foreclosure search

Every day we see more drama in the foreclosure debacle, with increasing number of lenders being pressured to put them on hold.

But what's the strategy for those of us who are still paying our mortgages and not in danger of losing our homes? This should be a perfect opportunity to take Arianna Huffington's wildly successful "Move Your Money" campaign one step further by "shopping for a lower-cost mortgage" and refinancing with a more responsible lender. This won't just punish those who loaned recklessly and reward those who didn't, i.e., community bankers, it will likely save you big bucks if interest rates have dropped at least two percentage points below the rate you are paying on your mortgage.

In the first seven days alone of the "Move Your Money" campaign which began in December 2009, about 340,000 people searched zip codes to find community banks that are highly rated. More importantly, they also moved big bucks out of big bad banks: according to Dennis Santiago of Institutional Risk Analytics, who created a search engine on the site, more than $1 billion was moved in the first three months of 2010. Finding a bank couldn't be easier. When you go to Move Your Money you simply need to enter your zip code to find a list of sound local banks and credit unions to choose from.

There's a big difference between the Too Big To Fail banks that got bailed out and the Small Banks Who Failed. For one thing, the community banks tried to stop these reckless lending practices while the big banks threw bucks at Congress to try to stop reform, James MacPhee, chairman of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA).

"Along with several ICBA member bankers and staff, I have testified numerous times in the past three years in front of Barney Frank, Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Chris Dodd, Chairman of the Senate Banking committee," MacPhee said. "Conversely, the American Bankers Association and the largest Wall Street firms ran a full court press trying to stop (reform) from ever being passed."

Have community banks failed? Yes, MacPhee maintains, but it wasn't because they were reckless but because their prudent loans were "bundled" with bad loans.

"As these debt instruments became worthless, hose buying our debt stopped purchasing, and foreclosures ran in the tens of thousands. When that occurred, the market value of the solid loans became worth less, as foreclosed homes were being sold well under their market value. As the job market dried up, even good loans had to be written down by the community banks. The resulting loss of capital dropped below regulatory standards, and the banks were closed and then typically merged into other banks by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. "

The good news -- or let's hope so -- is that the exposure of reckless practices will humiliate the bad banks into changing their practices. If it doesn't? All the more reason to "boycott" them and only do business with those who put their customers first.

Ready to consider refinancing? Consider taking these steps.

Before you do any "mortgage shopping," get a copy of your credit history at AnnualCreditReport.com. If you have a low score, you might want to consider postponing refinancing until you've built a better bill-payment history; it could literally cut your mortgage cost in half.

Consider only fixed-rate mortgages. Some "experts" may claim that adjustable rate mortgages are okay if you're only going to stay in your home for three years or less, but your home is not a disposable item like a cell phone. If you're only planning to live in one place for three years or less, you should rent, not buy. MacPhee agrees with me that one of the biggest ripoffs in the banking industry -- that the media STILL isn't covering -- is the adjustable rate mortgage. "If (a bank is) going to write an ARM mortgage because someone cannot afford a home under standard bank rates, who are you kidding? The custom is happy for three years, or the period of the ARM balloon, the bank makes big fees, and then sells off both the credit risk and the interest rate risk and walks away."

As I pointed out in my book, America, Welcome to the Poorhouse, another big bargain is the little-talked about 15-year mortgage. Savings are significant both because the loan features a shorter payback period and because these mortgages generally feature lower rates. For example, assuming a 6% interest rate, your total interest costs on a $100,000 30-year mortgage are nearly $116,000. If that same mortgage were converted to a 15-year term, it would require somewhat higher monthly payments -- $844 instead of $600 -- but you'd save nearly $64,000 in interest payments.

Never take out an interest-only mortgage. While you pay no principal during the interest-only period, your payments will rise when that period comes to an end. Furthermore, the mortgage has to be paid off during a shorter term -- 25, 23, or 20 years -- so your monthly payments will be higher.

