the guy on the whole movie, but even if he did screw up some stats somewhere, it doesn’t change what is happening to helpless kids over there. Where’s the big hoax?
Wait were you posting that ironically? I just noticed your handle. If you’re making fun of AJ and his ilk, then by all means…..
Remarks
Victoria Nuland
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs
Washington, DC
December 13, 2013
Thank you, Roman. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for being here and for your continued support for the U.S.-Ukraine relationship, and thank you for the invitation to speak to you today. I’m still jetlagged from my third trip in five weeks to Ukraine and my days in Kyiv earlier this week.
I don’t have to tell this crowd that these are historic and challenging times for the people of Ukraine, the Ukrainian-American relationship, and for people everywhere who care about the future of that great country.
But I also made clear that the United States believes there is a way out for Ukraine, that it is still possible to save Ukraine’s European future, and that that is where we wanted to see the president lead his country.
That was going to require immediate steps to deescalate the security situation and immediate political steps to end the crisis and get Ukraine back into a conversation with Europe and the International Monetary Fund.
As you all know, and as I’m sure you just heard from Anders and other colleagues, Ukraine’s economy is in a dire state, having been in recession for more than a year and with less than three months’ worth of foreign currency reserves in place. The reforms that the IMF insists on are necessary for the long-term economic health of the country. A new deal with the IMF would also send a positive signal to private markets and would increase foreign direct investment that is so urgently needed in Ukraine. Signing the Association Agreement with the EU would also put Ukraine on the path to strengthening the sort of stable and predictable business environment that investors require. There is no other path that would bring Ukraine back to long-term political stability and economic growth.
We also commend the EU for leaving the door open on the Association Agreement and for continuing to work with the Ukrainian government on a way forward.
Today there are senior officials in the Ukrainian government, in the business community, as well as in the opposition, civil society and religious community who believe in this democratic and European future for their country and they’ve been working hard to move their country and their president in the right direction.
We urge the government, we urge the president to listen to these voices, to listen to the Ukrainian people, to listen to the Euro-Maidan and take Ukraine forward.
The support of the people in this room is absolutely essential. We thank you for all you are doing. We thank you for your partnership all these years, and we look forward to continuing to stand shoulder to shoulder with you as we take Ukraine into the future that it deserves.
Thank you very much.
http://ukraine.usembassy.gov/statements/nuland-conference.html - 40k -
‘Fck the EU’: US diplomat Victoria Nuland’s phonecall leaked - video
Source: ITN,Length: 2min 36sec,theguardian.com ,Friday 7 February 2014
http://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2014/feb/07/eu-us-diplomat-victoria-nuland-phonecall-leaked-video - 100k -
Santa Claus visited my former company yesterday - it exceeded earnings - again - but this stock has been doing so well that I sell on good news and I sell on lousy news. Today up 5% so good to bag a 430% long term gain on 200 additional shares.
Cash is king.
“Cash is king.”
No Cash=pawn
Debt=doom
Debt on depreciating assets=death
I was doing a comparison between Tesla and GM today. The market cap using the latest numbers on yahoo for Tesla is 25.82 billion while GM is 57.40 billion. This is interesting since GM has 219,000 employees and Tesla has 2,964. GM produces millions of cars per year Tesla about 30,000. I have not looked at the Volt figures recently but I bet they produce about as many volts as Tesla produces cars. So does anyone but me think that the Tesla valuation is insane? Wall Street does not care they are making more money moving Tesla up and down than they make on GM. But that is the problem Wall Street and Main street are further and further removed from each other. Mainstreet needs industries that employ 100,000 and not a few thousand. Wall Street use to facilitate the creation of such industries now it only functions to enrich a few people.
Either Tesla is overvalued or it is highly automated and squeezes insane profits per employee. Ever see a video of the Tesla factory? All automated. Nary an employee.
Either Tesla is overvalued or it is highly automated and squeezes insane profits per employee.
More of the former than the latter. It is still just producing tens of thousands of cars per year, which is nothing. BTW, proof of live by the bubble die by the bubble, bitcoin is now below $150.
http://www.goldseek.com/quotes/charts/bitcoin/bitcoin24hour.php
From CNN a few minutes ago, we are still talking about less than $200 million at a yearly pace, that is not insane profits:
The company reported that it earned $45.9 million in the quarter, nearly three times higher than the previous quarter, while revenue jumped 26%.
