Mortgage Mods: Treasury Wants Proof up Front

From HousingWire:

Treasury Changes Guidelines for Getting Borrowers into HAMP

The U.S. Treasury Department and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) changed guidelines on how servicers introduce borrowers into the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) to go into effect June 1, 2010.

Servicers began ramping up efforts to gather more documents after the November HAMP numbers revealed a little more than 31,000 permanent modifications. Herb Allison, the assistant secretary for the Treasury said that at the program’s outset, the goal was to reach as many people as possible and obtain documentation during the trial period.

Effective for all trial period plans with effective dates on or after June 1, 2010, a servicer can only evaluate a borrower for HAMP after receiving an initial package that includes a request for modification and affidavit (RMA) form; the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 4506T-EZ form, which gives servicers the ability to pull the borrower’s tax return; and two pay stubs from the borrower for proof of income.

From USA Today:

Want a loan modification? Bring documents

Homeowners applying for mortgage modifications will soon have to provide paperwork upfront showing that they qualify.

The new documentation process is aimed at getting homeowners more rapidly into permanent modifications with lower monthly payments.

To accept homeowners into the program, many lenders accepted borrowers by taking proof of income over the phone. Getting the documentation needed to get into a permanent modification then took time, lengthening the process.

Under the change, homeowners will provide the documentation upfront.

“Were there some struggles with documentation? Absolutely. Are we learning from those lessons? Absolutely,” says Phyllis Caldwell, who heads the Treasury’s Homeownership Preservation Office.

Wage earners will need:

•Two pay stubs.

•An electronic form that allows a servicer to pull up a tax return online.

•A request for modification that includes a hardship affidavit.

From the WSJ:

Paperwork Eased in Loan-Modification Program

The Obama administration is trying to simplify the paperwork for people seeking lower home-mortgage payments in an effort to avert more foreclosures.

The Treasury outlined new guidelines Thursday aimed at streamlining requirements for mortgage relief under the administration’s Home Affordable Modification Program launched a year ago.

The guidelines specify that borrowers must provide three items to loan servicers, the companies that collect mortgage payments: a form requesting a loan modification, authorization for the servicer to seek tax information from the Internal Revenue Service and evidence of income, such as two recent pay stubs. Previously, some servicers have asked borrowers to fax in copies of their tax returns. Borrowers sometimes couldn’t find the needed tax forms or complained that servicers repeatedly lost material faxed to them.

The previous documentation requirements were “somewhat overwhelming” for some borrowers, says Morgan McCarty, head of mortgage servicing at Regions Financial Corp., a banking company based in Birmingham, Ala.

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472 Responses to Mortgage Mods: Treasury Wants Proof up Front

  1. grim says:

    The previous documentation requirements were “somewhat overwhelming” for some borrowers,

    Which is bs, since HAMP has required this same level of documentation since September, 2009.

    https://www.hmpadmin.com/portal/docs/news/hampupdate092909.pdf

    All borrowers needed to pony up was a tax return or a 4506-T transcript. I believe this was clarified in a directive again in October of last year. As if somehow, committing fraud by lying on a loan app (fraud-for-housing), is somehow less serious than committing fraud for a refi. Surprised some entrepreneur isn’t selling a HAMP doc kits on the web.

    With legions of low-doc, no-doc, and stated income borrowers defaulting, what does the government expect? These folks couldn’t prove income when they purchased, you think they can do it now?

  2. grim says:

    From CNBC:

    More Foreclosures in 2010 Mean Opportunities for Bargain Hunters

    As housing experts continue to debate when or whether housing will finally turn around for good in 2010, the one thing most agree upon is that foreclosures will continue or even outpace last year.

    And that will mean more opportunities for bargain hunters.

    A full third of home sales in December were of “distressed properties,” so either foreclosure or short sales. The latter is when the bank agrees to allow a troubled borrower to sell the property for less than the value of the mortgage.

    “Overall, foreclosures in 2010 will be just as high as we saw in 2009,” says Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors. “But the key factor is whether the buyers are ready to purchase distressed sale properties, and right now we are seeing that they are.”

  3. grim says:

    From the Record:

    State mediation program aids Bergen, Passaic homeowners facing foreclosure

    A mediation program run by the state judiciary gave relief last year to 131 homeowners in Bergen and Passaic counties who faced foreclosure, but it’s just a small bright spot in a bleak economic downturn.

    The New Jersey Judiciary Foreclosure Mediation Program worked with 242 homeowners in Passaic and 298 in Bergen in the program last year. Not all — or even most — saved their homes. In Passaic, 74 cases settled one way or another. That means that either loans were modified or, at the very least, the lender gave the homeowner extra time to voluntarily vacate the premises. In Bergen, 57 cases settled.

    For those the program is able to help, it is a godsend. In November, RealtyTrac reported that foreclosure filings were up 18 percent nationwide and 65 percent in New Jersey from a year ago.

    Nationwide, one in every 417 households received a foreclosure filing in November. In New Jersey, one in every 379 households received a filing during the month. In Bergen County, the number was one in every 455, a 135 percent increase from November 2008; in Passaic, it was one in every 289, a 65 percent increase.

  4. grim says:

    (cont)

    Hanrahan said more and more people are coming to sessions with representation, either a mortgage counselor or an attorney. It makes the process go much more smoothly, for those who can afford it or find representation through non-profit organizations. (Sources for such counsel are offered in paperwork sent to program applicants, he added.)

    Not all the endings are happy, though. “There are some real sad stories,” Hanrahan said. “People are unemployed, or underemployed, through no fault of their own, because businesses have cut back. That’s really heart-wrenching.

    “And we’re finding that when someone doesn’t have a job, there is little to no hope of something being worked out. There really isn’t much the bank can do.”

  5. grim says:

    From the Star Ledger:

    Christie calls $313K pay for N.J. sewer exec ‘outrageous’

    Gov. Chris Christie said it is “outrageous” that a New Jersey regional sewer authority official receives a $313,000 annual salary, according to a report on NorthJersey.com.

    The report said Christie during a news conference Wednesday revealed the salary of Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission Executive Director Bryan Christiansen, who is the highest-paid employee in the state’s pension system. “We will figure out a way to try to fix it,” Christie said about the executive whose agency serves 1.3 million people in northern New Jersey.

  6. grim says:

    From the Philly Inquirer:

    N.J. audit finds waste in A.C. finances

    Atlantic City’s finances are riddled with “pervasive” government waste, including illegal patronage jobs and $8 million in unspent bond proceeds dating back more than a decade, according to a state audit released yesterday.

    The 53-page report by Comptroller A. Matthew Boxer found areas of “widespread weakness” in the city’s fiscal practices and internal oversight.

    The audit “raises extraordinary concerns” about the city’s management, Gov. Christie said at a news conference. If Atlantic City “doesn’t get its act together,” he said, “it’s very difficult for the State of New Jersey to encourage more growth and more development” there.

    The report, which examined Atlantic City’s financial management between January 2007 and December 2009, cited irregularities including the employment of 11 City Council aides with annual salaries of $22,000 to $60,000. According to state law, the resort – which has a population of less 40,000 – is too small for its nine council members to have paid aides.

    One aide told auditors that her primary job was to scan a local paper for the obituaries of ward residents so the councilman could send condolence letters.

    The audit, which was begun under the Corzine administration, found that eight of the council members were assigned city-owned vehicles, but that no records were kept to establish that they were used for government business.

  7. grim says:

    From the Daily Record:

    Fare hikes could be coming for NJ Transit

    NJ Transit train and bus riders could face a fare increase later this year, warned a report by Gov. Chris Christie’s Transportation Transition subcommittee.

    That report said NJ Transit has a $200 million budget gap to close, due to lost revenues. The report warned the gap can’t be closed with cost cutting measures, as the agency did to cover a $62 million aid cut from the state, which avoided a fare increase this fiscal year.

    NJ Transit “cannot realistically balance the budget through internal actions alone,” the report said, citing a loss of a one-time shot of $70 million in stimulus money, $80 million in federal highway money and a continued reduction in state aid and NJ Transit revenue earnings lost due to the economy and a dip in ridership.

    “NJ Transit is working on a number of alternatives . . . which could include any combination of service cuts, fare increases and new revenue sources,” the report said.

  8. One day closer to oblivion.

    Learn to love it.

  9. freedy says:

    Grim: the notes about prove to me.
    i probably could have stayed in my condo
    for at least another year without paying the
    mortgage or Heloc.

  10. meter says:

    Freeloader, nobody gives a rats a$$ about your crappy condo.

  11. grim says:

    Absolutely, freed, you didn’t even get to Sheriff sale time, did you?

    Check out:

    http://salesweb.civilview.com/SalesListing.aspx

    Case: F-08000632

    Status History
    Status
    Date
    Open
    11/25/2008
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    12/09/2008
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    12/23/2008
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    1/06/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    1/13/2009
    Adjourned Court
    2/17/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    4/07/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    5/05/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    6/09/2009
    Adjourned Court
    6/23/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    7/21/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    8/18/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    9/22/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    10/20/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    12/15/2009
    Adjourned Plaintiff
    2/09/2010

  12. serenity now says:

    RE #5
    Christie may reduce Bryan Christiansen’s take home pay-
    but on the bright side Bryan can apply for a mortgage
    reduction!

  13. freedy says:

    hey met, it was a pleasure screwing Chase,before they had time to bend me over.

    Grim, see’s it. and i walked away with
    a check at the closing, unheard of

  14. freedy says:

    grim: never got to sale time . matter of fact
    had spoken to the judge that is in the article today about the Mediation program.

    the courts are on the side of the free loaders. thats just the way it is

    and the agency also told me, don’t worry about it. we’ll get you a deal.

  15. freedy says:

    and i’ll keep you updated on the credit scores and credit reporting agencies.

    the scoring system will be revised.

  16. HAMP is a joke. It’s well-known that people were placed into trial mods based on nothing but unverified info given in one phone call. That way, the banksters could pump the numbers in the program and make it look like they were helping lots of people.

    I have met several borrowers recently who were pretty much unilaterally given either several months’ complete forbearance or trial mods with virtually no questions asked. No big whoop to the banksters, as they could always refuse to make the trial concessions permanent at any time of their choosing.

    Like one article I read yesterday said: expect a lot of trial mods to be booted from the program in February.

  17. Anything short of BK or FK will give you a 700+ FICO in the Brave New World.

    I also fully expect that you will be able to buy a good credit score in the near future.

  18. Essex says:

    17. I have enough stuff and what I want I buy with cash. I Pay cash for the stuff I need like food. Screw the cards, they are the single worst financial decision a person can make.

  19. Cindy says:

    http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20603037&sid=a6RsJycboEUE

    “Obama Housing Rescue Threatened by Foreclosure, unemployment”

  20. Veto That says:

    Get ready for a huge surprise to the upside today. The economy’s growth will have been so amazing that you literally wont believe it. But the market will.

    WASHINGTON (AP) — At the end of last year, the economy likely grew for the second straight quarter — possibly at the fastest pace in nearly four years.

  21. Cindy says:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmI3U_rVYA8

    271 – Ben – Here is Roubini “talking out of both sides of his mouth” again. But here he identifies “Damned if you do, damned if you don’t.”

    47- Chicago – I don’t need subtitles anymore. I can actually understand him.

    For instance, in this video, “coperate” is not a se&ual term – as you might imagine…he is actually trying to say “cooperate.”

  22. meter says:

    @15-I don’t take umbrage at your having done what you (perhaps) ‘needed’ to do. What ticks me off is the pride you display in flaunting your lack of personal responsibility and poor decision making. Much in the way I won’t cheer (or abide by) any mortgage forgiveness that may ultimately be foisted upon those taxpayers/prospective buyers who made sound decisions and played by the rules.

    Should that come to pass I will convert my cash to another currency and leave this country for good.

    Used to be there was shame in freeloading. Just another symptom of the collapse of our society.

  23. Barbara says:

    “I also fully expect that you will be able to buy a good credit score in the near future.”

    don’t think of it as a foreclosure or short sale, think of it as a real estate annulment!

  24. Shelly says:

    When people wonder why we cant find a house, all they need to do is look at this P.O.S GSMLS#: 2741542 for $1.149mil in Madison. I would rather be homeless (well maybe) than live in this shack. The realtor has alot of nerve.

  25. yikes says:

    the more you know …

    Good morning America: By age 30, women lose all but 12 % of their ovarian eggs.

    for the math majors in the house, that’s nearly 90% gone by age 30.

    – don’t shoot the messenger, etc

  26. freedy says:

    your now going to see a big push on the
    settlement of Credit Card Debt. the Defaults
    are getting just like the Walk a way with
    housing.

    Banks are ready to “Lets make a Deal”

    sooner or later the States will get involved
    as well, Banks have gotten away with robbery.

    People have had enough

  27. meter (22)-

    In case you haven’t noticed, there are no rules. These are business contracts, pure and simple. The risk of default is baked into them. Borrowers simply do what is in their own interest; if they don’t, it is certainly not because of their superior “morals”.

    “Much in the way I won’t cheer (or abide by) any mortgage forgiveness that may ultimately be foisted upon those taxpayers/prospective buyers who made sound decisions and played by the rules.”

  28. Mr Hyde says:

    Veto,

    You have mail

  29. ruggles says:

    Someone posted about the ipad/lady trouble controversy the other day. Apologies if this got posted. From 2007:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsjU0K8QPhs

    NSFW – harmless but inappropriate

  30. Ever notice how the people who talk the most about helping people who “play by the rules” are the same ones shoving the plunger handle up our arses the hardest?

  31. Wanna get the same treatment that MS, GS, JPM get?

    First, stop paying your bills.

    Sad, but true.

  32. renter says:

    People have had enough …designer handbags, flat screens, restaurant meals, and vacations that they couldn’t afford attempting to emulate the life styles they saw on TV.

  33. freedy says:

    condition : you are correct. this is so
    over the top, i am amazed that the american
    people (middle class)have not started riots.

    well, they could be to lazy.

  34. ruggles says:

    27 – “In case you haven’t noticed, there are no rules. These are business contracts…”

    Sorry, Clot, Matt Lauer and Barbara Corcoran told me this morning its a moral issue (but they don’t want to judge). I will be sure not to strategic default now. Nor will I run up my 100k credit cards either. Scouts honor.

  35. A little misdirected, but you have to like this guy’s attitude:

    TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – A powerful hard-line Iranian cleric on Friday called for the execution of more opposition activists to silence anti-government protests, praising the hanging a day earlier of two men caught up in the leadership’s postelection crackdown.

    Speaking in a Friday prayer sermon, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said the wave of street demonstrations sparked by the disputed June presidential election would not have lasted until now if protesters had been executed early on.
    “Whatever we suffered was because of our weakness. How many did the judiciary execute on July 9?” he said, referring to one of the particularly large protest days.

    “We showed weakness, so then we had Ashoura,” he said, referring to a major protest on Dec. 27. “If you show weakness now, the future will be worse … There is no room for Islamic mercy.”

    Iran’s judiciary is stepping up death sentences as the leadership intensifies its campaign to eliminate the challenge from the pro-reform opposition movement. Authorities announced Thursday that nine people accused of involvement in protests have been sentenced to death – including five who allegedly had a role in the Dec. 27 protests, which saw a particularly violent clampdown.
    Iran’s top prosecutor said a new group of protesters and others would soon be brought to trial.

    The two men executed Thursday were arrested before the June 12 election on charges of belonging to an armed group aiming to topple the government. But authorities lumped them in with opposition activists arrested during the postelection crackdown.

