That's Not My Monkey! Real Estate Humor

That's Not My Monkey! Real Estate Humor

Phoenix AZ new homes, bank owned, foreclosures, short sales, REO's oh-my! Let's face it, real estate is stressful for everyone... buyers, sellers, and real estate pros. Sometimes you have to just let it all go and look at the humorous side of real estate...then find a FUN, Professional Realtor to help you through it all!

Homeowners Avoid Foreclosure with Loan Modification Plan

Homeowners Avoid Foreclosure with Loan Modification Plan

Sources: Gov't prepares loan modification plan

WASHINGTON - The government is preparing to unveil a plan that would help around 3 million homeowners avoid foreclosure, sources briefed on the matter said.

A final deal had not been reached as of Wednesday afternoon and negotiations could still fall apart, but government agencies were contemplating using around $50 billion from the recently passed bailout of the financial industry to guarantee about $500 billion in mortgages.

The plan could include loan modifications that would lower interest rates for a five-year period, according to two people briefed on the plan, who asked not to be identified because details were still being worked out and the plan was not yet public.
The plan would be the most aggressive effort yet to limit damages from the U.S. housing recession, which has shaken global credit markets.

More than 4 million American homeowners with a mortgage were at least one payment behind on their loans at the end of June, and 500,000 had started the foreclosure process, according to the most recent data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

The government's program would be run by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The agency's chairman, Sheila Bair, said last week she was working "closely and creatively" with the Treasury Department on such a plan, but revealed few details.

The plan had been scheduled to be announced Wednesday but was pushed back because the details were still being finalized.

Andrew Gray, an FDIC spokesman, said it would be "premature to speculate about any final framework or parameters of a potential program."

Treasury Department spokeswoman Jennifer Zuccarelli called details of the loan modification plan "simply inaccurate." She said the Bush administration "is looking at ways to reduce foreclosures, and that process is ongoing," but has not decided on a final approach.

Borrower frustration is growing over the government's slow and limited assistance programs.

On Wednesday, about 100 demonstrators marched in front of the headquarters of Fannie Mae, and forced a mid-afternoon meeting with the company's chief executive, Herbert Allison.

Some held signs that read "Restructure our loans now," "Fannie Mae destroys lives" and "Foreclose on Fannie Mae."

Bruce Marks, chief executive of the Boston-based Neighborhood Assistance Corp. of America, said the Fannie Mae should adopt a program similar to the one the FDIC put in place at failed IndyMac Bank of Pasadena, Calif. Borrowers there are getting interest rates of about 3 percent for five years.

Fannie Mae, as the largest buyer and guarantor of mortgages "sets the standard" for the industry, said Marks. "They talk and they talk and they never do."

After the meeting, which included Allison and other top managers, company spokeswoman Amy Bonitatibus said "we agreed to continue to meet with them and work together on foreclosure prevention."

Over the past 10 weeks, Fannie Mae says it has received more than 40,000 defaulting loans and stopped 80 percent of them from going into foreclosure.

Last month, the government seized control Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two biggest U.S. mortgage finance companies, with a rescue plan that could require the Treasury Department to inject as much as $100 billion into each to keep them afloat.

It was unclear Wednesday what role Fannie and Freddie would play in the government's sweeping plan to help millions of American homeowners. But lawmakers on Capitol Hill want the companies to take a more aggressive approach.

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., the chairman of the Senate Banking Committee said in a statement Wednesday that "federal agencies and financial institutions must do more to modify the mortgages they hold in order to stop foreclosures and help families keep their homes."

By guaranteeing millions of mortgages, the government could help restore confidence in the market for securities backed by mortgage loans. That was where the global credit crisis started.

As a surprising number of homeowners began defaulting on their loans, investors could no longer put a value on the securities which were backed by pools of mortgages. So trading of these securities froze, sending shock waves through the financial industry.

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Feds Slash Interest Rates.

Feds Slash Interest Rates.

WASHINGTON - Just how far will the Federal Reserve go in lowering interest rates to save the country from a long and painful recession?