“bitcoin is now below $150″ - holy crap! Can we now say Those who put most of their assets into Bitcoin are FBs? Somehow I doubt the taxpayers will bail out any of the Bitcoin investors.
Can we now say Those who put most of their assets into Bitcoin are FBs?
Right up there with people that bought Salton Sea property during the bubble.
Somebody here was talking about buying Bitcoin if it hit $150. It’s down to as low as $135. Any takers? I’m not even in at $1.
Bitcoin now below $100 (6:37pm Pacific time)
I wouldn’t buy it at any price. It’s a joke.
Either Tesla is overvalued or it is highly automated
I’d say it’s technically overvalued based on the idea that they are more likely to be the GM of the future than GM is.
And no legacy union issues.
Still insanely valued.
Much like housing.
Do understand how little it costs to build a house relative to current prices of resale housing?
WARNING: this article not written by real journalists
http://www.infowars.com/the-war-on-men-10-ways-masculinity-is-under-attack/
Bonus Wolfgang video
Masculinity:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnM3Iq977JU
That sure is a bunk list of stuff, ogc. I guess it’s considered a violation of your free speech when someone disagrees with you. On the other hand, you can disagree with me, and my free speech is not violated, mainly because I naturally have lesser rights than yourself.
What.ever.
i warned you it wasn’t written by real journalists, but you clicked the link anyway. next time play it safe and stick with the new york times or washington post.
that’s because i already ate all the journalists and the were real good
Federal officials have finalized a long-awaited loan guarantee for $6.5 billion, which will help a utility in Georgia bring the first new nuclear reactor in the U.S. on line in decades
I hope those that protested loan guarantees to Tesla and others are protesting this as well.
At least they are targeting the right country, I hope they are right.
Xinhua)
Updated: 2014-02-20 13:53
Counter:14
China can transit to an 80 percent renewable electric power system by 2050 at far less cost than continuing to reply on coal, according to a report released by World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on Wednesday.
The report said around 80 percent of China’s electricity generation can be met by renewable sources, if appropriate policies and measures are taken, on condition that energy efficiency would improve aggressively.
As a result, China’s carbon emission from power generation could be 90 percent less than currently projected levels in 2050 without compromising the reliability of the electric grid or slowing economic growth, the report said.
“I think this report is quite significant for China,” WWF’s China Climate and Energy Program director Lunyan Lu told Xinhua.
Considering China has experienced 30-year fast economic development, and serious environmental pollution and global climate change are threatening its future development, China is standing at a “cross road” for energy transition, Lu said.
“China must face the issue of energy transition. The biggest problem we mentioned (in the report) is political will,” said Lu, as “no matter what energy structure China chooses, it will involve huge economic interests behind.”
It is impossible to go to even 50% “renewable”, except with hydro or the perpetual motion machine.
Math is hard.
I agree but that does not stop people from demanding an immediate transition. Of course, the same people do not want to pay the double or tripling of price for electricity that such a transition will cost. But as you say math is hard at least for some people.
Now to tie the China story to the Tesla story, if Tesla is going to avoid an epic stock fail it is going to have to move aggressively into China and it has started that process:
http://www.chinamining.org/News/2014-02-13/1392260817d65941.html
And yet hardly anyone protests when the U.S. and other governments subsidize fossil fuels, esp. oil, to the tune of 500 Bil per year.
The fact is, fossil fuels get much more subsidy in terms of absolute amounts.
But fossil fuel companies produce a far higher amount of energy so the subsidy is far lower than afforded “green technology on the amount of energy produced . Also, a lot of the subsidy in the tax code is depreciation and would be given to any business.
Why subsidize oil at all
The companies are insanely profitable already.
Even if you don’t believe in global warming you have to admit pollution is an issue. Breath deep in China.
Oil is not renewable, all these subsidies do is make us use our oil first, to create an infrastructure that is less efficient than it would be otherwise. Not a good plan for the long run. ,
Just like the “tax breaks for outsourcing to China” are the same deductions your company would get if they shut down operations in CA and moved to Texas.