    In his sermon, aired live on state radio, Jannati thanked Iran’s judiciary chief, Sadeq Larijani, for Thursday’s executions and urged more, saying: “Stand up courageously for the sake of God, the same way you executed these two persons very quickly.”

  36. ruggles (35)-

    Wonder what Babs would say about MS walking away from those buildings in SF or Tishman/Blackrock’s walkaway on Stuytown.

  37. After all, corporations are people, too.

  38. Add Barbara Corcoran to the list of people who should face a firing squad.

  39. frank says:

    Where’s the recession????

    Economy in U.S. Grew at 5.7% Pace, Biggest Gain in Six Years

    http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aAWWD1MDQQ8g&pos=1

  40. ruggles says:

    37 – As a former employee of MS I can honestly say that all of their morals are without reproach. Nice cafeteria too.

  41. Mr Hyde says:

    Meter,

    Like clot said. Freedy isnt doing anything wrong, he is simply making sound business decisions. It only makes sense to behave morally/ethically as long as the other side of the table is doing the same thing. One the other side of the table plays all out no-holds-barred, then you are almost guarenteed to lose if you do not do the same.

    Big business and the Government together as essentially forcing people to behave in this manner lest you as a private individual want to end up at the bottom of the food chain.

    I agree that in a “normal” environment that this would all be very distasteful and unsavory. However TPTB are the ones that have changed the rules of the game. You and I have no control over that. The only thing we can do is take advantage of the rules we have to play by to the best of our ability, or get run over by the train.

  42. All "H-Train" Hype says:

    Frank (40):

    Well it is a good thing that the economy went up that high. We just mortgaged the next 3 generations of people to debt slavery to get this.

    Hope you are happy, you nitwit.

  43. grim says:

    Bubble on!

    Fed is behind the curve.

    Pick the right asset class and get rich quick!

  44. Outofstater says:

    So, people stop paying their mortgages and their credit cards… Who will want to issue a mortgage or a credit card in the future? Will we be an all cash economy?

  45. Reggie Middleton, serving up a steaming chunk of WFC poo:

    The credit quality of WFC loan portfolio

    “Credit conditions continue to deteriorate as the delinquency rates continue to climb and the nonperforming assets continue to increase. Total nonaccrual loans increased 17.0% (q-o-q) to $24.4 billion or 3.34% of total loans* at the end of 4Q09 from $20.9 billion (2.8% of total loans*) at the end of 3Q09. Non accrual loans in commercial real estate increased 25.9% (q-o-q) to $7.0 billion in 4Q09 (5.6% of loans*) from $5.6 billion (4.5% of loans*) in 3Q09. The non accrual loans in residential real estate increased 22.2% (q-o-q) to $12.4 billion in 4Q09 (4.2% of loans*) from $10.1 billion (3.4% of loans*) in 3Q09. The increase in non accrual loans in residential mortgage came primarily from in residential first lien with nearly 53% of the total increase in the segment coming from Pick-a-Pay (mainly Option ARM) portfolio acquired from Wachovia. Total non performing assets increased 17.9% (q-o-q) to $27.6 billion (3.78% of total loans*) from $23.4 billion (3.15% of total loans*) at the end of 3Q09.”

    http://boombustblog.com/Reggie-Middleton/1293-The-Wells-Fargo-4th-Quarter-Review-is-Available-and-Its-a-Doozy.html

  46. Mr Hyde says:

    45 outofstater.

    Its already baked into the cake. Once you saturate a sponge with water, you cannot add anymore until you either wait for it to evaporate or squeeze some of the water out.

  47. nw says:

    I agree with meter.

    Freedy is a hypocrite. He b*tches and moans about everyone gaming the system(illegals, gov workers), yet he brags about doing it himself.

    So freedy, please STFU about your condo.

  48. stater (45)-

    Pieces of eight and silver coins.

  49. Hyde (47)-

    I prefer the “tamping the septic full of crap” analogy.

  50. Mr Hyde says:

    Mw
    there is a middle ground, otherwise no one would be able to complain about anything ad none of us are saints.

    It’s one thong to play the hand you have been dealt while pushing for a restoration of sanity and order to the system. It’s something else to work the system while cheering the fixed system and asking for more.

    The corporations are activly doing the second, while my take is that freedy is doing the first.

    The corporations actins are highly destructive and reprehesible. Freedy’s are the actions of a realist and exactly what is best for the market Ina true free market (which we are not)

  51. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    surprise!

    who mentioned GDP?

    From the WSJ:

    By JEFF BATER

    The U.S. economy surged at the end of 2009, a bigger-than-expected gain driven more by slower inventory liquidation than by consumer spending.

    Gross domestic product rose a seasonally adjusted 5.7% annual rate October through December, the Commerce Department said Friday in its first estimate of fourth-quarter GDP.

    Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast 4.8% GDP growth during the fall.

    GDP has gone up two straight quarters, rising 2.2% in the third quarter after a year of contraction. In all of 2009, GDP fell 2.4%, the biggest drop for an entire year since 10.9% in 1946. GDP rose 0.4% in 2008 and 2.1% in 2007.

    GDP is the broad measure of economic activity in the U.S. Most of the 5.7% increase during the last months of 2009 was due to a slower drawdown in business inventories. Real final sales of domestic product, which is GDP less the change in private inventories, increased at an annual rate of only 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Third-quarter real final sales of domestic product rose by 1.5%.

    http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703389004575032893301414842.html?mod=WSJ_hps_LEFTWhatsNews

  52. chicagofinance says:

    18.Essex says:
    January 29, 2010 at 7:25 am
    17. I have enough stuff and what I want I buy with cash. I Pay cash for the stuff I need like food. Screw the cards, they are the single worst financial decision a person can make.

    NO
    Starpoints: 152298

  53. So, the gubmint should be able to go ahead and remove the MBS stim and tax incents to buy housing with no problem now, right?

    Hey, the recession is over. If you are underwater or out of a job, you’re just part of the loser minority.

    This is the equivalent of the tide going out just before the massive tsunami hits.

  54. freedy says:

    ha, ha, i just am paying by the new rules.

    and im coming out ahead.

  55. chicagofinance says:

    25.yikes says:
    January 29, 2010 at 8:19 am
    the more you know …
    Good morning America: By age 30, women lose all but 12 % of their ovarian eggs.
    for the math majors in the house, that’s nearly 90% gone by age 30.
    – don’t shoot the messenger, etc

    yikes: so? context?

  56. freedy says:

    playing by the new rules,, which are out
    to screw us all.

  57. yikes says:

    grim says:
    January 29, 2010 at 8:38 am

    Bubble on!

    Fed is behind the curve.

    Pick the right asset class and get rich quick!

    ha. funny stuff Bednar
    so +800 today?

  58. yikes says:

    chicagofinance says:
    January 29, 2010 at 8:59 am

    25.yikes says:
    January 29, 2010 at 8:19 am
    the more you know …
    Good morning America: By age 30, women lose all but 12 % of their ovarian eggs.
    for the math majors in the house, that’s nearly 90% gone by age 30.
    – don’t shoot the messenger, etc

    yikes: so? context?

    perhaps this is what you are seeking, ChiFi:

    http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/OnCall/women-fertility-falls-lose-90-percent-eggs-30/story?id=9693015

  59. ruggles says:

    53 – I got 50k flight miles for an amex card I kept for a month last year, no fee for the first year. Got the same offer again last month. much love to the credit cards!

  60. meter says:

    Some of you missed the first part of my post. I stated that I don’t begrudge him doing what he did. I have a problem with his flaunting it. Big difference.

    If I steal to feed my family, you may not like it but you’d understand it (perhaps). If I stole and then came online to crow about it, you might see things slightly differently.

    Personally speaking I would feel shame in admitting that I have the financial discipline and decision-making skills of a 5 year old. But that’s just me.

  61. freedy says:

    screwed chase and proud of it. kinda like
    what barry did to america.

  62. chicagofinance says:

    BOOYA!

    Beer, Bourbon & BBQ FestivalWhen :
    01/30/2010 – 01/30/2010

    Where :
    la.venue
    608 W. 28th St. New York, NY

    Event Details
    Category: FairNorth meets South on Saturday when the Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival hits town, bringing with it tastings of more than 60 brews and 40 bourbons, courtesy of distilleries like Jack Daniel’s and Rebel Yell. While you sip, you can also snack on barbecue fare from local joints like Hill Country. And if that’s not enough Southern spirit for you, just hop the mechanical bull. Yee haw! Tickets for the fest, Saturday from noon to 9 p.m. at la.venue (608 W. 28th St.), are $75 at beerandbourbon.com.

  63. meter says:

    I want to see these same people patting freedy on the back celebrating when mortgage forgiveness is trotted out for your neighbors (but not you). At least be consistent.

  64. Mr Hyde says:

    yikes 59

    dont forget that the genetic integrity of those eggs also falls off a cliff after 30. So a much higher chance of everything from asthma to downs syndrome.

    Of course its possible to solve this issue with a little selective breeding. Start a government breeding program that pays women who maintain a large number of healthy eggs into their late 30’s to either have multiple children or to donate their eggs to be implanted into another volunteer mother.

    Its really no different then what the soviets did with selectively breeding their top physicists during the cold war. Ask SAS about that one.

  65. freedy says:

    meter the only way you will find out how
    you would feel, is be in the situation and
    find out how you are treated. then, you will
    get mad and fight back. I’m glad i did.
    took me a lot of time to do all the due dilly
    and get on a level playing field.

  66. safeashouses says:

    I’ve found O’s campaign song for 2012.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDl3bdE3YQA

  67. meter (65)-

    Bust on freedy…while these crooks get a free pass?:

    “New York Fed staff and outside lawyers from Davis Polk & Wardell edited AIG communications to investors and intervened with the Securities and Exchange Commission to shield details about the buyout transactions, according to a report by Issa.

    That the New York Fed, a quasi-governmental body, was able to push around the SEC, an executive-branch agency, deserves a congressional hearing all by itself.

    Later, when it became clear information would be disclosed, New York Fed legal group staffer James Bergin e-mailed colleagues saying: “I have to think this train is probably going to leave the station soon and we need to focus our efforts on explaining the story as best we can. There were too many people involved in the deals — too many counterparties, too many lawyers and advisors, too many people from AIG — to keep a determined Congress from the information.”

    Think of the enormity of that statement. A staffer at a body with little public accountability and that exists to serve bankers is lamenting the inability to keep Congress in the dark.”

    http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/2010/01/secret-deals-involving-no-one-aig.htmld

    Don’t worry, meter; you are a good, little sheeple. Turn on your peers, while the gubmint takes us all up the arse.

  68. ruggles says:

    Who’s guilty? Defaulting no income/no doc loan:

    A. The buyer
    B. The bank
    C. The government
    D. The suckers who abandoned (or never had) common sense or care and let our country get to this.

  69. grim says:

    Chi,

    I was interested in the VIP bacon tasting, I hear it sold out quick.

  70. meter (65)-

    When the mtg mods start, I will simply stop paying mine.

    Then, I’ll either get a better mod than my neighbors or short sell my house (while, natch, wringing the process to get 24+ months’ free occupancy).

    After it’s all done, I will restore my credit within 24 months.

    Just playing the game by the new rules.

  71. Mr Hyde says:

    Meter,

    i am not patting freedy on the back. And principle forgiveness is a VERY different game.

    Principle forgiveness would be a new change to the rules to attempt to stop the economic hemorrhaging going on. What freedy did is actually healthy for the market in the long run as it clears out the garbage and the bad debt.

    Principle forgiveness only serves to further corrupt the market, as its purpose is to prevent the clearing of garbage and bad debt from the system. Principle forgiveness is essentially a carrot to get people to remain in debt slavery, in indentured servitude.

    Walking away from a home is already covered in conventional contracts and has agreed upon consequences associated with it when you sign the papers.

    Walking away from the mill stone hung around your neck is your option ( not without costs though). The question is how many people will avoid hanging another debt millstone back around their neck? Many people will promptly return to debt slavery at the first given chance

  72. Veto That says:

    “screwed chase and proud of it. kinda like what barry did to america.”

    freedy, stop flaunting your insolvency. chase didnt buy the condo, you did. we all know there is no glory in defaulting.

  73. Getting mad at your neighbors for getting mtg mods is simply playing by the old rules.

    Playing by the new rules dictates that you simply use your neighbor’s mod to force an even better deal for yourself. The banksters’ and gubmint’s only hope now is to pit borrowers against each other; if that gambit doesn’t work, we will beat them.

  74. freedy says:

    see here’s the problem , i settled the
    debt with chase on my terms , not theirs.

    they got f’d

  75. ruggles says:

    74 – “chase didnt buy the condo, you did.”

    Actually chase did buy it. And their risk was baked into the decision. I’m pretty sure no one forced them to lend the money and I’m also pretty sure they didn’t do it with a handshake.

  76. nw says:

    My guess is that freedy signed up for an exploding arm at the peak. Then Chase would refi him to anything in his favor. They “screwed” him.

    And in that situation, short selling/walking is rational. Boasting about it is a different matter.

  77. freedy says:

    only stupid people will sit and continue to
    take this.

    day after day we read how the banks came
    out on top read how the stock payments to the bankers are a screw job as well. on the taxpayers back

  78. freedy says:

    was not an arm,, was a 30yr fixed at 5.75

  79. Veto That says:

    whats next? – bragging about being a deadbeat dad?
    “that b!tch had it coming to her. so now the kids are starving. i’m the victim here.”
    “damn condo jumped right out in front of me and made me sign the mortgage.”

  80. nw says:

    You make a good mark freedy.

  81. leftwing says:

    Ruggles re: guilt

    Is there an “(e) All of the above” option?

  82. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    did freedy ever post the details of his walk-away?

    conversation is occurring in something of a vacuum

    when did freedy buy?

    why did freedy default?

    when?

    since this seems to be “freedy day”

  83. safeashouses says:

    Here’s O’s alternate 2012 campaign song.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQ57fCmGE7c

  84. freedy says:

    mark my ass, go try to deal with these
    banks. you’ll see. try one of the 800
    numbers, and let us know .

    try asking for some relief.

  85. freedy says:

    i can hold my own,, grim taught me

  86. Mr Hyde says:

    Veto 81

    Thats a massive straw man you just threw up there!!!!
    thats unlike you

  87. safeashouses says:

    Why the anger at freedy? When companies walk away from their re investments, even though some/most of those firms could make the payments by using cash flow from other sources, they get a free pass from the media, government, and the unwashed masses. So why can’t the little guy do the same?

    If you really want to get angry, why are so many mtgs for homeowners recourse, when most commercial re loans are non-recourse? The little guy could get haunted and chased for 2 decades or more, while the corporation can just form another llc or some other off the balance sheet nonsense and restart the charade.

  88. nw says:

    Really, freedy? 5-10 brokers are laughing their as*es off about the commissions you sent them. Then you sent a few years worth of payments to the bank and walked away with nothing but bad credit.

  89. Mr Hyde says:

    Hey

    I know a guy who has a company providing security personal in haiti. He’s looking for people with a military background. pay is about 90K.

    anyone?

  90. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    This hedge fund manager would feel right at home on this board.

    http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2009/0511/048-stocks-commodities-oil-short-the-west.html

  91. leftwing says:

    Freedy, 30 year fixed;

    Any other details, freedy?

    Tell ya, I was ready to jump in on meter and say ‘lay off the guy, sounds like he’s flat on his back’.

    Not so sure after all your postings.

    It doesn’t matter to me what people or corporations do in a contractual context so long as the (previously known) consequences are there. It’s all business.

