While you were eating Turkey, The Dollar was crashing to record Lows, Gold and Oil Soared to record Highs

That sucking sound you hear isn't the leftovers going down the garbage disposal, its the currency being debased.



The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of major currencies, hit an all-time low of 74.484, taking year-to-date losses to 11 percent. In real terms the dollar lost about 0.8% in one day.




Gold came close to $826 an ounce, making a run back toward a recent 28-year high.






U.S. crude oil for January delivery settled at a record $98.18 a barrel, up 89 cents, or almost 1 percent, after heating oil futures hit an intraday record on weekend forecasts of cold weather in the U.S. Northeast.


Source: Reuters


The question remains; Will Bernanke continue to cut interest rates in a futile attempt to stave off the inevitable recession? If another rate cut is in store, his actions will continue to destroy the dollar, and as a consequence, the standard of living of everyday Americans.

Happy Thanksgiving from Housing Fear

Enjoy the feast, however, it may be best to not talk about the housing market!

Starbucks a victim of the Housing Crash?

Now that everyones home equity is vanishing, Inflation is skyrocketing, and a significant amount of your disposable income is going to gasoline. Will you still be buying a $5.00 cup of coffee from Starbucks?

If you're my Fiance', the answer of course is YES!

However, I think its safe to assume that rational, sensible, regular Americans will be cutting back spending. (I hope she doesn't read my blog) ;)

Housing Fear champion Peter Schiff chimes in on this subject on Cavuto;

How does Inflation occur?

When interest rates are low banks have a tendency to over-lend and extend credit very easily, even to high risk borrowers, this increases the money supply in the economy which becomes inflationary. This has basically the same effect as if the Federal Reserve suddenly started printing and flooding the market with freshly minted 100 dollar bills.

The increase in the money supply reduces the purchasing power of the dollar because there are now more dollars chasing fewer goods and services, this causes a rise in prices of goods, thus you have inflation.

Too much money in the economy causes the dollar itself to lo value and it begins to grow more and more worthless. To restore the purchasing power of the dollar, and reduce inflation, the amount of money in the economy has to be reduced which means a recession.

People generally view a recession as a bad thing, but in fact it is healthy for the economy and America is in a desperate need of a recession. Unfortunately Bernanke keeps cutting rates to stave off the inevitable recession but instead his actions are causing rampant inflation and dollar destruction.

A boom is when the money supply increases and a recession is when the money supply decreases. The greater the monetary expansion, the more severe will be the required monetary contraction.

Boom and Bust is capitalism's summer and winter.... THE BIGGER THE BOOM, THE BIGGER THE BUST!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks to our federal reserve system we are subjected to a never ending merry-go-round of boom and bust cycles. A boom regardless of how big it is or how long it lasts will eventually disappear and the economy will go back to where it was prior to the boom.

It is healthy for the economy to have a house price collapse and undergo a recession. So why is Bernanke behaving in such a reckless and irresponsible manner?

We need to vote Ron Paul in 2008 to abolish the federal reserve and end the Boom-Bust Cycle, and economic bubbles for good.

The Ben Bernanke Song

This is a great tribute to the worst federal reserve chairman in history.

RON PAUL 300 Parody

Will you appeal your Property Tax assessment this year?

During the inflation of the bubble, local assessors were quick to inflate property taxes and corresponding revenue to pad the government coffers with money based off illusionary gains in real estate wealth.

Now that the party is over, something tells me that local counties won't be quite as quick or generous with the tax reductions, based on assessed value, during the bust as they were with raising them during the boom.

Millions of Americans will be receiving property tax bills in the next 2-3 months that will be grossly inflated and not reflecting the true equalized value of their house. There is a board of review held after the assessments are mailed where property owners can argue the taxable value.

I know that this winter I will be at my local review board, armed with a list of comparable sales, real estate listings, and other evidence that my house is now worth atleast 10% less than it was last year. I will be appealing the assessed value of my home. If I am successful, that of course means 10% less revenue for the county.

Will the township respond by raising mileage rates in an attempt to compensate for lost income due to crashing housing prices?

