titular void

source

CBC.ca had an unscientific poll (results pictured above) indicating that a whopping 64% were always against the Games Being Played. Are CBC readers more knowing than National Post readers? Are they more prescient than The Province readers? More cynical than The Sun readers? Who benefits?

That leads me to this;

I heard rumours of a possible criminal investigation around the whole Olympic Village debacle. There were a whole lot of "resignations" of City money people in City Hall since the municipal election. I have never had any doubt that there would be shenanigans around the Olympics. There are always shenanigans when billions of dollars are floating around.

So, those pre-sale flippers that thought that they can just walk away from their deposits and contracts are in for a surprise, the developers are suing for specific performance, and such, and will be flogging such units for what they can (25%-40% off to start...). The contract breakers will be on the hook for the difference, plus costs.

"...now many people who put down deposits at the market's peak are obliged to take possession of properties they don't want and can't finance because of tumbling values." link

Jayne sent me an e-mail with a link to this story. (thanks Jayne)

The Second Stage
Another Real Estate Crisis is About to Hit
By PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS

For a picture of the US real estate crisis, imagine New Orleans wrecked by Hurricane Katrina, and before the waters even begin to recede, a second Katrina hits.

The 1,120,000 lost US retail jobs in 2008 are a signal that the second stage of the real estate bust is about to hit the economy. This time it will be commercial real estate...

Paul Craig Roberts was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration. He is coauthor of The Tyranny of Good Intentions.

Things are getting wilder every day.

Has it been foggy, or is it just me?

reaction

image from here

Great deals out there

Vince sent me an e-mail asking for my reaction to the article linked above. Thanks for the e-mail Vince, I appreciate all e-mails.

I thought it to be a well written article. It had well placed platitudes -

I have heard both doomsday predictions and rosy outlooks. From this, I conclude that right now people are looking for direction. They are looking for some semblance of where the market is going, when the opportunities will emerge and how to best act on those events. (sic)

biased factoids -

While I cannot predict the short term fluctuations of the market I can offer insight based on MPC Intelligence's experience observing and documenting Metro Vancouver's development market.

I can provide some simple facts about the current market that will better allow consumers to sort through the fact and the fiction in the months ahead. (sic)

fallacious mythology -

The Chinese proverb says, "May you live in interesting times." (I have dealt with that before) (sic)

acronymic company titles -

MPC Intelligence... (and they are, who?),

and generally unbiased positivity. Vapid writing for the vapid and vacillating venture capitalists who still have way too much money to lose.

From a Google search for MPC Intelligence - MPC Intelligence reminds our customers that we are here to help in every way shape and form. We are working near round the clock to deliver ..., and - MPC Intelligence assumes no responsibility for inaccuracies provided by the ... MPC Intelligence is not responsible for the privacy practices or content of ... I am always so encouraged when a marketing group has disclaimers in their headlines. "Near round the clock", no less... Hang on, I'm going to give them a call... OK, so Jennifer Podmore (the author of the Vancouver Sun "article"), is a Managing Partner of MPC Intelligence! Qu'elle surprise! Another great surprise - MPC Intelligence is not really available around the clock... I called at 12:45 AM, and was advised that their business hours are "from 9-5, Monday through Friday". MPC Intelligence - contact

So, Vince, I think that the "article" is another piece of shill from the Vancouver Sun. A pumper for the developers is trying to get you to buy. Why even read it? My own take is that, if prices have retreated by 15%, they have another 35% to go - minimum. And that is if there is not a depression. If that happens, see the previous post featuring Detroit "mansions" for three hundred dollars.

I will not eviscerate the "article" further, that would be unseemly.

See, I'm a "journalist" too! All it takes is Google!

Wake Up Canada!

I think that an anger management intervention is due for this double-speaking blow-hard. Just another of Harper's angry henchman. I'd much rather see Elizabeth May as Minister of the Environment, wouldn't you?

Short and sweet today. I am rather exhausted, and am having trouble typing - let alone thinking. Others can speak today.

I could write about Merrill-Lynch Canada saying that we are on the verge of a mortgage meltdown in Canada as bad, or worse as that in the US, but Garth Turner does a better job of that with his post Wake Up Canada, and more. (I am not a Turner sycophant - truth be told, he irritates me. I would likely vote for a Liberal for the first time in my life if I could vote for him though. He is MP of the riding that I grew up in.), but he has the nuts and bolts there, that I don't have here. My brain just is not functioning well - due to exhaustion.) He writes today what this election is really all about (mostly). There are a couple of very erudite people who comment there regularly too. According to M-L, Canadians will take it even harder than the US, as we have greater levels of personal debt.