    I will say though from a personal (not moral) perspective my issue is that you may have been the problem that caused a lot of this mess.

    If you weren’t smart enough to realize you were in well above your head when you signed these things then you were the one driving up home values to stupid heights by taking on unsustainable levels of debt that had you punching way above your weight.

    I don’t care that these j@ck@$$es with no income, no doc, no money down loans fail financially or take down the institutions that gave them the nitro they were playing with. The problem is that liquidity caused everyone else to pay more if they wanted a house.

    So, where are you? Responsible, thinking member of society dealt a bad hand out of your control or sh!thead oblivious consumerist facing your inevitable reality?

    End result is the same for both, entry point matters to me.

  92. Veto That says:

    ‘Character’ (integrity) is one of the five C’s of loan analyis.

    face it. you were a default waiting to happen.

    While you are at it, you should stiff the newspaper delivery guy on his holiday tip. that should make you feel vindicated, like you are ‘sticking it to the man’.

    i actually agree with alot of the walk aways. many borrowers were innocent victims who didnt know what they were getting into and just had bad timing.

  93. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    (With apologies to Chicagofinance for the trademark infringement)

    THE END IS NIGH!!!!!!!!!!

    “You may have watched him on MTV. Some day, you may meet him in court.

    On of the reality TV stars of Jersey Shore, Vinny Guadagnino, says his grades and LSAT score are high enough to get into law school, Us Magazine reports. The Wall Street Journal Law Blog says Guadagnino is a graduate of State University of New York at New Paltz.

    “My score was decent. I had a plan that if my score was really well, then I might of just went to Yale or Harvard,” he told Us Magazine. “But it was just mediocre. I can get into law school,” he added. “I had a 3.9 GPA, Latin Honors, but I’m doing this right now. Law school is always on the back burner.”

    Guadagnino confessed, however, that he’s not eager to be a lawyer. “To tell you the truth, man, [being a] lawyer isn’t something I wanted to do. Nobody wants to be a lawyer—it’s hard work. But it was kind of my academic route,” he told the magazine.”

  94. nw says:

    #89

    No one cares that he walked/short sold, it’s the incessant bragging that’s gotten old.

  95. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    [95] redux

    yeah, I can see it now, Vinny fistpumping away in his Contracts lecture at HLS.

    Yeah.

  96. safeashouses says:

    Look up the multi family houses for sale in Maplewood and Millburn, and try to figure out how much an investor (not an owner-occupier) would have to put down on them to make them cash flow positive. I’ve found a few that would take 4.5 to 5 months of rent just to cover the taxes without considering the mtg and insurance.

  97. Mikeinwaiting "Bicep" says:

    Freedy I behind you on the move, the bank would screwed you over in a NY minute. Being so flippant about just offends some people here a bouts, can’t blame them they have there own book getting hurt by what you & others are doing.

  98. freedy says:

    yes, rush out and buy a house. wait for the tax bill, then maintain the joint.

    or go buy the foreclosure,, i will go
    for the foreclosure/deadbeats who got in
    over their head.

    credit score, actually not that bad , and
    will come back shortly.

    part of the deal with chase , get the letter
    from them settled not foreclosed.

    Ha , ha, and screw these low life banks

  99. IMO,

    Freedy is da man. Would do the same thing if I felt I was in a position to do so. Maybe I wouldn’t be as proud, but I would certainly share the details with the fine folks here on this blog.

    Who provided the assessment on his mortgage? Those experts at the savings & loan did. You can’t expect the common American Idol watcher to see the potential downside of the housing market. The bank has the onus to make a smart decision in lending. If they do not do their due diligence, then it is their own fault and theirs only.

    Freedy did not decide to bailout the banks or modify mortgages. Freedy decided to do what was best for his interests. Perhaps that it what Chase should have done prior to offering 500,000 no doc, no money down loans on properties that doubled in value over 3 years. They did not unfortunately for them. Now their business must pay the consequences of their poor decision. No on forced Freedy to take out the loan. Remember that!

    Now who is immoral here?

  100. Mr Hyde says:

    Veto

    many borrowers were innocent victims who didnt know what they were getting into and just had bad timing.

    i vehemently disagree with this. Stupidity is not an excuse. In my opinion there are virtually no innocent parties in this mess. We all ate from the tree in one way or another

  101. Veto That says:

    “So why can’t the little guy do the same?”

    when people aim to emulate the ethics of corporations, there is really no hope.

  102. freedy says:

    and by the way, chase did a drive by to value the joint when i was negotiating with them

    they could have cared less,,,

    the place was well maintained, used that to my advantage.

    they were hot for the deal. so was the stupid buyer would could have offered 20k less and i would have taken it.

  103. freedy says:

    and the buyer acted suprised when i told him at the closing he could have gotten a better
    deal on his mortgage. you should have seen
    the look on his attorney ‘s face.

    my attorney kicked me under the desk,,

  104. ruggles says:

    “No one cares that he walked/short sold, it’s the incessant bragging that’s gotten old.”

    So have all the complaints about home prices not dropping enough from people who are actively looking for homes, going to showings and open houses, and driving up sellers hopes and realtors expectations.

  105. “and the buyer acted surprised when I told him at the closing he could have gotten a better
    deal on his mortgage”

    Alright. I agree with what Freedy did, but I’m beginning to think that he is an a-hole.

  106. freedy says:

    not bragging at all. just pointing out that
    if you make it a level field and know the facts you dont have to lose. you can win
    and have a clear mind.

    i speak to people all the time , who just
    dont understand what has happened over the past few years.

  107. meter says:

    Schump/Code Red –

    You are conflating my irritation and displeasure at freedy’s trumpeting his irresponsibility with tacit acceptance of the behavior of banks and financial institutions. I don’t know why you make that assumption because it is 180 degrees from the truth.

    Again, let me make this clear: I find his “pride” in his lack of fiscal acumen and his boasting of having ‘gamed the system’ distasteful. That’s the long and the short of it.

  108. Mr Hyde says:

    Veto 103

    the current legal status of corporations and the political impacts, along with the bailout extravaganza, have essentially changed the game and are forcing J6P to emulate their ethics or end up chum in the water.

    You want a fix? Change the rules and remove political power from corporations. their power currently stems from them being juristic persons under the law. that needs to be corrected.

  109. Mr Hyde says:

    Meter,

    <i.Again, let me make this clear: I find his “pride” in his lack of fiscal acumen and his boasting of having ‘gamed the system’ distasteful. That’s the long and the short of it.

    fair enough and i see your point.

  110. leftwing says:

    “They did not unfortunately for them. Now their business must pay the consequences of their poor decision. No on forced Freedy to take out the loan. Remember that!”

    No problem with that, so long as freedy also pays the consequences of his actions.

    I’ve pointedly avoided making it a moral issue and will continue to do so. It’s business.

    And re: bank ‘smart decision making’ contracts, like dancing, take two to tango.

    As an OBLIGOR, if you are too stupid to realize that you have no chance of repaying an obligation (or worse, that you should even be considering that ability) before you sign YOU should suffer the consequences.

    Bring back debtor prisons, that will focus people away from American Idol and back to their finances.

    Doubt there would have been many NINJAs then and if there were, I’d take the Darwinian option on that one and say it’s better for everybody.

  111. freedy says:

    who’s the asshold. i won. thats all that counts i got the cash position to
    get back in the game if i want to.

    ya think chase would write a deal with me
    if it was a win / win?

  112. ruggles says:

    has anyone ever seen clot and freedy in the same room?

  113. Veto That says:

    “i vehemently disagree with this. Stupidity is not an excuse. There are virtually no innocent parties in this mess”

    hyde, If they were stupid, then it was an innocent mistake in my book. i blame the banks for that. they are paying dearly for it and i think we should continue to regulate them into the ground until they are no more powerful than coffee shops.
    There are no innocent parties i agree. so freedy needs to accept some of the blame for his default and stop acting like it wasnt his fault and he is proud of himself.

  114. Mr Hyde says:

    Getting a little fiesty in here today!!!

    now i just need a Guinness and some wasabi peanuts!

  115. Mr Hyde says:

    Veto,

    There are no innocent parties i agree. so freedy needs to accept some of the blame for his default and stop acting like it wasnt his fault and he is proud of himself.

    a reasonable stance.

  116. ruggles says:

    leftwing – sorry, you have to choose one. A villian must emerge for us to rally against.

  117. veto (81)-

    Not an apt analogy. Big diff between walking on a contract and screwing your children.

  118. Veto That says:

    “the current legal status of corporations and the political impacts, along with the bailout extravaganza, have essentially changed the game and are forcing J6P to emulate their ethics or end up chum in the water.”

    hyde, two wrongs dont make a right. you think because gs ripped off america that im going to teach my kid that its ok to steal lipstick from cvs?

  119. homeboken says:

    Freedy, such a real estate genius at the closing table of his short-sale. Not so much when he was at the closing table during original acquisition.

    Luckily, you won’t be in the buying/selling game anymore. If you were, I would instruct you to learn the difference between shearing a sheep and skinning it.

    Good deals are best celebrated in private, with a large glass of scotch of course.

  120. freedy says:

    of course it was my fault. the only remorse?

    i was too late screwing a buyer at the top
    of the market. it was my fault for sitting
    like an asshole and not getting out when i should have .so i learned. now i can go out
    a screw a seller who is sitting in the same
    position i was in.

  121. safe (89)-

    Most (God knows, not all) commercial RE loans involve this thingy called a substantial downpayment.

    “If you really want to get angry, why are so many mtgs for homeowners recourse, when most commercial re loans are non-recourse?”

  122. “who’s the asshold. i won. thats all that counts”

    First off, what is an asshold?

    Second, we are all paying for your deftness and do not stand to take advantage of the ill-crafted rules as easily as you did. Perhaps you ought to tone it down doofus?

  123. freedy says:

    buy the way the buyer of my first home in BERGEN COUNTY , which i sold in NOV 04
    is about 5k higher in property tax , and
    about 200k less in value from what he paid
    me. and its a high price town . Closter.

    how’s that

  124. Sean says:

    re: Freedy

    It is not just Freedy, there is a new common manifestation of group think, for some default is now a “reasonable” balance in choice, a feeling that defaulting is OK. If it becomes the new black to be discussed on Blogs, Facebook and at a block party or barbecue then so be it. Allot of it has to do with the populist anger against the banks.

    From the WSJ.

    Tom Capasse, a principal at Waterfall Asset Management LLC, a New York-based investor in mortgages, says it’s too late to prevent a “seismic shift” in borrower behavior … “There used to be a scarlet D on your forehead if you defaulted,” says Mr. Capasse. “Now it’s a badge of honor.”

  125. Mikeinwaiting "Bicep" says:

    ruggles 119 “A villain must emerge for us to rally against.” Sorry all parties involved are culpable.

  126. ruggles says:

    128 – Mike, that is not how the game is played.

  127. “Innocent”, “guilty”, “victim”, “perp”…none of these terms are applicable in mtg walkaways.

    “Borrower”, “grantor”, “guarantor”, “insurer”…these are.

    Don’t even get me going on frauds and liar loans, since mortgage fraud- on both sides of the table- was practically a gubmint-supported and -mandated practice during the bubble years.

  128. leftwing says:

    “Character’ (integrity) is one of the five C’s of loan analyis.”

    “Wanna get the same treatment that MS, GS, JPM get? First, stop paying your bills. Sad, but true.”

    Both of these give me flashbacks from early in my career.

    Character is basically the only meaningful credit criteria – no matter how much diligence is done one cannot prevent fraud or bad faith and good credit people know it. Learned that the hard way when I was asked to come back from Austria to testify against a former client who, as trustee of his deceased law partner’s minor daughter’s estate, forged documents and took the money to invest in an abandoned train terminal in Jersey City duringthe Gold Coast boom/bust of the late 80s, leaving her penniless when it failed.

    But, hey, he screwed a big bank in the process and it was only business. And the price he paid was too high, and he wasn’t forced to take the mortgage so it was OK. Thankfully judge and jury saw it differently.

    Regarding getting the same treatment as the big boys, yes and no. Another truism of (good) credit practices, from an earlier time when the legal lending limit of my parent institution was only $500m:

    If you owe the bank $40m and can’t pay, you have a problem. If you owe the bank $400m and can’t pay, they have a problem.

    Trump is a case study in the latter.

  129. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    and now for something completely different . . .

    This one is for you, chifi:

    “Applications are up at many law schools, but Cornell stands out.

    As of Wednesday, Cornell Law School had an unprecedented 52 percent spike in applications, the Cornell Daily Sun reports. Officials attribute the spike to the bad economy and high unemployment, but they are at a loss to explain the extent of the increase.

    Dean of admissions Richard Geiger told the Daily Sun that the increase “is probably the result of a number of things working together.”

    “What I can’t explain is why it’s 50 percent and not 20 percent,” Geiger told the publication. “We don’t fully understand what this is all about.”

    Cornell Law School’s application deadline is Feb. 1.

    The number of people who took the Law School Admission Test jumped 20 percent in October, reaching a record high of 60,746. Earlier this month, Maurer School of Law at Indiana University had reported a 54 percent increase in applications, Iowa University College of Law reported a 39 percent jump, and the University of San Francisco School of Law a 35 percent jump. At that time, Cornell had reported a 44 percent increase in applications.

    Christine Lee, editor-in-chief of the Cornell Law Review, told the Daily Sun that it’s “an interesting time” to go to law school since the legal market has changed. “I wonder what will happen to all these people trying to go to law school.”

    /snip

    The last line is the best, of course. People still cling to the old paradigm, going to grad school during a recession, hoping that a law degree will improve their lot in life.

    Mine paid for itself many times over, but hasn’t given me the stability I really craved.

  130. veto (94)-

    Not during the bubble, and really not now, either. The new, stupidly-stringent underwriting models completely ignore it. That’s how you see high-700 FICO borrowers get turned down.

    “‘Character’ (integrity) is one of the five C’s of loan analyis.”

  131. Veto That says:

    im all for strategic defaults.

    i just think freedy is acting like a sleazeball.

  132. freedy says:

    and how about the real estate agents who
    came by with the clients. talk about
    deadbeats. one was worse than the other.

    i had a few buyers that i told just get out.

    and a few real estate agents as well.

    the whole process was a joke. low balls,most of the buyers ask the wrong questions.

    laughed at many of them ,, with the wife on there arm, mother in law , looking at the kitchen, looking at closets,, instead of asking about the taxes, main, schools,

  133. plume (97)-

    I think the value of a JD from HLS just took a big dive.

  134. freedy says:

    sleazeballs: how about the real estate agents, the banks, the whole lot.

  135. Veto That says:

    ” how about the real estate agents, the banks, the whole lot.”

    yes, you are no better than the worst of them. Does that make you feel better?
    sleazeball is relative to some people i guess.

  136. veto (103)-

    When corporations petition the highest court in the land to be treated as people, we are doubly bereft of hope.

    Why do you think I greet the coming oblivion every day?

    “when people aim to emulate the ethics of corporations, there is really no hope.”

  137. Vinnie Guadagnino pops the education bubble. Just by opening his pie-faced maw.

    BTW, I thought the only reason people went to New Paltz was to get stoned all the time.

  138. freedy says:

    how about the gay married couple who came
    buy, should have posted that on you tube.

    how’s that for a new topic. today. take the
    focus of real estate.

  139. leftwing says:

    Multiple personality disorder here.

    Freedy = RE101 = ?

    Who’s willing to claim their children?

  140. grim says:

    Ruggles,

    I’ve met both.

