Newbie Homeowner… Not today buddy!

Not that the cost of gas will prevent you from ever owning a home if that is your hope and dream, stagnant wages will. While the cost of living is going through the roof along with CEO bonuses and mega billion profits per quarter at the oil companies the average Joe is supposed to say “Oh well?”.

Is it just me or does the main stream media not get it? Our jobs are going everywhere but here and everyone in the media is smiling as if there is nothing wrong. Good paying middle class jobs are flooding out of every state because it is cheaper to move the plants and machinery out of America and that is the bottom line that pays the CEO’s. Every single corporation in America is looking to go cheaper and that answer is offshore and out of America. Yes, it makes good business sense but if it is at the expense of all your neighbors is it the right thing to do? If you think like a CEO then it is always a good thing to do. Cheaper labor cost means a greater profit. End of discussion.

When our nations job providers do not offer wages to provide for home ownership then that is the end of the American economic engine. Kiss Home Depot, Lowes and any other home improvement stores goodbye! Then again that may be a good thing when they put more products not made in America on the shelves to sell. Over at MSN Money they have this interesting piece and I urge you to click on the post!!!

Average Joe still can't afford a home

By Bankrate.com

One of the worst things about today's real estate market is that there doesn't seem to be any silver lining in that big black cloud.

Normally, you'd think dramatically falling prices would make homeownership possible for more moderate-income families.

But even with homes more affordable, the median price in many markets is still out of reach for a median-income family, according to "Paycheck to Paycheck: Wages and the Cost of Housing in America," a study by the Center for Housing Policy, or CHP, in Washington, D.C.

Comparing housing costs in 210 metropolitan areas with the wages earned by workers in 60 occupations, the study found that homeownership is often unaffordable for workers in each of the five-fastest growing occupations -- registered nurses, retail salespeople, customer-service representatives, food-preparation workers and office clerks. Registered nurses, who typically have high salaries, were unable to purchase a median-priced home in 108 of the markets. - MSN Money

I think I should be clear that I honestly believe the housing market is in a tumble it has not seen in decades or even half a century or more. One of the things I know about economics and how an economy works is that housing is the basis for all indicators.

When I owned my home, I put tons of money into that house. From new windows to the latest and greatest technology on heating the hot water. New doors went up on all of the bedrooms, new floors went down in the kitchen, the bathroom was overhauled with a water saving toilet, and the yard was rebuilt to allow a swing set for the kids to play on. Renters don’t do that and can not do that.

We lost our home when a child’s illness had us faced with ten months of hospital medical bills and I’m not sorry for it. My child is well now and that is all that is important to me. Our home was just a materialistic thing that we built around the family. All of the conveniences we added to our home was just that. Something that made our lives easier. We did what we had to do in order to survive and we lost just an address. My baby is still with us so I don’t look at it as a total loss. It was just a house but she is and will always be my baby girl. That is my personal perspective but this issues is bigger than that. The housing crisis is real and it is at our front door as a nation. Some folks call people like me an idiot for making stupid decisions financially but you would never want to be in my shoes when I made them. Hind sight is wonderful if you never lived the tale or circumstances.

It should bother you that our nation is moving in a direction that is lazy or easy. Where once we were a nation of innovators and experimenters on how to do things better we have been sold out by our corporate leaders for the almighty dollar. In some respects I can understand why one individual would condescend to the principal of making the most money for his family but at what cost does that sell out come to his neighbors? Lately it is pretty high.

When American business people realize that the dollar they get by selling out American jobs is hurting their nation then they just might have a clue. Till that time comes you can watch as all the manufacturing jobs go out of our nation and your job is no longer relevant. They call it outsourcing and good for the bottom line. I call it death to the American economy. Either way the bonuses go out to the top executives. Maybe your MIT engineering skills will come in handy to mow their lawn? Skim the pool or do day care for their kids while they go off shopping.

Buying a house on a salary or pay that requires you to ask if the customer wants fries with that is not how you pay for a home.

Not everyone in America will make anywhere near the big bucks of even the middle class but if the loss of hope of ever owning a home is gone then our nation is a failure. That then would be a tribute to the people that have sold all American’s out.

