August 15, 2016

In The Eye Of The Hurricane

A report from The Street. “Since the 2008 crash, domestic capital has been scarce, sitting at just $3 billion in 2009 after hitting a whopping $230 billion in 2007. Naturally, EB-5, an investment program allowing foreigners to essentially buy green cards in exchange for a $500,000 investment, along with the creation of 10 U.S. jobs, became a goldmine for real estate developers, with everyone from the World Trade Center’s Silverstein Properties to Extell Development taking a hit of the crack cocaine of real estate financing. (Seriously. Insiders really call it that.)”

“Altogether, EB-5 investments hit close to $5 billion last year, with nearly 90% of investments coming from China. Interestingly, the development coincided with the Chinese invasion of capital to the U.S. In recent years, Chinese investors have picked up iconic trophy assets at record prices with little-to-no regard for short-term yield.”

“Despite its popularity, EB-5 financing could be seeing a slowdown amid concerns of fraud, not to mention rumors of Congress shutting it down next month. This is forcing developers to look elsewhere for cheap capital, namely Israeli bonds. Berko & Associates holds an exclusive partnership with the main bond underwriter in Israel, which co-managed an all-star list of issuances.”

“‘With all the uncertainties surrounding EB-5 and banks tightening, I see it hitting $3 billion in the next six to nine months,’ said Joe Berko, chief executive of Berko & Associates. ‘In the U.S., [limited liability companies] tend to use mezzanine loans, which carry 12% rates or higher. Israeli bonds generally go in the low-single digits.’”

From Bloomberg. “Extell Development Co. just added another layer of risk for its Israeli bondholders in order to buy more time to find construction financing. Extell announced a joint venture with China’s SMI USA to build its planned Central Park Tower project, a $3 billion skyscraper on Manhattan’s Billionaires’ Row. The deal comes with a deadline: If a construction loan isn’t obtained by May 24, SMI can require Extell to buy out its stake in the partnership — about $300 million — with interest.”

“And if Extell fails to do that, SMI can push the developer to sell the entire project, according to documents filed last week on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, where Extell sells debt to investors. Extell gave its Chinese partner a third layer of protection. If SMI is unable to sell the property with no more than a 20 percent discount, it can foreclose on the Extell unit that issued bonds in Israel — allowing SMI to jump in front of Israeli creditors and lay claim to the assets backing their bonds.”

“‘It’s a remote possibility, but it’s a risk that didn’t exist before the Chinese joint venture, Yaniv Saylan, a real estate analyst with Israel Brokerage & Investments, wrote in a report Monday. ‘At the end of the day, another layer of uncertainty and risk was put into these bonds,’ Saylan said by phone from Tel Aviv. ‘If it secures financing, the deal is perfect and everything is alright. If it doesn’t secure financing, we have a big problem.’”

“Extell’s 4.65 percent bonds due in 2019 tumbled to 86 agorot on the shekel Monday to yield 10.4 percent in Tel Aviv today, the biggest drop in nearly two months. Its 6 percent bonds due in 2021 fell to 83 agorot to yield 11 percent.”

“The New York-based company has borrowed 1.65 billion shekels ($434 million) in the Israeli debt market since 2014, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The bonds began to weaken after the company disclosed to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in March that it was forming a joint venture for three New York projects with Scott Rechler’s RXR Realty LLC.”

“Investors are also waiting to hear whether Extell has secured a construction loan for another condo project downtown, One Manhattan Square, Saylan said. The deadline for getting that loan — which is a condition of closing the financing deal with RXR — has been extended since June.”

The Real Deal. “‘What hath God wrought?’ On May 24, 1844, Samuel Morse sent those words in the world’s first telegraph message. By May 24, 2017, though, the industry may be asking: ‘What hath Gary Barnett wrought?’”

“That’s Barnett’s deadline to score a construction loan for Central Park Tower, Extell Development’s $4.4 billion condominium project at 217 West 57th Street. If he can’t by then, SMI USA, his new equity partner on the project, can force him to buy back its $300 million stake, Bloomberg reported Sunday. If he’s unable to, SMI can push him to sell the entire project.”

“Despite making the blood oath, Barnett is, as always, bullish. ‘If I thought there was a more than 1 percent chance of that happening, I wouldn’t put that in there,’ he told Bloomberg. Remember, he did pull it off at One Manhattan Square, and in even more impressive fashion at One57. But this is a very different project, and JDS TRData LogoTINY and PMG, who are building a similarly ostentatious condo nearby, have opted to hold off on sales until the billionaires emerge from hibernation. Banks note that stuff.”