Too big to jail
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/02/i-crashed-a-wall-street-secret-society.html
Because feds drool, and contractors rule:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/lawsuit-brings-to-light-secrecy-statements-required-by-kbr/2014/02/19/6e2a8818-9998-11e3-b88d-f36c07223d88_story.html?hpid=z5
Dick Cheney is laughing at you. All of you. Laughing as hard as his withered little heart can stand
I had heard he was given a former gov’t contractors heart.
I had heard he was given a former gov’t contractors heart.
It must have been hardly used then.
It would have been as pristine as Rio’s brain.
“Despite the government’s continued claim of needing vast surveillance capabilities to protect the public from terrorism, which kills less people annually than bee stings, fewer and fewer Americans are supporting the notion, especially in light of the government’s public support of Al Qaeda jihadists in Syria.”
Seattle Police Prepare DHS-Funded Facial Recognition Program
Mikael Thalen
Infowars.com
February 20, 2014
The Seattle Police Department is preparing to purchase a new facial recognition software program with a federal grant from the Department of Homeland Security.
Set to be purchased next month, the software will reportedly be used to scan and compare surveillance video to the city’s mugshot database.
With the city facing mounting opposition for several other privacy issues, police were quick to claim that the software would only be used when surveillance video of a suspected crime was obtained.
“An officer has to reasonably believe that a person has been involved in a crime or committed a crime,” Seattle Police Asst. Chief Carmen Best said.
Despite reassurances from the city and police, surveillance-weary residents pointed to the city’s continued abuses with surveillance technology.
“I think the Seattle Police Department have a well earned reputation for distrust by the public,” privacy advocate Phil Mocek said during a city council meeting Wednesday.
One group in particular, the Seattle Privacy Coalition, compared the city’s actions to the the federal government’s never-ending domestic surveillance rollout.
“You got kind of a small-scale Seattle version of the dragnet surveillance that’s happening nationally that’s been in the news the last year,” said David Robinson of the Seattle Privacy Coalition.
When asked if the federal government would be given access to information collected, Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell argued that the city would need to share its data to protect the country from potential terrorists.
“There may be times where the federal government may want to look at that database,” Harrell said. “That may be very appropriate if we have international terrorists here that might have committed a misdemeanor.”
While promising to focus the new software on suspected criminals only, papers released by WikiLeaks in 2012 revealed Seattle’s secret participation in TrapWire, a sophisticated facial recognition program that was ran through the city’s CCTV cameras. Given that the Seattle government willingly scanned the faces of countless innocent residents without their knowledge, few trust the new pledge to suddenly use the technology in a lawful manner.
Although the city claims it will release regular reports regarding data requests made by outside agencies, several recent reports already show that the city is sharing innocent individuals’ data with Homeland Security.
Exclusive documents released by Storyleak and Infowars last November revealed that Seattle’s Homeland Security-funded mesh network, which siphons unsuspecting cell phone users data while traveling through the downtown area, is directly tied into the city’s DHS-run Fusion Center.
Documents also revealed how the city’s vast collection of surveillance cameras are tied directly into the mesh network, which can be viewed and controlled remotely from inside police vehicles. Despite Assistant Police Chief Paul McDonagh claiming last year that no video footage collected could be kept for more than 30-days, a specification spreadsheet revealed the city’s early proposal request for “at least 60-day archival recording capacity.”
The mesh network is directly linked into 30 Port of Seattle surveillance cameras as well, reportedly installed to protect the area from acts of terrorism. Unsurprisingly, residents quickly noted that multiple cameras were facing inward toward Seattle homes, an “accident” later fixed by city officials.
Although the mesh network was deactivated following public outcry, the system is set to be turned back on as the city continues to push all possible surveillance technologies on the public.
Last year, Seattle police announced that several precincts would begin implementing predictive policing software, a program that combines advanced mathematical algorithms with crime data to predict where crimes will occur down to a 500-square-foot area. While the program has thus far remained under the radar, police deny claims by civil liberties advocates that the program will be used directly on individuals.