If this were a baseball game the owners would have sold all the players before the game was even over…

Papamoka

Cross posted MichaelLinnJones.com and to Bring It ON! and To the Center

Feel free to link to or borrow this post

Technorati Tags:
home ownership, housing, lending practices, predatrory lending, buying a house, my house, my home, home improvement, home improvement stores, home depot, lowes, ace hardware, new windows, toilets, electicrical improvements, pride in ownership, american homewoners, sick childeren, loss of home, bankruptcy, foreclosure, homeowners self respect, lending crisis, banking crisis, mortgage lending, msn money

Politics, Voting or Not Voting

With the up and coming election for President of these here United but divided United States of America there is a lack of enthusiasm in some circles to not even care to vote. Part of that lack of interest in the election process is the responsibility of the current occupant of the office to some degree. The Decider in Chief, that ran on the principal of being a uniter and not a divider, became a total isolationist within his political party post 9/11. As long as he was happy the Congress was let loose on the people with full Republican brutality on the middle and lower classes of America.

Prosperity in America is more smoke and mirrors than reality. If the politics of our government is to protect and defend only the interest of the corporations and the top 5% of income earners then we have a bigger problem than we all think. If running for the highest office in the land is sponsored by corporations and industries that expect the return on their investment then we have a much larger problem. Political donations for most industries have a higher return than any other investment opportunity in America if the legislation they want is passed.

If our government leaders think that America should be the world police and intervene in the sovereignty of other nations with military force at the drop of a hat then we have and even bigger and larger problem. If you support all of our sons and daughters in our nations military then our political leaders need to know that use of our military is always a last resort. America is not or was not founded on nation building on foreign soil by force.

When you hear someone tell you that their vote does not count you need to remind them who is in the White House now and why he and his party is counting on them not to vote. When they tell you that they are just one vote you need to let them know that by not voting they are enabling the corporate take over of our society and government because they are counting on them to not vote. When they tell you that their vote is meaningless when the big picture is considered then I dare you to ask them if a child’s life is worthy of their vote? What if that child is only eighteen or nineteen years old and serving in Iraq or Afghanistan in our nations military. When you hear them reply that the government does not care about the poor, make sure you tell them that they are absolutely right because the poorest amongst us do not vote! Being poor does not make you absolved of your government’s actions if you do not vote. When the people fail to vote, then the parties that get the vote will walk all over you unencumbered. Not my cup of tea and thus I vote in every election.

Given all the aspects of each political party you can come to several conclusions but one thing is certain, the Democrat Party was not the one that sold the war in Iraq to the American people under a cloak of shame. Democrat’s didn’t sell out the seniors prescription subsidy program by letting the Pharmaceutical industry write the legislation for the government. Democrat’s didn’t write the No Child Left Behind legislation and then did not fund it. Democrat’s are not the ones that handed Haliburton no bid contracts for the Iraq War and then watched as that same corporation moved its corporate headquarters out of the United States of America. I’m not leaving the Democrat’s out of all blame but the price of gasoline was not $3 a gallon when they had control of the House and Senate.

When you find yourself losing your home you can not lay the blame on the Democrat’s because even today the Bush administration stated that they do not think it is a real crisis as yet. Over at Reuters they have this little hidden nugget on the news wires…

White House: too soon to discuss subprime loan plan
Fri Nov 30, 2007 2:43pm EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House on Friday said it was "premature" to discuss possible new steps to address the mortgage crisis and declined to comment on reports that officials are working on a deal with lenders to freeze interest rates on some loans.

"It's premature to talk about those discussions at this point," White House spokesman Scott Stanzel told reporters, when pressed on whether the administration is working on a new initiative regarding the mortgage market.

Stanzel said that administration officials "certainly have been working in close consultation with the private sector and with the industry to look at ways in which we can help people keep their homes."

In August, the Bush administration announced a series of initiatives aimed at preventing homeowners from defaulting on risky mortgages. Those included a tax-relief proposal to make it easier for some homeowners to refinance their home loans.

Economists have become increasingly concerned about the impact of the mortgage crisis, centered on subprime loans extended to riskier borrowers, on the broader U.S. economy. - Reuters

They have some band aide programs but if you don’t qualify now because of the credit crunch on the middle and lower class then you better call a mover or some friends with a pick up. The red carpet of the White House and the Republican party does not venture further than the top 5% of income earners. If you are in that club then good for you, if you are not, then you better vote or consider yourself damned, screwed and tattooed by any future Republican lead government in America.

At least there is one thing that both political parties have in common . The top three of each party does not care about the middle and lower class because they can count on the majority of us to simply not vote. Big mistake on their part but then again they have the big bucks to sell the ones that do vote the sound bite that just might get their vote. Shiny object over hear on the boob tube while they throw them and you under the bus over there to corporate America.

I’m dumbfounded that the leaders from each political party are the leaders for the highest office in the land. Republican’s have Giuliani that is a Catholic, divorced several times, cheated on his wife in the lead that knowingly used his NYPD for a taxi service for his mistress.