The video below is from vote for environment.ca who is targeting ridings where the difference in the vote was 10% or less (in some ridings, it was by as few as tens of votes, and if I recall correctly, there was a Conservative who won by 29 votes).



This graphic is from the same site, and as you can see, a split vote strongly indicates a near Conservative majority. If that happens...I can't express it. Canada will be finished.



Forward the links, and get friends and family to vote - but not for the Black-Hearted Overlords in blue cloaks! Vancouver Quadra is a hot contest, and there are others. That is why the leaders are coming here.

Speaking of which, did you hear that Dona Cadman is running for the Cons, but is not taking questions, is not campaigning, and last night, fled with Harper and a police escort (he is doing a lot of that - with the RCMP keeping reporters away, not letting reporters off of buses so that they cannot film protests at campaign stops, etc. Sounds a lot like Bush tactics, non? I wonder what inducement he has offered Ms. Cadman to sell her husband's name. (that might be unfair, but...)

This is another site that targets key ridings. I know that there are readers from all over who come here (even Calgary!) - the photo at the top came from a reader in Kingston (Ontario, I presume), and I photoshopped it in my own wicked way.

So, if you live in one of these ridings, get out and vote, and drag every one you know to the polls with you. Then go have a beer and nachos party. It will be fun! And it is so important this time. In the last election, voter turnout was only 63% nationally, and Harper won with 36% of the vote! If they won't give us proportional representation, let's take it! And let's take Canada back.

I have doubts about a coalition (as I suggested, Layton would demand to be PM, and the Libs would never go for that. Wht would they?), but we could have a Lib minority, and I like minorities. The Cons would be unlikely to call an election any time soon after, and the NDP would keep the Libs honest, or bring them down with the Cons like they did last time.

$890,000.00

Thanks to R.Di for pointing out this travesty @2630 FRANKLIN ST, Hastings East, Vancouver East. v718488



$890,000.00?!!! WTF are these people smoking down on Franklin ST.? It reminds me of The Charge of The Light Brigade, or the Kamikaze Cult. No guts, no glory.

IT IS OVER! Shave your price by $600G's, and you might get a low-ball offer of $225K.

I have a mind to get a real estate license - just so that I could arrange to take your 75% off, low-ball offers to people like this. Any bored agents out there?

Actually, I wouldn't buy the place for an even $200K.

Any FTB better hurry to get in on this one to be a FB - as of October 15th, forget about that zero-down, 40 year amort., cash-back action, yer going to have to slap down 5% with a 35 year amortization. The handy Royal Bank mortgage calculator tells us that if you make accelerated weekly payments of $1,245.09 (a measly $4930.86/mo.), you can own this puppy outright in 27 years. It will take an annual income of about $200K to buy this place at these terms. Is here a surgeon in the house? A CEO of a middle corporation?

OK, I know that it is only really move-up buyers that are buying these places, but I am curious as to exactly from where someone would "move up" to this place. The Cecil Hotel?

I'm not normally subject to schadenfreude, but I feel a big, smug smirk coming over me.

boiler plate

Jari sent me the e-mail below, as well as the picture above - which I photoshopped a bit more. I'm pretty busy, and you already know that the BoC dropped the prime again, and that they are saying that we will have a downturn that will last exactly two years, and blahbitty-blah-blah, so I will ask you to consider this a guest post.

Thanks Jari

This is only vaguely related to Real Estate, but I wanted to share this with you anyway.

I have to drive daily on the streets of Vancouver, and nothing pisses me nowadays more, than seeing all these vehicles with the Olympic licence plates. To me, the plate is symbol of greed, arrogance and ignorance: the real estate is more unaffordable than ever, there are more and more homeless on the streets and the city and the streets are becoming more and more congested and overcrowded. And the politicians’ solution to these problems is to issue this pretentious new provincial slogan and the licence plate to go with it!

I think that we really need a new licence plate, that reflects better the feelings of most people when they are driving on the streets of the city. Attached is a template that may be quite accurate. I believe, that this also represents more precicely the actual future of Vancouver.


I would love to see people typing their licence plate number on this kind of template, printing it and displaying in it in their vehicle. There are already 80000 Olympic licence plates on the roads. I believe this kind of new plate would balance things a little bit.

Feel free to publish this on your blog, if you find this suitable.


Best regards,

Jari

Here is Jari's template if you want to make your own.

explaining sub-prime

It's the alligators, and me arse...a cheap post is the result. Hopefully better than no post!

Adrian sent me this picture explaining sub-prime a while ago, and I am just getting to posting it now. (Thanks Adrian!)

click picture to enlargeGRAPHIC: By Laura Stanton - The Washington Post - March 14, 2008