Foreclosure Stuffing

Back in November 2010, the robosigning scandal hit in which it was made clear that when it comes to keeping track of mortgage titles, nobody really knows what belongs to whom, except maybe for Linda Green. The immediate result of this was a complete collapse in the foreclosure process as banks no longer had leverage to evict those who don't pay their monthly mortgage bills, since the banks couldn't confirm they actually had rights to the underlying mortgage, and the total monthly foreclosure total dropped from a ~330,000 average houses/month to roughly 250,000. Then in February, to much administration fanfare, the banks, and the attorneys general, signed what we dubbed the Robo-settlement: an event which was supposed to be the "resolution" to the robosigning scandal, and which should once again unclog the foreclosure pipeline. This did not happen. Instead, as RealtyTrac has been diligently reporting month after month, the monthly foreclosure total has continued to decline, and in August hit a level of 193,508 total foreclosures. The immediately spin is that this was a 1% improvement from July's 191,925. The reality is that it was a drop of 15.1% from a year earlier. As the chart below shows, ever since the advent of fraudclosure, the average monthly foreclosure total has dropped from a 330K/month average to just 219K. And declining.

So why did the robosettlement not undo the robosigning foreclosure crunch? Simple - foreclosure stuffing.
What happened is that since the properties not entering the foreclosure pipeline are effectively kept out of inventory, even shadow inventory, and thus the distressed end market, the monthly drop in foreclosures has acted as a form of subsidy to the housing market, as month after month less inventory than otherwise should, enters the market.
As the chart above shows, there is now a 2.5 million "backlog" of properties that should be foreclosed upon based on historical trendlines, but which are being completely ignored by banks. A stuffed foreclosure channel, if you will.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/foreclosure-stuffing

Follow up story...

Charting The 'Housing Recovery' Subsidy: Foreclosures Slide To Five Year Lows

A month ago, when RealtyTrac posted their latest US foreclosure numbers for the month of August, we presented what we called was the "Foreclosure Stuffing" thesis, explaining the explicit subsidy by the banks for the housing market, whereby the entire foreclosure process has now ground to a halt, and in doing so removing millions in inventory flow from the distressed end market, forcing limited buyers to chase what supply there is, and in the process boosting prices of existing inventory higher. In other words a traditional inventory removal-based subsidy. It is therefore not surprising that today RealtyTrac reported the latest foreclosure data, and lo and behold, just as we expected, the great foreclosure collapse has taken another leg lower, with the total number of foreclosures for the month of September sliding to 180.4K, a decrease of 7 percent from the previous month and down 16 percent from September 2011, and the lowest in five years!

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-11/charting-housing-recovery-subsidy-foreclosures-slide-five-year-lows


Twinsdad comment:  Banks are MF's!

Gasoline prices high, why?

So, you say demand is high?
Refineries not refining?


How about the prices are high because the economy is so bad no one is going anywhere?

Why would that make prices so high?

Well if you were a refiner you have paid upwards of...(see below)   over the last year, but since the economy sucks thanks to Obama no one is driving anywhere, how do I know this?

Digest this data....

Crude Oil and Commodity Prices
October, Thursday 11 2012 - 16:53:05

WTI Crude Oil
$92.40	▲0.33		0.36%

http://www.oil-price.net/

Now digest this data....

U.S. Total Gasoline Retail Sales by Refiners (Thousand Gallons per Day)

