patrick.net

clambo says

It's people's nature to not save

Corrected:
It's stupid people's nature to not save

CaptainShuddup says

in fact married people making between 62K to 96K pay more taxes than singles making the same, or married people making more. In the form of a marriage penalty.

What's keeping them from getting divorced, just to save on taxes? People do it.

clambo says

It's people's nature to not save, it's like entropy increasing naturally.

It takes discipline to save money. It's a decision you must make, there are many outside influences for you to spend all of it.

The problem is that a comfortable living, used to cost a lot less. So today, a guy in that one bedroom condo with a vehicle and a few trips, here and there, is probably already stretched.

But at the same time, once you've developed a setpoint, it's a lot easier to stick with it. Thus, when my bonuses bloomed, upon getting settled in this hedge fund job, I was able to immediately save it all. And thus, I've maintained the "loser" engineering lifestyle, because I was conditioned earlier in life, since my career didn't start on Wall St, like some other ppl who'd gone into this field from the start.

Thus, all my prior fears of losing my job to a layoff and then, being forced to sell or carry two mortgages, etc, are all gone.

CaptainShuddup says

I know find out, because I did my taxes, that in fact married people making between 62K to 96K pay more taxes than singles making the same, or married people making more. In the form of a marriage penalty.

Not completely true. If one spouse makes $96K and the other makes $0, you often pay less than two single people living in a household making $96K and 0. If both of you make $48K each, then it's possible you may be paying more in some cases, depending on income level. The marriage penalty penalizes people when both spouses earn closer to the same amount and when the household income is above a certain threshold, but if you live in perfect 1950s household, you come out ahead.

JH says

It's incredible. Last year the assessment went down by X amount (50%-ish), and the tax rate went up by Y. Amazingly, the tax bill was IDENTICAL!!! To the penny.

It's pretty standard in certain jurisdictions to do the reverse when they do a re-valuation where the value goes up significantly because it's been 7-8 years since the last re-valuation.

Call it Crazy says

More than half of homes currently listed for sale in Miami (62.4%), Los Angeles (57.2%), San Diego (55.3%), San Francisco (55.2%), Denver (52.8%), San Jose (50.9%) and Portland, Ore. (50.3%) are unaffordable by historical standards.

I just moved my mother to a place in Miami. Fortunately, she has a huge pension, about 3x the national median income, so this wasn't a problem. I looked for myself and was appalled.

Prices are absolutely unaffordable for most of the very comfortable families in the top 30%. It's $500k+ for an ancient 2 bedroom with glass everything, Bronx Baroque Style, the old NYC apartment was moved in 1971 and the walls are decorated with Psychadelic Brown Wallpaper that look like DNA Strands. With outdated facilities, no gym but a card playing room, and absolutely no pets, not even under 20 lb.

The newer apartments are somewhat cheaper, but the HOA fees make no sense, $700-900/mo, and they're still maybe 30% higher than the maximum price based on 3-5x income. I assume the HOA fees are because half the condos are empty.

There's also a massive gap between Condos that allow rentals and those that don't (or those that allow rentals only after 3 years of ownership, useless for investors). What's happening is that Grandma wants to sell, but she sees in neighboring, rentals-allowed Condos they are asking half a million, she thinks she can get the same thing for her Bronx-French Colonial Furnished apartment with the Multicolored Astrick wallpaper and 1976 Yellowish-Brown Electric Stove equipped kitchen with that bizarro faux-marble tile.

Also, Granny and/or her babyboomer almost-senior children remember 2007 prices and are insistent on holding out for that.

Yes, there are plenty of Russians and South Americans buying, but they're buying the luxury apartments to launder or hide money. They're not buying the middle-class or upper-middle class condos.

Seriously some of these places are decorated like Liberace on Acid.

One place had a huge gold-framed picture of a Rabbi, sitting between two Fake French Imperial Chairs with blue cushions and of course gold trim - and 3 of 4 walls glass, of course.

Wanting $500k for apartments that have brown and orange kitchens and need about $100k just so you can rest your eyes inside them.

corntrollio says

It's pretty standard in certain jurisdictions to do the reverse when they do a re-valuation where the value goes up significantly because it's been 7-8 years since the last re-valuation.