Avoid one of the riskiest mortgages, a balloon loan. Talk about bait and switch: typically, after the end of a three- or seven-year period, you owe the bank all the remaining principal, in one lump sum. If the value of your home drops you won't be able to find another mortgage to repay that loan and you risk foreclosure. And let's hope that this option won't even be broached by your responsible community banker.

Good morning, Washington. To what extent do the boundaries of newsworthiness extend? That's the question that the Internet is discussing this morning, after Gawker decided to pull a graphic photo taken shortly after Christopher Jusko, a 21-year-old New Yorker, was stabbed to death. Locally, similar questions are being asked about the widely-circulated image of a crosswalk near DC9 on U Street. According to sources, the image, depicting a crosswalk splattered with what many assumed to be the blood of Ali Ahmed Mohammed after he was allegedly beaten to death, actually shows either blood from an earlier incident at the club that evening, or a substance that isn't blood at all. Ryan Kearney, who took one of the first images of the crosswalk and tweeted it, examines both stories and concludes that even the Internet's renegade journalists can go too far. I'd argue that both cases are good reminders that the soundest policy is usually the application of common sense.

Levy Murder Trial Resumes Today, Secrets Revealed: Testimony in the Chandra Levy murder trial restarts this morning after a six-day break in proceedings. To catch us up, Sarah Larimer reports on the multitude of Levy's personal details which have been revealed and pored over during the trial, including her workout routine, her Internet search history and her plastic surgery. Now, if you don't mind, I'm off to wipe my computer and burn all those receipts I've kept.

Groundbreaking On Convention Center Hotel: Mayor Adrian Fenty and company will attend the groundbreaking of the years-in-the-making, $520 million Washington Marriott Marquis Hotel at the intersection of 9th Street and Massachusetts Avenue at 11 a.m. this morning. Aside from introducing some new traffic patterns in the neighborhood, the groundbreaking has plenty of people feeling nostalgic -- I recommend DCMud's thorough retrospective on the process that's gotten the oft-debated site to this point. Looking towards the future, the Post has this tidy overview of what the hotel could bring to the District. Construction of the 1,175-room hotel is expected to take 42 months.

Wildlife Protection Act Passes: The bill proposed by Mary Cheh which will require professionals to humanely capture the critters roaming around D.C.'s crawl spaces passed the Council yesterday. We've discussed the bill before, and, as promised, the final version did not extend such protections to mice and rats, which anyone is still free to trap and kill however they see fit. Cheh also pointed out that the law only applied to pest control companies and not residents: "I don't like the image of you wielding a bat and smashing a possum in the head, but this law wouldn't stop that," Cheh said.

Heartbreaking: Paul Duggan writes this emotionally relentless report about the murder of Joseph Sharps, the Springarn High School student who was shot and killed on Monday night in Trinidad. Don't expect to get through it without getting incredibly angry or coming close to losing it several times.

Briefly Noted: Taxi driver carjacked at knifepoint on 300 block of Allison Street NW last night...DDOT is inspecting the District's bridges this week...Reminder to politicians: please take down your signs...Virginia outlines $1.45 billion transportation spending plan...Council passes emergency legislation requiring foreclosure mediation...Metrobus accident on Good Hope Road SE causes minor injuries...Maryland MVA says that more than 1,300 of the state's residents could be driving with suspended or revoked licenses.

This Day in DCist: Last year, the District's same-sex marriage legislation passed its first hurdle and we heard about the Tweed Ride for the first time; in 2006, we were raving about the soul food at Henry's.

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger

Every day we see more drama in the foreclosure debacle, with increasing number of lenders being pressured to put them on hold.

But what's the strategy for those of us who are still paying our mortgages and not in danger of losing our homes? This should be a perfect opportunity to take Arianna Huffington's wildly successful "Move Your Money" campaign one step further by "shopping for a lower-cost mortgage" and refinancing with a more responsible lender. This won't just punish those who loaned recklessly and reward those who didn't, i.e., community bankers, it will likely save you big bucks if interest rates have dropped at least two percentage points below the rate you are paying on your mortgage.