“What a difference a year makes: Investment sales activity hit a record $74.5 billion in 2015, with heaps of trophy deals. Broker commissions (and egos) swelled accordingly. But this year, several factors, not least the death of 421a and global economic uncertainty, led to fewer deals. The Real Deal estimated that broker commissions fell more than 22 percent year-over-year in the first half of 2016. Land deals are way down, and even the hospitality investment sales market, according to JLL’s Jeff Davis, is ‘in the eye of the hurricane.’”

“Brooklyn was hit especially hard, with estimated commissions down more than 30 percent. And that’s after a year in which many of the city’s top commercial firms bet big on the borough.”

“How are brokers dealing? The fly-by-nighters, sources say, are getting out. The resilient ones are making do with a lighter wallet. And while some are stubborn about their compensation on deals — ‘I never take less than 1 percent,’ one prominent broker told me — others are willing to eat humble pie to get deals done.”

From Mansion Global. “The roller coaster that is Manhattan’s luxury housing market took another turn last week when the number of multi-million dollar homes changing hands tumbled 80% in the space of a week. According to Olshan Realty’s latest snapshot of the market, only nine contracts were signed on apartments $4 million and above last week, down from 43 the previous week. However, while that number from two weeks ago represented the highest total since the end of March 2014, the figure was boosted by a slew of signings at two luxury Manhattan buildings.”

“The no. 1 contract last week was 17E at 50 Riverside Boulevard, asking $13.85 million (reduced from $15.35 million when it went on the market in December 2013). The condo has Hudson River views and 4,224 square feet, including a swimming pool off the master bedroom. The apartment was sold by Extell, which developed the building with a robust package of amenities.”




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101 Comments »

Comment by Ben Jones
2016-08-15 17:08:40

‘Extell’s 4.65 percent bonds due in 2019 tumbled to 86 agorot on the shekel Monday to yield 10.4 percent in Tel Aviv today, the biggest drop in nearly two months. Its 6 percent bonds due in 2021 fell to 83 agorot to yield 11 percent.’

How do you say ass-pounding in Hebrew?

Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 18:04:54

Time to buy?

Where else on the planet can you get a 10.4 percent or 11 percent bond yield?

Comment by GuillotineRenovator
2016-08-15 19:16:24

Or stiffed?

Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 20:43:02

That’s the conundrum with high-yield debt. Above-market yields typically come with increased default risk.

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Comment by Ben Jones
2016-08-15 17:11:35

‘At the end of the day, another layer of uncertainty and risk was put into these bonds,’ Saylan said by phone from Tel Aviv. ‘If it secures financing, the deal is perfect and everything is alright. If it doesn’t secure financing, we have a big problem.’

The loans will probably be OK Yaniv. I have it on good authority from an anonymous source on the internet.

Comment by Ben Jones
2016-08-15 17:16:31

‘In the joint statement, the two companies indicated that SMI had invested on preferred basis and was expected “to receive a return of 20 percent to 30 percent per annum over the course of the project.”

Dang Yaniv, you were in the single digits and this guy gave these Chinese a priority position and that kinda grease? Hmm, you might have been had Yaniv. Schlonged even.

Comment by Ben Jones
2016-08-15 17:23:50

‘EB-5, an investment program allowing foreigners to essentially buy green cards in exchange for a $500,000 investment, along with the creation of 10 U.S. jobs, became a goldmine for real estate developers, with everyone from the World Trade Center’s Silverstein Properties to Extell Development taking a hit of the crack cocaine of real estate financing. (Seriously. Insiders really call it that.)’

‘Despite its popularity, EB-5 financing could be seeing a slowdown amid concerns of fraud, not to mention rumors of Congress shutting it down next month. This is forcing developers to look elsewhere for cheap capital, namely Israeli bonds. Berko & Associates holds an exclusive partnership with the main bond underwriter in Israel, which co-managed an all-star list of issuances.’

‘With all the uncertainties surrounding EB-5 and banks tightening, I see it hitting $3 billion in the next six to nine months,’ said Joe Berko, chief executive of Berko & Associates.’

I don’t know Joe. With the schlonging Yaniv just took, it might not work out that way.

Comment by Mike
2016-08-15 21:16:38

I’m not a Trump supporter. I’m not a Hillary supporter either.

That said, you know that Khisr Khan guy who went after Trump at the DNC and got all “constitution” on him? The gold star dad who could have grieved in private, but instead chose to use a platform for politics? He turned out to be an EB-5 lawyer.

This isn’t to say that he doesn’t have a right to a political view. Everyone does. But boy, his profession should have been disclosed.