For sure. In this case, Cook County is so poor that they have just been raising total tax (not rates, necessarily) forever. They know how to play the game when housing is up and they know how to play it when housing is down. Now that it's down, they spike the assessments (even the re-assessments, which we have gotten by request). It's quite a stark contrast to CA where many assessments are sitting WELL below market value. Yet even new assessments (not Prop 13 controlled, essentially) in CA in comparable neighborhoods are paying less real taxes. Cook County is ass backwards.

Another anecdote. Asking $1.449 mil, sold at $1.8 mil. Closed within 15 days.

http://www.redfin.com/CA/Cupertino/10587-Randy-Ln-95014/home/1331434

Well, we put in an offer for this apartment building and didn't get it. It closed in 9 days for $130k above list price. Of course, it's not possible according to Patneters.

http://www.redfin.com/CA/Redwood-City/436-Clinton-St-94062/home/2021871

The money comes out of the taxes paid by us. This is such bull shit!

CaptainShuddup says

I mean a single guy can time his nightly dinner to coincide with the local bar's happy hour buffet.

Yup! :-)

Very nice statistics. Very informative.

Net Jersey is the place to be in.
Is it a co incidence that blue states take the longest to foreclose?

There isn't any cheese for Blue states,the Red states are eating most of it.

http://wallethub.com/edu/states-most-least-dependent-on-the-federal-government/2700/

Cops.one day, will shoot the wrong person & a family member will go postal. Wonder who they might go postal on?

We are in a drought. They were just protecting and serving.

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

The victim's family should be able to behead the cops in public and fuck the bloody gushing stumps.

I don't believe for one moment that these cops acted alone.

Public employees, their pension funds bloated with the ill-gotten lucre that is destroying America, tricked these officers into shooting this man as a way of diverting blame from the Federal Reserve.

The lawn was yellow. It needed iron. Blood is an excellent source of iron, and the gardener was low hanging fruit.

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

The victim's family should be able to behead the cops in public and fuck the bloody gushing stumps.

I think you may have made an accidental mistake - you meant to say that the cops should be able to whack the remaining family members and fornicate the blood stumps. Only then will we learn the true meaning of freedom and security.

Interesting number for San Jose. While much of the obvious foreclosure/short-sale activity has slowed, the spectre of more still seems to be out there if the banksters get off their duffs. It's likely this is part of what's depressing the first-time buyer and move-up markets too.

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

A jury of 12 anarchists awarded the lawn torturer's family $6.5 million this week

1. The cops weren't prosecuted criminally for murder. Therefore, justice was not served. Nor is there any incentive for cops not to commit murder since...

2. The taxpayers flip the bill. The compensation should have been taken from the salaries and retirement plans of all cops in the guilty police department. Cops tolerate protect the criminal in their ranks. The law needs to incentive the opposite behavior by making the criminal behavior of one cop materially affect all other cops.

3. A human life is worth far more than $6.5 million.

APOCALYPSEFUCKisShostikovitch says

The victim's family should be able to behead the cops in public and fuck the bloody gushing stumps.

Agreed. Given police behavior any reasonable person would shoot a cop on sight.

Douglas Zerby was finishing up watering his lawn when neighbors, completely brainwashed by the police state, called the cops because they saw Zerby holding what they thought was a gun. It was actually a water hose nozzle.

So what if he had had a gun? Last time I checked, guns were legal. Shouldn't the pro-gun rights people be literally up in arms over this demanding murder charges against the cops and at least involuntary manslaughter charges against the neighbors who reported a false emergency and/or a false crime that led to this man's death?

If guns are legal, there is no reason why a person should not be able to possess on his own lawn. He has the right to sit with an AK47 strapped to his shoulder just watching the traffic pass by.

Not to mention, this guy was white. So it's should be ok to the gun nuts that he had a gun. I mean, if a black man had a gun, I'd expect the pro-gun crowd to side with the police, but this guy is as white as Dennis Leary.

I'm sorry that the market is built on criminal acts, manipulation and artificial inflation, but at the end if the day we have to accept that fact, move on, let prices fall naturally and be done with it.

thunderlips11 says

Also, Granny and/or her babyboomer almost-senior children remember 2007 prices and are insistent on holding out for that.

Yes, there are plenty of Russians and South Americans buying, but they're buying the luxury apartments to launder or hide money. They're not buying the middle-class or upper-middle class condos.

The Boomers holding out for the get rich quick scheme of the housing bubble is part of the problem today.

Also, unless you are a citizen you should not be able to buy here. Period.

