Maybe Madoff Can Be a Judge NAR economists promised to study the [issue of overstated housing sales] during a December conference call that included economists from the Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Housing Finance Agency and CoreLogic. –“Home Sales Data Doubted“; The Wall Street Journal (2/22/11) One of the real...Read More
Why is This Man Still Collecting Speaking Fees? Why can’t Alan Greenspan retire? About to turn 85 next month, it’s not that he isn’t old enough. And, after all these years of lucrative consulting and speaking fees, it’s not exactly like he needs the money. So, why is Greenspan spending his time going around the...Read More
Just Don’t Call Them “Closers” Baseball has starting pitchers and relief pitchers — why can’t real estate have “Starting Realtors” and “Relief Realtors?” The Relief Realtor’s job? Once the deal has been struck and the Inspection Contingency removed, to make sure that all the remaining hurdles and hiccups* that can derail a deal . . ....Read More
“What’s .00001% x $315 Million?” I think I speak for bloggers everywhere reacting to the news that The Huffington Post sold to AOL for $315 million when I say: ‘CRAP!! THAT’S IT?!’ Reaction #2: ‘what’s .000001 x $315 million?’ (answer: $32, rounded up). The incredulity has to do with the eye-popping valuations being sported by...Read More
Misleading Realtor Ads You’ve seen the ads. The catchy headline says “Signs of the Times” (or something similar), followed by rows — and rows — of homes with “Sold signs” proudly splashed on them. At the bottom is the Realtor’s picture and a greeting: “Thank You For Your Business! We’re Looking Forward to 2011.” There’s only one...Read More
I know virtually nothing about Egyptian politics, culture or where that country goes from here. But that certainly hasn’t stopped legions of similarly ignorant bloggers from weighing in with their 2 cents. So, here’s mine, direct from Jon Stewart and last night’s “Daily Show“: 1) it’s probably not a very good idea for the Egyptian military...Read More
