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Quotes that will live in Infamy


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2006 Sep 8, 8:15am   20,600 views  230 comments

by HARM   ➕follow (0)   💰tip   ignore  

day of infamy

Some notorious quotes --like events-- represent pivotal moments that should never be forgotten. They should be preserved for posterity and passed along to future generations to serve as a warning. Some of the crap the REIC (Real Estate Industrial Complex) has been spewing for the last 5 years meets this lowly standard of putrescence.

Whenever these shills try to reverse course, change their tunes or revise history in the face of (now undeniable) evidence that their empire is crumbling, these quotes should be trotted out and rubbed in their lying, ugly faces at every opportunity.

Here are some of my infamous favorites:

Source: L.A. Times (August 28, 2005)
“Equity Is Altering Spending Habits and View of Debt”

“If you paid your mortgage off, it means you probably did not manage your funds efficiently over the years,” said David Lereah, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors and author of “Are You Missing the Real Estate Boom?” “It’s as if you had 500,000 dollar bills stuffed in your mattress.”

He called it “very unsophisticated.”

Anthony Hsieh, chief executive of LendingTree Loans, an Internet-based mortgage company, used a more disparaging term. “If you own your own home free and clear, people will often refer to you as a fool. All that money sitting there, doing nothing.”

Source: Federal Reserve Board (February 23, 2004)
Remarks by Chairman Alan Greenspan: Understanding household debt obligations
(just as Greenspan was preparing to start RAISING rates from 1%)

"... many homeowners might have saved tens of thousands of dollars had they held adjustable-rate mortgages rather than fixed-rate mortgages during the past decade.

...American consumers might benefit if lenders provided greater mortgage product alternatives to the traditional fixed-rate mortgage. To the degree that households are driven by fears of payment shocks but are willing to manage their own interest rate risks, the traditional fixed-rate mortgage may be an expensive method of financing a home."

Source: N.Y. Times (March 25, 2005)
Trading Places: Real Estate Instead of Dot-Coms

Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors says that "South Florida is working off of a totally new economic model than any of us have ever experienced in the past." He predicts that a limited supply of land coupled with demand from baby boomers and foreigners will prolong the boom indefinitely.

Source: CNN Money/Fortune (February 13, 2006)
A tale of two markets

If you want to know where real estate prices are headed in California's Orange County, the man to talk to is Gary Watts. The Mission Viejo broker has 35 years of experience and doubles as a spokesman for the O.C.'s Association of Realtors.

... Since 1997, Orange County home prices have seen a 195 percent rise. Will the good times last another year? Gary doesn't hesitate. "Fifteen percent is pretty much in the bag for Orange County in 2006," he says. "It's impossible for prices to go down this year."

Source: N.Y. Times (October 16, 2005)
Chasing Ground
Bob Toll (President of Toll Brothers):

"In Britain you pay seven times your annual income for a home; in the U.S. you pay three and a half." The British get 330 square feet, per person, in their homes; in the U.S., we get 750 square feet. Not only does Toll say he believes the next generation of buyers will be paying twice as much of their annual incomes; in terms of space, he also seems to think they're going to get only half as much. "And that average, million-dollar insane home in the burbs? It's going to be $4 million."

Source: N.Y. Times (March 25, 2005)
Trading Places: Real Estate Instead of Dot-Coms:

"I just don't think we have what it takes to prick the bubble," said Diane C. Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial in Chicago, who was an optimist during the 90's. "I don't think prices are going to fall, and I don't think they're even going to be flat."

Source: Planet Jackson Hole (September 6, 2006)
Un-Real Estate

“‘In Jackson, the market doesn’t really go down,’ said (realtor) Linda Walker. Broker Ryan Olsen agrees. ‘We are immune to the up and down treads that plague many real estate markets,’ he says. ‘Our real estate market is essentially quite ‘bullet proof!’”

