From Barrons:
Consumers’ Quiet Helper: The Fruits of Foreclosure
Imagine living at home and paying no mortgage, interest or taxes. That may sound like some late-night TV commercial, but millions of people are doing just that—the silver lining to having their homes in the foreclosure process.
It’s not easy to estimate exactly how much money these folks are not spending on housing, but a good guess is $42 billion a year. Assuming they’re spending it on other things, they’re chipping in about 10% of the nation’s total retail sales. In other words, they’re a surprisingly important force for the economy.
Nearly 1.9 million homes had some form of foreclosure filing upon them at the end of last year, according to RealtyTrac. Because of bottlenecks caused by the Robo-signing mess and legal battles, people in foreclosure have been able to stay put for long stretches. The foreclosure process rose from 281 days in the third quarter of 2010, to 348 days by the end of 2011. In Florida it’s 806 days. In New York, the average stay is a stunning 1,019 days. Until actually foreclosed, people stay in their homes for free.
You get to roughly $42 billion in savings by multiplying the portion of mortgages in foreclosure (4.38% of all homes) by total annual payments of mortgage and taxes (about $970 million).
“Imagine living at home and paying no mortgage, interest or taxes.”
I personally know of two. The one couple in a really nice CHC going on three years paying zip.
I am sure there are more , some do not advertise I would venture.
Grim you catch my post on the basement flooring?
I’d buy an Aston Martin.
I mean, if you are going to do it, do it right.
I did, Alloc? Where can you get it?
From CNBC:
Post-Bubble Home Improvement Rules
Den/Man Cave
Kitchens for Costco Runs
Bedrooms for Sleeping
Smaller Bathrooms
Extra Bedrooms, Closets and Other Standbys
Scaled-Down Green
Downstairs Master Bedroom/Elevator
Patio/Outdoor Spaces
Mudroom
Good Morning New Jersey
Grim Alloc: I bought wholesale direct to install, unfortunately no longer. There was a place by me that sold to public I will check it out and let you know.
Grim PS just stop in a bunch of flooring stores in your travels, not many carry but you may come across it.
Grim did you Google it & check it out? I just did first site up , go with commercial grade if you can swing it. Do it once do it right, good to go for 20 years with your intended use.
A behemoth… needs substantial work listed at 649K. It was built in 1970 and hasn’t been changed since. At the peak, it would’ve been listed for 200K more than current price. Taxes, as usual, are akin to being f*cking mugged. I don’t even like this house but still, this one is ripe for a sucker punch offer:
http://www.trulia.com/property/photos/3079579539-23-Natmark-Ct-Woodcliff-Lake-NJ-07677#item-0
Another dump. Don’t tell me it’s a bargain when I need another 100K to get it close to comfortable. It hasn’t seen a paint brush in years. And another tax heist at over 12K per year:
http://www.trulia.com/property/3078236050-81-Winding-Way-Woodcliff-Lake-NJ-07677
No offers? No problem. Just increase the price by $30,000 and take another swig of Smirnoff:
http://www.trulia.com/property/3075925236-201-Four-Seasons-Ln-Woodcliff-Lake-NJ-07677
gary
I’m getting 70s flashbacks. Extra points for the picture over the fireplace.
http://www.trulia.com/property/3078283438-Single-Family-Home-Harrington-Park-NJ-07640
Another sign that the federales are nervous about a slave revolt. Senate passes measure to keep anyone with a tax deficiency notice over a certain amount from leaving the country.
That will prove interesting when a dual citizen tries to leave on their foreign passport.
Nom,
As one does not need a passport to cross out of the US to Canada, one can envision such folks to just drive across or boat across the border. Up in Vermont, Montana, the UP of Michigan, the Thousand Islands, etc., it would be difficult to stop people from leaving without going all Stasi.
damn nics checks are taking 4+ hours today. state of NJ (since the NJ state police have to call the feds) really does not want you to have any guns…after all, we peasants should not have any weapons….only TPTB and the police should have them.
Think i am turning into clot.
#14 Passports are required to Canada.
as of last last year IIRC. I remember heading up to catch a Canadiens game and made it just weeks before the new rules took effect. I left the house with just DL so I was lucky that I didn’t have to turn around.
PS- the US/Can border, at least the designated checkpoints, are not as much of a joke as people make them out to be. They tossed our car and individually questioned me, my friend and his wife. Evaluation of eye movement, body language… maybe I just got an eager shift…/shrugs/. It’s too bad the only baddies they catch at the designated crossings are amateurs who didn’t use their crossing routes.
Gary,
I will never live in a condominium again. The first law suit against the builder will turn your stomach. How would you like to pay legal fees every month because someones unit doesnt have a fire wall. I lived it. Live free or die.
13,
Nom,
It is laughable what the gub is passing nowadays. I have an inclination that they are scared. They have never taken on a population with 110 million gun owners before. Now granted. They pulled it off in Russia and China. Im not convinced it will be pulled off here. The internet has changed things.
14.
The best kept secret is how easy the Canadian border can be crossed. Back in the 80’s my folks had 10 acres in upstate NY. 1/2 mile down the road was Canada. None of the Canadians have the stomach for enforcing a strict border. Stay mobile because you will get it out if need be.
15,
Morph,
I talked to the county prosecuter (former judge) in my county at a barbeque recently regarding a permit to carry. She told me that I basically needed a bonafide threat to my life and it would need to be renewed every year or so. I told her that in Pennsylvania I can get on right now. She basically said you dont have a hope in hell.
15,
Morph,
The cops get jealous when they see you firing off .556. They dont like it one bit.
13 – Most of that place is hideous, but picture of the formal living room with the red shag is just killer, love it.
Good Morning New Jersey And Happy Easter To All
Happy Easter folks.
Another day in hell.
Come on Chip it’s Easter.
Another day ascending to heaven.
Smoke ’em if you got ’em.