A Foreclosure Solution so Simple it Would Work

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday November 19, 2008 · 3:57 PM PST

2008/11/19 · 15:57

Here is the solution to most of the ills of the current housing crisis - in the form of a languishing US House Bill that would allow homeowners facing foreclosure the option to stay in their homes as renters, and perhaps even compel their lenders to be more cooperative with the distressed borrowers when negotiating loan workouts.

Poll

53 votes Show Results

Who - if anyone - deserves our tax dollars most?

Banks who made billions ripping off home owners, their stockholders, and their employees who had company stock in their 401k

Stupid greedy people who speculated on housing, lied on loans, over-extended their credit, tried to get-rich-quick, and now are crying foul

Foreign banks and investors who were anxious to net high returns on their investments, but not so eager to accept the risks inherent in easy-money

Credit Card companies who unfortunately can't foreclose on us, so they really need to be bailed out - you know, like how they like to cut us a break when we have a bad month

A select few banks like JPMorgan and (soon to be a bank) Goldman Sachs - as well as their Chinese Overlords who Hank Paulson spent most of the last two years with - more time than he spent in the US all while he was Treasury Secretary

People who did not try to get in a bad position financially, or were victims of mortgage fraud and misinformation, who now can not get a refinance or modification because everyone else on the list fucked up everything for everyone else

53 votes Vote Now!

Who - if anyone - deserves our tax dollars most?

Banks who made billions ripping off home owners, their stockholders, and their employees who had company stock in their 401k

4 votes

Stupid greedy people who speculated on housing, lied on loans, over-extended their credit, tried to get-rich-quick, and now are crying foul

3 votes

Foreign banks and investors who were anxious to net high returns on their investments, but not so eager to accept the risks inherent in easy-money

0 votes

Credit Card companies who unfortunately can't foreclose on us, so they really need to be bailed out - you know, like how they like to cut us a break when we have a bad month

0 votes

2 votes

44 votes

Bernanke, Paulson and Bair Testify - But Can We get a Witness?

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday November 18, 2008 · 4:55 PM PST

2008/11/18 · 16:55

By Anthony M. Freed

Two months ago, in late September, I penned a piece titled Liars, And The Lying Lies They Are Telling You, which examined just one single publicly available FDIC document from 2002 which shows beyond any doubt that the Feds were not only aware of the problems in the finance industry that have led to near economic collapse today, they were already convinced that there would soon be dire repercussions.

Yet, today we have Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and his mini-me Neel Kashkari, as well as a host of other top Federal officials, testifying under oath that the threats to our economic security were not immediately apparent until just months ago - hence the gun-to-the-head threats that produced the biggest bailout of private industry in history, while prescribing less governance on the application of those funds than is required to redeem a typical twenty-cent manufacturers coupon for kitty-litter.

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Saturday November 15, 2008 · 9:36 AM PST

2008/11/15 · 09:36

One reader - who we will call "Kitty" - has volunteered her to share her story, recounting the chain of events that has thrust her family from the comfort of middle-class security to the brink of bankruptcy and foreclosure in the span of about one year.

"Kitty's" story demonstrates the very precarious nature of America's middle class, especially in the face of a contracting economy, increased competition from overseas, and a government determined to drive it to into extinction.

Read 'Kitty's" story and be warned that this could easily happen to any of us, and sooner than we could ever imagine.

Related:
Armed With Experience: A Short Sale Story

Poll

7 votes Show Results

Now that Hank Paulson and his mini-me have revealed they lied to Congress and they are not going to use the trillions in tax dollars the way they said they would, for buying bad mortgage debt - opting instead to bail out their friends at the Credit Card C

7 votes Vote Now!

Now that Hank Paulson and his mini-me have revealed they lied to Congress and they are not going to use the trillions in tax dollars the way they said they would, for buying bad mortgage debt - opting instead to bail out their friends at the Credit Card C

Bush?

2 votes

Obama?

1 vote

Pelosi?

0 votes

Barney?

0 votes

Reid?

0 votes

God?

0 votes

Satan?

1 vote

Baal?

2 votes

Kosers like you?

1 vote

Message to Distressed Borrowers: You Have to Help Yourselves

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday November 13, 2008 · 10:23 PM PST

2008/11/13 · 22:23

Message to Distressed Borrowers: You Have to Help Yourselves

By Anthony M. Freed

So you find yourself in tough times - a job loss, health problems, falling property values, or unexpected financial distress. Whichever the circumstances that may have brought you to this point, the facts are you find yourself falling behind on your mortgage payments, and the time to make some tough decisions is upon you.

