August 08, 2007

HousingPANIC Stupid Question of the Day

Do you feel sorry for realtors in any way, shape or form?


How about mortgage brokers?

How about illegal immigrants?

How about soon-to-be-jailed appraisers?

How about underwater flippers?

Do you feel sorry for ANYONE who got themselves into this housing crash mess?

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

May the Fraudsters® end up on the streets, eating at soup kitchens.

Tell congress we will vote them out of they don't enforce immigration laws.

The underwater gamblers should go to debtor's prison and become slave laborers rebuilding our roads and bridges to work off their debts.

Frank R said...

No. I know two honest, ethical realtors: one had the brains to get out of the business, and the other one is somehow still doing very well. She moved into land transactions, I don't know much about that but she's closing 1-2 deals per week.

The other dozen or so realtors I know are broke. They're surrendering their homes to foreclosure and are now just finally starting to explore jobs in other industries. I don't feel sorry for them because they've never worked an honest day in their lives and never had to deal with any struggle until now.

Idiots.

Anonymous said...

the question is"Do you feel sorry for ANYONE who got themselves into this housing crash mess?" clearly, NO. If a food vendor on the streets of NYC was selling his burgers for pennies im sure he would sell out... would you feel sorry when those same idiots got food poisoning? Lets place accountability where it belongs...with the consumer. I have no compassion for sheeple. The herd mentality is to blame, that said I am not a proponent of exploiting the herd either, Moo.

Anonymous said...

I feel sorry for the FHB who fell for the 'buy now or be forever priced out' excuse for buying.

But not enough to buy their house for 'pennies to the dollar'.

Paul E. Math said...

I haven't decided whether to have any pity at all.

A couple weeks ago I went out on like a double date with my girlfriend, a friend of hers and this new guy the friend had started seeing. We went out on this guys boat that had 3 staterooms, 2 full bathrooms and was worth somewhere between a 1/4 million and 1/2 a million. A nice boat.

What does this guy do to afford this toy? He's in real estate in the New England south shore.

I thought, perhaps things aren't as bad as I've been reading. Perhaps there's more to the story.

Turns out the guy has a 50-unit condo project that he's only sold 7 units on. He hasn't been able to pay himself a salary in over a year. He's thinking he might have to sell his boat (duh?).

He seemed like an alright guy. But I can't quite find it in my heart to pity him yet. He needs to learn what it's like for the rest of us who actually work for a living.

Anonymous said...

Realtor porn.

Anonymous said...

Yes I feel sorry for the young people who bought and really just wanted a house.

sequoia512

Anonymous said...

One obviously missing aspect of all these Housing Bubble blogs is that Appraisers have gotten a free ride. Nobody has really put the heat on them. Yeah, you did mention them for this thread, but really, shouldn't the whole appraisal business be pushed to at or near the front of the line in blame and corruption.

Let's take these germs to task and start exposing these cockroaches for their strong-arming tactics, pay-offs and mob mentality.

I declare this day, Aug 8, 2007, the beginning of a concerted effort to expose this cancer on a consistent and unrelenting basis.

Anonymous said...

Only poor people with home equity who got sold subprime loans by deceptive brokers. Not that this merits a bailout.

The rest of them can serve as illustration to the rest of humanity as what not to do.

Flagg707 said...

Sure, I feel sorry for some of them. There are some brokers out there that are conscientious in their work and that really do put a lot of effort into helping their customers. Problem is, their industry turned into the poster child for credit excess and they are getting tarred with the same brush as the Crisp&Coles of the world.

All that said, feeling sorry isn't an issue anymore. Preparing for the coming tidal wave of defaults and the destruction of the real estate selling industry as we have known it for over sixty years is what is important now.

Anonymous said...

Working people.

Anonymous said...

I feel sorry for the elderly people who were conned by slimy mortgage companies into refis and helocs they didn't understand, didn't need, and can not pay. I feel sorry for the children whose lives are about to descend into chaos and misery thanks to the eff'd up priorities of their stupid parents. That's about as far as my sympathy goes, everyone else deserves what they get.

Anonymous said...