I told the guys at work… this guy is going to vanish in a heartbeat. Trump doesn’t want anyone reminded of how he foolishly attacked Khan’s wife for no reason. Hillary doesn’t want exposure about Khan’s EB-5 career and the fact that he worked at a law firm for ten years that provides services to the Clintons.

He’s vanished from the public eye.

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Comment by Dani W
2016-08-16 10:33:54

Thant’s ridiculous. According to Wikipedia, he became a US citizen in 1986.

 
 
 
Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 18:08:09

Schlanged?

 
 
 
Comment by Senior Housing Analyst
2016-08-15 17:16:19

Arlington, TX Housing Prices Plunge 7% YoY On Rising Mortgage Defaults

http://www.zillow.com/arlington-heights-fort-worth-tx/home-values/

Comment by CalifoH20
2016-08-15 18:05:08

Ben - I vote to have this gal/guy and these links banned. SHA is clogging up the blog with nonsense.

Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 18:09:09

I like getting the daily price decline news.

Why don’t you like to be informed?

Comment by CalifoH20
2016-08-15 19:18:48

spot on

just feels like ads to get past

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Comment by phony scandals
2016-08-15 18:09:58

Do you feel you don’t have the room you need to express your views?

Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 18:30:01

Exactly. The HBB is getting too crowded for both CalifoH20 and SHA to post…

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Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-15 18:31:53

Censorship is fffffffrrrrraaaaaaaaaaud.

 
Comment by A Comrade of Proven Worth
2016-08-15 18:42:50

Agree with CaliforH20 on this one. Most of the “XX housing prices plunge X%” are revealed to be BS if you click on the link. People who willfully post false and misleading data aren’t adding anything to the HBB.

Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-15 18:44:37

If that’s true, prove it.

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Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 18:47:28

You’re clicking on the wrong link.

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Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:57:26

Just keep clicking on the links he posts, and you’ll see how false most of his claims are. Sorry, I have zero tolerance for anyone who openly dissembles on the HBB.

 
Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-15 19:03:03

Data my friend. And there’s plenty more coming.

Oakton, VA(DC Metro) Housing Prices Tank 7% YoY
http://www.zillow.com/oakton-va/home-values/

 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 19:12:23

The link shows a -.4% drop. Yawn.

 
Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-15 19:18:33

Professor is right. You’re clicking on the wrong link.

Our good friend Karen put together this tutorial for you.

https://snag.gy/m5EzRB.jpg

 
Comment by Mike
2016-08-15 21:19:16

The only thing I find misleading about it is the fact that most neighboring areas to his zip codes of choice have seen positive gains. So are their median price decreased around? Yes. But when you go to the data table, there are generally more increases to be found.

 
Comment by oxide
2016-08-16 06:52:17

“Oakton, VA(DC Metro) Housing Prices Tank 7% YoY

Depends on what you’re looking for. From the same link:

Single Family Price YoY: Tank 9%
Single Family Price/Ft2 YoY: Skyrocket 6%

Condo/Co-op Price YoY: Tank 37%
Condo/Co-op Price/Ft2 YoY: Tank(?) 1.5%

And that can vary +/- 10% if you are *ahem* judicious in picking which months to use for YoY. HA should be taken as seriously as Lot’s wife.

 
Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-16 08:47:31

Oakton, VA Houses tanked and condos tanked.

There’s always the town adjacent to Oakton.

Vienna, VA Housing Prices Crater 7% YoY

http://www.zillow.com/vienna-va/home-values/

 
Comment by Tarara Boomdea
2016-08-16 20:05:26

This is how I visualize using drumminj’s excellent Joshua Tree extension (video clip NSFW):

Scarface quits his job

I think we should all try to be cool 8)

 
 
Comment by Ben Jones
2016-08-15 22:09:10

‘Agree with CaliforH20 on this one.’

Hands up on who wants to ban you?

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Comment by Karen
2016-08-15 23:00:48

Ban the whole lot of them.

 
Comment by phony scandals
2016-08-16 05:12:05

“Ban the whole lot of them.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkXjDTRqKcs - 232k -

 
Comment by ibbots
2016-08-16 06:05:51

Like George Carlin said, it is pretty easy to change the station if you don’t like what they’re saying I.e. it is pretty easy to scroll past posts you don’t wanna read.

I get banned over at mother Jones on a weekly basis…geez, those people value their echo chamber. You know you can register a bunch of different handles using one email? You can add a + sign to a Gmail and it still goes to one address e.g. joe.smith@gmail is the same as joe.smith+mj@gmail.

