patrick.net

Virtually ALL of the bull arguments have been debunked here over the last year, year and half but they still find a more approving audience over there!

Arguments are never about reason. Rather, they are about acceptance. This is why sophistry is still viable. ;)

My favorite is the "Yah, well, your landlord is going to jack your rent 2-3 times in the next few years! Then where will you be, sucker?"

Given that the economy has been being supported by MEW for the last few years, yes. Yes, we are unamerican. If the economy manages to cling on through the housing recession, we'll look back and praise Alan for avoiding an economic recession by creating a bigger housing recession a few years later once the economy was back on its feet.

Shame on those of us who didn't help out by HELOCing a houseboat! SHAME!

Renters can eat sushi

Naturally, one may question whether eating sushi is un-American.

We all know that Apple Pie American. But adding ice-cream supposedly makes it French, although most people from France do not know what "apple pie a la mode" means.

A custom graphic just for Peter P:

Thanks HARM!

For comparison, here is the original photo:

Are apple pies made from Fuji apples American? Or do they have to be made from Red Delicious apples?

SFBB,

Rank and file Americans are already cursing the bubble! They may not have borrowed recklessly to begin with but it sure... wound up that way. Now they're saddled with debt for things that could have easily been rented for a fraction of the cost.

This is ONE area where OR's might have more direct exposure. With the avg. sized lot (even in new subdivisions) being at least 5-6,000 sq. ft and older (2001-2004 sd's) at 7-10,000 s/f there's plenty of room for "toys". I swear a few weeks ago my wife and I were driving through a new sub. and one couple's yard looked like they just hit it big on the Price Is Right!

Everything (and I DO mean everything) ALL brand new! Two brand new cars, new pick-up, new Harley, 5th wheel camper, boat etc. etc. all lined up in their driveway! Since they'd be lucky to get HALF of that to fit in their 2 1/2 car garage I guess the rest of us might as well get used to looking at it! But rent? NEVER!

Are apple pies made from Fuji apples American? Or do they have to be made from Red Delicious apples?

One generally shouldn't make apple pies or other pastries with sweeter apples like red delicious. After baking, they come out mealy and the sweet = higher water content, so the crust gets soggy. Granny Smith are good, or even crab apples!

Somehow I am thinking about having some chicken and apple salad. Perhaps a Chicken Waldorf Salad.

Jon,

Rent-a-FICO! What next to keep "the game" alive and kickin'?

Before the bubble peaked there were "firms" out there that offered to "lend assets". If you had a net worth of gosh let's see.... ZERO you could have assets placed in your account (for a fee of course) that showed you had 100K in your account when you went to "qualify". As soon as the loan went through, they'd pull the $'s and you'd pay them for the favor!

Whadda country!

SFBubbleBuyer Says:

> My favorite (from Craig’s List) is the “Yah, well, your
> landlord is going to jack your rent 2-3 times in the
> next few years! Then where will you be, sucker?”

My favorite is from “RentsAreUp” who says “Come back and ask that when your rent has tripled and the house is valued at 3 million.”

At 5% per year inflation in "only" about 25-30 years rents will triple and $770K homes will be selling for $3mm…

Some of the posts here made me reflect on some memories of being a landlord. Renting really is a two way street. I have to say that there were times I felt like I worked for renters because I would see them watching me as I mowed the lawn, or worse yet, doing plumbing work. I am very customer service oriented and so I always felt like I was working for a paying customer.

On the flip side, I used to feel some empowerment knowing I was basically my own property management company. The main point here is that leasing something is just paying for what you use, and I see it as a smart move for most things, including current housing. It is only the portion of your rent payment that is larger than the interest and costs of owning the home that one could even say is being thrown away, and that is not the case now. Clearly it is the smart decision at present to rent soemtihing for 1/2 of the ownership costs. The time to buy is when you find yourself wondering, why should I rent when I can buy for the same or a little more.

> My favorite (from Craig’s List) is the “Yah, well, your
> landlord is going to jack your rent 2-3 times in the
> next few years! Then where will you be, sucker?”

At the foreclosure auction?

Anthony - nothing about Cragislist surprises me any more. I pretty much stopped going there months ago, because its the same dozen people fighting amongst themselves, saying the same things, hijacking any thread they can, over and over and over again.

Kinda fun the first fews times when you're in an argumentative mood, but once you've read the first few salvos it just gets dull. There's no real information and advice to be had from there, because anyone who actually answers you then has to grapple with the perma-trolls that live there for hours afterwards.

Very OT - can anyone explain to me why CNN is devoting hours of coverage on a collpased building in Istambul - when the War Funding Bill is immananent?

Very OT - can anyone explain to me why CNN is devoting hours of coverage on a collpased building in Istambul - when the War Funding Bill is immananent?

Huh? I do not even know it happened.

Well, you'd be forgiven for thinking that a man stuck in a trench in Tennessee is more important.
Although, to give CNN its due, they did squeeze in a two minute segment on the passing of the bill through the Senate, just before the breaking news about said man in trench in TN.