Although the city has successfully implemented several surveillance programs, residents have stopped several as well. Seattle police were forced to return two drones, purchased with an $82,000 federal grant, after civil liberties activists voiced harsh opposition to the program last year.
Despite the government’s continued claim of needing vast surveillance capabilities to protect the public from terrorism, which kills less people annually than bee stings, fewer and fewer Americans are supporting the notion, especially in light of the government’s public support of Al Qaeda jihadists in Syria.
As Homeland Security continues to flood countless states with tax-payer money for increased surveillance technology, the agency itself is not immune to public pressure either. Wednesday evening, the agency announced the cancellation of its plan to build a national license plate tracking database following a Drudge Report featured exposé by Infowars.
This post originally appeared at Story Leak
Two words: “Robber Barons.”
They’re back.
now that’s just class warfare.
and according to some of the 0.01% bootstrappers, that kind of talk is just the slippery slope to the next kristallnacht.
“In social criticism and economic literature, Robber barons became a derogatory term applied to wealthy and powerful 19th-century American businessmen that appeared in North American periodical literature as early as the August 1870 issue of The Atlantic Monthly[1] magazine.
By the late 1800s, the term was typically applied to businessmen who used what were considered to be exploitative practices to amass their wealth.[2] These practices included exerting control over national resources, accruing high levels of government influence, paying extremely low wages, squashing competition by acquiring competitors in order to create monopolies and eventually raise prices, and schemes to sell stock at inflated prices[2] to unsuspecting investors in a manner which would eventually destroy the company for which the stock was issued and impoverish investors.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robber_baron_%28industrialist%29
“Society is like a stew. If you don’t stir it up every once in a while then a layer of scum floats to the top.” — Edward Abbey
and according to some of the 0.01% bootstrappers, that kind of talk is just the slippery slope to the next kristallnacht.
If the SHTF in China and (wealthy) heads end up on pikes, maybe our own elite might finally “get” that they shouldn’t hog all the marbles.
Student debt may hurt housing recovery by hampering first-time buyers
By Dina ElBoghdady,
Published: February 17
The growing student loan burden carried by millions of Americans threatens to undermine the housing recovery’s momentum by discouraging, or even blocking, a generation of potential buyers from purchasing their first homes.
First-time buyers, the bedrock of the housing market, are not stepping up to fill the void. They have accounted for nearly a third of home purchases over the past year, well below the historical norm, industry figures show. The trend has alarmed some housing experts, who suspect that student loan debt is partly to blame. That debt has tripled from a decade earlier, to more than $1 trillion, while wages for young college graduates have dropped.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/student-debt-may-hurt-housing-recovery-by-hampering-first-time-buyers/2014/02/17/d90c7c1e-94bf-11e3-83b9-1f024193bb84_story.html -
Suppose a close relative to you had circa $100K in new money available to invest over the next year. Where you suggest they park it?
- Domestic Stocks
- International Stocks
- Short-term Bonds
- Intermediate-term Bonds
- Long-term Bonds
- Diversified mix of the above
- Under the mattress
- Other?
- Diversified mix of the above plus REITs
income average in to a mutual fund that’s already diversified like Vanguard Life strategy growth and add REITS
this is a long term investment I’m guessing ?
“- Diversified mix of the above plus REITs”
That’s where the other 90% of the portfolio (that part that is not maturing into cash this year) is already parked!
“…income average in to a mutual fund that’s already diversified like Vanguard Life strategy growth and add REITS”
I like it.
“…this is a long term investment I’m guessing ?”
60+ years of life savings.
They have to invest it this year, or they can wait as long as they want? If they can wait, then I say “wait until something obvious evolves”. Eventually, an obvious investment will present itself.
It matures this year, but there is no need to reinvest in risk investments any time soon. I am going to recommend a “mattress money now” to be gradually reinvested into risk assets, as Bill and cactus recommended.
Under the mattress. At the end of 12 months start shifting $800 per month into a low expense stock index fund. Keep investing like that for ten more years. Reinvest the dividends. At that point you keep it all in the stock index fund.