 
Comment by drumminj
2016-08-16 20:44:58

This is how I visualize using drumminj’s excellent Joshua Tree extension (video clip NSFW):

Lol. Never seen that clip before, but that’s hilarious. And about the same way I look at it :)

 
Comment by Tarara Boomdea
2016-08-16 20:58:36

With Ben’s new format, it’s more helpful than ever (though I’ve never blocked anyone, except ABQ Dan, briefly.) I learn from everyone here.

I love that movie, especially that scene. God knows I wanted to do that at many jobs in my “yout”. Never had the right temperament for working with the public.

 
 
Comment by oxide
2016-08-16 06:37:12

I would first like to thank Karen for providing the tutorial on how to show the relevant data.

In general, HA is providing true data, but it’s misleading data. For example:

1. The data is usually pretty erratic due to few transactions, which makes for unreliable trending.

2. Data may not be seasonally adjusted. It’s not always YoY.

3. Data is for “all homes,” not equivalent home types. An uptick in 2-bed condo sales can crash a median price, even if the prices of 3/2 SFH are still rising.

4. Price/sq ft seems to rise reliably even if prices do not. See #3.

5. It’s well known that foreclosures need $30-$50K to be made even marginally inhabitable. Of course that will drop the median price, especially if transactions are few. Nothing new here.

6. Overall stats do not take into account the overall condition or age of the dwellings. For example, I checked one of HA links months ago in a small town and found that the price of homes dropped, but price/sq ft rose, on very few transactions. This was due to the opening of a shiny new condo complex opening for sale. 5(6?) of this comparatively high-priced condos sold, which was enough to overshadow the sales of the older condos and SFH inventory.

7. The data is cherry-picked anyway.

So kick back with a little Carlin (or Chris Rock) and chill.

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Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-16 08:36:25

Are you sure?

Massachusetts Housing Prices Fall 21% Statewide

http://www.zillow.com/ma/home-values/

 
Comment by Karen
2016-08-16 12:52:47

Tap dancing = what many posters on this blog do best

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y60nqyhwYoM

 
 
 
 
 
Comment by azdude
2016-08-15 17:19:05

“Investors may be dazzled by the earnings-per-share gains that buybacks can achieve, but who really wants to own a company in the process of liquidating itself? Maybe it’s time to ask harder questions of corporate executives about why their companies aren’t deploying their precious resources more effectively elsewhere.

Even worse, buybacks can be a way for executives to make a company’s earnings per share look better because the purchases reduce the amount of stock it has outstanding. And when per-share earnings are a sizable component of executive pay, the motivation to do buybacks only increases.”

http://davidstockmanscontracorner.com/the-illusion-behind-stock-buybacks-a-simple-test/

This sh@t reeks so bad of stock manipulation.

Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 17:52:25

From 1934 until 1982, companies were barred from buying back their own stocks on the open market, because regulators correctly foresaw the level of fraud and manipulation that this practice would cause. However, as the population became more dumbed down and America went from capitalist to a full-blown crony capitalist plutocracy, corporations used their control of the Republicrat dupoply to rig the game in their favor and against small investors. The rest, as they say, is history.

http://moneymorning.com/2015/11/09/its-time-to-fix-the-stock-buyback-con-game/

Comment by azdude
2016-08-15 18:21:49

nice buddy

U know its a scam

Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:44:00

The fraud has become universal and all-pervasive.

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Comment by azdude
2016-08-15 18:33:15

“But now companies repurchase shares because they’re unable to organically grow earnings by reinvesting cash back into the business. When managers see declining return on capital from operations, or when they see no worthwhile mergers or acquisitions to grow core business lines, they turn to buybacks. They can financially engineer higher earnings per share without boosting gross earnings or net income.”

NO WONDER SERVICE JOBS HAVE BEEN THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN.

 
 
Comment by Rental Watch
2016-08-15 22:51:08

So, if a company is generating cash (they aren’t borrowing to buyback stock), and it wishes to return it to shareholders, are you better off as a shareholder if they buy back stock? Or if they pay it as a dividend?

I’ll take a steady and disciplined buyback program all day long.

With the dividend, you don’t have a choice on when you pay your tax on that capital–in the state of CA, you lose 1/3 of the money to tax, and if you would have reinvested the dividends anyway, well, you only get to put 2/3’s of the money back to work.

With buybacks, you only pay tax on that capital when you sell the stock (which, with a steady buyback program should have increased over a period of years). You get to put 100% of the money back to work.

If however, you are buying back stock with debt, and not increasing book value per share over time, then yes, pure manipulation.

Comment by Lurker
2016-08-16 09:07:07

One more voice in the chorus of capital gains over income.