Source: Contra Costa Times (September 13, 2006)
Housing bubble may spare East Bay

One analyst agreed real estate will not implode in a bubble scenario. Sean Snaith, an economist who tracks regional economies in California, has opined that the Bay Area at worst would endure a housing soufflé that weakened slowly, not a bubble that evaporated.

"The run-up in housing prices was really driven by fundamentals, not speculation," Snaith said. "Growth in the Bay Area economy and the state overall was not confined to housing-related sectors."

Source: WILX.com (January 10, 2007)
Housing Market Recovery?

‘I think the decline that we’ve seen is not going to occur,’ said Tomie Raines Realty President Debbie D’Valentine.”

Source: newspress.com (January 24, 2007)
Low bids take glow off property auction

“At both days of the auction everyone spoken to said the bids came in too low and no one expected them to be accepted. Leibert was upset with the auction, calling it a ‘farce.’ She believes the bids were too low and the auction didn’t deliver serious bidders.”

“‘I think a lot of buyers thought they were going to bottom-feed. These are eager but not desperate sellers.’ Jeff Miloff said. ‘The auction tells me we are in a market correction.’ The bids were so unrealistic the auction showed people didn’t do their homework, Miloff said.”

Source: Monterey County Herald (June 29, 2006)
Reaching The Dream Without Moving In California

"Many in California have reached the dream of living in a million-dollar home without moving."
--Leslie Appleton-Young (vice president and chief economist for the California Association of Realtors)

Source: brisbanetimes.com (September 3, 2008)
Sky's no limit for property prices

"Brisbane’s median house price - currently about $450,000 - will hit $1 million in only seven years time and continue to climb, reaching $20 million by 2044, according to an in-depth research report by property firm Johnston Dixon.”"

CEO John Johnston said as ’staggering’ as the predictions sounded, they were based on growth values of the past 37 years. ‘Brisbane’s median house price has grown by 10.8 per cent annually for almost four decades,’ he said. ‘If values continue to grow for the next 37 years the way they have for the past 37 years, Brisbane will move into the sphere of generational home ownership.’

Please post some of your own favorite "pearls of wisdom" you feel are especially worthy of remembrance.

HARM

#housing

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53   surfer-x   2006 Sep 9, 2:17pm  

rp, I stand corrected, thank you sir ;)

54   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 2:33pm  

I don’t like H1B’s either, too small, I like the H3 better.

Huh? I thought H3 is the smallest... never mind.

55   surfer-x   2006 Sep 9, 3:39pm  

CB let me translate this for you That big business need cheap and dedicated workers. Politicians and company CEO(ala Carly F.) that says there is still a severe shortage of tech workers know it’s just plain B.S. along with the idea that U.S. schools are not graduating enough qualified candidates.

What there is a shortage of is worker bee's with BS's who'll do 60hrs for 50K.

56   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 3:40pm  

Now tell me, there can’t be possibly a “severe” shortage of qualified candidates for such positions.

People always hide their intentions but the market always tells the truth. If such workers are demanded they must be in some kind of shortage.

On the other hand, I still think that performance and reward have little correlation in the workplace. Do not worry about people who "work too hard". Most probably they are politically immature and you should be able to defeat them.

57   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 3:49pm  

U.S. schools are not graduating enough qualified candidates.

When investment bankers can buy houses in Marina while engineers have to rent, it is clear why "U.S. schools are not graduating enough qualified candidates". :)

58   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 3:55pm  

Ha ha, don't leave just yet. Situations tend to correct themselves in interesting ways.

I drove by the new Cupertino condo today. It is almost finished. Did you end up buying the 750K 3BR unit with few common walls? :)

59   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 3:55pm  

Robert,

Very good article and an interesting perspective. The article mentioned that Walmart does not pay delay its bills, but I've heard several different stories about Walmart toying with its smaller suppliers. Maybe Walmart is too savvy to antagonize its larger suppliers, but they don't seem to have that scruple when dealing with smaller suppliers, esp. in China.

