The snowball is picking up speed now.

I don't know how some families are making it - I did notice this last year there aren't as many teens driving new leased vehicles as the school parking lot is not full and the vehicles there look to be mostly paid off. People are scaling back.

I drove a 1983 Chevette in HS, Paid 300 bucks for it. What a pussy magnet.

In 2007 we finished construction on a developer built $20 million elementary school in a development where the base price for a single family home was $900,000. when the school opened I was struck at the vehicles that passed through the parking lot dropping off their kids; very high end autos. I recently returned to the school to do a demographics study for the district and noticed right away the contrast in the autos; a lot more used low end models. While conducting the study I found that around 1/3 of the families of the students were in some stage of foreclosure. The school looks like it may face nearly $2 million in lost attendance if all those foreclosures take place. very sad.

I drove a 1983 Chevette in HS, Paid 300 bucks for it. What a pussy magnet.

#3 | Posted by jackass

In the early 70's I had a 56 Buick Roadmaster in high school. Shitty mileage, would blow through a blockwall though. What a GREAT car.

I drove a 1983 Chevette in HS, Paid 300 bucks for it. What a pussy magnet.

#3 | Posted by jackass

Was your usual "donation" also $30 then?

ChickenRancher,

In the early 70's I had a 56 Buick Roadmaster in high school. Shitty mileage, would blow through a blockwall though. What a GREAT car.

Then I'll bet this photo will bring tears to your eyes.

That is one sweet fucking automobile. They used to build them like tanks.

My first car was a 1964 Ford Ranchero.

400 bucks, a battery and 3 new tires. Drove it out of the corn field it had been sitting in for 15 years. What a hunk of shit that car was.

Wish I could get it back.

#3 - LOL for Jackass. My first car was a white 1974 Mercury Comet with vinyl (landau?) roof. Beautiful car. Rust holes so big that stuff fell out of the trunk. Went thru transmission fluid like a hooker goes through dates. Scraped off the blistering vinyl top and painted it to heighten even further the babe appeal.

On topic, yowza... amazing how many people got in over their heads. I remember when we bought out current house we kept thinking afterward, gosh, maybe the bank was right - we could have bought a MUCH more expensive house. Glad we didn't follow their advice.

I remember when we bought out current house we kept thinking afterward, gosh, maybe the bank was right - we could have bought a MUCH more expensive house.

Good for you! I too could qualify for a house 3x the price of the one I live in. But why do it? Some Americans are simply too greedy. But it will be the pragmatic ones like you and me who end up paying for the greedy ones anyway.

Don't bailout all those people!!!! Let them go Bankrupt and start over!!!! WTF ever happened to 20% to 30% down???

I had a VW Rabbit Diesel. Gutless wonder that got 60 mpg on the highway.

no house in my old neighborhood was below 500K. a few clipped the 1M mark. and now their are properties in the 3's!!! madness. probably buy my old house at this point for less than what I paid. and it is fixed up!

what in the world is going on?

#12 - I fear you're right, Goatman. All around me I see people who had no business buying these big spreads (I know what many of them do for a living), and the for-sale signs sprout like weeds. We've got about 2/3 equity in our house now and, assuming I keep my job, we should be fine.

Fine, I should say, except for the big hit we'll take when we do try to sell. Of course, at this rate, that might never happen.

no house in my old neighborhood was below 500K. a few clipped the 1M mark.

Yikes! Homes in my middle/middle class neighorhood (3/2/2 ~1.8k^2) go for ~$12k.

All around me I see people who had no business buying these big spreads (I know what many of them do for a living), and the for-sale signs sprout like weeds. We've got about 2/3 equity in our house now and, assuming I keep my job, we should be fine.
#15 | Posted by cbob

If that trend you're witnessing in your area continues its going to start affecting even your property's value. Good luck to you.

~$120k

The next (current)crippling Big Bust:

Commercial mortgages

Commercial mortgage failure at 20-year high in U.S.
Mon Jul 20, 2009 9:33am EDT

(Reuters) - Commercial mortgages at U.S. banks have been failing at the fastest rate in nearly 20 years, the Wall Street Journal said, citing its own analysis.

Losses on loans used to finance commercial spaces would possibly reach about $30 billion by the end of 2009 at the current rate, the article said.