The problem is that to realize any real world value from buybacks other than on paper, you have to sell the stock or borrow against your holdings. Dividends pay cash money for you to either reinvest or spend without you incurring debt and you can keep the stock, which hopefully over time will continue to pay dividends and maybe appreciate. What you’re talking about, deferring taxes on a paper gain so 100% can be put to work, is really just using tax arbitrage for leverage.

Is it any wonder our economy has stagnated for years when policy continually favors your view - paper gains, tax manipulation, and either debt-based or principal-eating unlocking of funds?

One way is organic growth with income today with the possibility of more income and reasonable capital gains in the future, simultaneously. The other is one-time outsized paper gains, leverage, tax arbitrage and eating into principal to spend any money in the real world. Which path leads to a sustainable, broad-based and solid economy, and which leads to a new Gilded Age plutocracy?

 
 
 
Comment by Ben Jones
2016-08-15 17:49:59

‘While Extell is in charge of all day-to-day matters on the project, SMI’s approval must be sought for “significant decisions,” according to the filings, written in Hebrew.’

“It tells you that to build high-end condos in New York today, you need to give more loan security to investors,” said Ori Eisenberg, a partner with New York-based One Ha’am, a real estate finance advisory firm focused on U.S. companies raising capital in Israel. “It used to be that equity investors would take less control and less guarantees and share a bigger part of the upside. Here, it’s the opposite.”

‘The agreement buys the partners more time to find financing, after the $285 million senior mortgage on the project, held by Blackstone Group LP, came due on Aug. 9. The joint venture will use some of its proceeds to pay $50 million of the outstanding debt and extend the remainder of the loan to December, the filings show.’

‘The building, at 225 W. 57th St., is slated to be New York’s tallest residential property, at 1,550 feet (472 meters), and will house the city’s first Nordstrom store at its base. The tower has already reached 300 feet, Barnett said in the interview.’

‘Extell expects to start unit sales later this year and to complete construction in 2019, according to a statement last week announcing the partnership with SMI.’

‘the $285 million senior mortgage on the project, held by Blackstone Group LP, came due on Aug. 9′

You were kind of over a barrel, huh Gary?

 
Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 17:59:50

“The roller coaster that is Manhattan’s luxury housing market took another turn last week when the number of multi-million dollar homes changing hands tumbled 80% in the space of a week.”

How many weeks in the entire previous history of the Manhattan luxury housing market have they seen an 80% tumble in the number of multi-million dollar homes changing hands compared to the prior week? I’m guessing the answer lies on the range from 0 to 1.

The music is stopping again, folks; time to batten down the hatches and start a hopin’ and a prayin’.

Comment by azdude
2016-08-15 18:23:23

PRINCIPAL REDUCTIONS R N THE PIPELINE!

Comment by Professor Bear
2016-08-15 18:31:01

On multi-million dollar Manhattan luxury homes?

 
 
 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:12:21

Appointing Comrades of Proven Worth (D) to positions of public trust is always a mistake, every time, and opens the door to all manner of sleaze and corruption. Especially when you let them slither into the judiciary or law enforcement positions.

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20160816_Jury__A_G__Kane_guilty_of_perjury__obstruction__all_other_charges.html

 
Comment by Senior Housing Analyst
2016-08-15 18:19:11

Boca Raton, FL Housing Prices Plunge 6% YoY; US Housing Demand Plummets To 20 Year Low

http://www.zillow.com/boca-raton-fl/home-values/

 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:20:51

Yellen the Felon and her “No Billionaire Left Behind” monetary policies and insane money-printing are driving rents up to unaffordable levels for the 99%. Yet oddly, these exorbidant rate hikes don’t show up in the Fed’s cooked inflation statistics.

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/08/15/the-salary-you-need-to-afford-rent-in-10-of-the-largest-us-cities.html

 
Comment by The Selfish Hoarder
2016-08-15 18:25:02

Wow the EB-5 stuff is essentially rewarding the communist party of China members (who are the wealthiest Chinese due to their influence peddling to become the top dogs in businesses).

The people who should be rewarded would be the victims of communism shouldn’t they?

Comment by A Comrade of Proven Worth
2016-08-15 18:33:47

Citizen! Such subversive questions and attitudes will not be tolerated by the Comrades of Proven Worth! Doing the People’s Work is an exalted business and the Comrades of Proven Worth who toil under the glorious banners of socialism and collectivism for the masses are entitled to a fitting reward for their dedication! Do you also hold such untoward views for the Comrades of Proven Worth and collectivist kleptocrats, er, servants of the masses, such as Comrade Hillary and the DNC? Clearly, citizen, you manifest a psychiatric condition known as Defiant Oppositional Personality Disorder, which can only be corrected in one of our internment camps when we reach our permanent Democrat supermajory and we appoint the judges and law enforcement officials. Forward!

Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:48:02

The no-talent daughter of the late and unlamented socialist leader of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, has not coincidentally amassed a fortune from being among the Comrades of Proven Worth with a free hand to loot the country blind in the name of “redistributing the wealth.” Coming soon to Hillary Clinton’s America.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3192933/Hugo-Chavez-s-ambassador-daughter-Venezuela-s-richest-woman-according-new-report.html

 
 
 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:28:43

The botched abortion known as Obamacare just keeps getting better and better. Forward!

http://www.businessinsider.com/aetna-ditching-70-of-obamacare-business-2016-8

Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-15 18:38:36

There is no greater government failure, no greater fraud perpetrated on the US Citizenry than ObamaCareless. At least not since Medicare.

Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:52:57

Would you deny the sheeple the reaming they voted for?

Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-15 19:05:38

Data my friend. Stick with the data.

Garden City(Long Island), NY Housing Prices Plummet 17% YoY

http://www.zillow.com/garden-city-ny/home-values/

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Comment by CalifoH20
2016-08-15 19:14:08

Why don’t they (congress) fix it?

Got Blue Cross?

Comment by Rental Watch
2016-08-15 22:55:03

“Why don’t they (congress) fix it?”

Because Obama didn’t have the wisdom to offer any sort of compromise in the ACA to get GOP buy-in to the program, and so politically, they have no reason to fix the ACA. They politically have reason to bad-mouth it, scrap it, and offer their own solution.

That, and it may just be such a bloated piece of crap of legislation that it is beyond fixing.

Comment by oxide
2016-08-16 07:07:54

I call BS. Republicans would never have bought into the program unless Obama “compromised” away the entire thing away, which last I time checked, isn’t compromise.

Yeah yeah, I know: “tort reform” and “sell insurance across state lines.” But if these were such great ideas, why didn’t the Republicans introduce bills in the House or Senate to incorporate them to Obamacare later on? Instead, they spent their energy on 50+ votes for wholesale repeal. So either they weren’t great ideas, or Republicans weren’t going to compromise at all.

Have Republicans offered their own solution yet? Oh, right, Paul Ryan’s Vouchercare. Everybody saw through that.

I’m not too worried. The insurance companies aren’t doing any favors by complaining that they aren’t making enough profit off the sick.

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Comment by Senior Housing Analyst
2016-08-15 18:47:36

North Bethesda, MD Housing Prices Nosedive 11% YoY On Ballooning Housing Inventory

http://www.zillow.com/north-bethesda-md/home-values/

 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 18:51:40

More shell games and manipulation in our rigged, manipulated “markets.” But as always, the SEC will pretend to investigate, levy a slap-on-the-wrist fine amounting to a tiny fraction of the perpetrators’ ill-gotten gains, then absolve the perps from any criminal charges and allow the fraud to continue. If you like your plutocracy, you can keep your plutocracy.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-15/a-35-billion-stock-was-just-halted-on-manipulation-concerns

 
Comment by Senior Housing Analyst
2016-08-15 19:07:16

Hopewell Township, NJ Housing Prices Crater 6% YoY As Mortgage Defaults Skyrocket

http://www.zillow.com/hopewell-township-nj/home-values/

 
Comment by Senior Housing Analyst
2016-08-15 19:33:38

Miami, FL Real Estate and Homes for Sale, 24,103

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/Miami_FL

Miami, FL Price Reduced Homes for Sale, 8,707

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/Miami_FL/show-price-reduced

36% of all Miami, FL sellers reduced their price at least once.

 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 19:52:40

Precious metals surging as investors belatedly figure out we’ve got Keynesian fraudsters running our central banks.

http://www.kitco.com/market/

 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-15 20:06:14

But…but…The Narrative said that this was Trump’s fault. As if people aren’t 100% responsible and accountable for their own actions.

Apparently there has been some localized tensions in NYC between Latinos and Muslims. And now it’s come to this. While the Fed’s “No Billionaire Left Behind” monetary policies rig the system to enable the already super-wealthy to amass even more money and power, the proles who are barely making ends meet are increasingly stressed out and volatile as they compete for scarce jobs and resources. Does anyone not see how incredibly dangerous and destablizing this income inequality and “us and them” mentality is for society?

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/suspect-charged-with-murder-in-queens-imams-slaying-2016-08-15?link=MW_latest_news

 
Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 03:23:08

Nice, so we charge $500,000 per head/ VISA, they open a new Golden Wok or Number 1 Chinese , bring in some family, buy a couple properties with escaped capital, and everyone wins right? “I’ll take the pork lo mein and crispy duck”.