Ratcheting its key rate from the current 1 percent all the way down to zero can't be ruled out. But there are risks in taking such an unprecedented step: namely, that it wouldn't work in turning around the economy and breaking through a stubborn credit clog.

Eventually, a zero percent rate - virtually "free" money - could trigger a speculative investment frenzy that could feed a bubble that pops, wreaking havoc on the economy. And that, in turn, could lead to the very kind of financial crisis now afflicting the global economy. Former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan - now partly blamed for the current problems - has called today's crisis a "once-in-a-century credit tsunami."
Emphatic as it was, the bold rate reduction the Fed ordered Wednesday and the possibility of even lower rates ahead are no panacea. Even lower rates won't necessarily entice skittish Americans to spend and squeezed banks to lend more freely - forces at the heart of the economic woes.

With any luck, though, the Fed's action will cushion the blow to the country, which is on the brink of - or already in - its first recession since 2001.

The Fed slashed its key rate by half a percentage point to 1 percent, a rate not seen since 2003 and part of 2004. The rate hasn't been lower since 1958.

In a gloomier assessment of the economy, Fed policymakers said "the pace of economic activity appears to have slowed markedly" as consumers and businesses cut back on spending, and economic slowdowns in other countries sap demand for U.S. exports, which have helped keep the economy afloat.

Moreover, the "intensification of financial market turmoil" is likely to weigh on consumers and businesses, further reducing their ability to borrow money, the Fed said.

Many economists predict Fed policymakers will drop the rate again to half a percentage point, which would mark an all-time low, on or before Dec. 16, its last scheduled meeting of the year. The Fed left the door wide open to more rate cuts, pledging to "act as needed" to revive the economy.

Yet even if the Fed were to lower its key rate to zero, that might not reverse the bunker mentality of consumers and lead them to ramp up spending.

More than in recent recessions, consumers have retrenched as vanishing jobs, shrinking paychecks and nest eggs, and sinking home values have made them feel less wealthy and less inclined to spend.

Consumer spending - the single biggest chunk of overall economic activity - probably fell in the July-to-September quarter. That would mark the first quarterly drop since late 1991, when the country was emerging from a recession.

And just because borrowing costs are cheaper doesn't mean banks will feel more inclined to beef up lending to people and businesses.

"The problem is not the interest rate," said Sean Snaith, an economics professor at the University of Central Florida. "It is that no one is willing to loan, regardless of what the rate is. Lower rates will not make the problem go away. The credit crunch will take time to resolve."

The Fed's move Wednesday meant the prime lending rate for home equity loans, certain credit cards and other consumer loans dropped to 4 percent. Even if the Fed were to cut its main rate to zero, the prime rate would fall to 3 percent but no lower.

The Fed probably would want to stop short of zero, so it saves precious ammunition - meaning additional rate cuts - should the economy take a turn for the worse later on, some economists said.

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Stock Market Financial Crisis Wrapup - Commentary

Stock Market Financial Crisis Wrapup - Commentary

At the risk of offering too many communications, I want to keep you informed during these very turbulent weeks. Last Thursday night, Washington Mutual failed. Despite this being, by far, the largest U.S. bank failure, JPMorgan Chase took over their operations, assets and deposits immediately and with surprising smoothness. Depositors and customers should be fine. However, Washington Mutual equity holders were wiped out, and debt holders will likely get little return of their investment. Today, the FDIC announced that Citigroup was immediately taking over the commercial and investment banking operations of Wachovia in a complex transaction. The FDIC, our federal bank deposit insurer, did not lose money in the Washington Mutual transaction, and may not lose money in the Wachovia transaction. I think the FDIC has been doing a great job of handling these momentous events smoothly. Those little placards on bank counters really do have a great federal agency behind them!

