Archive for the ‘The Wall Street Journal’ Category

Politics of Foreclosure? The Wall Street Journal Needs a Reminder

Wednesday, March 21st, 2012

Over a year ago I felt compelled to call out The Wall Street Journal after a particular column really got under my skin.

It’s time to call them out once more. Not for another column, but rather, a lack of one.

In October 2010 their column “The Politics of Foreclosure” made light of the plight many of my clients have undergone, and shrunk the foreclosure crisis down to a mere inconvenience for a few Washington insiders.

You and I, of course, know different.

And as the crisis grew wider and wider, and the expansiveness of the banks fraud became even more apparent, The Wall Street Journal’s Editorial Board continued to be a haven for outdated ideas, protection of the status quo and disgust for anyone trying to do good by the American homeowner.

When the AG settlement was first announced back in February, the Wall Street Journal called it a ‘bank job’ worthy of the Barker gang.

I found it disturbingly amusing that a settlement that was basically little more than a public spanking for the banks angered them so. The settlement didn’t land a single banking executive in jail, yet the columnists at The Wall Street Journal still treat the banks as the victims in the housing crisis.

The crisis, you know that the banks basically created.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board still believes the banks didn’t illegally foreclose on a single homeowner, something I personally know not to be true.

Either their editorial board is remarkably stupid or just ignorant.

And so I shouldn’t be all that surprised that they have been silent after the Department of Housing and Urban Development released audits that laid out how pervasive the culture of fraud was amongst our nation’s lenders.
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Will Obama Target Housing Crisis During State Of The Union?

Monday, January 23rd, 2012

President Barack Obama delivers remarks on the economy at Shaker Heights High School,Shaker Heights, Ohio, Jan. 4, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

We really haven’t seen President Obama insert himself directly into the housing crisis, but there are rumblings that he may do just that during Tuesday’s State of The Union address.

The fact is that is what homeowners have been clamoring for. A new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll found 58% of Americans want the government to do more to help people keep homes.

According to HousingWire, Ohio senator Sherrod Brown told reporters today that there was evidence that Obama would address the robo-signing case which involves several major banks. A North Carolina congressman even said there were rumours that Obama would announce a settlement, something HUD secretary Shaun Donovan suggested last week was ‘very close’, as we mentioned in our Week In Review on Friday.

For the record, Obama’s press secretary refused to confirm any details, saying only that the President was “focused on the issue of housing”.

Between Dononvan’s comments and the recent white paper sent out by the Federal Reserve, it seems that more and more top government officials are finally realizing how important the housing market is to our economic recovery, not to mention their own political survival.

This is not news to us here at the South Florida Law Blog.

In the Huffington Post last September, Roy Oppenheim called housing the “thousand pound gorilla in the room” in the 2012 election, as many of the states with the highest underwater mortgages, such asFlorida, are also key electoral swing states. The pressure on Obama to be more aggressive on the banks is growing in Washington, and it’s about time.
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Foreclosures to Rentals. Obama Finally Listens to Oppenheim Law

Wednesday, July 27th, 2011

Taking a cue from Oppenheim Law, the Obama Administration is mulling over plans to reduce the number of foreclosed homes on the market by renting them out, according to the Wall Street Journal.

As the large inventory of distressed homes on the market continues to push a reduction in home prices as well as an increase in rental prices, the government is thinking about renting the homes owned by Fannie and Freddie.

The proposal has two benefits:

  1. Reducing the amount of distressed homes for sale
  2. Clearing the surplus of homes currently unoccupied.

These benefits would be the keys to a successful housing market recovery. Increasing the amount of rental properties available can also stabilize rent prices, which have been going up as foreclosed families wait before buying another home.

While the benefits of the proposal are obvious, it is still just a proposal. It’s too bad the Administration did not listen to Oppenheim Law back in 2009 when we advocated using the inventory of foreclosed homes to benefit communities, instead of just letting them sit unoccupied and cause suburban blight.

The Government could easily enact the proposal by ordering Fannie and Freddie to sell their foreclosed homes to investors who promise to rent them out. The investors could then hire management companies to look after the houses. If the Administration decides to follow through with the plan, the Government might actually make money on the deal and help the housing recovery at precisely the right time for it: before the next wave of foreclosures hit. That way, the market can be more resilient when the next hit comes and absorb more losses.

3 Tips on Florida’s New House Rules and the American Dream

Friday, July 8th, 2011

State of the American Dream (2009-2011)

Is homeownership still part of today’s American Dream? A recent article in the Wall Street Journal shared some old school advice on buying a home in today’s economy, more along the lines of Depression Era thinkers versus Baby Boomer spenders.

1. Buy what you can afford without scrimping on other needs. If you need to save for retirement or college, save. Don’t think your Florida home is going to pay for them.

2. If you need to move in less that seven years, then rent, don’t buy. You will be hard pressed to break even on your Florida home unless you live in it for a long time.

3. Values could stay depressed for many years. The only way you can plan to build equity in your Florida home is to pay down the mortgage.

Whether buying or selling a Florida short sale or foreclosure or renting; make smart decisions in light of today’s economy. Today’s housing market is still unraveling.


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