In the first seven days alone of the "Move Your Money" campaign which began in December 2009, about 340,000 people searched zip codes to find community banks that are highly rated. More importantly, they also moved big bucks out of big bad banks: according to Dennis Santiago of Institutional Risk Analytics, who created a search engine on the site, more than $1 billion was moved in the first three months of 2010. Finding a bank couldn't be easier. When you go to Move Your Money you simply need to enter your zip code to find a list of sound local banks and credit unions to choose from.

There's a big difference between the Too Big To Fail banks that got bailed out and the Small Banks Who Failed. For one thing, the community banks tried to stop these reckless lending practices while the big banks threw bucks at Congress to try to stop reform, James MacPhee, chairman of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA).

"Along with several ICBA member bankers and staff, I have testified numerous times in the past three years in front of Barney Frank, Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Chris Dodd, Chairman of the Senate Banking committee," MacPhee said. "Conversely, the American Bankers Association and the largest Wall Street firms ran a full court press trying to stop (reform) from ever being passed."

Have community banks failed? Yes, MacPhee maintains, but it wasn't because they were reckless but because their prudent loans were "bundled" with bad loans.

"As these debt instruments became worthless, hose buying our debt stopped purchasing, and foreclosures ran in the tens of thousands. When that occurred, the market value of the solid loans became worth less, as foreclosed homes were being sold well under their market value. As the job market dried up, even good loans had to be written down by the community banks. The resulting loss of capital dropped below regulatory standards, and the banks were closed and then typically merged into other banks by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. "

The good news -- or let's hope so -- is that the exposure of reckless practices will humiliate the bad banks into changing their practices. If it doesn't? All the more reason to "boycott" them and only do business with those who put their customers first.

Ready to consider refinancing? Consider taking these steps.

Before you do any "mortgage shopping," get a copy of your credit history at AnnualCreditReport.com. If you have a low score, you might want to consider postponing refinancing until you've built a better bill-payment history; it could literally cut your mortgage cost in half.

Consider only fixed-rate mortgages. Some "experts" may claim that adjustable rate mortgages are okay if you're only going to stay in your home for three years or less, but your home is not a disposable item like a cell phone. If you're only planning to live in one place for three years or less, you should rent, not buy. MacPhee agrees with me that one of the biggest ripoffs in the banking industry -- that the media STILL isn't covering -- is the adjustable rate mortgage. "If (a bank is) going to write an ARM mortgage because someone cannot afford a home under standard bank rates, who are you kidding? The custom is happy for three years, or the period of the ARM balloon, the bank makes big fees, and then sells off both the credit risk and the interest rate risk and walks away."

As I pointed out in my book, America, Welcome to the Poorhouse, another big bargain is the little-talked about 15-year mortgage. Savings are significant both because the loan features a shorter payback period and because these mortgages generally feature lower rates. For example, assuming a 6% interest rate, your total interest costs on a $100,000 30-year mortgage are nearly $116,000. If that same mortgage were converted to a 15-year term, it would require somewhat higher monthly payments -- $844 instead of $600 -- but you'd save nearly $64,000 in interest payments.

Never take out an interest-only mortgage. While you pay no principal during the interest-only period, your payments will rise when that period comes to an end. Furthermore, the mortgage has to be paid off during a shorter term -- 25, 23, or 20 years -- so your monthly payments will be higher.

Avoid one of the riskiest mortgages, a balloon loan. Talk about bait and switch: typically, after the end of a three- or seven-year period, you owe the bank all the remaining principal, in one lump sum. If the value of your home drops you won't be able to find another mortgage to repay that loan and you risk foreclosure. And let's hope that this option won't even be broached by your responsible community banker.

