DOOM-O-RAMA

[Speck Tater]

With so many propagandists pumping the media full of "good news" on the economic front, I felt like it was time for a little realism.

The Revolutionary Moment

The sights and smells of Christmas usually put me in a mellow frame of mind. But this year there's an acid edge in the mulled wine, an off-taste in the plum pudding, a disconcerting odor of rot in the piped-in holiday potpourri.

Obviously, the government tax deal along with the Federal Reserve's recent QE announcements represent a mighty effort to stuff some spendable lucre into this shuddering, doddering beast of the American economy. The people running things don't know what else to do. We find ourselves in a decelerating system, hopelessly over-complex (and scheming, even, to add additional layers of complexity!), with money-making activity shifted from producing things of value into a runaway Wall Street machine dedicated to something-for-nothing ...

It's fascinating that in the background of all this the price of oil is fibrillating around $90-a-barrel - and nobody is paying any attention to that. We seem to have forgotten the lesson from back in 2008 that when oil gets above the $80 mark, things in this land of Happy Motoring and the Warehouse-on-wheels don't work so well.
http://kunstler.com/blog/2010/12/the-revolutionary-moment.html

Global bond rout deepens on US fiscal worries

Agreement in Washington on a fresh fiscal package has set off dramatic rise in yields of US Treasuries and bonds across the world, threatening to short-circuit any benefits of stimulus. The bond rout raises concerns that the US authorities may be losing control over events.
...
Stephen Lewis, from Monument Securities, said the bond rout is a sign that Washington can no longer take global markets for granted. "We have reached the limits of tolerance for budget deficits. There is a feeling around the world that nobody in Washington is paying any attention to the implications of what they are doing, but there is a very real risk that this will backfire if it causes mortgage rates to keep going up," he said.

"At the same time we've seen a loss of confidence in Fed strategy. There is a feeling that the Fed doesn't care about inflation – in fact, wants more of it – and that is certainly not in the interest of bondholders," he said.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/8190059/Global-bond-rout-deepens-on-US-fiscal-worries.html

House hunters are too scared to buy despite low prices

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Despite some of the best home-buying conditions in years -- affordable prices, low interest rates and lots of choices -- fear of buying has infected the market.

It has paralyzed house hunters, making them unable to pull the trigger even on attractive deals. Some are worried about making the payments, while others are convinced they'll save even more if they wait.
...
In fact, home sales are down by about 25% from last year, which means a lot of people are sitting on the sidelines. And real estate agents are having to get used to the fear of buying trend.
http://money.cnn.com/2010/12/02/real_estate/home_buying_angst/index.htm?iid=EAL

Welcome to Zombieland: Ladera Ranch, California

Estimating the number of zombies isn't a simple matter. Rick Sharga of RealtyTrac says mortgage servicers are delaying filing notices of default, the first public record of a problem.
...
The rough national count of zombie mortgages: 7 million. Considering that existing homes sell at a rate of 5 million a year -- and that a six-month inventory is a sign of a healthy market -- that's a big backlog.

It might be bigger. There are 2.6 million on-time loans where the borrowers are deeply underwater -- that is, they owe a lot more than the house is worth. All told, about a quarter of mortgages in the U.S., and a third in California, are underwater, according to Core Logic, and Ladera residents are quite aware of the incentives to try to get out of such loans by defaulting to seek a modification or short sale.
http://money.cnn.com/2010/12/07/real_estate/ladera_ranch_foreclosure.moneymag/index.htm?eref=aol

[Skidmore]

1. A tangential thought here...

I was just thinking yesterday about how mesmerised our culture is with vampires and zombies right now. The bookstores and video sections of stores are awash with literature and media focusing on the undead minions. I gave consideration to the notion that they are apt metaphors for our time and what passes as "civilized" societies now.

[villager]

4. was talking to a journalist/reporter about this the other night

(though disclaimer-wise, this was at a gathering of authors -- at least one of whom, me, does dabble in zombie tales).

He had a similar theory -- though thought that it spoke to a collective sense that the old ways are "dead," and they're never coming back "like they were."

They're transformed/transfigured now. Do we resist the change(s)? Can we "hold out?" Etc...