  141. meter (109)-

    Fair enough. I’d also add that the only thing I think freedy should tone down is the triumphant tone. He simply exercised common sense and played the game. Anyone doing anything less should be regarded as garden-variety stupid.

  142. freedy,

    I think I’m gonna call Chase to see if there is some way they can reverse the decision.

  143. Veto That says:

    “Big diff between walking on a contract and screwing your children.”

    ok, one is worse than the other.

    walking away is still breaking a contract that you agreed to back when you thought a condo was going to make you rich.

  144. Essex says:

    109. Point taken. But his is a relevant point of view on a real estate blog.

  145. Doyle says:

    “laughed at many of them ,, with the wife on there arm, mother in law , looking at the kitchen, looking at closets,, instead of asking about the taxes, main, schools,”

    I’ve looked at many houses, and I never ask about the taxes, schools, etc. I’m checking the closets and kitchen too. That’s because I know about the taxes and schools going in, that’s why I’m there in the first place. Why would they be asking you about it?

  146. freedy (113)-

    They’d do it right here, right now. No doubt.

    “ya think chase would write a deal with me
    if it was a win / win?”

  147. Simon says:

    Who cares about Freedy, he couldn’t afford to stay in his Condo, so he walked. Most people here are way better off them him.

  148. freedy says:

    give chase a call on one of the 800 numbers.

    i think most of it has been outsourced to
    india, or asia. give a call.

  149. Essex says:

    Besides, sleezeballs are everywhere. I watched Randy Weingarten on Morning Joe today…..

  150. Once “Steven Seagal, Lawman” is cancelled, they should replace it with “Freedy, Financial Predator”.

  151. safeashouses says:

    #124 TCCR

    What percent down do they need?

  152. Essex says:

    “gaming a system” that has for he longest time acted in a way that is unfair and counterintuitive….Business Model A: Let’s let people who cannot afford a home buy one….for a lot MORE than people who can afford a home. How’d that one work??

  153. goonsquad says:

    Looking for advice:

    My wife has $25k in student loans I inherited when we got married. I’ve been saving a down payment for some time and have opted not to jump into a first home purchase in NJ for all the reasons discussed here constantly. I still hope to buy at some point. Our current thinking is that we may move and sign a new 1 year lease. So I could pay off those 5.9% loans right now and take a big chunk out of my DP. The amound I’m earning in savings right now is pitiful, but I also own stocks–who knows what returns (+/-) will be in the next year. Any insight in prioritizing payment of that debt versus continued savings? If continued savings for an eventual down payment, any special insight on savings vehicles?

  154. freedy says:

    most were to stupid to have reviewed the taxes, trust me. all i had to do was look at them,

    i’m a good judge of the action.

    sort of like vegas, or macau.

  155. chicagofinance says:

    this is 50,000x better than I imagined…look at website

    grim says:
    January 29, 2010 at 9:15 am
    Chi, I was interested in the VIP bacon tasting, I hear it sold out quick.

    http://www.beerandbourbon.com/new-york/show-info

  156. “i’m a good judge of the action.”

    Sure you are.

  157. Veto That says:

    “Besides, sleezeballs are everywhere. I watched Randy Weingarten on Morning Joe today…”

    Essex, if sleazeballs are common these days, then you should take the first opportunity to kick your cat across the room. it will be easier to justify.

  158. Doyle says:

    #157

    Yes, a regular Savant…

  159. Essex says:

    At this point it is “survival mode” for most folks. The system has been retooled.

    Values are shifting a bit…the american dream might be more about “other things” than the house with the picket fence. Especially here in the tax hungry state of NJ.

  160. Essex says:

    160. Kicking a cat might be therapeutic, but somehow I think a nice Cohiba is a better therapy.

  161. Today’s your lucky day Chifi. They added a new session between 4 and 5pm.

    http://tinyurl.com/BBQfestival

  162. safeashouses says:

    #125 Stu

    First off, what is an asshold?

    I believe it’s a move John invented or perfected that is performed during mating rituals.

  163. leftwing says:

    Goon

    One aspect in evaluating your is by asking how important is liquidity to you?

    Not just for a house DP, but generally?

    In that context the question becomes ‘am I willing to pay $1,475 annually to keep $25k of cash on hand?’

    The answer is going to be specific to you, your circumstances, and your personality. I prefer to be highly liquid and have carried mortgage(s) that I could readily pay off but I wanted to keep those cash balances on hand, even at the cost of the interest expense.

  164. Asshold according to the Urban Dictionary:

    asshold – 2 definitions – When you squeeze your butt cheeks really hard to keep the turtle head from coming out.

    “Man, it’s a good thing I found a bathroom because this asshold wasn’t going to last.” … I had a really good asshold but then she smacked my hand away!”

  165. Doyle (148)-

    You don’t take your MIL to look at a short sale. That’s like putting training wheels on a Ducati.

  166. safe (154)-

    The old days? 20%. Nowadays? 25-30%.

  167. leftwing says:

    evaluating your situation, even

  168. nw says:

    First you out yourself as a dupe, and suddenly you’re a high roller who sold at the top?

    Doesn’t pass the smell test.

    Hopefully you’re unable to get a mortgage next time you try, I’m not sure you’re trustworthy.

    “freedy says:
    January 29, 2010 at 10:16 am
    buy the way the buyer of my first home in BERGEN COUNTY , which i sold in NOV 04
    is about 5k higher in property tax , and
    about 200k less in value from what he paid
    me. and its a high price town . Closter.

    how’s that”

  169. leftwing (166):

    That was excellent advice for the goon. When weighing my FHA vs. avoiding PMI decision, this same reasoning comes into play. FHA is not just Freedy insurance, but it could save your asshold if suddenly something unexpected comes along.

  170. freedy (157)-

    I’m in here, slugging on your side, but you might want to cool it with stuff like this:

    “i’m a good judge of the action.”

  171. chi (158)-

    I’m going to stop with the soccer, and just follow this event everywhere.

  172. Doyle says:

    #173

    Thank God, was starting to think he was your brother…

  173. leftwing says:

    Stu 172

    Thx for that. I’m laughing more today than usual. Good for the health.

  174. safe (165)-

    Asshold. It’s next to Freehold.

  175. nw (171)-

    Not implausible at all. Dealers get hooked on their own product all the time.

  176. Veto That says:

    “I’m in here, slugging on your side, but you might want to cool it.”

    Clot, you are defneding strategic default, which in here is more like preaching to the choir.

    freedy is totally indefensible.

  177. Sean says:

    Corzine signed a law right before he left office that allowed Whiskey and Burbon tasting in NJ.

    TRENTON, N.J. – (Business Wire) In one of his final gubernatorial acts, Governor Jon Corzine signed legislation last night allowing New Jerseyans the chance to sample distilled spirits at liquor stores, according to the Distilled Spirits Council (DISCUS), which said the bill modernized an outdated law that had only allowed for wine tastings.

    “Finally, 76 years after Prohibition Repeal you can go to a package store in New Jersey and taste both wine and spirits responsibly before you buy them,” said DISCUS President Peter Cressy. “Spirits tasting events are a terrific tool small business owners can use to help their customers make better purchasing decisions.”

    President of the New Jersey Liquor Stores Alliance Fred Leighton added, “We are very excited to offer limited samplings of beer and spirits in addition to wine to further educate our consumers.”

    Senate Bill 2098, sponsored by Senators Paul A. Sarlo and Sean T. Kean, and its Assembly equivalent sponsored by Assemblyman Joe Cryan, gives adult consumers the opportunity to sample up to three separate one-half ounce servings of spirits in any one calendar day at a pre-planned tasting event. The bill passed the Senate June 25, 2009 by a count of 34-3 and the Assembly on January 7, 2010 by a vote of 74-2. The law takes effect May 1.

    Forty-three states currently allow some form of spirits tasting. Twenty-nine states, including New Jersey, now allow spirits tastings at off-premise establishments, Cressy noted.

  178. freedy says:

    boy oh boy to finally be the center of the action . on this blog ,, what a hot button.

    all i did was game the system.

    i got to run, going down to the welfare office
    for my debt card loaded , so i can stand in line with at the pathmark, like a got a buck in my pocket.

    then i walk out to my 60month zero interest espolade.

  179. Could my ideas on strategic default have anything to do with the fact that I was raised by a Satanic cult? :)

  180. (181)-

    Look everybody. Freedy is morphing back into pesche.

    It’s like the Wicked Witch, melting under the house.

  181. Veto That says:

    strategic default and fraud are two totally different things in my book.

  182. Anon E. Moose says:

    Nom[132];

    [My law degree] paid for itself many times over, but hasn’t given me the stability I really craved.

    +1

  183. freedy says:

    all pesche /freedy learned about real estate
    over the past what 4 years was right here on this blog.

    wonderful advise/insight . i could never
    have pulled it off without watching all
    the smart people that post here.

    now on to the next phase . credit cards and
    buying one of these homes on the cheap.

    but only if the prices come in .

  184. safeashouses says:

    #169 TCCR

    Thanks.

    Don’t pick on Freehold. They’ve got the mall, and, and, and. OK. That town does suck.

  185. Veto That says:

    “all i did was game the system.
    i got to run, going down to the welfare office for my debt card loaded , so i can stand in line with at the pathmark, like a got a buck in my pocket.
    then i walk out to my 60month zero interest espolade.”

    Christ you cant even spell one word. im starting to think this is the banks fault.
    One more thing thats bothering me, is that last word, ‘explode’ or ‘escalade’? The answer to this will tell me all i need to know about your situation.

  186. goonsquad says:

    Left/Stu:

    Instinctively, I’m planned on avoiding PMI and lowering my monthly payment, especially considering I’m not expecting great returns on my extra reserves anytime in the next couple years should I opt to put a lower DP.

    Left, I know you advocate the 3.5% route in case of a further significant decline in prices. (For the record, I still have no idea how I’d be able to pull off the jingle mail maneuver if it ever came to that).

    It’s tough to overcome the instinct that most people have that having less debt is always better.

  187. ricky_nu says:

    shelly #24 – that place is assesed at a whole $412k

  188. freedy says:

    espolade,, thats the best i can do .

  189. toyne says:

    #189 It’s tough to overcome the instinct that most people have that having less debt is always better.

    Oh yeah, where have you been these last few years??

  190. Mr Hyde says:

    Goon

    have that having less debt is always better

    that’s my philosophy. Never be financially behold to others if it’s avoidable

  191. freedy says:

    and i smoke kools,

  192. BC Bob says:

    Morality, sleazeballs, asshold? This is somewhat amusing. Freddy/Pesche, you woke me up.

    We sit idly by while a private group of bankers lie, commit securities fraud, secretly arrange for bailouts, then attempt to cover up, and rape us blind. Exclusively a bunch of hooligan’s, deeply entrenched in corruption and graft, yet Freddy is the culprit?

    The manipulators/enablers[fedco] have grown their balance sheet to approx 45% mbs, a year ago it was less than 1%. It took them close to 100 years to grow their balance sheet to 800M, only 1 year to allow it to explode to over $2T [now, that’s talent]. They are simply lenders of last resort to buyers of last resort. All in a futile exercise to allow dead man walking a last gasp, before their ultimate doom. A grandiose, failed attempt to prop up a dead/dying asset to save their constituents, wards of the state. In other words, FU taxpayers.

    In their [fedco] desperation, printing presses are running 24 hours a day. This allows us to borrow from the thieves, charging us for this privilege, and we, along with future generations, are honored to pay them back in a depreciated currency? How do I set up a Federal Reserve? You could not have arranged for more of a heavy-handed, butchery in South Kearny. Yet, Freddy is the culprit?

    Freddy, watch out for your own #ss. Otherwise, if you bend down/play with a weak hand, you’ll get it stuck right up the shooter.

    By the way, I always knew you were Pesche.

  193. NJCoast says:

    RE: Beer,Bourbon,BBQ Fest.

    Hill Country BBQ mmmmmm. Best BBQ I’ve ever tasted. Marc shlepped down his smoker to the shore to serve BBQ to one of the bands I was working for. He even brings in the wood from Texas. A stop to his booth is worth the price of a ticket.

  194. safeashouses says:

    #189 goon,

    That’s what I’m leaning towards also. I like to keep fixed expenses as low as possible and try to live a lifestyle on 2/3ds of our income (much easier to do pre-kids.)

    Also, I thought you can’t rent out an SFH/condo if you used an FHA loan. What if you buy a house you want to keep, and you get transferred overseas or take a 1 year contract to work in another part of the US or the world?

  195. Outofstater says:

    #156 Goon – I’d pay off the student loans. I think there is too much uncertainty out there to do much of anything except pay down debt. And I’d keep the savings I had left in the safest, most boring stuff I could find. Then keep adding to it and wait for the next blow-out across all the markets. You’ll know it when you see it.

  196. chicagofinance says:

    I feel the genesis of a column ;-)

    scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:
    January 29, 2010 at 9:35 am

    did freedy ever post the details of his walk-away?

    conversation is occurring in something of a vacuum

    when did freedy buy?

    why did freedy default?

    when?

    since this seems to be “freedy day”

  197. Pat says:

    freedy should’ve at least been forced to bake one lousy cupcake and take it over to Chase. It’s not the walking, it’s the lack of baking that gets me.

    Hi, Bob.

  198. Veto That says:

    Goon, i havent come up with a good answer to that question either.
    I guess if your goal is to default, 3% is the way to go.
    If you are going to live there for 30 years, then a high downpayment is the right choice.
    but nobody knows if the economy will keep getting worse or start getting better. Basically, if you can tell me the future, i can give you the right answer.

  199. freedy says:

    BC

    good advice having some fun

  200. since this seems to be “freedy day”

    What is it about Fridays around here?

  201. Pat says:

    And since it’s free D Friday, here’s a little walk down Memory Lane:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ubsd-tWYmZw

  202. lostinny aka i forgot says:

    I just want to thank you guys for cracking me up today.

  203. “Basically, if you can tell me the future, i can give you the right answer.”

    Which is why I am leaning towards the minimum downpayment necessary to avoid PMI. If we don’t have housing armageddon, then I’m not likely to strategically default. If the economy recovers some, then I saved on interest and closing costs and still have some taxable money to invest in the recovery.

  204. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    [136] clot

    The value of a HLS degree was always lost on me. Some of the biggest flameouts I witnessed in BIGLAW were HLS grads.

    My favorite HLS grad story was when I was on a diligence with an HLS associate (now a partner) at my old VERY BIGLAW firm. He saw something in a document, and turned to me and asked “Nom, there’s abanking term here. What does ‘HVAC’ mean?”

    I replied “heating, ventilation, and air conditioning.”

    Guess the state U–ejookated guinea knew a little more about construction than the HLS wunderkind.

  205. Fiddy Cents on the Dollar says:

    Can we get an estimate of what the PMI would be on a typical Low DP Mortgage ?? What’s it cost per month on a $400K loan amount ??

    I just know it’s the worst insurance deal! Evah ! Doesn’t cover the borrower, just the lender.

    Perhaps one of our compatriots can provide an estimate….

  206. Veto That says:

    Stu, for me personally, i thought that 3% was a no brainer until i saw all the fees that the mortgage broker comes up upon closing with when you dont do 20%. It’s a nightmare. When all the fees are added in, i dont see how its worth it.
    The way i look at is like valuing an option or insurance policy. You are paying a huge premium for the option to walk away in the future. If in 5-10 years you dont exercise that option, well guess what? you overpaid for that financing big time.

  207. still_looking aka Tan-Less says:

    Anyone?