The estimated $30 billion is based on financial reports filed by more than 8,000 banks for the first quarter, the paper said.

The commercial real-estate market, valued at about $6.7 trillion, represents 13 percent of the U.S.'s gross domestic product, according to the paper.

Source:

The snowball is picking up speed now.

#1 | Posted by rightisright

Would that be the one little o threw at capitalism?

You young kids. My first car was a 49 ford and then I moved up to a 50 olds. I sure wish I had kept the 57 chev.

1973 Toyota Hi-Lux P/u.

JM

1978 Chevy C10, rust colored... I still miss that ole bench seat ;)

"A man in debt is so far a slave"

"As long as a man stands in his own way, everything seems to be in his way. "

"Bad times have a scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss. "

-RW Emerson

Transcendental thoughts on a Wed morning... ahhhh...

Was your usual "donation" also $30 then?

#7 | POSTED BY GIMME_A_SCOTCH AT 2009-11-17 09:25 PM

No I actually dated girls back then.

What do you date now?

Has a new species emerged?

Doing real damage to the other 15

1 in 6 are upside down and at risk

I don't really. I usually just pick up tramps at the bar and get busy or I go to Mexico and go to a Massage Parlor.

#29 - so many tramps, so little time, eh?

What do you date now?
#26 | Posted by nanc | Flag: CURIOUS

Has a new species emerged?
#27 | Posted by nanc| Flag: CURIOUSER

#32 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis at 2009-11-18 10:33 AM | Reply | Flag: CURIOUSEST

Seems like everyone is cutting back, except the FED government. Well I guess people have to be paid for their votes.

This is a no brainer...

People were in up to their eyeballs before the collapse. Now Unemployment is kicking a lot of people in the ass. Add in the fact that house they are paying on is now not worth what they paid for it by a long shot. Suddenly you have people asking - why should I even try and make the payments? It will take the bank a year to get you out. That's "free living" for a year. Screws your credit, but when you look at how many people's credit is going to be screwed anyhow there is no way the banks will hold it against them for that long.

Shoot, some of the banks around here aren't even foreclosing. I have a friend who has not made a payment in a full year now - still no foreclosure notices or other actions. Of course his house is worth about half what he paid for it 6 years ago if you can find someone interested. He tried to work with the bank on a short sale but so far they haven't been interested. Just want him to start making payments again. His new job is over 2 hours away and he needs to relocate...

#35 - some relatives of mine had to do a quick sale - lost $80,000 in equity and sold it for what was left on the note, but left their credit in tact. Las Vegas - bad place to try and own a home right now.

#29 - so many tramps, so little time, eh?

#31 | POSTED BY NANC AT 2009-11-18 10:26 AM

You know it. Christian women are easy.

#37 - Easy? In your case I'd say desperate.

#32 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis at 2009-11-18 10:33 AM | Reply | Flag: CURIOUSEST
#33 | Posted by nanc

Sorry, Nanc: Homo Sapien Sapien, through and through.

You know it. Christian women are easy.

#37 | Posted by jackass

Isn't that the truth though...

His new job is over 2 hours away and he needs to relocate...
#35 | Posted by GalaxiePete at 2009-11-18 10:49 AM | Reply | Flag:

Sounds like he needs to rent a studio near his job and come home on the weekends.

#41 | Posted by Hagbard_Celine

That's a great big "Ya, Right" That's what he has been doing. Remember, A house does not a home make. There's nothing left in this area, he won't be coming back. Thank you Big 3 and the UAW. He's going to let the bank take the house.

"All the perplexities, confusion and distress in America arise not from defects in their Constitution or Confederation, nor from want of honor or virtue, so much as downright ignorance of the nature of coin, credit, and circulation."

-John Adams

#42 - from what I saw on the news last night, solar and wind farms are breaking wide open up in Ohio area - every sort of job to be available soon.

"Remember, A house does not a home make. There's nothing left in this area, he won't be coming back."

Sounds like a tough situation.

What do you date now?

#26 | Posted by nanc

Middle aged women.

Whispered query with hot breath into ear:
What do you date now?
#26 | Posted by nanc

What [does Jackass] date now?

#26 | Posted by nanc

Middle aged women.