Good morning, Washington. To what extent do the boundaries of newsworthiness extend? That's the question that the Internet is discussing this morning, after Gawker decided to pull a graphic photo taken shortly after Christopher Jusko, a 21-year-old New Yorker, was stabbed to death. Locally, similar questions are being asked about the widely-circulated image of a crosswalk near DC9 on U Street. According to sources, the image, depicting a crosswalk splattered with what many assumed to be the blood of Ali Ahmed Mohammed after he was allegedly beaten to death, actually shows either blood from an earlier incident at the club that evening, or a substance that isn't blood at all. Ryan Kearney, who took one of the first images of the crosswalk and tweeted it, examines both stories and concludes that even the Internet's renegade journalists can go too far. I'd argue that both cases are good reminders that the soundest policy is usually the application of common sense.

Levy Murder Trial Resumes Today, Secrets Revealed: Testimony in the Chandra Levy murder trial restarts this morning after a six-day break in proceedings. To catch us up, Sarah Larimer reports on the multitude of Levy's personal details which have been revealed and pored over during the trial, including her workout routine, her Internet search history and her plastic surgery. Now, if you don't mind, I'm off to wipe my computer and burn all those receipts I've kept.

Groundbreaking On Convention Center Hotel: Mayor Adrian Fenty and company will attend the groundbreaking of the years-in-the-making, $520 million Washington Marriott Marquis Hotel at the intersection of 9th Street and Massachusetts Avenue at 11 a.m. this morning. Aside from introducing some new traffic patterns in the neighborhood, the groundbreaking has plenty of people feeling nostalgic -- I recommend DCMud's thorough retrospective on the process that's gotten the oft-debated site to this point. Looking towards the future, the Post has this tidy overview of what the hotel could bring to the District. Construction of the 1,175-room hotel is expected to take 42 months.

Wildlife Protection Act Passes: The bill proposed by Mary Cheh which will require professionals to humanely capture the critters roaming around D.C.'s crawl spaces passed the Council yesterday. We've discussed the bill before, and, as promised, the final version did not extend such protections to mice and rats, which anyone is still free to trap and kill however they see fit. Cheh also pointed out that the law only applied to pest control companies and not residents: "I don't like the image of you wielding a bat and smashing a possum in the head, but this law wouldn't stop that," Cheh said.

Heartbreaking: Paul Duggan writes this emotionally relentless report about the murder of Joseph Sharps, the Springarn High School student who was shot and killed on Monday night in Trinidad. Don't expect to get through it without getting incredibly angry or coming close to losing it several times.

Briefly Noted: Taxi driver carjacked at knifepoint on 300 block of Allison Street NW last night...DDOT is inspecting the District's bridges this week...Reminder to politicians: please take down your signs...Virginia outlines $1.45 billion transportation spending plan...Council passes emergency legislation requiring foreclosure mediation...Metrobus accident on Good Hope Road SE causes minor injuries...Maryland MVA says that more than 1,300 of the state's residents could be driving with suspended or revoked licenses.

This Day in DCist: Last year, the District's same-sex marriage legislation passed its first hurdle and we heard about the Tweed Ride for the first time; in 2006, we were raving about the soul food at Henry's.

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger

eric seiger

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger

Every day we see more drama in the foreclosure debacle, with increasing number of lenders being pressured to put them on hold.

But what's the strategy for those of us who are still paying our mortgages and not in danger of losing our homes? This should be a perfect opportunity to take Arianna Huffington's wildly successful "Move Your Money" campaign one step further by "shopping for a lower-cost mortgage" and refinancing with a more responsible lender. This won't just punish those who loaned recklessly and reward those who didn't, i.e., community bankers, it will likely save you big bucks if interest rates have dropped at least two percentage points below the rate you are paying on your mortgage.

In the first seven days alone of the "Move Your Money" campaign which began in December 2009, about 340,000 people searched zip codes to find community banks that are highly rated. More importantly, they also moved big bucks out of big bad banks: according to Dennis Santiago of Institutional Risk Analytics, who created a search engine on the site, more than $1 billion was moved in the first three months of 2010. Finding a bank couldn't be easier. When you go to Move Your Money you simply need to enter your zip code to find a list of sound local banks and credit unions to choose from.