    Why are Berkshire A shares up almost 20K in less than a week? (besides the S&P addition of B shares post split?)

    sl

  208. jcer says:

    And veto, you still can’t walk away, if you have a lot of liquid assets, which most people on this board seem to have. The bank will go after you to get paid.

  209. BC Bob says:

    “If in 5-10 years you dont exercise that option, well guess what? you overpaid for that financing big time.”

    Veto,

    Time flies when you’re long premium, drags if short.

  210. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    [207] redux,

    In fact, here is my favorite, all-time, HLS grad flameout:

    A Paul, Hastings associate, Gregory Harris, an HLS alum, sent this email firmwide on his way out the door in 2004:

    “Subject: FW: Goodbye…
    As many of you are aware, today is my last day at the firm. It is time for me to move on and I want you to know that I have accepted a position as “Trophy Husband”. This decision was quite easy and took little consideration. However, I am confident this new role represents a welcome change in my life and a step up from my current situation. While I have a high degree of personal respect for PHJW as a law firm, and I have made wonderful friendships during my time here, I am no longer comfortable working for a group largely populated by gossips, backstabbers and Napoleonic personalities. In fact, I dare say that I would rather be dressed up like a pinata and beaten than remain with this group any longer. I wish you continued success in your goals to turn vibrant, productive, dedicated associates into an aimless, shambling group of dry, lifeless husks.

    May the smoke from any bridges I burn today be seen far and wide.

    Respectfully submitted,

    [SIGNED]

    ps. Achilles absent, was Achilles still. (Homer)”

    Some may recall I reprinted it here over a year ago.

    Those of you in the legal profession in 2004 will remember this as one of the decade’s classic email blunders, almost as bad as Claire Swire’s.

  211. Veto That says:

    “Can we get an estimate of what the PMI would be on a typical Low DP Mortgage ?? What’s it cost per month on a $400K loan amount ??”

    I was quoted about $3,000 per year for pmi on a 400k loan. I think fha can do cheaper pmi though. also i think it can also be included as a .25% increase in the rate.

  212. chicagofinance says:

    The Condition-Code Red says:
    January 29, 2010 at 10:52 am
    chi (158)-
    I’m going to stop with the soccer, and just follow this event everywhere.

    AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    http://www.beerandbourbon.com/new-york/drink-menu

  213. nw says:

    #195

    No one blamed him for walking away/short selling. That’s a no brainer.

    And yes, once the bailouts/moral hazard began, much of the stimga/morality of walking away is moot.

    But dumbas*es like freedy who borrowed more money than they can pay back were/are a part of the problem.

    The next favor he can do himself now that he’s unloaded the underwater condo is to STFU about it.

  214. Fiddy Cents on the Dollar says:

    Re : PMI

    So it’s an extra $250 per month on your mortgage payment !?!?!

    Jeebus Christmas….I knew PMI was a rip-off, but I didn’t think it was that bad.

  215. safeashouses says:

    #210 sl

    Berkshire B’s are supposed to join the S&P 500 after Berk finishes acquiring Burlington.

  216. Veto That says:

    “Time flies when you’re long premium, drags if short.”

    indeed.

  217. Veto That says:

    “Jeebus Christmas….I knew PMI was a rip-off, but I didn’t think it was that bad.”

    Fiddy, in my experience its not just the rediculous pmi. they use that as an excuse to rip you up with seven other applicable one time fees as soon as they put a check mark next to the word pmi.

  218. ruggles says:

    208 – Perhaps one of our compatriots can provide an estimate….

    No idea if this is still applicable. ’08 I sold my house to someone going FHA. approx 300k sales price, 3% down. there is a charge in the Mort Ins Premium line at closing for exactly 1.5% of the purchase price (not mortgage amount).

  219. toyne says:

    #217 Depends on the mtg amount.

  220. chicagofinance says:

    still_looking aka Tan-Less says:
    January 29, 2010 at 11:53 am
    Anyone? Why are Berkshire A shares up almost 20K in less than a week? (besides the S&P addition of B shares post split?)
    sl

    Arbs…

  221. still_looking aka Tan-Less says:

    thanks, all…

    sl

  222. Fiddy Cents on the Dollar says:

    FHA PMI

    ruggles –
    Was that an annual premium ?? Or a 1-time fee ?

    Knowing the FHA Crap,they probably just roll the premium into the loan…..HA !

  223. Veto That says:

    “there is a charge in the Mort Ins Premium line at closing for exactly 1.5% of the purchase price (not mortgage amount).”

    Ruggles, is that points? i think they make you pay points too? Or something like that. I dont remember exactly. But i just remember saying 3% to the mortgage brokers and getting blasted with $10k in extra fee quotes 3 seconds later.

  224. leftwing says:

    BC

    You got the facts right, but don’t know how you draw to the conclusion.

    banks/fedco do indeed = enabler

    but freddy = addict

    follow traditional 10 step therapy.

  225. BC Bob says:

    I think Freedy/Pesche is providing a service, educating us regarding the walk away process.

    If a seller has bought in the last 6-7 years or has sucked out all the equity, they are in the same position as Freddy/Pesche. Talk about undressing your opponent in a game of poker.

    Freddy/Pesche boasting? Well, let’s go back to late 2005, on this site. The old timers will remember. At that time we, the minority, were ridiculed and scorned. The RE experts were touting their success, we were delusional. This site was full of bitter renters. I swiped a ton of dough, off the table, yet was labeled a wannabe.

    Go back to the archives. View posts from Richard, Pret, Listen, our friend 50.5, etc.. [I don’t include Frank, he is brain dead] They were the experts, boasting about their expertise/fortune. We were simply complainers, who missed the boat.

    Well, bull markets tend to turn idiots into geniuses. No better example than these simpletons.

    Freddy/Pesche, keep the updates coming.

    3b, RichNNJ, Renting, Prof David, where you hanging?

  226. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    Because its Friday, and we have all picked on Freedy, here is a diversion:

    “President Obama and US Senator-elect Scott Brown — who are opposites politically — are distant cousins, genealogically speaking.

    According to the New England Historic Genealogical Society, the president and Brown are 10th cousins. The group said Obama’s mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, and Brown’s mother, Judith Ann Rugg, are both descendants of Richard Singletary of Haverhill. Singletary died in 1687 when he was 102 years old.

    Obama’s family is descended from Singletary’s oldest son, Jonathan, who changed his surname to Dunham. Brown’s family can be traced to Nathaniel Singletary, Jonathan’s brother, the group said in a press release issued today. . . .”

    BTW, recall that Obama is also distantly related to Dick Cheney. Perhaps that is why he periodically channels GOP thoughts, only to snap back to the left. Maybe its in the genes . . .

  227. leftwing says:

    “Also, I thought you can’t rent out an SFH/condo if you used an FHA loan. What if you buy a house you want to keep, and you get transferred overseas or take a 1 year contract to work in another part of the US or the world?”

    Post-closing nobody cares or checks as long as the mortgage check clears.

    I just finished knocking down (not just to the existing foundation but digging that out as well) a house I had mortgaged.

    I’m sure that was not allowed in the closing docs :)

    There’s now something worth 3x in it’s place.

    18 months, mortgage current, nobody knew.

    Biggest problem was that to get builders liability insurance effective I had to take a homeowners policy with it. Didn’t want to cancel the existing policy and send up a red flag, so I carried two homeowners policies which I was a little concerned about tripping over….

  228. Pat says:

    Freedy’s just playing by the rules. If someone is getting offended by his crowing, then there may be a misunderstanding of facts – either his or your own personal facts relative to his.

    Also understand his mental processing.

    Emotion after any large financial gain or loss is normal. Ask someone who’s been through a bk. The guilt or relief can be overwhelming and long lasting. Freedy is exhibiting common signs. He may be having guilt that must be resolved by sharing, cheering for himself, or otherwise converting the emotion into just another past event.

  229. Shore Guy says:

    “Why are Berkshire A shares up almost 20K in less than a week”

    C’mon! Like RE, they are not makingany more of it. Buy now or be priced out forever.

  230. BC Bob says:

    LW [227],

    Correct. However, the addict [Freddy] checked into a substance abuse program. On the contrary, the enablers have swapped private, worthless, OTC derivatives from one balance sheet[OBS also] to another, in a last ditch effort to feed the addict more drugs.

  231. Pat says:

    Bob, I have a sneaking suspicion that David is on his own blog.

  232. Shore Guy says:

    BC,

    Admit it, man. You are just a “wannabe” in “have’s clothing.”

    Unless one is holding a bag, one is not worthy of respect. It is the new financial order. Now fork over some dough to help the deserving.

  233. BC Bob says:

    “Freedy’s just playing by the rules.”

    Pat [231],

    You da woman! I wish I saw you dancing on the bar in State College.

  234. ruggles says:

    225, 226 – an additional 1.5% (same dollar amount) was collected under “items payable in connection with loan”. So that would be the points for the loan. No idea if they ended up with a higher interest rate than a 20% down buyer going thru the same bank. Or if those 1.5% points are hidden PMI.

    the PMI charge I mentioned is under “items required by lender to be paid in advance”–same section as escrow.

    I do not know if that PMI charge is annual or a one time fee or there is an additional monthly fee. My gut is that its a one time PMI charge paid upfront to keep their mort payment lower.

    I was the seller so all I have to go on is the HUD. the only other questionable fee is the $895 app fee. so basically it was about 10k in fees at closing for them (1.5% + 1.5% + $895) plus escrows, atty, title, recording.

  235. freedy says:

    BC

    have not got this kind of beating on this
    board for what , couple of years

  236. leftwing says:

    Agree freddy is educating on the walkaway process.

    Agree (strongly) too many in all markets mistake bull for brains.

    Disagree on who/what caused the problem. The primary responsibility lies with millions of freddys.

    Did the fed drive rates to zero? yes.
    Did investors buy crap to compensate? yes.
    Did banks and originators gorge themselves and take a huge dump into the markets? yes.

    But freddy signed on the dotted line, with infinitely more knowledge of his personal situation than any of the above parties.

    If you’re an alcoholic struggling with sobriety it’s your job to avoid the keg party.

  237. FHA: The borrower pays an initial insurance premium, which is approximately 1.5% of the loan amount. This amount can be absorbed directly into the loan amount. The borrower also pays a monthly premium of .5% of the loan amount divided by 12 months.

    PMI: If your down payment was…

    Divide the mortgage amount by this number to get your monthly cost (it works pretty well).

    5% 1500

    10% 2300

    15% 3700

    Remember, PMI goes away when you meet the 22% equity line. That .5% you pay to FHA is for the full 30 years.

    On your typical amortization table, you’ll hit that 22% watermark between years 9 and 12 depending on your interest rate.

    PMI won’t be deductible for anyone who lives around these parts since your household really needs to make more than 109,000 to be able to afford it.

    Upfront 1.5% FHA (upfront) MIP is treated similarly.

    Keep in mind. I think FHA MIP is going up another quarterpoint in a few months. Buy NOW!

  238. Shore Guy says:

    To gage how much B.O. will be able to accomplish over the next few months, watch for announcements that various advisors are leaving to return home and return to the private sector. If the rush starts before December, it will show that the Administration’s insiders see him as a spent force.

  239. BC Bob says:

    “have not got this kind of beating on this board for what , couple of years”

    Freddy,

    Well, at least the Titanic went down with a band playing. [If I remember correctly, this came from Pesche?]

  240. Pat says:

    I’m apologizing right now, pesche, for any time I insulted you about your three commas.

  241. leftwing says:

    Dude, freddy is not in rehab. He’s checked into OIP and simultaneously run out the back door to the bars downtown, by his own admission looking to do it again with another house. Not to mention the car.

    “However, the addict [Freddy] checked into a substance abuse program.”

  242. sas says:

    was asked to post my email:
    sas_njrereport@yahoo.com

    no, I don’t represent nor work for njrereport. I just used the name so I can flag my email accounts, knowing if I get an email from this address, I know it came from these boards.

    SAS

  243. BC Bob says:

    “Remember, PMI goes away when you meet the 22% equity line. That .5% you pay to FHA is for the full 30 years.”

    Stu,

    Are you saying that one with a 30 year mortgage will be paying PMI for the full term?

  244. #241 – Shore – He’s already squandered the chances he had with real regulatory changes in the financial sector. I’m expecting them to leave first.
    What he can do with health care and when/if he can do it is a different matter.
    Just observing, not taking a stance on any of these policies.

  245. BC Bob says:

    LW [244],

    Missed that post. Well, the enablers have a shot?

  246. freedy says:

    yes this board is like an intervention

    sort of like the TV show,,

  247. BC,

    You stop paying PMI once you own 22% of your home (downpayment + principal payments and/or appreciation).

    The .5% increase on the interest rate that you pay FHA for the privilege is for the length of the loan regardless of your equity in the home.

    I hope this clears things up a bit. And realtors, correct me if I am wrong.

  248. freedy says:

    hey BC,, the titanic was just stopped to
    pick up ice

  249. Veto That says:

    bc, if freedy saw the crash coming, he should have rented and waited to buy his condo.
    Instead, he bought a condo anyway, got himself into trouble – who knows maybe laid off like many others. that sucks. maybe walking away was the best decision for him. I dont begrudge that.
    But to be proud of a default, and brag about it is another thing.
    You want to get back at the establishment? Vote ron Paul or some libertarian. Write your congressman. Assemble and speak out against the crooks – start with a petition. i’ll be the first to sign it.
    Dont act sleazier than the banks and then expect it all to be completely justified. The housing crisis/greed was a national disgrace, not a new standard by which we should all lower ourselves to.

  250. Or were you joshin’ me BC?

    Saying that since housing prices will keep imploding, you’ll pay the PMI for the life of the loan as you will never obtain the 22%.

    Not funny really.

  251. BC Bob says:

    Stu [250],

    I understand. I was being sarcastic, I think?

  252. relo says:

    If Freedy had lived in CA, AZ, NV, etc. his actions would likely have been implicitly condoned by state law as there is no deficiency judgement and asset protection is more liberal.

    Having another person in FK, BK does nothing to, as Ket points out, facilitate the unwinding of this mess.

  253. freedy says:

    Veto:

    i received a standing ovation from the
    neighbors who where even more underwater than
    i was. one guy has actually called to ask
    how i did it.

    Cause its getting worse,not better.

    default,, today, who’ s kidding who,,
    i should get an award

    and i did have honor,, i paid the association dues right to the end. i could
    have stiffed them for at least a year or even more. i knew those persons on the board, was on the board myself. i also knew the condition of the financials , so i did
    the honorable thing , i paid the association dues.

  254. safeashouses says:

    Is 50k off the new black? This is the 2nd colonial priced below 500k in the last few weeks in Livingston to drop its list by 50k.

    http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/16-Longacre-Dr_Livingston-Twp_NJ_07039_1114466013

    Smaller, 3 bedroom versions of this house went for 600k at the peak. I think this list has to be 35%+ off the peak.

  255. meter says:

    BC Bob,

    I fail to understand your black and white view of things. This isn’t a case where because Party A was malfeasant or negligent Party B by definition was not.

    You absolve freedy of all responsibility only because the impact is orders of magnitude less than the transgressions of banks. The conclusion you ought to be drawing is that BOTH (in this simple example) parties have contributed to “the problem”.

    Again, he didn’t do anything technically illegal or outside the written contract, but he shouldn’t be congratulated for having the financial savvy of a fetus.

  256. relo says:

    256: Freedy Depending on the agreement, I suspect the HOA fees would have tripped up your short sale if unpaid.

  257. BC Bob says:

    Veto [252],

    Why should he be held to a higher standard than MS, Tischman-Speyer, BlackRock? They simply make a businees decision since its not in the best interests of all associated parties? Do we applaud this?