Followed by a close second former Governor that has a larger collection of Flip Flops than Senator John Kerry. I personally think that Kerry had a yard sale and Mitt Romney bought the entire collection.

Then we have the angry Senator from Arizona. He’s a time bomb of anger issues that the White House is not the place to hand the football to him. Television debates don’t lie and McCain was blood boiling mad at Ron Paul and Mitt Romney over torture and Iraq. He needs therapy.

Democrats are no better…

Hillary Clinton does actually believe that she will be the next President of the United States. I find that arrogant. Number one rule of politics is that you can have a ton of money for your campaign but if the people do not think you are sincere then you lose. Canned speeches based on political polls is where and what she is all about and many people have opinions on many issues that are not popular but are still Democrat at heart. It might have worked for Bill but it isn’t working for her this time around.

Barack Obama is a political star but he does not play well to the moderates of the Democrat party. Rather than being himself where he would excel he is fashioning himself as a me too Democrat. Running in the shadow of Hillary is not him and he either does not get what the people want to hear or his political campaign advisors are leading him down the wrong road. In most of the debates he was upstaged with the right answers to the questions posed to all of the candidates. Personally, I do not think that some of the answers he gave were really from his gut. Given a few more years experience in Washington he would have my vote in a heart beat. You can see that he is over his head in this election.

John Edwards is a great politician that has mastered the double speak of politics. Ask him a direct question and you will always walk away with a dazed and confused look. Nice hair though! Four hundred dollar haircuts does not sell you as a man of the poor and middle class. Two America’s, yup and he proved that fact with his haircut.

That is my round up, one thing that I believe very important to all Americans regardless of political belief, you need to vote! Otherwise the limousines will pass you by and the people living the life of luxury will always benefit when you simply do not care to vote. Rise up and take your government back by voting. No matter what party you believe in you need to look at your lot in life and ask yourself if this person is worthy of your vote? Then look again who isn’t the top three and be amazed at the favors they will not owe to the maxed out donors of the campaigns. It’s your country and it is not sponsored by corporation ABC. VOTE!

Papamoka

Cross posted at Bring IT ON!

Feel free to link to this post or steal it all…

Technorati Tags:
Biden, Giuliani, Romney, Clinton, McCain, Edwards, Thompson, Ron Paul, President, Running for President, Elections 2008, Voting Rights, Right to Vote, Get out the Vote, Political Campaigns, Richardson, Governor Richardson, Senator Biden, Joe is Right, Iowa, New Hampshire, Iowan Politics, New Hampshire Democrat, Not Voting, Vote, Voters in Iowa, Caucasus, Des Moines, Sound Bite Politics, President of the United States, Bush, Cheney, Iraq, Iran, War, Democrats, Republicans, Tancredo, Dodd, Huckabee, CNN, Reuters, ABC, MSNBC, CBS, NBC, FOX, Political Debate, American Values, Catholic Values, Conservative Values, Voting Your Wallet

ECONOMIC VORTEX FORMING IN GULF OF STUPIDITY (WHY IT AIN'T LOOKIN' A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS)

BY MICHAEL LINN JONES

Recently I wrote about the possibility that an economic Nathan Bedford Forrest would come charging in on some economic experts and badly upset their applecarts. And cause a stampede.

This morning I am scanning the business section of news.yahoo.com and three stories are lined up one after the other. The Federal Reserve dropped interest rates another 1/4 point yesterday, despite the fact that the GDP grew at a rate of 3.9%. Ordinarily a cut would be strongly resisted....but...but...there are those issues to deal with involving the collapse of the subprime mortgage market and its spreading effects.

This AP article by Alex Veiga, FORECLOSURE FILINGS SOAR IN 3RD QUARTER, is one part of the equation.

LOS ANGELES - A soaring number of U.S. homeowners struggled to make mortgage payments in the third quarter, with properties in some stage of foreclosure more than doubling from the same time last year, a mortgage data company said Thursday.

A total of 446,726 homes nationwide were targeted by some sort of foreclosure activity from July to September, up 100.1 percent from 223,233 properties in the year-ago period, according to Irvine-based RealtyTrac Inc.

The current figure was 33.9 percent higher than the 333,731 properties in foreclosure in the second quarter of this year.

There was one foreclosure filing for every 196 households in the nation during the most recent quarter, RealtyTrac said.