Feel Sorry? For any of these people?
No. Not at all. It was and is a Ponzi racket, that went on for so long everyone began treating it as a business model instead of a criminal activity. Everyone signed the contracts, and as long as there was money to be made everyone was as happy as they could be. Now that money is about to be lost, suddenly the whole real-estate industrial complex is somehow evil and punishment is required.
No sympathy from me. Buy the ticket, take the ride.
And there is not one buyer out there who is truly innocent, they bought those properties thinking about tax-free profits after 2 years of ownership, cashing in on the property value spiral and getting out before the loans reset.
It was not coincidence that variable rate loans had a 2 or 3 year intro period. 2/28 and 3/27 is perfect for state and federal tax purposes.
So, they got greedy, and now they will get crushed. It was all voluntary, and no one was crying for help when even the little guys were making big bucks flipping condos.
And now Hilliary is going to come to the rescue with a billion dollar bail-out fund. Nice. that will cover .2 percent of loans reseting in october. Yay! we're saved!
It is not a particularly nice bed, but it was made with loving care. Time to lay down for a much deserved nap.

- Snow

Anonymous said...

No.

But I am very angry (and this goes
back a long, long way) and how anyone in this culture is treated who raises questions re the wisdom of whatever
is currently the rage...from being
blown off to vilified to blacklisted.

We have a culture that really doesn't want to put energy into thinking or looking deeply into issues. It makes people uncomfortable and I suppose afraid.

The counterbalance to that is the
diversity of the culture; I think that helps keep ideas tumbling if not pondered...

Oh well....

Paula said...

I feel sorry for:

1) Young people who fell for the "buy now or be priced out forever" garbage

2) Children whose lives will now be turned upside down into a nightmare because of the foreclosures caused by their parents' misjudgments

3) Anyone who just wanted a place to live and who now, with very good reason, will be too scared to buy even when houses are down to a more
rational price.

But not for: Realtors, mortgage brokers, et al. Come on!

Anonymous said...

The only people I feel sorry for are the legit homeowners who were duped into refinancing into ridiculously unfavorable mortgages with shocker ARM resets and steep prepayment penalties.

Everyone else should have seen this coming so no, I don't feel sorry for them. I never feel sorry for anyone who thinks they'll make a quick, easy buck and doesn't.

Anonymous said...

I don't know if this qualifies as they didn't get THEMSELVES into this mess. But I do feel sorry for the thoughtful, planning, careful types who rent (or bought sensibly).

These people are gonna get screwed as the Real Estate and Banking industries, aided by the Democrats, begin "rescueing" the fools who did this to themselves. For those who can't read between the lines, that means get ready to see your tax dollars at work.

Anonymous said...

>>>Anonymous said...

Yes I feel sorry for the young people who bought and really just wanted a house.

sequoia512

August 08, 2007 1:31 PM <<

when I lived in Houston, I used to watch some of the new neighborhoods being built. They have this thing now where they go and buy one big lot that used to have one old house on it and then they build 4 what they call flats on it. Basically it is a house that goes straight up to three floors with no elevator so you have to walk up and down stairs when you live in them. Anyway you see the young married types walking around holding hands in their neighborhoods , with their baby carriages and their dogs. They take their dogs walking at the end of the work day because they allow them to shit in whatever green space they can find which is of limited supply by the way. So they drive very nice cars, they pay top dollar for these flats as they call them and they live high on the hog and watch television that tells them ain't life great here in amerika...But payday is coming and it is soon I am afraid. The house that is built upon the sand shall fall. And so it is, even now. I saw this two years ago when it was balls to the wall. Now these youngsters will walk out and leave these new homes. This I know. I knew it then when I was living there. I could see all of this coming. What I saw made no sense. I realized that they were living on a river of credit and somewhere along the line there had to be an adjustment made to correct what was happening. The laws of money do go back to the norm sooner of later, no matter who manipulates them.

Anonymous said...

i have been in the housing business(construction) for many years and I can tell you this. The real culprits are the mortgage brokers and lending organizations that loaned money to all these people. What they did was to feed people's greed. they made people with no homes but new ones and they loaned more money(HELOC) to people who already owned homes, thereby drowning them in debt. I am in AZ and over here mortgage brokers do not need a license to practice, but realtors and appraisers do. Not only that, but they get paid both by the person borrowing AND the bank that is lending the money. We definitely need better lending practices in this country.