  258. leftwing says:

    Re: 16 Longacre

    How the he!! do you get five bedrooms in that upstairs?

    What are they doing, stuffing people into cabinet drawers like in that Seinfeld epidode?

  259. leftwing says:

    BC

    You’re one of the sharper pencils in this box but another case of correct facts, wrong conclusion.

    No, we do not applaud MS, Tishman, et. al.

    So why should we be applauding freddy?

    “Why should he be held to a higher standard than MS, Tischman-Speyer, BlackRock? They simply make a businees decision since its not in the best interests of all associated parties? Do we applaud this?”

  260. nw says:

    #255

    Hopefully freedy’s lawyer “screwed” him and gets hit with a deficiency over the next 2-3 weeks.

  261. safeashouses says:

    #261 leftwing

    The original house probably had 3 bedrooms, with the 3rd being pretty small. Most likely the addition on the back has 2 bedrooms.

  262. sas says:

    Its like this:

    Freedy gets a loan for 5-10%
    bank gets loan for 0-1%

    bank wants to expand business or operations, get loans or sweetheart deals by the local yocal politicans and city council for nothing.

    Freedy wants to start a business or expand operations, he has to use saving, get another 5-10% sucker loan, or do the 2nd mortgage.

    Sooner or later Freedy is gone cause he is on the banker’s treadmill. Bank swoops in, buys up the town and further kills more small businesses, which in turn bank gets free capital to buy things up for pennies on the dollar via the backdoor… and gets to do it again.

    If something doesn’t works or fails…
    bank gets a bailout.
    Freedy gets kicked to the curb with the subways rats.

    Its a rigged game, unless you are on the inside…which you are not.

    SAS

  263. Veto That says:

    “i paid the association dues.”

    I wont applaud you for something you should have done.
    I dont know how you can stiff one party and pay the other. I guess its all justified for you.
    Like i said. Your plan was default before you even bought. BCs memory of your existance on these boards in 2005 just proves that point.

  264. freedy says:

    no deficiency here and it was not a short sale. as far as the association my point was
    i continued to pay. of course they would
    have held up the sale , would have been paid at the closing.

    no deficiency was a easy one. chase just wanted to close the deal. they have enough inventory. my credit reports say :Paid

  265. BC Bob says:

    Meter [258],

    Black and White?

    We are being steamrolled by a paper oligarchy. My point is why not be up in arms regarding this?

    Freddy walks away and is attacked. On the flip side, LB is doing God’s work. How’s that for black and white?

  266. Fiddy Cents on the Dollar says:

    BACK TO THE PMI DISCUSSION

    Stu :240

    So on our example loan of $400K, 1.5% upfront is $6000 (probably rolled into the loan). And a further PMI charge each month, in your example $400K divided by 1500 is $266.66 per month charge ??

    Did I get that right ??

  267. freedy says:

    BC; this veto is just not very bright

  268. relo says:

    135: Freedy, weren’t you akin when you purchased?

  269. Veto That says:

    “Why should he be held to a higher standard than MS, Tischman-Speyer, BlackRock?”

    BC,
    because we will bring these corporations to their knees, if we dont become them first.

  270. freedy says:

    by the way i also stiffed Cablevision,
    that was really fun, they were easy

    PSE&G,, a little harder

  271. Pat says:

    Way, way O.T. Anybody buy a good mattress/box spring in the past couple of years that they can recommend? Something firm but cushion-y? Ours gave up the ghost the day after the ten-year warranty expired.

  272. Veto That says:

    “Freddy walks away and is attacked. On the flip side, LB is doing God’s work. How’s that for black and white?”

    No they are both wrong. Freddy has been attacked because he takes no responsibility.

  273. The most comprehensive info I have found on this subject on the net. Will be back soon to follow up.

  274. BC Bob says:

    “So why should we be applauding freddy?”

    LW [262],

    Never broached by me.

    We should blow the Frauds up, along with Congress. One negative, if we blow up Fraudy, who then performs garbage dump duties? After all, the dead need to transfer more crap to brace for the CRE/CC debacle.

  275. freedy says:

    actually took alot of responsibility. took
    care of my family,food shelter ,clothing
    and most of all cash in the pocket so i
    can work this system. the looting of the
    american taxpayer is over the top.

    i would advise anyone to be ready. going
    do to zero cash is nuts ,, to pay a bank

  276. Pat says:

    And something under 1500…I won’t pay more because we have a high risk of damage from an elderly pet.

  277. Veto That says:

    “BC; this veto is just not very bright.”

    freedy, id rather not be bright if it meant being a complete scumbag.

    Question: did you steal money from your moms purse when she made you eat your vegetables?

  278. freedy says:

    see BC: here we go with the name calling

    can’t take it, can’t stand to be wrong.

    has to bring the mom into it,, my oh my

  279. BC Bob says:

    “BC,
    because we will bring these corporations to their knees, if we dont become them first.”

    Veto,

    Sorry, we will never bring these corp’s to their knees. They rule the world.

    If FASB allows us to mark .20/1.00 to our blackbox model [par], then we have a shot.

  280. freedy says:

    lets see what the rest of the board has to say about the name calling. defend yourself
    veto with some facts,, come on now you can do it.

  281. toyne says:

    #275 Freddy has been attacked because he takes no responsibility.

    Neither do the banks. And now that they have been bailed out, in their minds it should be back to business as usual.

  282. BC Bob says:

    No more Freddy/Pesche for me. Enjoy the weekend!

  283. Pat says:

    freedy, the way I see it, is you and tosh have a great opportunity here. Facebook Group: Decision Making, Morality and Legality in the Internet Age.

    Just let him do the typing, O.K., big guy?

    The book? You can decide the split on the royalties.

  284. freedy says:

    the banking cabal rules,,,

  285. BC Bob says:

    More significant. Yen/Euro cross. If you are long stocks you may want to keep a currency chart handy.

  286. Veto That says:

    “They rule the world.”

    BC – i disagree too. ‘They’ are us therefore we rule the world. MTM removal sucks but its a temp measure to save the system from collapse. You want to remove it now? go ahead and lets watch it all crash down.

  287. Pat says:

    Oh…the movie. Please let Eric Bana play Tosh. I think Danny DeVito would be a little over the top for you, but maybe let Alec Baldwin do it.

  288. yikes says:

    Veto That says:
    January 28, 2010 at 2:04 pm

    This just in.
    BC bob is doing fine. Recently cashed in some of his gold investment winnings, took 3 months off to live on a desserted island in the south pacific. Says hello to everyone and wants to reiterate his 40-50% from peak home price prediction that he has been screaming since early 2006 to be added to the chart.

    is Veto That BC Bob?
    Or did BC Bob really take 3 months off?

    I’m lost.

  289. Your posts always show me that you really have some indepth knowledge about this. Quite a valuable read i must say.

  290. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    chi, #199

    nah

    I just feel that basic facts got skipped over….or maybe I missed the first couple of chapters of this saga

  291. Veto That says:

    yikes, no im not BC.
    BC has not posted on the boards for a while.
    he sent me his forecast for the prediction chart we did yeserday and i was just makng it known. he was not in south pacific. i dont think.

  292. BC Bob says:

    “You want to remove it now? go ahead and lets watch it all crash down.”

    Veto,

    Let them crash and burn.

    Rather than trillions wasted down a deep, black hole, allocate $400B to regional/community banks. However, with lending strings/conditions attached. With our FRB, you can lever this to $4T. Allocate it to producers/builders of wealth. Give small businesses incentives to hire/tax breaks. Create jobs, not paper speculators who will knocking on the door again, once the next bubble implodes. Bubble? How about borrowing short and lending long. The world’s biggest carry trade right before your eyes. When this implodes do we also mark to a model?

    Let the blood suckers melt to the ground.

  293. BC Bob says:

    Yikes [291],

    Veto was not that far off.

  294. NJCoast says:

    BC Bob-

    That laid back island style must have bored you. Nice to see you’re back spittin’ fire.

  295. Col. Nathan R. Jessep says:

    You want the truth?

  296. Veto That says:

    bc – is caymen not in south pacific?
    my mistake people.

  297. BC Bob says:

    NJC [298],

    I’d rather be spittin’ Badlands. That said, it’s gonna be a long, long, long walk home.

  298. Veto That says:

    im very afraid to respond to 299.

  299. BC Bob says:

    Veto [300],

    We won’t disclose the truth.

    “You can’t handle the truth.”

  300. BC Bob says:

    If China sneezes do we catch H1N1?

  301. Veto That says:

    ‘If China sneezes do we catch H1N1?”

    yes its contagion

  302. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    I still want freedy’s back story.

    Did freedy lose a job?

    Did freedy lose a spouse/significant other who was paying half the expenses?

    Or did freedy just overextend himself and walk away from negative equity?

    …as the world turns …

  303. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    Ps,

    sas

    I want to be your marketing person.

    Are we talking about “placement” in Soldier of Fortune magazine?

  304. BC Bob says:

    Sorry, no link. From Rosenberg;

    Second, it was a tad strange to have had inventories contribute half to the GDP tally, and at the same time see import growth cut in half last quarter. Normally, inventory adds are at least partly fuelled by purchases of foreign-made inputs. Not this time. Strip out inventories and the foreign trade sector, we see that domestic demand growth in the fourth quarter actually slowed to a paltry 1.7% annual rate from 2.3% in the third quarter. Some recovery. Based on some simulations we ran, demand growth with all the massive doses of fiscal and monetary stimulus should already be running in excess of a 10% annual rate. So, the real question that nobody seems to ask is why it is that underlying demand conditions are still so benign more than two years after the greatest stimulus of all time. The answer is that this epic credit collapse is a pervasive drain on spending and very likely has another five years to play out.

  305. Mr Hyde says:

    Freedy,

    might i suggest you take someone else’s advice and celebrate your relative success with a glass of your choice libation in a nice leather recliner as opposed to shouting from the roof.

    off to work

  306. Veto That says:

    “I still want freedy’s back story.”

    freedy,

    knew the market was overheated in 2005. He was a regular on this site four years ago.

    He went out and bought in 2007 any way.

    freedy’s job hit a slow period when companies started putting safety locks around vending machines and he could no longer turn them upside down to empty the change dispensers. Also, insurance companies began cracking down on fraud and videotaped him taking off the neck brace and then hitting the free weights at the local gym. in short, his career was over.

    When housing all came crashing down, he said f this and turned in the keys.

  307. BC Bob says:

    Veto [310],

    LMAO. You are a pisser.

  308. DL says:

    Totally off topic: Johnny Walker Blue – worth the money?

  309. make money says:

    I haven’t made a mortgage payment on 6 properties since 3/2009. They’re all with one lender. I took out every penny I could and bought shiny and told them to restructure my debt or they can have the buidings back.

    Some VP guy told me that he wouldn’t cut a dime and he’ll start the foreclosure process immediately and hire himself a property management company.

    The moron asked me if I knew a reliable company and I gave him the name of one which I own 80% stake. He contacted the girl that works for me and is looking forward to hiring my company.(you can’t make this stuff up)

    Last week my attorney gives me a call and they want to know what specific demands I have with debt re-structuring!!!!

    I told them to shave the interest rate to 4% and forgive 5 million in principal.

    I’ll everyone know what happens.

    You do what you can to better you and your family now that’s lords work. You can’t have it both ways.

  310. chicagofinance says:

    NO FCUKING KIDDING YOU A%%HOLE

    Citigroup CEO: Profitability Not a Long-Term Concern

  311. Barbara says:

    I can’t keep up with this board.

    Meter: forget ethics, morals, unsavory behaviors….strategic default is the ONLY push back the middle class has left. While banks take our money given to them by our bought govt, and cut themselves bonuses, people like you tsk tsk and maybe call a representative or two watch The Daily Show to blow off steam, then get back to your work-a-day sucker existence.

    Freedy pushed back, hard. He fired an early shot of what I hope becomes a true middle class revolution. Strategic default is hopeful, not shameful. Evidence that Americans may still have a pulse and a set.

    I was you a year ago-hating on the American Consumer…now I see it differently, we were given a new game with new rules where the only way to make money was to play hard and fast with debt because lord knows, your passbook savings account wasn’t going to do it for you. Wages stagnated, education skyrocketed-debt loads exploded. Greed played a big role, but I fail to understand the outrage for the small guys behavior when small guy only played by the same rules he was forced to live under.

    Moral Hazard or How I Learned To Relax and Love Strategic Default.

  312. freedy says:

    freedy did none of the above.

    freedy ‘s doing fine,, plenty of cash on
    hand, a business, and a renter, of all things.

    i purchased in 04 not 07

    got my espolade in 07 60 month zero,two notes one for the ride , one for the spinners

  313. freedy says:

    freedy smokes kools, drinks rolling rock and
    a little medical smoke from time to time.

  314. #314 – make – I know you’ve posted about that situation on/off for a while now. Any idea as to why it’s taken the lender so long to attempt debt restructuring? Just overwhelmed?

  315. BC Bob says:

    Make [314],

    Can they come after your hiney, I mean shiny?

  316. make money says:

    Can they come after your hiney, I mean shiny?

    BC,

    lol. Safely stored down under.

  317. I was really hoping that the first strategic defaulter on this blog would not have been such a douche.

    Hey, where is Bi and Victorian?

  318. Pat says:

    O.K., make gets to play the Albanian in the movie.

  319. Painhrtz says:

    DL green label or gold label are just as good for significantly less. But for a blended scotch blue is fantastic the price not so much

  320. Anon E. Moose says:

    313.DL says:
    January 29, 2010 at 2:32 pm
    Totally off topic: Johnny Walker Blue – worth the money?

    Depends on how much money. At $100, I’m buying a case (been there at Duty Free – every adult gets 2 bottles). Up to $150, grab a bottle. Makes a nice business gift to those who appreciate good scotch.

  321. BC Bob says:

    Make [321],

    Record trail?

  322. freedy says:

    defaulting is wonderful if ya got the hanging
    to pull it off, rather than sitting like
    a DB, and waiting and watching your equity
    fly away,,

  323. Col. Nathan R. Jessep says:

    326: Toll receipts to AC and back.

  324. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    “After a decade of debt-fueled profligacy, Greece is confronting what amounts to a run on the bank. And, despite repeated assurances from Athens, the nation’s strained finances have put already jittery financial markets on edge. On Thursday, the worries stretched all the way to Wall Street, where the stock market sank 1.1 percent. ”

    And it begins. Add my prediction to the chart. The fireworks begin in July early fall and will accelerate.

  325. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    ‘gold is now the ultimate bubble’.

    George Soros

  326. Al Gore (329):

    Would we call this domino effect as it spreads from one European Country to the next, “Greece Lightning?”

  327. freedy says:

    some of these stock are down 25%over the past few days this is really going to help
    home sales. change is on the way.

    watch these foreclosures take off,, spring is just around the corner,, hurry call
    you local realtor today and bring your checkbook for these overpriced capes, build
    in 1940 with the same baths, and windows.

    and an 8k tax bill

  328. Qwerty says:

    RE: “Screw the cards, they are the single worst financial decision a person can make.”

    Disagree. By funneling mass transactions through reward credit cards, one not only receives thousands in free money each year, they also receive a credit score in the 800s. No brainer.

  329. All "H-Train" Hype says:

    Looks like Mr. Bear is putting another serious beating on Mr. Bull today. The bear has him down and his kicking him in the corner.

  330. freedy says:

    now we got faapl in free fall.

    welcome to the ipad

  331. danzud says:

    Speaking of bank decisions, today was TARP bonus Friday.