There's a big difference between the Too Big To Fail banks that got bailed out and the Small Banks Who Failed. For one thing, the community banks tried to stop these reckless lending practices while the big banks threw bucks at Congress to try to stop reform, James MacPhee, chairman of the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA).

"Along with several ICBA member bankers and staff, I have testified numerous times in the past three years in front of Barney Frank, Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, and Chris Dodd, Chairman of the Senate Banking committee," MacPhee said. "Conversely, the American Bankers Association and the largest Wall Street firms ran a full court press trying to stop (reform) from ever being passed."

Have community banks failed? Yes, MacPhee maintains, but it wasn't because they were reckless but because their prudent loans were "bundled" with bad loans.

"As these debt instruments became worthless, hose buying our debt stopped purchasing, and foreclosures ran in the tens of thousands. When that occurred, the market value of the solid loans became worth less, as foreclosed homes were being sold well under their market value. As the job market dried up, even good loans had to be written down by the community banks. The resulting loss of capital dropped below regulatory standards, and the banks were closed and then typically merged into other banks by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. "

The good news -- or let's hope so -- is that the exposure of reckless practices will humiliate the bad banks into changing their practices. If it doesn't? All the more reason to "boycott" them and only do business with those who put their customers first.

Ready to consider refinancing? Consider taking these steps.

Before you do any "mortgage shopping," get a copy of your credit history at AnnualCreditReport.com. If you have a low score, you might want to consider postponing refinancing until you've built a better bill-payment history; it could literally cut your mortgage cost in half.

Consider only fixed-rate mortgages. Some "experts" may claim that adjustable rate mortgages are okay if you're only going to stay in your home for three years or less, but your home is not a disposable item like a cell phone. If you're only planning to live in one place for three years or less, you should rent, not buy. MacPhee agrees with me that one of the biggest ripoffs in the banking industry -- that the media STILL isn't covering -- is the adjustable rate mortgage. "If (a bank is) going to write an ARM mortgage because someone cannot afford a home under standard bank rates, who are you kidding? The custom is happy for three years, or the period of the ARM balloon, the bank makes big fees, and then sells off both the credit risk and the interest rate risk and walks away."

As I pointed out in my book, America, Welcome to the Poorhouse, another big bargain is the little-talked about 15-year mortgage. Savings are significant both because the loan features a shorter payback period and because these mortgages generally feature lower rates. For example, assuming a 6% interest rate, your total interest costs on a $100,000 30-year mortgage are nearly $116,000. If that same mortgage were converted to a 15-year term, it would require somewhat higher monthly payments -- $844 instead of $600 -- but you'd save nearly $64,000 in interest payments.

Never take out an interest-only mortgage. While you pay no principal during the interest-only period, your payments will rise when that period comes to an end. Furthermore, the mortgage has to be paid off during a shorter term -- 25, 23, or 20 years -- so your monthly payments will be higher.

Avoid one of the riskiest mortgages, a balloon loan. Talk about bait and switch: typically, after the end of a three- or seven-year period, you owe the bank all the remaining principal, in one lump sum. If the value of your home drops you won't be able to find another mortgage to repay that loan and you risk foreclosure. And let's hope that this option won't even be broached by your responsible community banker.

Good morning, Washington. To what extent do the boundaries of newsworthiness extend? That's the question that the Internet is discussing this morning, after Gawker decided to pull a graphic photo taken shortly after Christopher Jusko, a 21-year-old New Yorker, was stabbed to death. Locally, similar questions are being asked about the widely-circulated image of a crosswalk near DC9 on U Street. According to sources, the image, depicting a crosswalk splattered with what many assumed to be the blood of Ali Ahmed Mohammed after he was allegedly beaten to death, actually shows either blood from an earlier incident at the club that evening, or a substance that isn't blood at all. Ryan Kearney, who took one of the first images of the crosswalk and tweeted it, examines both stories and concludes that even the Internet's renegade journalists can go too far. I'd argue that both cases are good reminders that the soundest policy is usually the application of common sense.