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
1983	46,218.3	48,906.1	54,111.7	49,093.7	52,021.3	52,517.2	51,898.0	51,905.6	52,676.3	50,724.3	51,150.8	51,879.1
1984	54,148.6	55,651.7	57,636.0	56,937.0	58,755.9	60,075.0	59,055.7	59,378.3	56,947.3	57,386.5	58,075.3	56,765.8
1985	54,584.3	53,829.7	57,297.6	59,075.2	57,563.7	58,832.1	58,563.3	58,096.1	56,979.0	56,949.0	58,100.7	60,295.9
1986	55,283.0	58,546.4	61,250.4	62,628.9	65,578.7	63,294.1	62,861.8	61,342.4	60,341.9	60,946.1	61,880.4	62,290.2
1987	56,488.6	60,641.1	61,627.2	61,733.5	61,750.0	64,315.2	62,404.8	62,643.9	59,339.3	60,707.9	58,877.0	61,720.2
1988	57,041.0	59,900.3	61,577.5	61,584.1	60,701.3	62,884.1	61,873.2	62,450.0	61,036.1	60,385.3	59,783.1	63,099.8
1989	55,556.8	58,492.6	60,500.1	60,242.0	62,088.7	63,521.0	62,335.0	63,362.0	61,922.8	61,973.6	61,339.0	63,182.4
1990	58,138.0	57,909.4	59,847.0	59,600.5	60,572.2	63,108.6	61,531.0	63,182.0	60,912.1	60,295.1	60,550.6	58,382.1
1991	56,924.5	59,384.5	61,553.8	61,982.0	62,244.9	63,319.4	62,600.6	62,534.0	60,346.2	61,181.3	60,442.9	61,521.7
1992	56,410.9	58,308.6	59,639.5	59,980.2	59,615.2	60,353.3	60,400.3	59,083.7	58,579.1	59,011.8	56,877.6	59,287.9
1993	53,826.6	57,305.3	57,624.8	58,138.7	57,465.8	60,391.1	58,807.7	58,453.0	57,462.3	55,432.4	55,743.5	56,074.7
1994	51,533.7	54,270.1	55,363.8	54,962.1	55,523.0	57,165.3	55,834.5	56,393.4	54,992.9	54,240.5	54,480.4	55,612.3
1995	51,200.2	54,138.2	55,592.4	55,456.8	56,242.2	58,547.4	56,944.0	58,296.8	56,580.9	55,610.5	55,907.4	56,471.5
1996	53,039.9	54,566.8	56,388.2	57,183.4	57,796.4	59,170.9	58,909.8	59,651.5	57,845.3	58,456.2	58,101.4	59,200.7
1997	54,440.6	57,313.3	58,443.8	58,854.0	57,840.1	59,820.3	65,294.2	64,803.7	63,680.2	64,355.2	62,252.8	66,017.1
1998	59,905.7	62,399.8	64,533.5	59,012.3	59,509.7	60,837.0	67,183.3	66,831.0	65,146.9	65,121.8	63,846.8	65,401.5
1999	60,254.0	62,779.7	63,320.2	63,722.4	63,464.7	64,458.4	62,669.7	61,363.0	59,265.4	60,415.4	59,078.1	62,719.0
2000	54,421.0	59,107.2	60,573.0	57,911.6	60,300.4	63,275.5	62,278.2	63,621.8	63,098.0	61,954.7	62,184.7	62,014.2
2001	58,139.5	61,731.0	62,859.5	62,301.3	62,878.9	65,417.0	62,534.2	64,390.5	62,214.2	60,864.4	60,024.8	60,793.5
2002	60,211.7	63,942.2	62,828.5	63,953.3	64,537.0	64,874.0	64,594.2	66,683.5	62,352.4	63,344.8	63,255.8	63,109.4
2003	60,247.9	60,803.4	60,815.8	61,728.4	66,315.5	66,426.5	66,803.1	66,812.7	63,949.0	64,615.5	63,778.4	63,394.5
2004	57,143.8	58,381.7	59,186.2	59,352.6	58,565.7	58,992.8	59,012.0	59,664.1	57,327.4	57,977.1	57,017.9	58,013.6
2005	54,938.7	58,368.8	58,330.0	59,093.3	59,474.5	61,731.9	61,109.4	61,220.9	57,866.5	57,075.2	59,094.7	59,426.1
2006	56,531.8	59,960.4	59,859.7	61,020.8	60,234.0	61,980.4	61,445.8	62,015.9	59,783.4	60,233.2	58,860.2	57,862.5
2007	54,698.1	56,954.9	57,278.7	57,354.7	58,719.6	60,865.7	58,806.7	60,178.5	57,912.9	57,843.2	56,579.0	54,650.0
2008	53,994.1	56,157.4	55,494.8	56,307.4	56,390.6	55,938.5	54,802.5	55,628.2	53,405.9	55,210.7	54,080.6	53,931.5
2009	51,108.7	50,968.4	51,298.4	51,215.6	50,957.0	50,419.6	49,677.9	49,966.5	48,669.6	48,461.0	47,454.3	47,441.4
2010	44,012.3	44,227.1	45,482.4	46,234.2	46,016.2	46,765.3	45,755.3	45,082.6	43,876.0	43,624.1	42,857.0	42,417.1
2011	40,331.0	40,924.9	41,608.1	41,555.0	41,172.9	42,477.2	42,448.3	42,351.8	41,972.6	32,015.0	30,971.6	30,413.9
2012	28,389.9	29,546.8	29,496.5	29,684.0	30,292.5	31,458.8	30,970.7