On Sunday, Congressional leaders announced that they had finally reached agreement on a rescue package for the financial firms experiencing difficulty. While many details of what is now called the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act” (EESA) remain to be resolved, this 109 page agreement likely means that a gradual return to normal functioning of credit markets is possible. While the $700 billion sum that would be authorized is substantial, it is important to note that this is not an expenditure. The EESA funds will be used to purchase or insure sub prime mortgage debt and other low quality debt that, along with high leverage, has led to the failures and shotgun mergers we have seen to date. We taxpayers may or may not lose money with this program. The outcome will depend on the price we pay up front, the future course of the economy and home prices, and many other factors. This government program in combination with other actions already taken is intended to allow these troubled financial institutions to delever their balance sheets without the serious threat of bankruptcy over their heads.

The first vote on this Act in the House today failed, but House leadership on both sides have said that the Act will be “reconsidered” on Wednesday or Thursday. Between now and then, I expect that there will be some modifications to the bill and some arm twisting and that the Act will then be passed by the House. The Senate vote is scheduled to follow. With only one third of Senators up for election this year and noses easier to count, I think the Senate will vote in the affirmative, and so I expect passage of this Act.

It is safe to say that the market was very disappointed in the House vote, with the Dow, for example, falling about 578 points after the failed vote, adding to the 200 point loss earlier in the day. If there is no additional negative news tomorrow or Wednesday, the markets may remain at about these levels and allow Congress some breathing room to debate, amend and approve this legislation. Possible negative news to send the markets down further may come from Europe and the UK, or from indications that the EESA legislation will not be passed this week. There is some positive news; the Fed has announced it will pump in an additional $630 billion into the global financial system.

Now I certainly understand the concern and anger many of you have expressed over this program. If the Treasury pays too much for the assets it buys, the effort would become a Wall Street bailout and leave taxpayers stuck with the bill. However, I do see a bipartisan consensus that such a misuse of the funds is not going to be tolerated. On the other hand, the prices paid must be high enough to reduce failure risk by strengthening the current weak link in our system, high enough to rescue the institutions in crisis.

Are these further actions necessary? I can argue both sides. On the “yes” side, I would say that while these deeply troubled financial institutions are few, they provide a huge amount of lending, securities issuance, trading, clearing, custody, and other functions. They are analogous to the oil for your car’s engine – not a big part, but absolutely essential for the engine’s operation. This analogy is why folks keep talking about credit markets “seizing up”. We are running our economic engine while it is low on oil. Now we could just park the car, let these Wall Street firms succeed or fail on their own and then build new firms to provide the oil. But that course is risky and we are not sure what would happen. I doubt that it would lead to the Great Depression II, but it might turn what looks to be a developing modest recession into a bigger one. So to prevent a deeper recession, the rescue is probably a good idea.

On the “no” side, I would say that we may be able to whistle past the graveyard and avoid serious consequences. Maybe the many other good banks will continue to pick up the slack on lending and acquire the needed pieces of failed banks, as JPMorgan has done, and we can all move on. And the program does have problems of its own. The rescue could turn into a bailout, costing us taxpayers money and rewarding bad behavior and bad decision making at a few large financial institutions. It could turn into a “let’s bail out everybody” program, rewarding folks for their bad decisions on home purchases and all sorts of other people—spec. homebuilders, home “flipping” speculators and the like at the expense of the vast majority of homeowners who pay their mortgages on time. In my experience, real estate bailouts are always unavoidably inequitable and ugly. And the rescue could expand to other lenders and borrowers; lobbyists are swarming Washington.

Weighing both sides, I have to say that while my heart says no but my head says yes to the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. I am glad there has been a vigorous debate over the program and that the legislation now incorporates a number of important safeguards. They will likely be needed as this program unfolds over the weeks and months ahead. We are not out of the woods. Other banks could fail, but let me hasten to add that I think the vast majority of banks are sound, with solid balance sheets and good business models and prospects.

