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A musical parody of the Paul Simon song "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)," from versusplus.

Bit of a laugh, bit of powerpoint music video stylin'....

Milagros Munoz of Brooklyn blames a mortgage broker for lying about her income so she could buy a home she never could have afforded otherwise. And now she is a victim of predatory lending. Or is she?

Handouts to refinance risky mortgages amount to a giant subsidy to the financial institutions that looked the other way in the first place.

Why should Munoz be refinanced, versus anyone else going through foreclsoure and losing their house?

"I want it."

What happens to property if the projected 2 million people don't lose their houses?

Houses stay too expensive.

Boo points out sales are disappointing, but that doesn't discourage Hoofy, he continues his upbeat forecasts while trying to distract the masses with stories about expensive baubles.  Or something like that. 

Where did all the years of equity go?  Hmmm - bimmers and jet boats?

A video parade of mediocre properties in unspectacular locations for incomprehensible prices. 

Sustainable? 

Peter Schiff nails down the basis of the boom in the US Housing Market - it was a phony boom.

Structurally, is there that much difference between Canada and the United States now, aside from timing?

Can Canadian prices withstand an onslaught of foreclosures and other negative activity like some kind of economic Switzerland removed from the turmoil of world economics?

Sub-prime CDOs gave lenders the belief they could lend money, that they now have no hope of recovering - this has damaged balance sheets around the world - including over a billion dollars announced here in Canada in the last month or so.

Can this really have no effect? Really?

I see CMHC is calling for another $20 grand to be tacked onto the average MLS price here in Victoria in 2008. Really?

Mark my words, I've said it before, this is the top in Victoria - next year the fall comes early.

Here is a thought provoking animated piece that begs the question, what will happen to suburbia when oil prices go through the roof?

Can high oil prices co-exist with urban sprawl? You decide.

Courtesy aerobarfilms.

Presented in the interest of balanced reporting... 

"When you have a family, it's always a good time to buy." 

"If we didn't buy now, we would have missed the opportunity on this home."

Lies, spin, propaganda, or a well-meaning public service announcement?  You decide. 

Discretionary spending affecting numbers at Starbucks, or a business model problem with too many stores and new competition?

Peter is right again, how can people not argue a $5 cup of coffee is too expensive for consumers who are cutting back on discretionary spending 'cause they are strapped by other expenses?

Maria Bartiromo says she doesn't think we are heading for a recession, while trying to keep a straight face.

Kind of like when she had to say, yeah you really are the greatest to some poor love-sick schmuck back in high school.

Okay, I don't know if Maria said that, but her call on the economy sounds about as convincing and sincere as a high school kiss off.

This is just a simple total: how many properties are available and in which price ranges, on a particular day, in the Victoria Real Estate Board area. I was thinking over time it might show where inventory is piling up or decreasing, or for that matter holding steady. Right now, despite my hopes for an increase in inventory, it looks like the usual seasonal drop off in listings is under way.

Again, I will hold to my bold and/or wrong prediction that this summer was indeed the top for Canadian and local real estate.

Compare this chart to the one in the story below from September. In terms of inventory, there has not been much in many of the price segments.

A call for a hyperinflationary collapse, following from changing economic trends that have seen household income falling since the 1970s.

Oh well, at least Christmas is coming to plump up those retail sales for a month or so...

Posted by PhilDeCarolis.

A CBC piece from last week that illustrates the disparity in the current economic situation in Eastern Canada compared to the so-called oil-rush in the West.

If interest rates go down, what will happen to the Canadian dollar and inflation?

Playing to our economic weaker half is an anti-competitive and short-sighted idea that could create the mother of all housing bubbles - much lower interest rates are not going to solve anything while uncontrolled global inflation is in play - short term rate drops now could bring the possibility of an early 80s style interest rate shock back into the equation.

It's worth noting to those unaware: Stephen Harper is one of those rare Canadian prime ministers who hails from the West. 

From Mediascrape. 

Ron Paul grills Ben Bernanke on how inflation is devaluing the american currency.

As Ron notes, the whole economic system is sub-prime.... nobody is offering a clearer view in a public forum of what has happened to the US than Ron Paul.

Ben fobs off the current policies on what the Congress has mandated....

A dollar crisis is robbing the people, and inflation is crushing those who saved instead of spending.

The injustice of it all, and now due to a bubble and a crash, housing wealth is vaporising as fast as it arrived.

But that's the US, not Canada, right?

Will Zoogle destroy the MLS system?  Is Google Base passe?  We can see where Google is going with this, trying to take the Real Estate business away from the agents.  Zillow and Google together, possibilities are infinite.

Read about it here.

*just joking - I think....

Concerns that thousands of borrowers may lose their homes as mortgage rates reset have lawmakers debating policy options, including a government bailout. But should taxpayers foot the bill for risks taken by lenders and borrowers? Many experts say absolutely not.

- from Freedomworksaction 

Set of slides outlining the economic trends that got the US housing market in a mess in the first place.

Housing foreclosures up 100% compared to last year, and months of falling prices.

Fears lead to a rate cut, which now causes a virtual free fall of the US dollar.

Oil is now at record highs in US denominated prices - in other words, while it might be the same price in Europe and Canada after currency is adjusted, in the US it is getting more expensive.

The world is not buying US debt anymore - oh no, what can we do Peter Schiff?

How do these coexist: a 40% drop in the value of the dollar along with 1% inflation? What?

The US dollar is already going down and the Canadian dollar is way up. Canadians used to earn way less, and in one fell swoop now earn the same or more than their american cousins.  It all spells out the same message, the US dollar and economic decline this time could be worse than in the 1970s.

Okay Peter, thanks....

Victim's of a widespread foreclosure pattern?

Only because buyers borrowed more than they could afford to buy houses that were priced crazily as well. Aren't the homesellers as responsible for charging the outrageous prices in the first place. In the case of big builders, as current market activity shows, these same builders are now selling inventory at much lower prices than last year.

This is a bail out for bankers in over there heads - that is oh so true.

But a 100 billion for banks?

Lou is right, it is not that complicated, the banks themselves could adjust interest rates back downwards...

Glenn Beck gives Peter Schiff some more cred.