http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=A103600001&f=M

Lots of data you say, focus on Jan 2009 to July 2012, notice anything?  Since Obama took over gasoline Retail Sales by Refiners has gone down 21,000 gallons!

Anyone want to explain the high prices at the pump? Ask Obama, if the economy is so great why no gas being consumed?

Back to the topic -- Gasoline prices high, why?  Because the Obama adminstration has failed so miserably that no one is willing to travel, no one is willing to do anything but the bare minimum in driving, just to buy food etc., and then go home and bar the door.  But the refiners need to show a profit to the shareholders, so they refine less and jack up the price!

Any more questions?  Ask them in the voting booth

The CEO Letter Heard Around The World "Vote Obama; Lose Your Job"

Subject: Message from David Siegel
Date:Mon, 08 Oct 2012 13:58:05 -0400 (EDT)
From: [David Siegel]
To: [All employees]

To All My Valued Employees,

As most of you know our company, Westgate Resorts, has continued to succeed in spite of a very dismal economy. There is no question that the economy has changed for the worse and we have not seen any improvement over the past four years. In spite of all of the challenges we have faced, the good news is this: The economy doesn't currently pose a threat to your job. What does threaten your job however, is another 4 years of the same Presidential administration. Of course, as your employer, I can't tell you whom to vote for, and I certainly wouldn't interfere with your right to vote for whomever you choose. In fact, I encourage you to vote for whomever you think will serve your interests the best. [...]

Now, the economy is falling apart and people like me who made all the right decisions and invested in themselves are being forced to bail out all the people who didn't. The people that overspent their paychecks suddenly feel entitled to the same luxuries that I earned and sacrificed 42 years of my life for. Yes, business ownership has its benefits, but the price I've paid is steep and not without wounds. Unfortunately, the costs of running a business have gotten out of control, and let me tell you why: We are being taxed to death and the government thinks we don't pay enough. We pay state taxes, federal taxes, property taxes, sales and use taxes, payroll taxes, workers compensation taxes and unemployment taxes. I even have to hire an entire department to manage all these taxes. The question I have is this: Who is really stimulating the economy? Is it the Government that wants to take money from those who have earned it and give it to those who have not, or is it people like me who built a company out of his garage and directly employs over 7000 people and hosts over 3 million people per year with a great vacation?

Obviously, our present government believes that taking my money is the right economic stimulus for this country. The fact is, if I deducted 50% of your paycheck you'd quit and you wouldn't work here. I mean, why should you? Who wants to get rewarded only 50% of their hard work? Well, that's what happens to me. [...]

Business is at the heart of America and always has been. To restart it, you must stimulate business, not kill it. However, the power brokers in Washington believe redistributing wealth is the essential driver of the American economic engine. Nothing could be further from the truth and this is the type of change they want.

So where am I going with all this? It's quite simple. If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, as our current President plans, I will have no choice but to reduce the size of this company. Rather than grow this company I will be forced to cut back. This means fewer jobs, less benefits and certainly less opportunity for everyone.

So, when you make your decision to vote, ask yourself, which candidate understands the economics of business ownership and who doesn't? Whose policies will endanger your job? Answer those questions and you should know who might be the one capable of protecting and saving your job. While the media wants to tell you to believe the "1 percenters" are bad, I'm telling you they are not. They create most of the jobs. If you lose your job, it won't be at the hands of the "1%"; it will be at the hands of a political hurricane that swept through this country.