    So I made another donation to Grim.

    Another year passes and I thank this place from saving me from a huge financial disaster several years ago.

  332. relo says:

    That’s comforting.

    Wilson also appears to have a strong professional respect for Fink. He was quoted in The Wall Street Journal last year as part of a profile of Fink saying “people talk to him because he is substantive,” and “when I was at Treasury he would phone all the time and point out things we sometimes hadn’t seen that were going on in the market.”

  333. make money says:

    ‘gold is now the ultimate bubble’.

    Al,

    Only if you knew how many people been saying this since I’ve been long (2006).

    How did that work out?

  334. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    331. Sounds good to me. Im watching this closely because it could be a play by play of what to come here.

    Greece:
    *The yield on 10-year Greek bonds blasted upwards by over 40 basis points to 7.15pc in a day of wild trading
    *Contagion hit Portuguese, Spanish, Irish, and Italian bonds.
    *Tim Congdon, from International Monetary Research, said the danger is that wealthy Greeks may shift money to bank accounts abroad if they lose confidence (akin to Mexico’s Tequila Crisis in 1994-1995). This would set off a banking crisis and become self-fulfilling.
    *“If foreign creditors want their money back, defaults and/or a macroeconomic catastrophe appear inevitable,” Mr Congdon said.
    *The deeper concern is Spain, where youth unemployment has reached 44pc and the housing bust has a long way to run. Nouriel Roubini – the economist known as ‘Dr Doom’ – said Spain is too big to contain.

  335. BC Bob says:

    AG [330],

    The exact quote;

    “When interest rates are low, we have conditions for asset bubbles to develop, and they are developing at the moment. The ultimate asset bubble is gold.”

    Decipher. Does Soros mean implode now or it is in the process of developing? Today or years from now?

  336. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    338. Oh I know. Soros is the worlds #1 public enemy. This is shaping up to be a good buying opportunity.

  337. sas says:

    George W. Obama

    “S announces $6B arms sale to Taiwan”

    -In a move sure to aggravate China, the Obama administration announced on Friday plans for more than $6 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, the self-governing island the Chinese claim as their own.
    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100129/ap_on_bi_ge/us_us_taiwan_arms_sales

  338. sas says:

    US announces $6B arms sale to Taiwan

  339. Veto That says:

    Today or years from now?

    BC, im takng soros statement as a strong buy too. Afterall bubbles are good. They push prices way up high. no?

  340. Schumpeter says:

    Pat (200)-

    He did. Only problem was, it was the flavor of poo.

    “freedy should’ve at least been forced to bake one lousy cupcake and take it over to Chase.”

  341. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    [342] sas

    Oh, this is consistent with Obama’s overall goals. He would like to tick off the Chinese and somehow reduce imports, even if it means losing exports, so long as the balance still favors the US. He cannot appear to look overtly protectionist but anything that indirectly accomplishes the same result will be welcome.

    Unfortunately for labor, this ain’t it unless you are a defense contractor.

  342. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) — The idea of secret banking cabals that control the country and global economy are a given among conspiracy theorists who stockpile ammo, bottled water and peanut butter. After this week’s congressional hearing into the bailout of American International Group Inc., you have to wonder if those folks are crazy after all.
    http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=aaIuE.W8RAuU

    Maybe Im not as crazy as people think.

  343. BC Bob says:

    PPT, man your stations. Get the hell off the beach. Otherwise, S&P futures will make a new weekly/monthly low. Trendlines, from March, have been broken in conjunction with the return of Mr Volume. We can’t allow TA’s a weekend to tear this apart.

    Then again, the ultimate plan may be to blow out equities, force a stampede into treasuries. Somebody, besides the fed, has to step up to the plate.

    Got demand?

  344. BC Bob says:

    Veto [344],

    I’m not taking it either way. Just questioning; does he mean today or the ultimate outcome?

  345. freedy says:

    a few more days like today in the market
    barry O comes back on TV on a day to day basis. he will explain on how the recovery
    is just around the corner. jobs and housing
    in the spring ..

  346. Schumpeter says:

    Pat (231)-

    You mean, like a sociopath would do?

    “He may be having guilt that must be resolved by sharing, cheering for himself, or otherwise converting the emotion into just another past event.”

  347. Sean says:

    Interesting thing about Taiwan, it is just like South Korea there are literally thousands of missiles aimed at it that would obliterate pretty much everything in minutes.

    This latest sale of weapons includes 114 Patriot Advanced Capability 3 (PAC-3) missiles real nice ABM missiles. If it wasn’t for George W Bush abrogation of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty on December 13 2001 this would not have been possible.

    Obama is really shaping up to be Bush III, he may even be starting arms escalation and a new cold war if this keeps up.

  348. Schumpeter says:

    stu (250)-

    There is a way to get out of FHA MIP, but it involves proving that a sufficient percentage of other borrowers in your mortgage pool have achieved sufficient equity.

    Very arcane formula & process involved, and since nobody today has any equity, probably impossible to pull off.

  349. Schumpeter says:

    freedy (256)-

    I robbed the bank, but I didn’t run anyone down during the getaway…

    “i paid the association dues right to the end. i could
    have stiffed them for at least a year or even more. i knew those persons on the board, was on the board myself. i also knew the condition of the financials , so i did
    the honorable thing , i paid the association dues.”

    Dude, that’s the funniest thing I’ve read all week. You should really be quiet while you’re ahead.

  350. Schumpeter says:

    (273)-

    I think we can all agree the Dolans get whatever they deserve.

    “…by the way i also stiffed Cablevision, that was really fun, they were easy…”

  351. BC Bob says:

    “There are no means of avoiding the final collapse of a boom brought about by credit expansion. The alternative is only whether the crisis should come sooner as a result of voluntary abandonment of further credit expansion, or later as a final and total catastrophe of the currency system involved.”

    Ludwig von Mises

  352. Veto That says:

    “I robbed the bank, but I didn’t run anyone down during the getaway…”

    lol.
    In protest of the govt bailout, i beat the mailman with a stick.

  353. Schumpeter says:

    make (314)-

    I am not worthy. You are one ice-cold, straight-up, thug playa. Plow this guy a new one.

    “The moron asked me if I knew a reliable company and I gave him the name of one which I own 80% stake. He contacted the girl that works for me and is looking forward to hiring my company.(you can’t make this stuff up)”

  354. Safeashouses says:

    Don’t hate the playa, hate the game.

  355. Safeashouses says:

    6 billion in arms to Taiwan? How many billions in legs and implants?

  356. Schumpeter says:

    BC (348)-

    This is the rigged-up push to get everybody back into Treasuries. Got to expect lots of Greece, Spain, Portugal bank run talk this weekend, too.

    Too bad diving into USTs is the equivalent of freebasing cocaine in order to get off meth.

  357. Barbara says:

    hmmm, freedy or make money…….its hard to choose who makes the best board anarchist…

  358. Schumpeter says:

    Sean (352)-

    You can’t really throw a proper world war unless you trigger a nasty arms race beforehand.

  359. Pat says:

    freedy is all capitalist. Plus he likes it when people clap for him after he poops.

  360. jcer says:

    Arms, it is the only thing we are really good at anymore. If you want weapons of mass destruction USA is #1. What Germany is to cars, we are to implements of death.

  361. Schumpeter says:

    Post #363 was not me. It was Wilhelm II, posting under my handle.

  362. Safeashouses says:

    I think freedy, make, clot, and Gary would be a great Elmore Leonard book.

  363. Schumpeter says:

    I’m pretty sure I’m the only real anarchist here.

  364. Schumpeter says:

    safe (367)-

    Do I get to do the torture stuff?

  365. Barbara says:

    gary should do a gonzo style web show where he goes to opened houses and messes with the realawhores.

  366. Veto That says:

    freedy or make money.

    Make is trying to work out a solution to keep his properties. His goal is to covince his bank to change the terms of the loan so he doesnt have to walk. he is playing hard ball. If he can pull it off then he is the man.
    Thats different than someone who’s goal is to default and is proud of it and then wants to default again as soon as possible.

  367. Mr Hyde says:

    BC 356

    what year was that written? 2009?

    what was old is new:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31jenMJ0UOc

  368. Outofstater says:

    I’ve been troubled all day by these posts. Yes, the banks are insolvent, unethical and probably fraudulent institutions, but I don’t see that as permission to default on the debt owed to them. Trying not to sound preachy here because that really isn’t my intent. Default appeals to our baser instincts – sticking it to the evil banksters, but then that is extended to stiffing the cable company and the electric company? Where does it end? Do we agree to receive goods and services and then decide what we will pay for after the fact? What unintended consequences will that cause? Troubling, very troubling. Still trying to sort it all out. Maybe I should just start drinking.

  369. make money says:

    Too bad diving into USTs is the equivalent of freebasing cocaine in order to get off meth.

    I nominate above as comment of the day.

  370. Mr Hyde says:

    Outofstater

    Strong societies/empires are built on trust. Trust at all levels, from a handshake with a local vendor to a $500K contract with a bank, to the politicians and rulers.

    One that trust is broken things usually get ugly for a while. The trust has been broken continually by politicians, and now by the even more blatantly then usual by the large corporations and banks by being handed bailouts that the pople largely did not approve of.

    History shows u what the outcome of this is.

    The only alternative is to go all medievel and immediately in order to restore trust in the system. Do you really thing half of congress will bein prison in the next year, how about the CEO’s and boards of the banks that received bailouts, how about top treasury and FED officials? No? then buckle your seatbelt.

    if we are really lucky we end up looking like argentina. if we arent we end up looking like late 80’s soviet russia.

  371. Pat says:

    safe, I’m already on Ch 6.

    Business is good, but I’m stuck on the required romance.

    I can’t figure out which character to torture. It’s happening when the Albanian tries to stage a house with furniture purchased from craigslist. He backs up the U-haul, running over a small dachshund. The seller is the former triangle player his high school orchestra, who thinks her life’s love died in a bacon eating contest.

  372. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    I think I will have to start a line of bumperstickers that say “NFJ” (Not From Jersey) for us transplants so that we don’t get tagged with this idiocy.

    “Looking to capitalize on the success of MTV’s “Jersey Shore” show, the Brooklyn Cyclones, the Single-A affiliate of the New York Mets, will host what it is calling “Jersey? Sure” Night.

    On July 21, the team will be giving away limited edition jerseys that will feature the Cyclones logo on front and a picture of the team’s mascot in a fist-pumping pose on the back.

    The night will include GTL (“gym, tan, laundry”) gift certificate giveaways as the team has partnered with a local gym, tanning salon and laundromat.

    The team also plans to bring a special station on the ballpark’s concourse level that will allow fans to have their hair styled “like a good fastball –- high and hard” like the show’s Pauly D.

    Cyclones management says it will invite Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino to take batting practice and ground ball drills with the team.”

  373. BC Bob says:

    “Plus he likes it when people clap for him after he poops.”

    Pat [364],

    It could be worse, he could be a silverback gorilla.

  374. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    [373] out

    “Maybe I should just start drinking.”

    Smartest thing I read all day.

  375. Schumpeter says:

    I nominate today’s thread as the best ever here.

    It is clear evidence that we are moving to a whole new level in the collapse of the financial system of the US. It’s become a complete maze of unintended consequences, in which every participant who hit a dead end not only has to turn around and keep groping in the dark, but must run a gauntlet of randomly-exploding pipe bombs and IEDs in doing so.

  376. Schumpeter says:

    pat (376)-

    Is there a field full of jimson weed near your house in MD?

  377. Schumpeter says:

    plume (377)-

    Too bad the Cyclones could draw a bigger crowd if they just had Steve Phillips and a dunk tank.

  378. Schumpeter says:

    …a dunk tank full of crocodiles, that is.

  379. chicagofinance says:

    Anon E. Moose says:
    January 29, 2010 at 3:02 pm

    313.DL says:
    January 29, 2010 at 2:32 pm
    Totally off topic: Johnny Walker Blue – worth the money?

    Depends on how much money. At $100, I’m buying a case (been there at Duty Free – every adult gets 2 bottles). Up to $150, grab a bottle. Makes a nice business gift to those who appreciate good scotch.

    Moose: I agree. Nice to get as a gift, but I wouldn’t pay for it. I even kind of draw the line on Oban…..I blink at $75-$90. I kind of max out around $60. If I can knock off a bottle in 5-10 days, I really shouldn’t be dropping that kind of coin.

  380. leftwing says:

    “a few more days like today in the market barry O comes back on TV on a day to day basis”

    Cool by me, everytime he shows up the market tanks.

  381. BC Bob says:

    “Too bad the Cyclones could draw a bigger crowd if they just had Steve Phillips and a dunk tank.”

    Schump,

    Many would rather see the Splendid Splinter frozen upside down.

  382. BC Bob says:

    LW [385],

    Once a day should be mandatory.

  383. leftwing says:

    Make

    Also, check those bricks you get from Exit 38A off the Parkway. Serial numbers are often sequential. Wouldn’t surprise me if they keep that data, which can be accessed.

  384. Barbara says:

    Outofstater,
    to 373 I respond:
    what would you have us do? I mean “us” as the middle class. Call our reps? Vote for hope and change? How do we

    a) take pragmatic steps to make our families secure in the here and now and

    b) find a NEW and POWERFUL way to express ourselves politically?

    I for one will not be strategically defaulting on anything I own, I am well above water and it wouldn’t make a lick of sense. Strategic default should be a strategic move that is about your family’s financial security. But its also a political expression:by holding your hands over your ears against the constant drumbeat of politicians and punds moralizing, culture wars, and general button pushing you are “voting” your self interest, something that we’ve stopped doing in this country a long time ago and its a big part of the problem.

  385. Schumpeter says:

    BC (387)-

    I think he should call the winning numbers from the DC Lottery. Marion Barry can be his assistant.

    Good excuse for a daily appearance.

  386. Schumpeter says:

    5:00. Time to go home and get drunk.

  387. Mr Hyde says:

    Barb

    families secure in the here and now

    -mossberg 500
    -Berreta PX4 Storm ( or SIG equiv) 9mm for her
    -same handgun in .sig357 for him
    -M14(m1A) for persistant “problems”
    -ruger range rifle (for jr)

  388. grim says:

    Wow it has been while since we hit a 400 comment day

  389. Veto That says:

    grim, i forget. do you charge per post or is it all you can eat?

  390. leftwing says:

    ” find a NEW and POWERFUL way to express ourselves politically”

    This is exactly what will happen.

    History shows us, however, the end result of this option is usually not pretty.

  391. safeashouses says:

    I called a re agent today about a sub 400k listing that just hit last week. He told me it was already under contract, but I got the impression the financing might not go through.

    I really think this burst of activity I’m seeing this month in the sub 450k range is being driven by people buying before the 8k credit expires and the tougher FHA guidelines (oxymoron of the week) kick in.

  392. stan says:

    Fredo: Aw, now that, that was nothin’, Mike. Moe didn’t mean nothin’ by that. Yeah, sure he flies off the handle every once in a while, but me and him, we’re good friends, right Moe?
    Moe Greene: I got a business to run. I gotta kick asses sometimes to make it run right. We had a little argument, Freddy and me, so I had to straighten him out.
    Michael: You straightened my brother out?
    Moe Greene: He was banging cocktail waitresses two at a time! Players couldn’t get a drink at the table! What’s the matter with you?

    Freedy

  393. yo'me says:

    If you pawn a jewelry at a pawn shop,is it unethical to default on the loan?I see it the same way in housing.The house is the collateral.

  394. leftwing says:

    399th!