It’s strange to me how people willingly foreit the power they hold in financial transactions.

It is important to feel empowered. Life is very frequently a game of mindsets.

My exit strategy in case almonds do not taste good is pine nuts.

HK,

Yeah I'll have to keep that one in mind. Sounds to me like numb-nuts figured out that people other than raging specuvestors watch these investment blogs and he'd better start sounding "salt of the earth" real quick?

Too bad we can't send him the "Rent-a-FICO" link above? Might help him finance some more reasonably priced properties? I know, don't give 'em any ideas!

I wouldn't be suprised to find that whole site go 'member read only' soon. They turned down my member application, too. Apparently they didn't want me accusing Jeff of being an immoral bloodsucker for trying to figure out how to make the bank pay for his 'failed' investments while he keeps his 'successful' investments.

The man is scum.

Also... what is meant by a 'pine box' exit strategy? Is that where you engineer a suicide to look accidental so your insurance coughs up enough for your family to buy themselves out of the mortgage debt you screwed them with?

If so, it's just another way to run up renters' life insurance rates. Flippers ruin things even in death.

SFBB,

Well let 'em take their little circle jerk "private".

Gosh, I've always wanted to be a member of an investment club where the tactics are so under-handed and beneath contempt they can't be repeated in public? WTF?

CNN survey on taxpayer-funded subprime bailout:

http://money.cnn.com/POLLSERVER/results/31468.html

Should taxpayer dollars be used to bail out subprime borrowers with bad loans?

Definitely: 2%
No way: 89%
On a case-by-case basis: 9%

18357 votes

SFBB,

I didn't read it directly but I took it to mean "til death do us part" and that he was stuck with these cash flow negs. until he was quite dead. Sounds like yer typical "clod kicker" now dudn't it?

In reality, people have all kinds of complex emotional and psychological needs which can be exploited and manipulated.

Exactly. This is why life is fun. :)

I call this the dichotomy of emotion. One must seek to be as detached as possible from emotion (i.e. being rational), yet one must also seek to exploit and manipulate the emotion of others.

Should taxpayer dollars be used to bail out subprime borrowers with bad loans?

Ask "Should borrowers affected in subprime mortgage schemes be assisted using public funds?" and you may get very different results.

Peter P,

I'd still vote no. Should punative damages in cases where predatory lending is proved be steep? I vote yes!

DinOR,

It disturbs me that the majority of them have no problem trying to figure out ways for him to rob the bank! "Hide your assets, then force them to accept a short sale!"

At least a few of them recommended "Sell them, and sell enough other stuff to cover the losses. Bingo, you're done!"

I am just saying that "Should taxpayer dollars be used..." automatically creates a NO bias.

Even though public money = taxpayer money, people associates the former to free money and the later to my money.

@SFBubbleBuyer

It disturbs me that the majority of them have no problem trying to figure out ways for him to rob the bank! “Hide your assets, then force them to accept a short sale!”

The person who propose such scheme may be culpable of conspiracy to commit fraud.

Again, I am not a lawyer.

Jon, I got a little long winded but I was basically saying just what you concluded. A renter is just a paying customer, and I never looked at them as anything else. This is a sick society with people always trying to feel better than someone else to the point they look down their noses at someone's living arrangement.

I am just saying that “Should taxpayer dollars be used…” automatically creates a NO bias.

If the poll were phrased, "Should the subprime borrowers with bad loans be bailed out?" I still think the answer would be "no" for most people. Poll participants are not THAT stupid - where do they think the bailout money comes from - Google?

Poll writing and analysis is clearly a vague, mystic art, and you can write questions to bias answers pretty easily, it seems.

SFBubble, would you please give us your definition of predatory lending? What is a normal premium a subprime borrower should pay verses crossing the line and being predatory?

KT, I loved that quote from a renter where they said, "at least we're not running to the government for a bail out!"

I should note that Joe has yet to make a statement on whether or not he has stopped beating his wife.

I should note that Joe has yet to make a statement on whether or not he has stopped beating his wife.

Huh? Do you want to incite yet more sophistry?

Hide your ass-ets! Shave your head! Move to Bolivia!

Just the kind of crowd I know "I'D" like to be hanging out... with...?

I just want to take a minute here to showcase JUST HOW DESPERATE these friggin' bastards must be to actually seek out complicated legal advice (for free of course) from anonymous people on the internet.

How different is this clown from CS? Bouncing investment ideas around is one thing, openly soliciting ways to circumvent RESPA is another. Just look how brazen this crap is? Can you imagine this post?

"Well guys, it looks like the SEC is really serious about that insider stuff. Has anyone here placed restricted shares in like a niece's account or anything like that? I opened up several accounts under various names at different brokerages across a few states so I'm pretty sure it won't get back to me but have any of you guys had this hassle w/ Reg. 144? TIA for your reply!"

Ha ha, just between me and a zillion readers can someone tell me if the crime I committed can be traced back? Good one DinOR.