You see, I can no longer support a system that penalizes the productive and gives to the unproductive. My motivation to work and to provide jobs will be destroyed, and with it, so will your opportunities. If that happens, you can find me in the Caribbean sitting on the beach, under a palm tree, retired, and with no employees to worry about.
 Signed, your boss,
 David Siegel

For those unfamiliar with Siegel, he is the founder and CEO of Westgate Resorts, a real estate and timeshare company.
He and his wife were also the subject of the recent documentary "The Queen of Versailles" about their desire to build the largest home in America.
According to Gawker, they were worth over a billion dollars in 2007, but that could be less now as a result of the real estate bust.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-10-10/ceo-letter-heard-around-world-vote-obama-lose-your-job

Twinsdad comments:

This is an example of a real person telling other real people the truth.

"It's quite simple. If any new taxes are levied on me, or my company, as our current President plans, I will have no choice but to reduce the size of this company."

Those on the left here need to read these words and stop using Big Bird as an election tool.

T'was the night before elections

T'was the night before elections,

And all thru' the town,

Tempers were flaring

Emotions ran up and down.

I, in my bathrobe

With a cat in my lap,

Had shut off the TV,

tired of political crap.

When all of a sudden,

There arose such a noise,

I peered out my window,

Saw Obama and his boys

They had come for my wallet,

They wanted my pay

To hand out to others

Who had not worked a day!

He snatched up my money,

And quick as a wink,

Jumped back on his bandwagon

As I gagged from the stink.

He then rallied his henchmen

Who were pulling his cart.

I could tell they were out

To tear my country apart!

'On Fannie, on Freddie,

On Biden and Ayers!

On Acorn, on Pelosi'

He screamed at the pairs!

They took off for his cause,

And as they flew out of sight,

I heard him laugh at a nation

Who wouldn't stand up and fight!

So I leave you to think on this one final note...

IF YOU DON'T WANT SOCIALISM GET OUT AND VOTE !!!!

Therefore, CBO has also prepared projections under an alternative fiscal scenario, which embodies the assumption that many policies that have recently been in effect will be continued

CBO has prepared—as it does under its routine procedures—baseline projections that incorporate the assumption that current laws generally remain in place; those projections are designed to serve as a benchmark that policymakers can use when considering possible changes to those laws. However, the outlook for the budget deficit, federal debt, and the economy are especially uncertain now because substantial changes to tax and spending policies are scheduled to take effect in January 2013.

Key aspects of our projections are illustrated in the figures above

What Policy Changes Are Scheduled to Take Effect in January 2013?

Among the policy changes that are due to occur in January under current law, the following will have the largest impact on the budget and the economy:

• A host of significant provisions of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-312) are set to expire, including provisions that extended reductions in tax rates and expansions of tax credits and deductions originally enacted in 2001, 2003, or 2009. (Provisions designed to limit the reach of the alternative minimum tax, or AMT, expired on December 31, 2011.)
• Sharp reductions in Medicare’s payment rates for physicians’ services are scheduled to take effect.
• Automatic enforcement procedures established by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (P.L. 112-25) to restrain discretionary and mandatory spending are set to go into effect.
• Extensions of emergency unemployment benefits and a reduction of 2 percentage points in the payroll tax for Social Security are scheduled to expire.

http://www.cbo.gov/publication/43539

More data from Twinsdad indicating that Obama has done nothing for this country except make golf course owners rich, opened a brewery in the White House and as lost complete control of the Middle East.

Two No-Brainer Ways To Play Rising Food Prices

Submitted by Simon Black of Sovereign Man blog,

Last summer, two researchers from the New England Complex Systems Institute published a short paper examining the correlation between rising food prices and civil unrest. It was a timely analysis, to say the least. A number of food riots were occurring throughout the world, not to mention waves of revolution sparked by the high cost of food.
This is nothing new; throughout history whenever people have struggled to put food on the table for their families, social unrest has been a common consequence.
The French Revolution is a classic example; after decades of unsustainable fiscal and monetary practices that wrecked the French economy, the harvest season and subsequent winter of 1788 were particularly harsh. People went hungry, and it ultimately started the revolution.
The researchers' analysis went a step further, though; they modeled the relationship between food prices and social unrest to reach a simple conclusion-- whenever the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO)'s global food price index climbs above 210, conditions ripen for social unrest.