Unfortunately, once you have reached this stage, the options available to you are few, and each has their own inherent advantages and disadvantages. Depending on your particular situation, one or another of these options may prove to be more advantageous to you down the road - or at least may leave fewer black marks on your credit report.

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday October 29, 2008 · 9:14 AM PDT

2008/10/29 · 09:14

This 'diary' was originally posted on my website Your Mortgage or Your Life, and this is a link to the original post. I am the author, so no need to accuse me of plagiarism.

How about the dandy "Hope for Homeowners" program, designed to help more than 400,000 homeowners avoid foreclosure by making as much as $300 billion dollars available for the effort. What a fantastic idea, it would seem at first glance. Of course, the Devil really is in the details.

As of today, October 27, 2008 - nearly four weeks since the program was unveiled - a remarkable 79 people have applied for the program (Fox News 8-27-08).

Yes, 79 homeowners have been accepted (Fox News 8-27-08).

There are at least 77 banks participating in the program. I am not going to try to do that math in my head, but my best guess is that each of those banks has only helped about one homeowner avoid foreclosure on average in that 27 day period.

Poll

3 votes Show Results

My most favorite thing about Daily Kos is...

Finding speeling errors and making snarky comments about it instead of commenting on the subject at hand

Glancing at an article seconds after it is posted and then racing to be the first person to leave a stupid comment that has nothing to do with the article

Taking the time to leave a comment that a 'diary' is too long, and for that reason will not be read at all

Having a lower number than other people, and then pretending like that somehow makes me a better person, or really means anything at all

Telling someone you disagree with their 'diary' and then proceeding to make the same argument the writer made, because all you will not take the time to read the post with any care

Arguing with people about style or format while completely ignoring the focus of the 'diaries' content

being a Kos Nazi - making false allegations, censorship, deleting non-vulgar comments, threatening banishment, making derogatory statements, and generally being an ass

Just generally being a snarky prick with little or nothing to add except my never ending desire to try to be the center of attention in every comment thread I decide to sully

Reading something that even sounds slightly critical of the Kos culture and immediately attacking the writer, regardless of the fact that we are all supposed to be on the same team, with the same goal of having an election map that is SOLID BLUE

A Democratic landslide will make the whole idea of daily Kos completely obsolete

Nothing!

3 votes Vote Now!

My most favorite thing about Daily Kos is...

Finding speeling errors and making snarky comments about it instead of commenting on the subject at hand

0 votes

Glancing at an article seconds after it is posted and then racing to be the first person to leave a stupid comment that has nothing to do with the article

0 votes

Taking the time to leave a comment that a 'diary' is too long, and for that reason will not be read at all

0 votes

Having a lower number than other people, and then pretending like that somehow makes me a better person, or really means anything at all

1 vote

Telling someone you disagree with their 'diary' and then proceeding to make the same argument the writer made, because all you will not take the time to read the post with any care

0 votes

Arguing with people about style or format while completely ignoring the focus of the 'diaries' content

0 votes

being a Kos Nazi - making false allegations, censorship, deleting non-vulgar comments, threatening banishment, making derogatory statements, and generally being an ass

0 votes

Just generally being a snarky prick with little or nothing to add except my never ending desire to try to be the center of attention in every comment thread I decide to sully

0 votes

A Democratic landslide will make the whole idea of daily Kos completely obsolete

2 votes

Nothing!

0 votes

McCain's Private Visit With Chilean Dictator Augusto Pinochet Revealed For First Time

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday October 24, 2008 · 9:38 PM PDT

2008/10/24 · 21:38

Alas, Republican John McCain's Karmic debt is beginning to be called in after one straight month of reckless and unfounded attacks against his Democratic opponent Senator Barack Obama.

Is it the Keating Five scandal where McCain abused his elected position, peddled influence, and sought to gain personally from fraudulent activities?

Poll

60 votes Show Results

Joh McCain got the GOP Nomination because...

John is a maverick, and Republicans just needed to give him a chance to show his true GOP colors - poopy brown

Republicans are scared shitless the electorate will not elect a "real" Republican

He really is the Manchurian Candidate brainwashed by the Imperial Chinese to destroy the Imperial USA

The oldest guy they could get elected, hoping he will fail to complete his term, then they can install that Kak from AK who will be eaier to manipulate than a 'real' Republican

The rest of the Republican field was like a sampler assortment of powder-white dired fruits and nuts

Rampant Voter Fraud!

No one cares - Bush is not going to give up power, Martial Law will be declared, opposition will be rounded up and jailed in KBR mobile prisons with out the right to Habeas Corpus, and a Fasco-Corporate state of North America will be born.