#46 | Posted by Sniper at 2009-11-18 11:32 AM

400 bucks, a battery and 3 new tires. Drove it out of the corn field it had been sitting in for 15 years. What a hunk of shit that car was.

sounds like the plot of Christine.

1 - 16 mortages delinquent

quick bail out the banks, again!

The good news is that means thanks to me 15 of you can be current on your mortage.

"The pace at which people fell behind on their mortgages slowed during the summer for the third consecutive quarter, "

Misleading issue.

Foreclosures have slowed because the banks aren't foreclosing on abandoned/not-paying customers.

My neighborhood has foreclosed properties and abandoned homes. The banks stopped foreclosing because they were being stuck with unsold properties, the property taxes involved, and the county assessments and homeowner association assessments.

By leaving the properties NOT FORECLOSED, they assessments are against the current owner, not the bank. When the properties need the lawn cut, the county is going after the owner, not the bank.

Two doors down from me, we call the bank to take care of the property's overgrowing lawn and gardens.

The street next to me? No bank to call. The owners skipped town. So the county is assessing the property for the care.

Foreclosure numbers should be up higher, but they are not based on common sense. Eventually, these properties will need to be foreclosed on...

65 Chevy Bel Air 4 door with a 350.

Punch it and a cloud of blue smoke shot out the back. Couldn't see a damn thing for about 10 seconds, made for a quick getaway.

A can of tranny fluid every 200 miles.

Plenty of room in the back seat. Ass grass or cash. Nobody rides for free.

#51 | Posted by Petrous - either that or they can forego paying ANY taxes on the property and counties and cities will eventually seize them in that manner - it would take six to eight months for that scenario to play out.

Rust holes so big that stuff fell out of the trunk.

LOL.

My first car was a station wagon that one day I was riding down the road when it sounded like a bomb went off in the back. As it happened, the spare tire storage rusted out and the tire fell out the bottom of the car while we were driving. It damn near took the bumper off.

Punch it and a cloud of blue smoke shot out the back.

My wagon looked like a destroyer laying down a smoke screen for landing craft for the first five minutes of running every day.

Pay off their past dues, and most would still go into foreclosure. A tough situation with no easy answers.

What I enjoy is how the banker and mortgages in general are deemed to be the bad guy. Like some 21st century newly designed rip off. The term 'mortgage' is centuries old. You pledge the property against a promise to repay. You break your payments, you lose the property. Get it??????

BTW arms have been around for decades, are are now resetting at some of the lowest levels seen in 80 years.

I have a real estate agents outrageous flyer from the golden days circa 2004-2005. She's pushing people to buy 50 by 100 foot lots at the jersey shore....so they can be sold in 3 years for a 30-40% net profit.

Next to now out of pocket annual expenses promoted, high rents will take care of that!

IF you want to point fingers, you can't blame the bankers for them, the RE agent maybe? NO it's the buyer for being SO NIAVE, absolutely!!!!!!

Oh purchase prices were 750,000 or 1,200,000...just a question of how much profit you wanted to make!!!

Here's the best example I know.....

Couple fixed up a nice house on Long Beach island, and sold it for 3 million. They looked around and bought another for 3 million, fixed ti up and sold it for 4.5 million.

Looked around and could NOT find a home they liked, and bought back their original home for 7,000,000.

Do you think they have buyer's remorse? Do they blame the mortg company for allowing it to finance? How about the agent for allowing them to 'overpay'?

Guess where I place the blame?????

Hoarse voiced reply, eyelashes aflutter:
Middle aged women.
#46 | Posted by Sniper

#47 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis

OK dok, we know who you date. Your fist if zom isn't available.

"The snowball is picking up speed now."

#1 | Posted by rightisright

You ain't seen nuthin' yet!

"About 7 million properties are destined to go into foreclosure, according to a September study by Amherst Securities Group, compared with 1.27 million properties in early 2005."

I can't vouch for the accuracy of this data but I was recently told about a local individual who lives in a house that is valued at about $180,000.
The mortgage is $270,000.
In addition the individual has credit card debt of about $30,000.

Again, I can't vouch for the accuracy but the source is usually reliable.

How in the hell does that happen?
If true, the individual bears most of the blame but how in the hell did any financial institution allow this to happen. They had to be aware of the risk.

#62 | Posted by Cowboy

Guy needs to listen to Dave Ramessy.