Levy Murder Trial Resumes Today, Secrets Revealed: Testimony in the Chandra Levy murder trial restarts this morning after a six-day break in proceedings. To catch us up, Sarah Larimer reports on the multitude of Levy's personal details which have been revealed and pored over during the trial, including her workout routine, her Internet search history and her plastic surgery. Now, if you don't mind, I'm off to wipe my computer and burn all those receipts I've kept.

Groundbreaking On Convention Center Hotel: Mayor Adrian Fenty and company will attend the groundbreaking of the years-in-the-making, $520 million Washington Marriott Marquis Hotel at the intersection of 9th Street and Massachusetts Avenue at 11 a.m. this morning. Aside from introducing some new traffic patterns in the neighborhood, the groundbreaking has plenty of people feeling nostalgic -- I recommend DCMud's thorough retrospective on the process that's gotten the oft-debated site to this point. Looking towards the future, the Post has this tidy overview of what the hotel could bring to the District. Construction of the 1,175-room hotel is expected to take 42 months.

Wildlife Protection Act Passes: The bill proposed by Mary Cheh which will require professionals to humanely capture the critters roaming around D.C.'s crawl spaces passed the Council yesterday. We've discussed the bill before, and, as promised, the final version did not extend such protections to mice and rats, which anyone is still free to trap and kill however they see fit. Cheh also pointed out that the law only applied to pest control companies and not residents: "I don't like the image of you wielding a bat and smashing a possum in the head, but this law wouldn't stop that," Cheh said.

Heartbreaking: Paul Duggan writes this emotionally relentless report about the murder of Joseph Sharps, the Springarn High School student who was shot and killed on Monday night in Trinidad. Don't expect to get through it without getting incredibly angry or coming close to losing it several times.

Briefly Noted: Taxi driver carjacked at knifepoint on 300 block of Allison Street NW last night...DDOT is inspecting the District's bridges this week...Reminder to politicians: please take down your signs...Virginia outlines $1.45 billion transportation spending plan...Council passes emergency legislation requiring foreclosure mediation...Metrobus accident on Good Hope Road SE causes minor injuries...Maryland MVA says that more than 1,300 of the state's residents could be driving with suspended or revoked licenses.

This Day in DCist: Last year, the District's same-sex marriage legislation passed its first hurdle and we heard about the Tweed Ride for the first time; in 2006, we were raving about the soul food at Henry's.

eric seiger

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

eric seiger eric seiger
eric seiger

eric seiger
eric seiger

In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

Cee-Lo Sings &#39;Fox <b>News</b>&#39; Version of &#39;F--- You&#39; on &#39;Colbert&#39; (VIDEO)

Cee-Lo Green was forced to revise his popular 'F**k You' single when he appeared on 'The Colbert Report' (weeknights, 11:30PM ET on COM). 'As this.

JLS to appear on X Factor ahead of UK tour | Tixdaq.com Ticket <b>News</b>

JLS will perform on this week's X Factor results show along with Westlife and Take That.

Real estate investing is really taking root here in America, especially now that there are thousands of foreclosed homes being auctioned off every month. Just about anyone can find homes for auction and set out to make a bid, but finding foreclosure listings can be a regular pain in the neck. It requires plenty of extra time, and these tips will help set you on your way.

Drive Around

As "research" for this article, I drove around my neighborhood and surrounding communities for about an hour. I've always enjoyed long, leisurely drives, but this time I had a purpose: to find as many foreclosure listings as possible. I didn't need a newspaper or a laptop computer; I just needed my eyes. In Texas, the auction signs of foreclosed homes listed by the government are announced by large yellow signs with red or black writing. Bank-owned properties are identified in the same way.

