“Shhh! Don’t Tell Anyone My House is for Sale” “Listing agent will not also represent Buyer.” –Clause added to every listing contract I sign If your Realtor will agree to the foregoing clause — as I do on every listing I’ve ever handled — you don’t need to worry about a “pocket listing.” That’s because the Realtor...Read More
Recognize This House? Where: somewhere in Minneapolis. What: a classic, older home with 4 BR/3 BA and over 3,000 square feet. Features gorgeous mill work, built-in’s galore, hardwood floors, beamed ceilings — and on and on. How much: list price now $989k, down from $1.395 two-plus(!) years ago. Property taxes: a gazillion dollars per year....Read More
Why Goldman Sachs Should Hire Matt Taibbi The most the Securities and Exchange Commission could exact from serial transgressor Goldman Sachs — for what appeared to be blatant fraud that netted the firm billions — was a measly $550 million fine last Summer. By contrast, in just one day of trading (yesterday), Matt Taibbi’s latest Rolling Stone...Read More
Can You Say, “Tautology?” How About “Specious Reasoning?” It’s hard to find a victim of [insider trading] because for every buyer of a stock there is a willing seller. –“The Fall of Raj”; The Wall Street Journal (5/12/2010) So that’s the Journal’s argument against insider trading laws? Namely, that no one is harmed because in...Read More
The Ben & Jerry of Europe At least according to urban legend, the friendship of Ben and Jerry (yes, the ice cream Ben and Jerry) dates backs to an elementary school phy ed class they shared. In announcing that day’s activity — the one mile run — the gym teacher supposedly threatened, ” . . ....Read More
Two Tales, Both Stinky* ConAgra Offers to Acquire Ralcorp for About $4.9 Billion –headline, Bloomberg.com (5/4/2011) It’s hardly unusual for the target of a corporate acquisition to jump in price: such deals often occur at premiums, and can occasionally trigger bidding wars, further goosing the target’s stock price. So, what’s the big deal about Ralcorp...Read More
