While it certainly should be pointed out that the articles are simply support pieces for RE ads, it seems pointless to spend time dissecting the articles themselves.

It does however offer great rants about how absurd the contrary statements are to reality and I guess for many here that’s part of the fun of the blog, and that’s cool ;-)

Who cares?

These financial Lewis & Clarks will be setting the marginal value of homes, as they default.

They will drag down the next 13%, and they will drag down the next 13%….and so on….

You could have your house paid off, and now only have to rent it from the county, and if your dim-bulb neighbors default and sell the house for $150K under what you paid, guess what?

You will be feeling mighty poor when you drop $500K on a house, and have it worth $350K. At least they got to default and stick it to ‘da man.

Guess who ‘da man is?

It seems to me that nearly all of the people who have these loans are going to have serious trouble paying their payments sometime in the future, otherwise why would they get the teaser loans at all if they could afford a less risky one?

-slow

The thing is that all of this propaganda is insidious. It shapes the market, creates bubbles, and, hence, it is fair game for this blog. I constantly hear people quoting such rags as if they are fact. Someone has to start calling people on this BS.

Because it is so contrary to the actual state of the market ANYTIME that market is in decline or stagnant it will of course offer great “can you believe he/she said that..” quotes but considering the source does it really add anything to the discussion?

Um, map of misery?

Yeah, not as bad as california orparts of florida, but worse than Arizona and IN the top 5 worst in the nation.

Moreover, I haven’t seen statistics anywhere that show the Puget Sound area is as bad as California or Florida regarding the number of exotic loans. If the Seattle region really does have a smaller percentage of exotic (e.g. no doc, 100% interest, no money down, option ARM, teaser rate, etc) than extreme bubble zones like Phoenix, California, and Florida, then perhaps the market really could keep expanding here for a while yet even while things contract elsewhere.

What to look for when touring a house

• Ask haunting questions. If you’re spooked by the idea of owning a home someone has died in, speak up. Ask the seller or the seller’s agent if any crimes have happened in the home. If there was a notorious event, it could even stigmatize the property, limiting your ability to resell it later.

• Get a CLUE. The Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange database tracks the history of claims for a particular home. Only the owner and insurance companies are supposed to have access to that information, but you can ask the seller to get a copy and show it to you”

—

Take that article and flush it down the toilet. a) don’t BUY a house right now because it’s Peak market and b) if are you stupid enough to make that decision, at least don’t get an ARM or 100% financed loan.

The damage she is doing to average Joe’s financial condition is appauling.

Unfortunately she’ll probably never be held accountable for her actions.

More and more people will turn to the blog sphere for statistics, links, sentiments and opinions that are not reported by the bought-and-paid-for MSM.

What Hath Blog Wrought.

The part about relying on ‘being able to increase your income’ is insane. You don’t get a loan amount and loan type based on what you *might* be able to earn in the future. Savvy people do just the opposite – they get loan amounts and loan types that they can manage should their income *decline* due to job loss, divorce, etc.

Good lord!

What a disservice she’s doing to her readers. It’s disgusting. Whatever happened to balanced reporting?

It’s very disturbing to see this type of advice in mainstream media when the market is poised for a significant downturn. And guess what? It’s already started. We’re just a little _slow_ here in Seattle.

-slow