It looks like Redfin has stopped publishing Listing Data and Sold Data metrics under Market Trends for individual cities. It was nice to have as its showed month to month and year over year trends. Thankfully, they are still publishing the charts that we all love. Conspiracy theories anyone?

EBGuy says

It looks like Redfin has stopped publishing Listing Data and Sold Data metrics under Market Trends for individual cities. It was nice to have as its showed month to month and year over year trends. Thankfully, they are still publishing the charts that we all love. Conspiracy theories anyone?

I noticed now the listing has old asking price masked too, so can't really tell the asking price history unless you cross check it on zillow.

WOW! The UNtrustworthy are certainly in control of what information is apparent to the people!

Say hey! This was in the Wall Street Journal on March 30, 1999. Note "... how much it will buy."

Holy cow/interesting/compelling ...!

And where is it up to date??? Right here ... see the first chart shown in this thread.
Recent Dow day is Thursday, April 10, 2014 __ Level is 102.9

WOW! It is hideous that this is hidden! Is there any such "Homes, Inflation Adjusted"? Yes! This was in the New York Times on August 27, 2006:

And up to date (by me) is here:
http://patrick.net/?p=1219038&c=999083#comment-999083

WOW! The UNtrustworthy are certainly in control of what information is apparent to the people!

And "ThePublic Be Suckered"
http://patrick.net/?p=1230886

Call it Crazy says

Strategist says

Net Jersey is the place to be in.

See that.... We're #1, We're #1!!!!

That's great, but do they have propane?

I'm sort of like Rew. I bought about 2 years ago and so as lame as this sounds, once I did so I lost that "fire under my ass" when it comes to real estate discussions. That said, the housing bubble did make me aware and to be cautious with my money because what goes up ALWAYS comes down and I have no doubt the same will happen in the Bay Area again at some point and when it does, I'm sure that also means the economy will suffer too.

If anything, I find I'd much rather see a more balanced, rational market. I have no intention of selling until I'm retired or older. But in the meantime it appears we're in another bubble, and that means we're already on our way to another pop.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/101571835

edvard2, I echo the sentiments of your last paragraph. You claim we're in a bubble. Here's a couple of reasons we may be in a bubble in the Bay Area:
1. Influx of Mobile 1.0 wealth (and, to some extent Web 2.0 IPO/options/RSU money)
2. Fed policies that helped investors "clear" the market (and then some)
3. Under investment in multifamily housing after the last bubble popped.
Will we see an outright popping like last time (dotcom bust, or foreclosure crisis)? Or will it be a slow deflation? Or do we just slide sideways into oblivion?

Come on folks. None of this should be all that shocking as most of these are judicial foreclosure states.

sbh says

Designed and built by Bilbo Baggins dosed outta his frickin' mind.

More like a wanna be Gaudi. Was probably the product of shrooms and absinthe back then.

https://www.google.com/search?q=gaudi&safe=off&rls=com.microsoft:en-US:IE-Address&rlz=1I7GGHP_enUS544&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=HClHU729J82nsATcxYCYDg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1067&bih=481

Oh my.
Say, does anyone know if they are foreclosing on the condom factory "over in Jersey" where Bob Sacamano works? Kramer wants to know.

Betcha her next job is with HCA, Aetna/US Healthcare, another Insurance/Hospital profiteering organization or a Lobbyist Firm who reps them.

Her replacement is closely tied to MetLife and Walmart, and of course, a CFR board member.

https://www.opensecrets.org/revolving/rev_summary.php?id=70787

She'll get a job as an Obamacare "Expert".

Either that or head tech firm that will be awarded tech support for Heathcare.gov.

Thank you kitty cat, job well done! Thank you for removing the burden of choosing the level of health care I feel I need. Thank you for the ability to pay to be covered for treatments I have zero chance of needing. You didn't do a very good job by most people's standards, but clearly good enough for government work.

The fucked up part is that we taxpayers will eventually be on the hook, not the banks, for the lost money.

This is why I am pissed off at the banks; they contributed to the problem or caused the problem, lost their ass but taxpayers paid for it.

Everyone in Fannie&Freddie and banking has an interest in these "zombie houses" not being foreclosed en masse, it could upset the apple cart again.

Banks have a tough time foreclosing in some states. The guy was quoted from a bank that he never wants to originate any loan that he'll have to foreclose on someday.

Deadbeats fight tooth and nail if they can legally to never leave their houses.