These truly are troubled times. Absolutely stunning mistakes and very bad business and investment decisions have been made by some Wall Street firms. The damage has been large. I am not happy, and I am sure that you are not happy to now be a part of this rescue package. Nevertheless, I do take comfort from the fact that, while some financial firms have levered up on very risky investments, most non-financial companies have not. Non-financial U.S. corporations have, in aggregate, de-levered enormously over the last 12 years, stripping $2 trillion of net liabilities off their balance sheets. U.S. non-financial corporations are now, for the first time in history, net lenders, not borrowers. And, unlike financial corporations, non-financial corporations have also reduced their net equity—by about $2 trillion dollars over the last four years. The combination represents, in my opinion, a huge deleveraging that surpasses the direction Wall Street took. So, while we deal with this problem of overly levered, bad investments at a few, but important Wall Street firms, we need to maintain a sense of proportion. The vast majority of American workers and companies have, in my opinion, conducted themselves well. And I believe that these companies and their stock and bond prices are, generally speaking, fairly or under valued. I do think that the rescue program will work to quell this financial market crisis and we can return over time to evaluating the substantial fundamental economic value in the market. In the midst of this financial crisis I think it is important to maintain perspective. Panicky moves away from well balanced investment portfolios at times like this most often in my experience lead to locking in losses and missing the ensuing recovery.

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Google G1 Android Phone Review

Google Android Phone's Big Premiere

In the most anticipated mobile-phone launch since the release of Apple's iPhone, the T-Mobile G1 was unveiled Sept. 23.

Like the iPhone, unveiled in June 2007, the G1 is the brainchild of one of tech's most innovative companies; it's the first phone boasting the Android software created by a Google (GOOG)-led consortium. Like Apple's music-playing handset, the G1 features a full Web browser and connects to the Internet with Wi-Fi technology. G1 similarly boasts a large touchscreen and lets users download games and tools from an online bazaar akin to the Apple App Store.




That's about where the similarities end. The G1 is to follow a different path from the Apple (AAPL) iPhone in some crucial ways, notably volume growth. G1 is expected to do well, though it may not replicate the iPhone's early successes.

Fewer T-Mobile Subscribers
Analysts predict that manufacturer HTC will sell 200,000 to 400,000 units this year, once the device becomes available on Oct. 22 in select markets. The device will sell for $179 with a two-year contract. At the high end of that estimate, the first Android device would gain almost 4% of the U.S. smartphone market in the fourth quarter, expected by wireless researcher Strategy Analytics to total 10.5 million. Tina Teng, an analyst at research firm iSuppli, believes Android-based devices will sell 2 million to 3 million units globally in 2009.

Still, the original iPhone sold 1 million units in its first 1½ months on the market—and that was during what is usually a slow sales season, compared with end-of-year holidays. Apple expects to sell 10 million units of the next-generation device, the iPhone 3G, this year.

Sales expectations are lower for Android partly because G1 will be carried by T-Mobile USA, which has 30 million subscribers, compared with Apple's iPhone partner, AT&T (T), which has more than 70 million.

Another strike against Android is that T-Mobile's high-speed wireless network isn't as extensive as AT&T's. "Consumers still choose the carrier first," says Ross Rubin, an analyst at consumer electronics research firm NPD Group. "For early adopters, they'd need to contend with T-Mobile's embryonic 3G network for at least a few months," Rubin says. What's more, G1 buyers will likely have to buy an additional calling plan to use G1's built-in Wi-Fi more extensively; iPhone users can freely use their device's Wi-Fi capability. T-Mobile will offer a limited data plan for $25 a month and unlimited Web access and messaging for $35 a month.

Some analysts who have seen versions of G1 also say it's not quite as stylish as the comparable Apple device. "It does not feel as luxurious as the iPhone," says Moe Tanabian, senior principal at IBB Consulting who has seen a late prototype of the device. The device is a cross between the iPhone and a Sidekick, an earlier T-Mobile phone that also boasts Web access and was a favorite of hip cell-phone users. Andy Rubin, who heads Google's Android effort, helped develop the Sidekick.