If a major market crashed happened in those eleven years, consider if it happened in year three. In a year three you put at most 20% of your money into stocks so if the market crashed 50% you would have 90% of your original amount still, plus the little amount of dividends from the stock index fund and any reinvested capital gains. If the market crashed in year 11 and the market crashes 50% that year, the market crashed 50% at that level that year. So you would still have capital gains reinvested over the previous 9 years and the reinvested dividends, so you won’t really be down 50% but down by much less, maybe 30%.
If someone got $100,000 in March of 2009 I would have said to put most of it into stocks, being that the market was down by 50% from its last high.
Thanks. I really appreciate the suggestions from all of you guys.
What I am going to suggest is perhaps a bit more extreme:
- For now, go to “mattress money” (e.g. perhaps Vanguard Intermediate Treasury fund).
- Starting in 12 months, start parking, say, $100K/120 = $800 or so a month into high risk / high return / low expense mutual fund type investments.
- After 11 years, have reallocated all proceeds into risk assets at dollar-cost-averaged price.
Awesome!
The “twelve months” suggestion is for a period of cooling off and giving one time to think and establish a precedence of discipline to hang onto a plan. Also the markets are sky high right now and could crater this year or next year. So you have far less of a chance to lose principle if you wait 12 months or so.
I don’t recommend waiting three years to start. The dive in stocks could bottom in a couple of years and you want to be able to buy in the bottom or just coming out of the bottom.
How risk averse is the relative? Do they need the money anytime soon?
I have a long enough time horizon to take risk and don’t need my retirement for some time (a couple of decades or so).
I moved all my IRAs into Industrial REITs a short time ago (pulled the list of industrial REITs from Vanguard’s REIT index, and added another that I know, and a couple of REITs from the diversified section in the prospectus). I’m invested in 8 REITs (almost all industrial property) rather than an index.
I’m very happy with that decision–I figure the downside risks are relatively low given the fundamentals, and the upside could be 10-20% per annum for 2-3 years.
Vanguard did a study on dollar cost averaging, I think they found that 2/3rds of the time you were better off after a decade simply dumping all the money in the market on day one.
However, if you are concerned about a highly priced market, unsustainable corporate earnings, etc., going to the mattress for a while isn’t a bad idea.
A less flattering reason for the taper might simply be that the insiders have been made whole and sufficiently insulated from the consequences of their actions. Both monetarily and legally. The insiders don’t want a destroyed currency either.
Interesting possibilities there.
Hey Liberace….. are you sure you’re not the GirlBoi from Ipanema?
from the downlow joe archive:
‘my wife hasn’t wanted sex since her mastectomy. so i ended up sleeping with a man.’
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/dear_prudence/2013/09/dear_prudence_my_wife_no_longer_likes_sex_after_cancer_treatment_so_i_cheated.html
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2014-02-20/housing-bubble-ii-what%E2%80%99s-ruining-home-sales-not-weather
http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/02/18/loan-complaints-by-homeowners-rise-once-more/
asleep at the wheel dannyboy? i already posted that article.
but it’s worth a repost, because renters don’t have those problems.
Was not able to check anything yesterday so I may have missed it.
the most important thing is that you are posting an article written by real journalists at the new york times. because that’s where the real journalists live. real journalists also write for the washington post. real journalists do not write for infowars. infowars is scary.
Zima…lol
I was a teenager playing in bands when the chit was popular with all the dive bars… what 1992-3?
The Millionaire Next Door Lives in a Micro Apartment
https://www.mint.com/blog/saving/the-millionaire-next-door-lives-in-a-micro-apartment-0114/
This appeals to the Bill in LA type. I don’t like spending money on my personal environment. I like spending money to invest or to buy insurance (precious metals) or to buy wine - and I can rent wine storage elsewhere.
Micro Apartments where you would maybe share a kitchen but have 120 square feet, your own bathroom/shower and bedroom. In very upscale areas they are expensive per square foot but still cheap. These are a great idea and would be something for a white collar urban 20-something who is more interested in becoming financially independent than to become married with children. Combine that with living in Manhattan or San Francisco and you don’t need to own a car or worry about car maintenance or where to park it.
You would really get the 50 year old home moaners p.o.ed at you when you are 35 and financially independent while they have no savings.