The other problem is that Walmart is not particularly cheap for most stuff. They have things like the $3 Jar of pickle loss leaders to draw people in and make believe its really cheap. And their non name branded stuff is really poorly made. Cloth that pills in two washes & tennis shoes that last less than a month. The brand name stuff that I could actually trust (mostly P&G or other major brands) are quite expensive (esp. compared to Costco's huge sizes).

60   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 3:59pm  

Isn't it common belief that investment bankers (and HFers and VCistas) are not paid for their performance but based on the size of their extended family (whom they've sold to the devil in return for their pay packages)?

61   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:02pm  

We finally joined Costco after checking out their seafood department. They sell king crab legs for less than $12/lb!

62   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:04pm  

Capitalist (or feudalistic or plantation style) exploitation workers have been happening forever. But too much oppression and those oppressed masses gets restless or messianic. The rich Republican donors like the Waltons may think they got the oppressed masses controlled by religion and fear, but that can be a risky move.

63   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:05pm  

I didn’t read the whole thread.. but having fixed mortgages at 4.8 - 5.5%, I would agree with the man. My 401k and my CD accounts yield more than that.

When fixed mortgages were at 4.8 - 5.5%, CDs were paying less than that.

If you have fixed your rate at 4.8%, of course you can invest at a higher rate now.

If I had purchased MSFT in the 80's, things would have been quite different for me. :)

64   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:07pm  

"They sell king crab legs for less than $12/lb!"

Is that cheap? Are they any good?

65   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:09pm  

The rich Republican donors like the Waltons may think they got the oppressed masses controlled by religion and fear, but that can be a risky move.

The oppressed people are oppressed by themselves - their own oppressive mindset and thinking.

66   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:11pm  

Is that cheap? Are they any good?

I have not tried yet. :(

But they also sell lobster tails for about $25/lb. Not cheap, but reasonable.

Their lines are too long though. I can only tolerate going their on weekdays. Luckily, there is one near my office.

67   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:12pm  

"If I had purchased MSFT in the 80’s, things would have been quite different for me. "

Why didn't I buy Berkshire Hathaway shares in the early 70's?!?!?!

68   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:12pm  

What are your favorite ways to cook seafood?

How about wine poaching?

69   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:20pm  

I'm not a big seafood person. For shrimp and fish I prefer to dredging in tapioca flour and pan fry in canola. Steaming for all crustaceans, lobster, clams, and crayfish. Salmon and trout are salted and pan broiled.

I've never wine poached anything. I'm still trying to figure out what wine poaching is (though I assume it does not involve carrying a gun into a vineyard).

70   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:23pm  

I’ve never wine poached anything.

Something like this:

http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=content&id=recipe790024

71   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:24pm  

RE: seafood

When in doubt, eat raw. :)

* Not dietary advice. Consuming raw or undercooked seafood can be harmful to your health.

72   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:27pm  

I am having a vision of king crab risotto with green pea puree. Perhaps I should cook that soon...

73   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:29pm  

That sounds good. Though it'll be while before I can afford to test out such a dish (I may have to take up the other kind of wine poaching to afford this wine poached scallop).

I've only had good scallops once (nobody bothers to take to good seafood restaurants), that was in Dalian. It was live and 60 cents a kilo, we steamed it and it turned out really good. Otherwise, it doesn't do much for me.

74   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:34pm  

That sounds good. Though it’ll be while before I can afford to test out such a dish (I may have to take up the other kind of wine poaching to afford this wine poached scallop).

I think Trader Joe's has some good scallops. You do not need too many of them.

However, you may also want to try searing the scallops.

I heard that Dalian is a seafood heaven.

Do you like oxtails? I am also thinking of combining an oxtail soup recipe into one with risotto.

75   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:36pm  

Wouldn't risotto be kind of waste for king crab? I find dungeness crabs to be very good and cheaper. It's not as sweet as blue crabs, but much easier to eat.