60 votes Vote Now!

Joh McCain got the GOP Nomination because...

John is a maverick, and Republicans just needed to give him a chance to show his true GOP colors - poopy brown

2 votes

Republicans are scared shitless the electorate will not elect a "real" Republican

10 votes

He really is the Manchurian Candidate brainwashed by the Imperial Chinese to destroy the Imperial USA

2 votes

The oldest guy they could get elected, hoping he will fail to complete his term, then they can install that Kak from AK who will be eaier to manipulate than a 'real' Republican

6 votes

The rest of the Republican field was like a sampler assortment of powder-white dired fruits and nuts

22 votes

Rampant Voter Fraud!

1 vote

17 votes

Don't get sucked in by the 'bottom' dwellers like Jim Cramer

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday October 24, 2008 · 9:22 AM PDT

2008/10/24 · 09:22

Today is a lousey day in the markets, but it is still a good day for me personally. My blog just broke 100k visits since going live on August 12th (thanks to all for the support BTW).

I was going back through some of my first posts and ran across one that did not get distributed well - as I think I had about 12 hits that day - and the subject is so absolutely relevent to todays market meltdown, I just had to bring it over hear and share it with my new Kossack friends.

The gist - we are a long long ways from being anywhere near the end of this crisis. The markets may look ripe for a big investment, but don't get suckered! There are people who need you to jump in so that they can finish unwinding their investments and get the hell out.

The fact is that there are hundreds of billions in pending losses looming over the banks as millions of ARM, ALT A and POA loans approach reset.

This is the untold story, and why you should stay away from the stock market through 2011.

Continued Here...

Poll

49 votes Show Results

Where will the DOW bottom out?

49 votes Vote Now!

Where will the DOW bottom out?

7000?

11 votes

6000?

8 votes

5000?

10 votes

4000?

1 vote

3000?

5 votes

Don't worry, the world will end first.

3 votes

Don't panic! Everything is fine! Read this: http://www.amazon.com/Dow-2008-Different-This-Time/dp/1893958701

2 votes

Don't Jump! Paulson, Bernenke, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs will save us!

1 vote

Jump! Paulson, Bernenke, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs are saving us!

8 votes

ALT-A: The Risk Abatement Disaster is Coming

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday October 20, 2008 · 11:45 AM PDT

2008/10/20 · 11:45

Once again wild swings in the markets have unleashed the bullish cries of bottom by the guestimating industry cheerleaders like Jim Cramer, the NAR, and similarly minded government ilk who believe we can all collectively wish our way out of this mess.

But the proverbial writing has long been on the wall, and we have yet to measure the depth of the losses from this financial fiasco.

What monsters are lurking in the nearby shadows?

I am not going to tell you anything you have not already figured out if you have been following news articles and blog posts about the current financial crisis and the mortgage industry with even a passing interest - they are the illegitimate offspring of subprime and Prime - what is commonly referred to as Alt-A - that is taking over the national spotlight.

Article and Charts Continued Here...

Poll

36 votes Show Results

Who do you think should be responsible for quality risk abatement in mortgage lending?

Regular folks with little or no understanding of complicated financial instruments and contracts

Loan officers and brokers who act as the point of contact, the main consultant on the loan, and the salesperson to the borrower

The underwriter, who's job is to assess the credit quality of all applicants, as well as the likelihood the loan can be successfully managed by the borrower

The bank who prequlaifies the borrower, tells them the maximum amount they can borrow, sets the minimum requirements to qualify, and will possibly sell the loan to someone else.

Federal regulatory agencies who's job it is to oversee the banking and lending industries, protect comsumers from predatory lending practices, and protect investors and depositors from risky ventures by the banks.

Wealthy investors who were making billions in gains, and wanted billions more, so they gambled big on risky mortgages

Nonprofits like ACORN who repeatedly warned Congress that the marketing of mortgages to the poor was being severely abused

You and me - the ones who somehow ended up with trillions of dollars in debt in order to bail out everyone else listed in this poll

36 votes Vote Now!

Who do you think should be responsible for quality risk abatement in mortgage lending?

Regular folks with little or no understanding of complicated financial instruments and contracts

0 votes

Loan officers and brokers who act as the point of contact, the main consultant on the loan, and the salesperson to the borrower

4 votes

The underwriter, who's job is to assess the credit quality of all applicants, as well as the likelihood the loan can be successfully managed by the borrower

6 votes

The bank who prequlaifies the borrower, tells them the maximum amount they can borrow, sets the minimum requirements to qualify, and will possibly sell the loan to someone else.