The housing bubble has far reaching ramifications, and this crisis will be felt by everyone come tax time.

Bears make money, Bulls make money, Pigs get Slaughtered

After reading the previous article I posted a second time, I realized I had overlooked this gem...

Kurt Freck didn't need to see the latest numbers to know that the housing market is getting worse.

He's had the Anaheim Hills home he bought in 2003 on the market for nearly a year and has lowered the price by $100,000 -- a 12% discount from his original asking price of $849,000.

"The good thing is that I paid less than that, but I have definitely lost equity," Freck said. He bought the house for less than $500,000 four years ago.

Freck's story is becoming more common as fewer people have been willing to buy a house at current prices.

Is this guy for real??? Please tell me this is a joke!

The guy paid $500,000 for his house in 2003, and in 2006 he lists it for $849,000 believing he deserves to make a $349,000 profit for residing in the house for 3 years. After no interest in the home for a year he decides to be a real trooper and cut the price by 100K and now only demands a mere $249,000 profit.

FRECK YOU!

If you think the market is bad now, wait until 2009 when your place is worth 450K and you really "LOSE" money. You had your chance to profit from the bubble and you blew it because you got greedy.

Remember Kurt, Greedy Pigs get Slaughtered in the end.

Southern California Home prices drop back to 2005 Levels.

Median Price in Southern California is now down 8% from October 2006.

Bernanke's scheme to save the real estate market by destroying the dollar isn't working out as well as he planned. Toxic loans with no lending standards are not coming back to save the day no matter how low the fed funds rate goes.

Exotic financing was the only way most people could afford to pay $600,000 for a "starter home" in California and without that necessary component to keep the Ponzi scheme alive house prices naturally have to continue to drop in order to reach affordability levels that compare with average income.

Check out the full article here.


I think the amusement parks should create a new roller coaster for 2008 and name it simply, "Housing Bubble". The rides frame will be built to match the housing price graph from 2001 to 2008. I bet it will be a lot more fun riding it down then simply watching your equity vanish on paper.

Ron Paul Speaks for me

I know many of you come to this blog for housing and economic news, and I am sure you all have vastly different political views. I really do apologize if I offend anyone talking about politics, however, I feel that the United States has lost its way, and the leaders in government and the central bank share a lot of the blame for the economic disaster that the country is facing. You simply cannot talk about the problem without acknowledging the cause of it.

The reason why I post so many Ron Paul video's like the one above is because it goes beyond politics. People are so passionate and so fired up about Ron Paul because he gives back hope to so many people who feel disenfranchised by the political system. People who have to choose the lesser or two evils on election day, or worse, get so disgusted they don't exercise their right to vote at all.

It is hard to watch some of these video's on youtube without getting emotional. This one is about the man who gives all those disillusioned people a voice.

Ron Paul speaks for me.

I found one good reason to like Real Estate Agents

Julia Abraham

Julia was born and raised in Ontario, and moved to Vancouver Island in 1999. She completed her Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Victoria and immediately pursued her Real Estate license at the University of British Columbia.

Real Estate has always been a part of Julia’s life as she comes from three generations of Top Producing RE/MAX agents in her family. From the moment you meet Julia you will be welcomed by her warm personality and throughout the real estate transaction you will be comforted by her level of expertise and knowledge of the business.

I guess I have to admit that not all Realtors are bad.

Imprisoned by my Condo

I am trapped in my home, and so are millions of other Americans.

I am not underwater by any means, however, I would not be able to sell without losing thousands of dollars of hard earned down payment. Factoring in taxes, Realtor commission, and the necessity of lowering the price thousands below the sales price I paid in order to compete with other comparable units. I would lose 10-15K in order to insure a good chance of a sale. (I know in bubble markets like California this is a laughable sum, but to me this is a lot of money)

I have a 30 year fixed loan, and the price I paid is actually LESS than comparable rent in the area. Nonetheless the psychology has turned, and people have so much fear of buying a house right now that there is simply no way I could sell without wiping out most of my 20% down payment equity.