    See y’all later.

    Go Devs!!!

  395. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    We need a “rites of spring” GTG.

    After the Super Bowl.

  396. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    400 posts today.

    I think at least half were devoted to Freedy.

  397. scribe, The Princess of Paramus says:

    I couldn’t resist being #400 :)

  398. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    [392] mr. hyde

    Funny,

    My arsenal is similar, but I still need to get the shotgun. Have two .22s though (good for keeping heads down and easy for the girls to use).

  399. freedy says:

    it was a free for all,, but i held my own

  400. Comrade Nom Deplume says:

    T-t-t-t-that’s all folks.

    Going to the Devils game and getting bombed tonight.

    One day closer to being a house husband and starting an alternative investment LP that specializes in Nompound property

    (yes, had an epiphany as to how to organize the nompound concept—will start a fund that will buy up the properties and parcel out the rights and income. Still some tax issues to work out though (can’t do a REIT structure–won’t fly)).

  401. Anon E. Moose says:

    All this talk about strategic default called to mind this balst from Jan 2008.

  402. scribe (400)-

    What makes you think there will be a Spring this year?

  403. yikes says:

    #

    #
    Al “The Thermostat” Gore says:
    January 28, 2010 at 5:23 pm

    238.

    I finished my basement and the tax man left a note on my door a week later stating that he needed to reasses the home. My wife told him to come back when we are home which is after 9pm. Never heard back from him.

    permission to call BS on this?

  404. Safeashouses says:

    i spoke with another re agent today about a colonial. Went under contract in 4 days, after a bidding war. WTF? I really hope this demand is being driven by the 8k credit.

  405. Damn. Gotta go to the liquor store.

  406. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    409.

    Maybe people are moving into tangibles. I said before that renting and sitting on cash is almost as dangerous as owning a home in the peoples republic.

  407. Punch My Ticket says:

    safe [397],

    A short sale on a realtor owned property? How interesting.

    BTW, what is it with the 3+ year old photos? Has the place been empty since?

    Nom [405],

    Better watch for a few more ankle twisting holes. Like the securities laws.

    On another note entirely, a few days someone was asking about waterfront on warm water, US jurisdiction only. A friend emailed me http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jan/28/report-vero-beach-housing-market-is-second-most/ and, since we know realtors would never fib about it being the right time to buy, it must be worth checking out. But first read the comments to the article. ;-)

  408. In a deflationary environment, it is not wise to deploy cash into the purchase of deflating assets.

  409. Punch (412)-

    Love this comment in the thread following that article (could it be Gary’s long-lost brother?):

    “WHAT A JOKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MORE LIKE THE 2ND MOST OVERVALUED MARKET IN THE NATION!!!!!! REPEAT AFTER ME, THERE NO JOBS IN THIS COUNTY, THERE ARE NO JOBS IN THIS COUNTY, THERE ARE NO JOBS IN THIS COUNTY!!! THE WHOLE THING WAS SMOKE AND MIRRORS WHERE GROWTH WAS THE ONLY GROWTH!!!!! NO HOUSING BOOM = NO ECONOMY IN THIS TWO-BIT RATHOLE!!! HOPEFULLY THIS WHOLE MELTDOWN HAS REALLY LET THE SKEPTICISM SET IN AND NO ONE WILL BELIEVE THIS CONTRIVED REPORT!!! TRY TAKING OUT THE UNEARNED INCOMES FROM 32963 AND SEE WHAT THE MEDIAN INCOME REALLY IS IN THIS RATHOLE COUNTY AND REDO YOUR REPORT BASED ON THAT INCOME AND THEN LET’S SEE HOW OVERVALUED HOUSING REALLY IS IN THIS HORSE RUSTLING TOWN!!!!”

  410. freedy says:

    i just gang raped a democrat.

    Who’s with me?

  411. Veto That says:

    i told you guys not to egg that guy on.

  412. Veto That says:

    Dont hear much about Haiti anymore. That was a quick recovery.

    measles reported among Haiti quake survivors

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100129/ts_afp/haitiquakereliefaidhealthdiseasewho_20100129184358

  413. galgon says:

    Happy Bank Failure Friday.

    4 Banks have closed so far:
    Community Bank and Trust Cornelia GA
    Marshall Bank, N.A. Hallock MN
    Florida Community Bank Immokalee FL
    First National Bank of Georgia Carrollton GA

  414. Barbara says:

    it was fun while it lasted.

  415. Veto That says:

    Obama Said to Seek $54 Billion in Nuclear-Power Loans

    Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) – President Barack Obama, acting on a pledge to support nuclear power, will propose tripling U.S. loan guarantees for new reactors to more than $54 billion, an administration official said.

    http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aC7VY11v6aMw

  416. relo says:

    414: Reading the comment, figured it was FL. Sure enough, though I suppose this holds true for many areas.

  417. Veto That says:

    China protests US arms sales, warns of ‘serious’ impact

    China on Friday protested the US decision to sell 6.4 billion dollars in weapons to Taiwan and warned of “serious” damage to relations and cooperation with Washington.

  418. yikes says:

    Comrade Nom Deplume says:
    January 28, 2010 at 5:52 pm

    [247] Al,

    You are aware that in the past year, police have been instructed to treat anyone displaying the Gadsen flag as a potential right wing terrorist?

    Want to wind up on the KGB’s watch list? Fly any variation of the Gadsen flag. Even the Bennington Flag may get you noticed.

    where’d you see this, Nom? Just did some reading on it, saw nothing of the sort

  419. Veto That says:

    yikes. where is this Princeton gtg you keep talking about? – Triumph Brewery is nice

    http://www.triumphbrewing.com/indexfl6.html

  420. Veto That says:

    yikes. where is this Princeton gtg you keep talking about? – Triumph Brewery is nice

    http://www.triumphbrewing.com

  421. Mr Hyde says:

    the njrereport must be one of the best armed blogs around

  422. grim says:

    Number 5 was a big one tonight, roughly $1.8 billion dollar hit to the FDIC tonight.

    First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, Raleigh, North Carolina, Assumes All of the Deposits of First Regional Bank, Los Angeles, California

    First Regional Bank, Los Angeles, California, was closed today by the California Department of Financial Institutions, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company, Raleigh, North Carolina, to assume all of the deposits of First Regional Bank.

    The FDIC estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $825.5 million. First-Citizens Bank & Trust Company’s acquisition of all the deposits was the “least costly” resolution for the FDIC’s DIF compared to all alternatives. First Regional Bank is the 14th FDIC-insured institution to fail in the nation this year, and the first in California. The last FDIC-insured institution closed in the state was Imperial Capital Bank, La Jolla, on December 18, 2009.

  423. Mr Hyde says:

    how long has it been since the FDIC ran out of money? didnt they run out a few months ago and have to go to the treasury?

  424. Punch My Ticket says:

    I cannot understand how the FDIC can end up seizing banks with 40% loss ratios. Their job is to seize institutions once liabilities first exceed assets, not close their eyes and let the problem snowball.

    I want an explanation. How does it get that bad before they shut a place down? Are they asleep? Blind? Co-opted? Under orders not to go too fast lest panic set in?

  425. Mr Hyde says:

    ticket 430

    if they actually did that bank failure friday would see 30 banks at a time. it would crush the us banking system

  426. Barbara says:

    431.
    more like this
    http://www.widerscreenings.com/WickerMan1.jpg

    who will be the unsuspecting GTG goer used for sacrifice? Nobody’s safe!

  427. Outofstater says:

    Barbara – I’m not sure what the right thing to do is. I do think we’re all in trouble if large numbers of people default on their debts just because they can, not because they have no other choice. And I find the self-congratulatory statements of what appears to be a deadbeat by choice troubling. He crowed about walking away from his mortgage, his heloc, he stiffed the cable company, is trying to stiff the electric company and now is looking for tips on how to default on his credit card debt. It’s all very unsettling to me and I really don’t know what to make of it. As I was thinking about it today, honest to God, I remembered that America’s founding fathers pledged “our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor” to this fledgling country. I know that concepts like that as well as “duty, honor and country” are considered the ramblings of right wing extremists and it’s a shame, because they have far more value that just political expediency. I’m still very troubled by all of this.

  428. Essex says:

    434. Maybe yes, maybe no….would it be baked in to the numbers….gubmint throws huge dollar amounts into big banks. They are solvent again. Even with the writeoffs from defaults, they are profitable….

    Rinse and Repeat….

  429. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    427.

    Thats because its one of the smartest blogs around.

  430. Outofstater says:

    435 Yes, Essex, that’s true for the banks but I’m more concerned about the belief that it’s okay to accept goods and services with a promise to pay later and then decide that it’s okay not to pay as agreed to. As Hyde said, a functioning society depends upon the word of the individual. And (I can’t believe I’m using this phrase!) what about the children? What lessons do they learn from parents who willingly and even gleefully default?
    I’ve always seen this blog as a window into the economy along with pretty good hints of what the future holds. Today’s posts just really threw me.

  431. Al "The Thermostat" Gore says:

    Not sure if it was discussed here or not but I heard in Florida the banks are allowed to come after you for wages and other assets for 20 years after foreclosure.

    There are over 2000 banks in jeopardy. Im surprised the FDIC is taking over only 4 a week.

    There will be 9 national banks when it is all done.

  432. Barbara says:

    outofstater. its supposed to be disturbing.

  433. galgon says:

    Feds are busy this Friday.
    Bank Failure #6
    American Marine Bank Bainbridge Island WA

  434. Outofstater says:

    #439 Barbara – Disturbing for what purpose? To teach the banks a lesson? I don’t think they are listening. I understand strategic default and how it may be the wisest course for some. What bothers me is the idea that it’s okay to walk away from all debt if it is inconvenient to pay it. It seems to me to be an abdication of personal responsibility under the guise of political action.

  435. Barbara says:

    #439 Barbara – Disturbing for what purpose? To teach the banks a lesson?

    to completely undermine a criminal cartel and the politicians that they have on their payroll. I couldn’t be clearer to me.

  436. Barbara says:

    i = it

  437. Barbara says:

    outofstater, you have to wonder, since the banks have already been paid back via bailout, whose money do they think they are trying to collect?

  438. yikes says:

    freedy says:
    January 29, 2010 at 10:04 am

    not bragging at all. just pointing out that
    if you make it a level field and know the facts you dont have to lose. you can win
    and have a clear mind.

    sorry, not impressed. i feel like it was a level playing field back in 06 when wife and i found this blog.

    i kind of think this guy is a schmuck (no offense, fred)

  439. Essex says:

    437. Let’s put it this way, most people who can afford a home and make sensible choices are not defaulting. BUT, if you are out of work in this economy or soooo far underwater that the house is a boat anchor on your finances, it will be an option. Take it from me, kids sometimes look at parents and do the opposite!

  440. Essex says:

    Also unsecured debt going forward will be impossible to get. But it is the most overrated way to buy anything. I would prefer lay-a-way any day.

  441. Outofstater says:

    446 and 447 Agree with both your posts!

  442. leftwing says:

    Nom

    Hell, wish I looked at the board before bolting out the door.

    Would have liked to meet up at the Devs game.

    Among a disgruntled banker, real estate broker (Clot), and tax attorney I smell a business plan.

    Or at least some Grey Geese on the rocks with served by my good buddy Mike in the Ice Lounge.

    Absent a GTG before, next game I’m going to is the 12th. You?

  443. Barbara says:

    ok,
    I’m all burned out on strategic default. Still like the idea but have nothing more to add.

  444. sas says:

    all right, thanks to those whom set me emails interested in possible positions. Going to forward.

    As far as I know, Larry is thinking we are brining to get the ball rolling in March.

    We got a busy travel here in Feb. We gotta goto China and travel out of the cities. WE’re checking out rural schools power systems.

    so… tis what it tis….

    ok, I need to talk about something else. Its a weekend, and I’m hitting the cognac.

    John…you got me that bottle of cognac I asked you to get…right?

    SAS

  445. sas says:

    great scott !!

    we have 6 BFF tonight. eee…gads…

    What the hell is going on in Georgia?

    SAS

  446. yikes says:

    Nom – yes, i remember that law firm departure you mentioned.

    it was so good, i bookmarked it:

    https://njrereport.com/index.php/2008/10/17/weekend-open-discussion-135/#comment-231492

    in other news, Freddy is full of sh!t. a troll.

  447. Barbara says:

    yikes,
    I think he’s a little troll-y, the story got embellished today.

  448. Shore Guy says:

    How our mansions of glory
    Become mansions of pain
    As our already high tax bills
    Increase again and again

    From the Highlands in Sussex
    To the beach down the Shore
    Keep taxing the public
    Until they are all poor

  449. Shore Guy says:

    “More significant. Yen/Euro cross. ”

    Or as William Jennings Bryan said more than a few years back (maybe 1896?), “You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.”

  450. bones deplume says:

    (454) Yikes

    Best paet was that this came out just before I left the large NYC firm I was at. I showed the email to some folks and they thought I planned to send it.

    My feelings were the same but I wasn’t HLS fool enough to say it.

  451. Shore Guy says:

    454 re. “dressed up like a pinata and beaten [and turned] into an aimless, shambling group of dry, lifeless husks.”

    It sounds like NJ and federal tax policy, actually.

  452. bones deplume says:

    (449) Leftwing

    Damn boy, chifi and I were behunf the net for the winning goal and went to Bellos after. In fact, we just left.

    Woulda been good to have your input on my revised nompound business plan.

  453. stater (437)-

    Welcome to my world. Pour yourself a drink, and get comfy.

    We’re gonna be here a while.

  454. Really good to see so many embrace different aspects of oblivion today.

    It has such an Alice in Wonderland quality…down is up, up is down…

  455. This isn’t troubling in the least; I’m just posting it to eat bandwidth:

    Jan. 29 (Bloomberg) –“Argentina’s central bank President Martin Redrado resigned, saying the government has tried to destroy the bank’s independence and that he has sought to follow the law.

    Redrado spoke in a news conference tonight in Buenos Aires.”

    Argentina CDS still selling at a brisk 1,000+ bps. Makes Greece look stable by comparison.

    Somebody tell me how this ends well.

  456. Laurie says:

    #463
    Don’t know how that will end but I just put my college age daughter on a plane to BA for the next 4 months to study…better remain stable, even Argentine standards are good enough for me…Trip from NNJ to JFK was a breeze…both ways…

  457. Stu says:

    Devil fans got to see a good one tonight (for a change).

  458. LoveNJ says:

    Moved to NJ four years ago, still renting. Plan to buy this year, since my 3yr-old needs more space and 2nd one on the way. Wife lost her job, but found another 6 months ago.

    We plan to buy a cozy place just based on one income and still have rainy fund of 6 yrs. Actually fell in love NJ with good schools and diversity. We think it is better than other states like IN and FL we lived before.

    Saw this site and enjoyed it each day since 2006. Following Grim’s example and got my RE license with the plan to use it with my first buy in NJ. My lowball offers will be a favor to sellers, since my “low balls” are the reasonable market price they should list.

    Buyers know the house price better than sellers do. Good Evening and Good Night

  459. Barbara says:

    good looking man bags for the paranoid gun nut with great sense of style

    http://www.saddlebackleather.com/categories/79-Briefcases/products/1646-Leather-Briefcase-Dark-Coffee-Brown

    check out the pop up w/gun

  460. Barbara says:

    click “features”

    for serious, that’s a nice bag.

  461. Paul Reppert says:

    If you agree COlts are going to lose become a fan of FB page Colts Will Lose Super Bowl 2010!

  462. Skye Lueras says:

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