4 votes

11 votes

Wealthy investors who were making billions in gains, and wanted billions more, so they gambled big on risky mortgages

7 votes

Nonprofits like ACORN who repeatedly warned Congress that the marketing of mortgages to the poor was being severely abused

1 vote

You and me - the ones who somehow ended up with trillions of dollars in debt in order to bail out everyone else listed in this poll

3 votes

The Facts About ACORN, CRA Programs and the Mortgage Crisis

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday October 16, 2008 · 12:12 PM PDT

2008/10/16 · 12:12

Three weeks until the Presidential Election and - as we would expect - the politicking is getting especially intense, which in turn means the first victim is usually the humble truth. Once the truth has been sacked, it is usually the regular folks who are next.

Since this article is about truth, it is therefore inherently and emphatically not about politics, so please set aside your partisanship while I attempt to clear the air on a couple of important issues regarding ACORN, the Community Reinvestment Act loan programs, and the nation‘s biggest lenders.

Article with Video Continued Here

Poll

33 votes Show Results

The number one reason a mortgage goes into foreclosure is:

It was a low blow and now ACORN and the American people are the real losers

No one can understand the legalese in the 400 pages of the contract in the 45 minutes they schedule for the loan closing

The Loan Officers and Brokers let borrowers believe they are acting in their best interests while they actually are ripping them off

The Banks only focused on volume and profits made fro originating the loans, with no concern for their performance

The Government is completely asleep at the wheel of regulation; big money talks, peasants walk

Greedy borrowers who lied about their incomes, assets and credit worthiness, and the poor bank took them at their word

The Feds, Bush, Bernenke, Paulson, the Banks, Wall Street, The Bond Raters, Appraisers, Underwriters, Securities Traders, and the uber-rich set us up and stole all our money

Shit happens

33 votes Vote Now!

The number one reason a mortgage goes into foreclosure is:

It was a low blow and now ACORN and the American people are the real losers

0 votes

No one can understand the legalese in the 400 pages of the contract in the 45 minutes they schedule for the loan closing

1 vote

The Loan Officers and Brokers let borrowers believe they are acting in their best interests while they actually are ripping them off

11 votes

The Banks only focused on volume and profits made fro originating the loans, with no concern for their performance

7 votes

The Government is completely asleep at the wheel of regulation; big money talks, peasants walk

4 votes

Greedy borrowers who lied about their incomes, assets and credit worthiness, and the poor bank took them at their word

1 vote

The Feds, Bush, Bernenke, Paulson, the Banks, Wall Street, The Bond Raters, Appraisers, Underwriters, Securities Traders, and the uber-rich set us up and stole all our money

6 votes

Shit happens

3 votes

What are CAMELS Ratings? Is My Bank Okay?

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday October 15, 2008 · 4:39 PM PDT

2008/10/15 · 16:39

So the FDIC has issued a list of more than one-hundred troubled banks - but they won't tell you who they are? (See Graphs - Not Laughs - From the FDIC Report August 26, 2008)

Not very Civil for Servants! Well then, I suppose I will try to point you in the right direction so you may answer some of the questions yourself.

First, go to the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco website and read about their CAMELS Ratings - the system for determining the relative strengths and weaknesses of lending institutions.

Continued Here

Poll

55 votes Show Results

What is your gage of the average American's understanding of finances and money?

55 votes Vote Now!

What is your gage of the average American's understanding of finances and money?

Equivalent to their understanding of Chaos Theory and Quantum Mechanics

17 votes

Less than they know about Sarah Palin after two months

8 votes

Almost as much as they understand how electricity works

7 votes

As much as they understand the process of precipitation

1 vote

Like they do everything else - just enough to be really dangerous

19 votes

A little more than they understand the concept of altruism

1 vote

More than they understand the concept of hypocrisy

1 vote

Way more than they understand cultural equivalency and moral relativity

1 vote

GSE Failures are Actually a Massive Regional Bank Bailout in Disguise

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday October 14, 2008 · 12:20 PM PDT

2008/10/14 · 12:20

Step right up folks and witness for yourselves actual feats of magic as performed by the amazing El Federale - the Master of Illusions, Keeper of the Secrets of the Temple of the Bull, and Royal Jester to the Fiefdom of Finance..."

But seriously everybody - I think They are all about to pull a big, bad, fast one on all of Us. Worse than that, They are going to make you and me and our kids (and their kids too) pay for their clever schemes and malpractice by subjecting Us to decades of runaway inflation, unfathomable national debt levels, and higher personal taxes - particularly through the elimination of the coveted homeowner mortgage interest right-off, the only real right-off available to all of us work-a-day folks.