I am getting married next summer, and I see an endless amount of great deals on much larger houses I could afford and would love to move into. That however is just a fantasy because I am trapped, I am a prisoner to my mortgage and a victim of the housing bubble collapse.

I can't move up and buy a bigger house, because my down payment, which exists in the form of equity in my current home, would be lost by selling the condo at market value.

I can't be comfortable in my 1 bed, 1 bath condo because it's really two small for 2 people and all of our stuff once we get married.

I am trapped, and that is what inspired me to create this blog.

That is my story. What is the reason you come to this website?

HR3915 Passes Congress!!! Mortgage Brokers days of taking advantage of Consumers comes to a long awaited End!

As the kids say now a days..... "Its ovah son, Its OH-VAH!"

Thanks to the wonderful piece of legislation known as The Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act of 2007. Mortgage Brokers will no longer be able to:

• Make a profit at your expense with YSP or Yield Spread Premium, which is is the cash rebate paid to a mortgage broker based on selling an interest rate above the wholesale par rate that the borrower qualifies for.

Originators are prohibited from "steering." The proposed law states that an originator may not receive, directly or indirectly, any incentives (and in the most controversial provision, expressly includes yield spread premiums in that definition) that are based on or vary with the terms of the loan.

• Give no down, no document loans to illegal immigrants and flippers who think they "Deserve" a half million dollar house.

minimum standards for residential mortgages states that no creditor may make a residential mortgage loan unless he first makes a reasonable and good faith determination based on verified and documented information that, at the time the loan is consummated the consumer has a reasonable ability to repay the loan under its terms and to pay all applicable taxes, insurance, and assessments.

Good job Congress, It is nice to see the government actually pass meaningful legislation for once.

For a good laugh you can read mortgage brokers crying about this bill here.

This December 16th, On the Anniversary of the Boston Tea Party, The Second American Revolution begins

Creative Seller in Ft. Lauderdale is Dropping Price by $1,000 dollars a day until its Sold.

Check out this Craigs list ad.

now at $404 and dropping $1000 every single day!!!!

Beautiful 4 bedroom 2 and a half bath home with heated pool, wood floors. In gated, prestigous Sawgrass Preserve near bank atlantic center and sawgrass mills mall.

fully heated pool and jaccuzzi........ master suite downstairs... 2 walk in closets in master....house faces lake ......2 minutes to 595 and sawgrass expy......2100 square ft.... new 5 ton ac unit.....gas appliances..... 2 car garage.......neutral colors.....gated community..... very low maintenance(about $600 a year).....

Lower and lower it goes. the vultures are circling. Lots of calls and lookers waiting until it goes a little bit lower. Someone will get a steal, why not you. Don't wait too long.

This is what they call "Mark to Market" and you have to hand it to the guy for being creative. The price will eventually fall from his fantasy wish price of 404K to whatever its real market value (The price someone wants to pay) and the house will eventually sell.

I think we will be seeing a lot more of this in the future.

Great Ron Paul Interview; 11-08-07 on CNN Situation Room.

I love the british girls accent.

Breaking Housing Fear News: Germany now owns half of Cleveland.... Literally!

Yes, Every green dot on the map represents 1 REO property owned by Deutsche Bank.

How long will Deutsche Bank hold on to these houses before they start dumping them on the market at rock bottom prices lowering everyones home value?

The heat is on, Can you feel it?

Chinese Products Keep Poisoning our Children, and Destroying our manufacturing base.

American Corporate executive are truly genius. I can only imagine the board meetings...

1) "Lets ship all our factories over to China and produce our products for pennies on that dollar!"

2) "Sir... Won't that lower the quality of our product and cause Americans to lose their job?"

1) "We aren't in the business to employ Americans, we are in the business to make a profit!"

2) "But if we send all our manufacturing jobs over sea's, How will Americans afford our product"

1) With Credit cards moron!....By the way, YOU'RE FIRED!


Well the crap is hitting the fan now. Not only is consumer spending now almost completely funded by credit card and home equity mortgage debt because good manufacturing jobs have been replaced with low paying service jobs. China is adding injury to insult by poisoning our children.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/11/08/toy.recall/