Comment by ibbots
2016-08-16 06:10:22

That program started in 08 or 09 if I’m not mistaken. It is well past time to shut it down

 
 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-16 03:26:13

Someone tell me again why the US participates in and funds the deeply corrupt and ineffectual United Nations.

http://libertyblitzkrieg.com/2016/08/15/the-u-n-and-u-s-embassy-stand-down-as-american-aid-workers-beaten-and-raped-in-sudan/

 
Comment by Palm Beach County
2016-08-16 03:29:53

Senior Housing Analyst: FYI….Zillow sends out emails to all people posting their houses for sale that they should give a price reduction in the price listing (no matter how small or large) because that tactic increases the chances of a quick sale. So, actually, homes that have only been on the market for a very short amount of time may show a ‘reduction’ in price.

Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 04:16:45

Ah, now they’re getting into “retail” psychology? Maybe list it higher at first (MSRP), only to “discount” it to the level that still nets profit?

 
 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-16 03:37:18

Yellen the Felon sees no bubbles. The SEC turns a blind eye to outright scams. Congress is captured and co-opted. What could possibly go wrong?

http://wolfstreet.com/2016/08/15/neuromama-consensual-hallucination-how-can-stock-buyers-be-this-stupid/

Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 04:18:21

You probably saw that zerohedge article on the Congresswomen from SoCal. She was a public school teacher for most of her career, runs for Congress, and then all of the sudden is worth $10 million. The focus on the article was her quick stock trades that were each $15,000+. Lots of risky play there, is she the greatest stock market mind, or simply an insider…hmmm….

Comment by redmondjp
2016-08-16 10:23:32

It’s perfectly legal for congress to insider trade, just not for Martha Stewart, you, or me.

 
 
 
Comment by Palm Beach County
2016-08-16 03:42:41

Question: Do housing prices and the stock market run ‘hand in hand’?

“The U.S. stock market currently is more overvalued than it was at almost every bull market peak over the past 100 years.”

Opinion: Here’s how you know the stock market is hugely overvalued

By Mark Hulbert
Published: Aug 16, 2016 5:18 a.m. ET

6 strong reasons why this bull market is on weak legs

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/heres-how-you-know-the-stock-market-is-hugely-overvalued-2016-08-16

Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 04:23:04

Simply because corporate earnings are at their lowest.

 
 
Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-16 04:12:54

There is an unconfirmed report that the Ban Van was seen wheeling around the hbb neighborhood last night hauling a trailer load of RageCages.

Comment by oxide
2016-08-16 07:49:56

Last night? Did I miss something?

Comment by The Crushin' Russian
2016-08-16 08:33:55

lol@donk.

 
 
 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-16 04:15:02

It’s beginning to dawn on investors that despite the incessant jawboning of Yellen’s flying monkeys, the Fed will NEVER raise rates unless/until its hand is forced by the bond market. NIRP, soon to be ZIRP, is a highly lucrative swindle against the middle class and forces them to play in Wall Street’s rigged casino; hence the Fed’s War on Savers will only be escalated as the Fed turns us into the next Weimar Republic.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-08-16/tumbling-dollar-sends-usdjpy-under-100-oil-over-46-gold-spikes-futures-flat

 
Comment by frankie
2016-08-16 05:00:17

Yesterday I bought a ticket to an aqua park on the internet best price 147 euros, at the hotel 120 euros but cash only, credit card machine was out of order. The ticket however said 147 euros, perhaps the Greeks have a thing about taxes ;)

Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 05:23:41

Gotta love the ethnic businesses in places like Boston (Italian bakeries, Chinese restaurants, Greek gyro places) that are cash only. I wonder how much they are hiding?

Comment by palmetto
2016-08-16 05:49:58

I dunno, but more power to them.

 
 
 
Comment by frankie
2016-08-16 05:00:24

Yesterday I bought a ticket to an aqua park on the internet best price 147 euros, at the hotel 120 euros but cash only, credit card machine was out of order. The ticket however said 147 euros, perhaps the Greeks have a thing about taxes ;)

 
Comment by azdude
2016-08-16 05:16:58

Dow 20k for clinton!

Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 06:07:51

Or 10k for Trump, Lol.