JimAtLaw said...

I second Paula's #2, though you can't really get caught up in it either - it can't be a rallying cry that we have to bail out the parents to save the kids, as it is with illegal immigrants, perpetual welfare moms, etc. Sometimes, the sins of the father (or mother) are unavoidably visited on the kids, and bad financial choices of the parents are something kids just have to live with since this isn't communism just yet. (Of course, should Billary be elected, who knows...)

Anonymous said...

NO I don't,the mass of naive US Citizen/subjects need this lesson.
If everyone were experienced in negotiating,which they will be after this crash,then this wouldn't have happened.The lessons to be learned are-Bankers,Lenders,Politicians,Brokers,and Agents(IRS R/E Judges) are not your friends,and when negotiating with one the attitude must be one of WAR.
Growing pains is all,and one helluvvaa crash in housing TOO.

Anonymous said...

appraisers make $300 per assignmant and actually have to sign a document and verify their value..Sure there are some bad apples and the reports will be looked over,, and yes some may go to jail

RE Agents made 6-7% per transaction,,IE thousands of Dollars on each and every deal,

Lenders were making 5-K minimum per cloased loan..Lenders had programs where if you could fog a mirror, you could get 500,000....reguardless of income..

Lets put blaim where blaim lies...

At least an appraiser has to verify their value with local comps and state and federal guidelines...what about the rest of the bunch???


I know of Lenders-Brokers who were making 200,000 closing 2 deals a month?

And don't get me going on RE Agents and there 6-7% for a sign in the yard....


The real reform will only come if and when the following occur..

1. Lenders have to actually disclose all of the cash they are making off of you per deal - front and back end

2. Lenders are licensed just like appraisers

3. It take more then a course you get at wal mart to be a lender and or RE Agent..

Lastly,,lets not be silly,,Many of these borrowers showed up to actually sign the loan docs so they are JUST AS BIG OF A PROBLEM

Anonymous said...

I have pity for the innocent people who bought at inflated prices but still played by the rules. People who bought a house to live in, put money down, got into fixed 30 year mortgage (at prime rate) that they can afford only to have thier equity and down payment wiped out by the declining values due to the forclosure down the street.

Anonymous said...

Nope, nope, nope,nope, nope.

Anonymous said...

I feel sorry for taxpayers whose homes "assesed value " was increased to reflect the "increased value" of local housing bubble effects caused by sub-prime loans to illegal aliens. Retirees who bought a place in the sun to get away from the crime snd diversity found their neighborhoods flooded with spanish speaking illegal aliens who obtained no doc sub-prime loans. If these worthless spics are so good at cutting grass ...why don't they cut their own lawns and kkep up their property!

Those living on a fixed retirement income, who completely own their homes should not have to pay special homeowners association assesments to deal with maintaining the foreclosed homes of illegal alien scum.

Anonymous said...

I do. A little bit. The few people I know personally in this situation are really nice decent people who drank the cool aid. They were in the current created by Greenspan, the media, our dumbfu_k president, the paid-off congress, and societal mores that state you aren't anything unless you are a homeowner. They found themselves in the current and did not have the risk aversion or foresight to swim against it.

But if I step away from the people I know personally, I am mad as hell. Especially at Bush/Cheney, and Greenspan. They set policies to not only mask the true fragility of our credit card economy but they presided over the greatest transfer of wealth from the middle class to the modern day robber barons in history. Just read today in the NY Times about how the profits for ultra luxury goods are just skyrocketing. Correlation?

I am just watching this whole thing with fear and fascination, wondering how it will all play out. And wondering if I, without debt but not rich, can stay above the tide.

Anonymous said...

They are exactly the same as the mob that ran booze in the 20's. I don't see any difference between a realtor and a bootlegger. I EXPECT prosecutions for this pyramid scheme after the collapse.

Anonymous said...

I feel sorry for the bankruptcy lawyers who have had no work for the past three years.