Posts Tagged ‘united states’

Problems Exist with Both Republican, Democratic Views on Capitalism

Tuesday, September 4th, 2012

Once, just once, I wish politicians would leave the prose and symbolism to the fiction writers.

Not that I was expecting any different, but as I watched Mitt Romney accept the Republican nomination, I heard bold talk and big promises.

It is a narrative, plain and simple, an entertaining one perhaps, but one that I fear will do little to make things better for Main Street.

Small businesses are and should be the centerpiece of our country, and so I appreciate Romney’s efforts to put them at the center of his campaign.

But if he thinks reducing the size of our government alone will allow them to thrive, than either he is naive, or even he doesn’t believe his own talking points and just thinks we are all idiots.

I have my doubts about the President as well, and I suspect that when Barack Obama takes the stage in Charlotte this week, that while the message will be different, the rhetoric will be just as loud.

Here is the fatal flaw with Romney’s ‘get government out of the way’ approach to housing and commerce.

Government really hasn’t been in the way. Banks have been running wild lately, with few checks and balances put in their way.

Obama’s administration has left the banks to their own devices, more often than not, and has yet to really lay the hammer down.

And that was when our government was supposed to be keeping their eye on Wall Street.

So is Romney going to remove all pretense, and just shut his eyes as big business is left to keep making its own rules?
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Foreclosure and The Presidential Race: Has Obama Done Enough?

Thursday, August 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)

The Republican and Democratic conventions are almost upon us, and the housing crisis has finally been inserted into the presidential election.

Maybe the President and his Republican rival see homeowners as nothing more than another campaign issue to be exploited, or maybe they are finally starting to understand how central the need to tackle the foreclosure problem is to the American public.

Some days it is hard to tell. But at least the narrative is starting to move forward. It is a start, if a meager one at best.

The housing market is indestructibly woven into the economy. The whole narrative is actually very simple.

Housing has led the economy out of every recession since the Great Depression.

A refi boom inevitably takes hold as interest rates drop and folks refinance their mortgages for lower interest rates.

The extra money from the lowering of your monthly mortgage payments goes right back into the economy, whether its buying new tires, taking the family out for dinner or going to the shore for the weekend.

Those activities stimulate the economy from the ground up. That unfortunately didn’t happen this time because there wasn’t enough equity in our homes and thus the banks refused to refinance your loan.

But of course you and I have known this for a long time now, long before those in power were paying attention.

A year ago I told you underwater mortgages were the “900 lb. gorilla in the room that could derail President Obama’s re-election campaign.
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The American Dream — Alive and Well

Thursday, June 7th, 2012

United States of AmericaI had the pleasure to speak to a spirited group of homeowners a few days ago in Delray Beach. I was invited to address a group of homeowners associations, but the group of 70 plus could easily have fit in with the people who walk through my doors every day.

They were frustrated, tired of hearing excuses, and they wanted answers on how the housing crisis will ultimately right itself.

Often the opinion that they conveyed to me, either directly or simply by the expression on their faces, was this — “What happened to the American Dream? Is it gone forever?”

And the answer is no. You may have to look extra hard for it, but it still remains; and it can be reached by everyone.

I found someone who is living the American Dream, and it made me smile. And in his story you will see the problem, but at the same time I think you will find the solution.

Why? Because the man, Eddy Kauffmann, lives in Switzerland. He is not an American citizen. At least not yet.

He is a retired banker who has found a way to turn this horrible mess of a housing market and use it to obtain his goal of becoming an United States citizen. At the same time, his success could have a positive impact on entire communities.

I in fact, come from Swiss lineage, as my mother was Swiss. The Swiss are extremely observant and methodical in nature. (See Swiss watches and banks!)

Perhaps that’s why this story caught my attention.
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Freddie Mac — Playing Two-Face to the American Homeowner?

Tuesday, January 31st, 2012

 

Aaron Eckart as "Two-Face"

Aaron Eckhart might have played Two-Face in the last Batman movie, but Freddie Mac seems to have settled into the role these days.

Non-profit ProPublica and National Public Radio allege that Freddie Mac, which was set up to make home loans more accessible, was in fact betting against homeowners.

It’s a highly disturbing, and completely shocking report. ProPublica’s Jessie Eisinger and Chris Arnold of NPR claim that the government-owned mortgage company was investing in securities that paid substantially more if people continued to pay off high-interest mortgages.

At the same time, they were tightening the grip on credit, making it difficult for homeowners to refinance and get out of such mortgages.

So what was good for Freddie Mac’s bottom line was diametrically opposed to what was right for some people who had mortgages with them.

Heath Ledger as "The Joker"

It’s a scheme so devious The Joker wishes he thought of it first.

Now Freddie Mac officials claim there was a Chinese wall set up between the staffers responsible for their investments and those who dealt with credit regulations.

They deny there was any intent to manipulate credit regulations to enhance their pockets, and the investigation offered no evidence that there was.

Yet they’ve already agreed to stop making these risky investments, known as inverse floaters, after the Federal Housing Finance Agency leaned on them once the investigation became public.

Even if you buy Freddie Mac’s explanation, it doesn’t soften the blow. The conflict of interest here is unequivocal. The company is now essentially, owned by the taxpayers, and has a direct impact on who and who can not get a home loan.
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