 
 
Comment by Senior Housing Analyst
2016-08-16 05:37:03

Chesire, CT Housing Prices Tumble 11% YoY As Housing Demand Tanks

http://www.zillow.com/cheshire-ct/home-values/

 
Comment by Palm Beach County
2016-08-16 05:54:30

The Pooh-Poohed Doom-and-Gloom Scenario for Miami’s Condo Bubble and its Lenders Has Arrived
by Wolf Richter • August 15, 2016

“The market could get scary.”

http://wolfstreet.com/2016/08/15/doom-and-gloom-scenario-for-miami-condo-bubble-bust-and-its-banks/

 
Comment by palmetto
2016-08-16 06:03:29

Well, well, well, what have we here? It seems that Mexico’s new auto plants (that left the US for cheaper labor) can’t find enough workers for their chitty factory jobs. What happened? They worr harr, they do harr worr!

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-08-15/mexico-labor-shortage

Why, you’d think there’d be all sorts of folks from Mexico scrambling back across the border for those jobs. What gives?

Comment by Jesus Navas is my Lord Savior
2016-08-16 06:16:26

Maybe they need to pay more?

Comment by palmetto
2016-08-16 06:23:49

Why pay more when they’re offering free cowboy boots? Seriously, that’s one of the sweeteners offered to take one of those jobs. Free cowboy boots.

 
 
Comment by phony scandals
2016-08-16 06:36:38

“Of course, the groundwork for the shift of auto production to Mexico was laid with the passage of NAFTA in 1993 by former President Bill Clinton (a fairly inconvenient fact that Hillary would prefer to forget).”

That’s not what her commercials say.

Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-16 15:33:59

Hillary has a tremendous advantage with her commercials and slogans: her supporters are gullible imbeciles, of the same mental caliber as the functional retards of 2008 who thought a candidate backed by George Soros and Goldman Sachs would bring “Hope and change we can believe in.”

 
 
Comment by dandroidz
2016-08-16 07:01:17

It pays more to shovel cocaine and herb across the border. Who wants to build F150s? I take that back I know a good handful of kids whos parents lost their jobs with Ford when the company left Norfolk, VA.

 
 
Comment by phony scandals
2016-08-16 06:27:39

“I’ve never been treated badly in life because of my skin color or my gender,” Kaine said.”

Tim Kaine has obviously never been to the Hood without a Secret Service Detail or armed guards.

Clark gets lost in the hood - YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwBoa-NbNL8 - 401k -

Kaine Slips: White People Need to Be Minority

by Edmund Kozak
12 Aug 2016 at 1:48 PM

“I’ve never been treated badly in life because of my skin color or my gender,” Kaine said. “I think the burden is on those of us who are in the majority — Caucasians. We have to put ourselves in a place where we are the minority.”

 
Comment by Palm Beach County
2016-08-16 06:57:49

July housing data for Palm Beach County…lots of statistics etc. I don’t see any slow down. What do you see? Homes selling for 95% of list is discouraging….

http://media.cmgdigital.com/shared/news/documents/2016/07/27/06-2016_Palm_Beach_County_Single_Family_Homes.pdf

 
Comment by phony scandals
2016-08-16 07:13:44

Washington Post Reporter Sanitizes Story of Black Mob Violence, Gets Exposed in Comments

This is why leftist news sites across the web are shutting down comment sections entirely

Chris Menahan | Information Liberation - August 16, 2016

A Washington Post writer sent to report on a triple stabbing at an Agricultural Fair in the multicultural haven of Montgomery County, Maryland had her report sh*t on in the comments by the witness she quoted in the article.

Reporter Katherine Arcement wrote the following under the headline “Three stabbed during fight at Montgomery County Agricultural Fair“:

Three people were taken to a trauma center Friday after a fight between two groups at the Montgomery County Agricultural Fair.

About 10:40 p.m., officers came upon the groups fighting, police said. Everybody ran except for three people with stab wounds, which police said were not thought to be life-threatening.

[…]Mark Fennel, who was at the fair, said he saw several dozen young men sprinting through the main throughway, followed by police.

“I’ve never seen anything like that,” Fennel said Saturday. “Last night was an unsafe environment for kids.”

The article is short, read it yourself, I cut none of the relevant information out.

Mark Fennel, whom she quoted, went and posted in the comments what actually happened.

It’s currently the top comment on the article:

This is why leftist news sites across the web are shutting down comment sections entirely — despite it destroying their communities and lowering their readership and revenue. Readers debunk their their BS narratives at light speed!

Comment by redmondjp
2016-08-16 10:26:20

You are absolutely correct. Often times, I skip right to the comments section of the article, as that is where some posters with insider information actually report what is really happening.

 
Comment by Raymond K Hessel
2016-08-16 15:31:07

The comment sections of the Oligopoly media outlets were the only sections worth reading, but that kind of truthiness represents a mortal danger to The Narrative and so are being systematically closed to comments.

 
 
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