Poll

19 votes Show Results

The single biggest obsticle to a better America is:

An education system that is so dumbed down a Bachelors Degree is worth nothing anymore

People generally suck

Being limited to only two political parties that ultimately push the same agenda which really only serves big money special interests

Foreigners who are ruining our country!

The devalueation of the American blue collar worker, villification of the Ppogressive intellectual, over-dependance on soundbites and gut-checks at great cost to the truth

People are generally too nice

The capitalist pig oligarchy who's primary focus is profits, not people

Zenophobes who are ruining our country!

The false belief Americans have that they are somehow special, history will never repeat itself here, and that America will always be free from totalitarian rule.

High Fructose corn syrup and Viagra

Too many completely meaningless polls that really only guage our desperate need to be constantly entertaned and distracted

19 votes Vote Now!

The single biggest obsticle to a better America is:

An education system that is so dumbed down a Bachelors Degree is worth nothing anymore

3 votes

People generally suck

2 votes

Being limited to only two political parties that ultimately push the same agenda which really only serves big money special interests

4 votes

Foreigners who are ruining our country!

0 votes

The devalueation of the American blue collar worker, villification of the Ppogressive intellectual, over-dependance on soundbites and gut-checks at great cost to the truth

1 vote

People are generally too nice

0 votes

The capitalist pig oligarchy who's primary focus is profits, not people

2 votes

Zenophobes who are ruining our country!

1 vote

The false belief Americans have that they are somehow special, history will never repeat itself here, and that America will always be free from totalitarian rule.

4 votes

High Fructose corn syrup and Viagra

1 vote

Too many completely meaningless polls that really only guage our desperate need to be constantly entertaned and distracted

1 vote

Who Owns and Controls the Federal Reserve?

Paisano1

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday October 13, 2008 · 2:40 PM PDT

2008/10/13 · 14:40

Prelude: A contact of mine at a major NY investment house sent along a great rebuttal to all of the to all of the hysterical conspiracy theories being propagated by countless websites lately, such as mine. Having read through it twice now, I think it does answer quite a few of the looser-ends relating to questions about who controls our monetary system, and by what means. But it does not answer all of them.

One of the main admissions in the following analysis is that the only way to examine exactly how the biggest banking system in the world operates, and exactly who benefits from it, is impossible to ascertain by direct examination; the Federal Reserve System still appears to ultimately answer only to itself.

I am not convinced either way of a massive conspiracy or - as some readers pointed out - the likelihood that there are multiple factions of more or less equivalent power and influence who are constantly vying for control of the Fed and every other entity that may prove advantages in business affairs.

Continued: Who Owns and Controls the Federal Reserve?

Poll

59 votes Show Results

Who do you think could best run a world-wide banking conspiracy if given the chance?

59 votes Vote Now!

Who do you think could best run a world-wide banking conspiracy if given the chance?

Your Spouse , Partner or Significant Other? (else favorite porn star or appliance maker I guess)

7 votes

John McCain, Sarah Palin, Lindsey Graham, hank Paulson, and the little bald guy that looks like an evil minion?

1 vote

Aliens? (From space, not illegal)

11 votes

International Bankers, Investment Brokers, Hedge Fund Owners, Rating Companies, and Clearing Houses?

8 votes

The World Bank, IMF, United Nations, Industrialists, Multi-National Conglomerates, Trade Magnates and Economic Hit Men?

6 votes

Some ethnic group you are stupid enough to think is different than you, becuase you don't have the capcity to learn that race is a merely social construct?

3 votes

Aliens? (Illegal, not from space)

3 votes

The guys who really run the world-wide banking conspiracy already?

20 votes

Newer
Older

RSS

A Foreclosure Solution so Simple it Would Work

Bernanke, Paulson and Bair Testify - But Can We get a Witness?

A Hardship Letter to Countrywide - A Family on the Brink of Disaster

Message to Distressed Borrowers: You Have to Help Yourselves

No 'Hope for Homeowners' - Foreclosure Prevention Program Falters

McCain's Private Visit With Chilean Dictator Augusto Pinochet Revealed For First Time

Don't get sucked in by the 'bottom' dwellers like Jim Cramer

ALT-A: The Risk Abatement Disaster is Coming

The Facts About ACORN, CRA Programs and the Mortgage Crisis

What are CAMELS Ratings? Is My Bank Okay?

GSE Failures are Actually a Massive Regional Bank Bailout in Disguise

Who Owns and Controls the Federal Reserve?