[TalkingDog]

5. I've always had positive thoughts about being the living dead

I work in a medium that is considered "dead". When I explain that to people I always offer the caveat: Well, what can you do when you're dead? Answer: Any fucking thing you want, because you've literally got nothing to lose.

[Resistance Radio]

2. Doomed fiat currencies

Stock up on precious metals and food, folks!

[JuniperLea]

7. I say food and knowledge are more appropriate...

I was just having this conversation yesterday. People who know how to mend equipment, shoes, clothing, homes, etc., are going to be in huge demand. If the worst comes, these services could more easily be bartered for food, shelter, clothing, etc., than could gold. Gold can't be eaten, and it won't fix your shoes. I see the current craze in gold as just another way for the haves to take from the have nots.

[Ichingcarpenter]

3. Well, this post was a surprise..Well it was no Joke.

Maybe the Mayans were right......I hope the time thing is not off too much.

BUT THERE IS MAJOR SHIT GOING ON.


A lot of truth in this post


Kick nominated.

[nc4bo]

6. House hunters or investors.

Wouldn't it be true that some are actually hesitant to purchase homes due to the MERS nightmare? I'm surpised that hasn't been brought up. I wonder if it can be included as a factor.

Buy a house cheap then find out weeks, months later that the title isn't actually clear? Is it happening enough to be well known in the public eye?

[JuniperLea]

8. I'd be interested in finding out...

I've not seen much research in that area, here or elsewhere.

[soryang]

9. I think so

Title uncertainty caused by MERS, PSAs, foreclosure fraud
Posted by soryang in Latest Breaking News
Fri Dec 10th 2010, 07:51 PM
It isn't just general economic conditions that are dragging down the home resale market. Due to widescale fraud in the investment banking industry there are several levels of fraud clouding marketable title on homes. This is lowering liquidity in the real estate market in general.

When you buy a home whether previously foreclosed upon or not, you need to have confidence in the marketability of title. The multistate electronic recording system or MERS does not conform to state real estate laws for recording of title. In addition to Wall Street's use of this bogus system to avoid properly recording assignments of mortgages, not recognized in many states, the Pooling and Servicing Agreements may not meet New York State law requirements for these instruments. Accordingly, so called Mortgage Backed Securities may neither backed by mortgages nor secure.

In addition to fraud in the inducement of mortgages, (so called "liars loans") their is fraud in the assignments, and fraud in the massive CDS market insuring and gambling on these MBS instruments. There is an additional layer of fraud in the foreclosure actions themselves.

Who holds the legitimate security interest in your mortgage? If all mortgage assignments to successors in interest weren't recorded at the county courthouse as they should be under state law for marketable title, how do you know the title is marketable? If a foreclosure was induced by an alleged successor who used forged and otherwise fraudulent documents to get a default judgement, that title will not be good (until cured by statutes of limitation of quiet title laws which can take as long as twenty years to cure such defects.) In real estate, it is generally extremely difficult to not possible to remedy defective title actions after the fact. This is harsh reality of real estate law which the press and the investment industry is hiding from the public.

[nc4bo]

10. Mindblowing. The situation continues to fester - we're told to buy, buy, buy.

Tie everything we've got up in knots for a mortgage or worse, cash.

The article concentrates only on the buyers fear of not affording payments and neglects MERS scandal completely. Not very honest of them to not tell (or remind us) the entire truth at every opportunity.

Buyer beware.

[soryang]

11. Just as fraudulent MBS's froze up world credit markets

...and are still the source of central bank "bailouts" around the world, the real estate market is subject to a similar deep freeze.

If a judge in one jurisdiction issues an order accusing a major mortgage servicer of filing misrepresentations in it's filings, or finding that the foreclosure petititioner has no standing to file for foreclosure relief, or that it's petition is defective because no corporate officer swore to it, etc., etc., that case may apply to hundreds of foreclosures in that judicial district, and be applied to thousands of home's in default to that same servicer in the entire state. So when you have millions of homes in the backlog, many of those are homes with tainted legal title caused more or less by fraud. How long will they be in limbo? A long, long, long time.