I like eating shrimp (or some other white fleshed sea fish) with hot rice congee. That cooks the shrimp quickly and compliments the delicate texture of the shrimp.

76   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:41pm  

I tried TJ frozen seafood once. Never again!

I may have had oxtail once, but I don't remember what it tastes like. Tails and necks are too much work.

77   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:42pm  

Wouldn’t risotto be kind of waste for king crab? I find dungeness crabs to be very good and cheaper. It’s not as sweet as blue crabs, but much easier to eat.

Not really. King crab meat is quite firm so it should do fine. Dungeness crab meat is quite delicate and it can "disappear" in the rice. :)

Blue crab is sweet!

Congee is a good way to cook seafood. Adding clams is the easiest way to bring more flavor to the soup.

78   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:44pm  

I tried TJ frozen seafood once. Never again!

Costco has good scallops too.

Tails and necks are too much work.

Meat should fall off of the oxtails and it is quite tender. I do not usually eat neck.

79   HARM   2006 Sep 9, 4:46pm  

My fellow Patrick.net bloggers,

I could use your help/ideas . Patrick is now interested in doing a CafePress-style storefront to merchandise Patrick.net themed T-shirts, hats, mugs, etc., but is not too keen on on the per-unit price CafePress charges. The "base price" (CafePress's cut) on each t-shirt is $8.99.

Does anyone out there know of another merchandising/storefront site that does the same thing but takes a slightly less gargantuan cut? I'm new to this game and any constructive suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks.

80   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:48pm  

HARM, have you tried iprint.com?

81   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:48pm  

Clams are good. Though a good chunk of my family got Hep A through an unfortunate batch of raw clams once. So we always get a little paranoid around clams. We do cook with mussels a lot.

Have you ever tried really small softshell clams? They're called sea melon seeds and they're the size of pumpkin seeds. It's good beer food.

82   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:51pm  

"Costco has good scallops too."

Thanks for the tip. They have good frozen dungeness crabs and mussels too.

83   HARM   2006 Sep 9, 4:52pm  

@Peter P,

No I haven't, and thanks for the tip!

84   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:54pm  

Clams are good. Though a good chunk of my family got Hep A through an unfortunate batch of raw clams once. So we always get a little paranoid around clams. We do cook with mussels a lot.

I believe there is a vaccine for Hep A.

Have you ever tried really small softshell clams? They’re called sea melon seeds and they’re the size of pumpkin seeds. It’s good beer food.

Perhaps I have tried that in miso soup, but I am not too sure. I usually cook clams in a wine/beer/sake broth. I do not prepare raw seafood at home.

85   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 4:55pm  

They have good frozen dungeness crabs and mussels too.

I will try. I saw them at $4/lb. It takes some work to get the meat out though. A hammer would be useful.

86   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 4:58pm  

It was about twenty years ago in China. And I do try to keep my Hep A and Hep C vaccines current when I travel to China, just in case.

I haven't had sea melon seeds raw. They're good sauteed with a little rice wine, scallion and ginger.

87   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 5:00pm  

I don't have much trouble with dungeness crabs. A seafood cracker might be helpful. The blue crabs are a pain though, especially the claws.

88   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 5:01pm  

I haven’t had sea melon seeds raw.

I only had cherrystone and littleneck clams raw. They taste very good with mignonette sauce.

89   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 5:03pm  

The blue crabs are a pain though, especially the claws.

I had blue crabs once but I was more interested in the crab roe.

There seems to be a positive correlation between cholestestrol and taste. :)

90   astrid   2006 Sep 9, 5:12pm  

Blue crab roe is yummy. East Coast blue crabs taste a lot like Yangtze hairy crabs. The roe gets used like truffle, they use it to flavor many meat and vegetable dishes. Late September and October are very good times for crabs.

91   Peter P   2006 Sep 9, 5:15pm  

Blue crab roe is yummy.

Yes. The roe was so good that forgot the crab had claws.

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