Today, the FAO's food index is at 213... and rising. Netherlands-based Rabobank recently published its own analysis, forecasting further rises in food prices well into the 3rd quarter of 2013.
There are so many factors driving food prices higher. From a demand perspective, world population is growing at an extraordinary rate... plus the rise of billions of people from developing countries (especially in Asia) into the middle class is quickening demand for resource-intensive foods like beef.
From a supply perspective, drought, soil erosion, and reduction of available farmland all put significant pressure on global agricultural output. And finally, from a monetary perspective, the enormous amount of paper currency being printed in the world is finding its way into agricultural commodities.
I cannot envision a slowdown in any of these factors anytime soon. Central bankers will continue printing, people will continue procreating, developing countries will continue becoming wealthier, etc. So we should absolutely expect rising food prices for quite some time.

Follow the link for more info, including tips on how not to starve, so much...

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2012-09-27/guest-post-two-no-brainer-ways-play-rising-food-prices

Didn't I read somewhere that the government recently purchased millions of rounds of ammunition?
Bought your bullet proof vest yet...?

Shooting his mouth off is not hitting the target for Mitt Romney

I ALMOST feel sorry for Mitt Romney---------he keeps being honest about his real feelings toward the rest of mankind ( and womankind).  He has utter contempt and derision for those who are not in the 1%, which by the way, he wants to vote for him. He even lamented he was not a Latino, which was a derisive and racial comment.  Who has he NOT offended?

I mean, what's a working class, out of work, down and out, barely surviving Republican supposed to do?  Vote for Romney?  Vote for Obama , whom they cannot stand, but owe their survival ( albeit temporary)
to?

Who is left to vote for him but the 1%????? See, that's the problem------there ain't enough of 'em.  It takes the 99% that he has dissed time and time again.  Are they really as dumb as he thinks they are?

Romney will NOT raise taxes on the MIDDLE CLASS by not taxing interest, dividends and capital gains-----HUH?

The middle class , for the most part, no longer gets interest, dividends and capital gains. Many people in the middle class, if they have any cash are getting 1% interest.  Most in the middle class, including myself, no longer have dividend income because we no longer have dividend producing funds------everything is going into living and trying to stay alive. The 1%ers are the ones who get dividend income.

 Every time food, gas and medical costs go up, and income stays the same, the money has to come from SOMEWHERE--------for us it has eaten up our savings.  The only money we spend is on necessities like food, gas, the mortgage and household bills, not to mention medical care.

Now to capital gains------------on what Mr. Romney?  Interest, dividends and capital gains are 1% issues-----NOT middle class issues.

OMG---------this man is so out of touch with the people in this country.  Who IS this man?

Romney said to David Gregory on MTP this am, "I am not concerned for myself, I am fine, I am worried about Americans."  Poor ole Romney, does not get even the basics.

Oh really???????  Snake oil politics, slick and slimy, making economic medicinal claims without any economic medicinal cures--------Republican snake oil salesman = Romney & Ryan.

"Are you better off than you were 4 years ago? Quoted from a DEAD man in 1980--------OH PLEASE!!!!!!!!

Oh yeah, quoted from 1980, or was that 1890?  Good God Almighty---------don't the Republicans have ANYTHING new to address our dire economic situation?????

Some of us are better off, some of us are less well off, but all-in-all the COUNTRY is better off.  We are turning the Titanic just ahead of hitting the iceberg----------we all pray that the country survives and thrives once again------------don't we?

We got where we are thanks to the GOP-------we have begun a fledgling recovery-----------the GOP , I suppose would prefer an abortion to a full-term recovery-----just to get rid of the POTUS.

Spare me the indignation and PLEASE give us the Republican plan---------------PLEASE!