Next, Oil above $96 on drop in US supplies by John Wilen, AP Business Writer:

SINGAPORE - The price of oil rose to a new record above $96 a barrel Thursday after a surprise drop in U.S. crude stockpiles raised concerns about supplies for coming winter demand. Other energy futures also gained.

It was the second week in a row the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a sharp and unexpected drop in oil inventories.

"The decline in U.S. crude oil inventories has been a key driver of oil prices," said David Moore, commodity strategist at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney.

SNIP,

Much of that decline was due to a big drop in crude supplies at a closely watched oil terminal in Cushing, Oklahoma.

Cushing supplies have been under pressure in recent months due to differences in the price between front-month oil contracts and those for delivery in future months. This price difference, or spread, has given storage tank owners a financial incentive to sell their oil, rather than hold it in inventory. Analysts have also blamed falling Cushing supplies, in part, for the rally in which oil prices have jumped 35 percent since August

Finally, Stock Investors Fear End To Rate Cuts, again an AP story by Joe Bel Bruno.

Mindful of a warning from the Federal Reserve Wednesday about inflation, the market nervously watched the price of oil, which passed $96 a barrel overnight for the first time before dipping on profit-taking. The Fed, which cut interest rates a quarter point, said in a statement that inflation remained a concern, and oil's ascent to another record raised the possibility not only that the Fed might stop cutting rates, but that it might even consider raising them if inflation accelerates.

These, of course, are just snippets from the articles. I strongly recommend reading each in full. After reading what I've done so far I thought of renaming this "That 70's Show (Again)." If one were to take into account the three stories listed above...and Jimmy Carter was President instead of George W. Bush, there would be hell to pay. We would be talking in terms of a "malaise" or some such. But we're not, because we are being reassured (again) that everything is A-okay.

Am I crazy? Okay, don't answer that...but even if that's been established it doesn't take away the sense of wrongness when I read that oil prices go up because stocks are down because oil price "spreads" caused by the commodities markets give an incentive to keep oil storage tanks dry. Which information is used to further increase the price of oil, etc., etc. It's a nasty circular logic that does three things: makes some people a lot of money, costs many more to spend what they don't have, and screws the pooch on retail sales.

The other day I heard George Will say a couple of things. Bear in mind I admire Mr. Will's logic and prose even when I don't agree with him. He said (and I'm paraphrasing here) that even if crude oil reaches inflation-adjusted levels of the early 80's it doesn't matter that much since the influence of oil as a part of the economy has shrunk since then.

Oh yeah? Well what is the minimum wage when inflation-adjusted? I'm not arguing for the minimum wage, but rather using it as a standard of sorts since many jobs offer compensation that is compared to the minimum wage. Besides, gasoline at $3 or $4 a gallon is still that....money that would otherwise go elsewhere.

He also made the point that a lot of the subprime mortgage failures were by people speculating in 2nd or 3rd homes. Again, what difference does that make? Whether for a 1st, 2nd, or 5th mortgage, those subprime deals were sold as securities that have evaporated in value. The end effect is the same no matter WHO held the paper.

I'm a capitalist. I once lived in what once euphemistically called a "semi-state" environment and it was terrible. Capitalism is indeed the only form of economic activity that works. But, it is quite caustic in nature and also self-destructive if left unregulated. I live in a fairly stable neighborhood. I never ordinarily have contact with law enforcement. But I know that if a wildman was trying to walk off the property with everything I own I would call the police. They would intervene between stability and chaos. I think they call it the "Thin Blue Line."

For the last twenty years or so we've had one politician after another cutting that thin blue line of economic regulation like a local mayor with oversize scissors opening a county fair. Our nation has changed, as all things change, but not all change is necessarily good.

And the result is that our economic neighborhood is overrun with wildmen gleefully filling their stockings because the police are now forbidden to even look for crime. It is a sad fact that the first Chairman of the Securities & Exchange Commission, Joseph P. Kennedy (himself a notorious Wall St. speculator) had to have bodyguards while on the floor of the stock exchange.

Kennedy's job was to pour some unpalatable liquid into many bowls of cornflakes, and the consumers of said cornflakes did not like it a bit. They still don't and that's why they pay out a lot of money to ensure their meals taste sweeter every year.

So if the bottom falls out of the bucket we all can rest assured that in the long run things will straighten out. But like Harry Hopkins once told a Senate committee, " the problem is, people have to eat in the SHORT RUN."

And they have to drive cars to work so as to keep the economy going. And they have to heat their homes (those who still have them).

And they have to hold their noses next November to elect people who like the taste of their cereal and aren't about to allow any cops in THEIR neighborhood.
*********************
Cross-posted at Michaellinnjones.com