Wide-Open App Marketplace
Google and other Android supporters surely will try to prove the pessimists wrong. Google, for one, is expected to launch an extensive marketing campaign for the device. "Google is the defining Web 2.0 company for online search," Ambrosio says. T-Mobile is also throwing its marketing muscle behind the G1—though its budget is typically nowhere near as big as that of larger rivals. "It will be the biggest marketing campaign we ever launched for a mobile device," Cole Brodman, T-Mobile's chief information and innovation officer, said at the unveiling, attended by Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.

G1 sales will also benefit from the flexibility of the Android Marketplace online app store. Unlike Apple's iTunes App Store (BusinessWeek.com, 9/5/08), Google's marketplace won't vet developers. Google will let anyone post applications to its store, where features will be rated in a YouTube-like manner. The openness of the Android software also can make it easier for developers to create associated tools more quickly.

The Android-based handset also boasts a slide-out full Qwerty keyboard, which the iPhone lacks. The device, which will feature a capable music player, that allows for easy music downloads from Amazon (AMZN), is also expected to come in three colors: black, white, and brown. And as expected it offers plenty of tight integration with a wide range of Google services, including search, mapping, and address book tools. "If T-Mobile launches a bugs-free, easy-to-use phone, then its brand equity will increase," says Tanabian, who has consulted for T-Mobile.

The Android Army Is Coming
Apple's iPhone isn't expected to be the main competitor for G1. The Android-based phone may erode sales of the Sidekick, phones that run Microsoft's (MSFT) Windows Mobile software, and smartphones made by Motorola (MOT) and Research In Motion (RIMM), maker of the BlackBerry. RIM "might lose some share by virtue of being the market leader" in the U.S., Rubin says. T-Mobile's parent, Deutsche Telekom (DT), will introduce the phone in the U.K. on Oct. 22 and elsewhere in Europe in the first quarter of 2009.

G1 stands to become a more formidable competitor as it's picked up by other manufacturers as well. Motorola, LG and Samsung are expected to launch Android models worldwide in 2009. And their Android-based phones may look vastly different from each other and the G1. Europeans may get a slider with a 12-key keyboard that they favor. Japan may get a phone with built-in mobile TV. There could be special phones for doctors or for lawyers.

Big cell-phone carriers also will help determine the success of coming Android phones. "Android has the potential to be much bigger than Apple because they can have many more manufacturers making its products," says Chris Ambrosio, an analyst with consultancy Strategy Analytics.

Kharif is a senior writer for BusinessWeek.com in Portland, Ore.

Your Internet Access Is Going To Get Suspended - Not True

Your internet access is going to get suspended - SPAM
Sophos has been intercepting many spam emails containing a malicious attachment overnight.

The emails all claim that “your internet access is going to get suspended”, as the receipient has committed “illegal activities” such as pirating software, movies or music.

This is the email:
Your internet access is going to get suspended

The Internet Service Provider Consorcium was made to protect the rights of software authors, artists.

We conduct regular wiretapping on our networks, to monitor criminal acts.

We are aware of your illegal activities on the internet wich were originating from

You can check the report of your activities in the past 6 month that we have attached. We strongly advise you to stop your activities regarding the illegal downloading of copyrighted material of your internet access will be suspended.

Sincerely
ICS Monitoring Team

The emails, which say they come from the “ICS Monitoring Team”, claim that a report of the user’s activities in the past six months is attached in a file called user-EA49943X-activities.zip.

However, if you open the contents of the user-EA49943X-activities.zip file you risk being infected by a malicious Trojan horse designed to communicate with remote hackers. Criminals can then break into your computer and use it for their own money-making purposes.

Sophos is identifying the malicious files seen being used in the campaign so far as Troj/Meredrop-A and Troj/Agent-HQK. Users of other anti-virus products would be wise to check their vendor to see if an update is available.

With so many people suffering from internet addiction (also known as ‘discomgoogolation’), it’s not hard to imagine how many people would react to receiving an email like this.

Not only would many people be prone to clicking before thinking at the accusation that they have been engaged in illegal activities, but also a disturbing proportion would be alarmed about the prospect of not being able to surf the internet.

Remember, THIS IS SPAM. Never open an attachment unless you know the sender