After just sixty minutes of travel, I found 36 foreclosure signs in front of various properties. Granted, some of them wouldn't be worth the land they're sitting on, but I did manage to find a few nice-looking homes where the bidding was set to start at $5,000. Rather than relying on newspapers and Web sites to find foreclosure listings, drive around to find some of the best deals.

Surf the Internet

Web sites like Foreclosure Free Search and HUD.gov are great places to find foreclosure listings in your city. Although it might take some digging initially, you'll eventually find the sites you like best, which might mean ease of search or quality of listings. The Web sites I find most helpful might not seem as great to someone else.

It's also a good idea to visit the Web sites of your local newspapers, particularly those with wide circulation. Most of these will have local foreclosure listings in the Real Estate section, so keep an eye out for great deals. This will give you access to properties that have just become available rather than waiting for tomorrow's paper to land on your doorstep.

Talk to Agents

Believe it or not, real estate agents can help you find foreclosure listings in your city, even if they don't stand to make a commission from the sale. Some Realtor offices have free foreclosure e-mail newsletters that get sent out once a week and detail the properties that are newly available. You might wind up with more e-mail in your inbox, but it beats painstaking searches that always seem to turn up too few results.

Ask Your Neighbors

One of the best ways to find foreclosure listings in your city is to start a little word-of-mouth action. Let your neighbors, friends and colleagues know that you're on the lookout for a nice investment home, and you'll be surprised how many leads you generate. Now that they know you're looking, your name will come to mind when they hear of a pending foreclosure in their area.

Real estate investing is not a part-time hobby for most people; in fact, it can easily become a full-time job, and you won't make any money if you aren't vigilant. Too many real estate "gurus" claim that real estate can translate into fast money. Except for very rare circumstances, it is an extremely difficult investment that requires plenty of time and energy. However, if you are persistent in your search for quality properties, you might have a large payday in your near future.


eric seiger

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In Hiring Joel Klein, <b>News</b> Corporation Signals Interest in <b>...</b>

Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, signaling an interest in the education sector, has hired Joel Klein, the New York City schools chancellor. News Corporation announced Mr. Klein's hiring shortly after it was reported that he was ...

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eric seiger

foreclosure list

This is a series giving a basic explanation of the current foreclosure fraud crisis from Mike Konczal; This is Part Four; you should also see Part One, Part Two, and Part Three)

Right now the foreclosure system has shut down as a result of banks’ own voluntary actions. There is currently a debate on whether or not the current foreclosure fraud crisis could explode into a systemic risk problem that perils the larger financial sector and economy, and if so what that would look like.

No matter what happens, the uncertainty about notes and what is currently going on with the foreclosure crisis is terrible for the economy. Getting to the heart of this problem so that negotiations can be worked out is important for getting the economy going again. There is little reason to trust what comes out of the servicers and the banks in whatever they conclude at the end of the month, and the market will know that. Only the government can credible clear the air here as to what the legal situation is with the notes and the securitizations.

But I wanted to get some unlikely but dangerous scenarios on the table in which this blows up. Bangs, not whimpers.  The kind where Congress is pressured to act over a weekend.  I had a discussion with Adam Levitin about how this could explode into a systemic problem.

Title Insurance Market Breaks Down

First scenario involves title insurance. Specifically if title insurers decide to take a month off from writing title insurance even on performing and current loans to investigate what is going on with note transfers.

If that happened there would be no mortgage sales (except for those involving cash) in the country. The system would simply stop. Everyone with an interest, from realtors to Wall Street to construction to huge sections of the economy, would face a major crisis through this short-term pinch. There would be a call for Congress to step in immediately.

You can tell that the title insurance market, which is largely concentrated and also holding very little capital for a nationwide crisis scenario, is investigating the current problems.   They are holding off on certain types of foreclosed properties;  if they decide to hold off all together you could see a scenario where Congress is pushed to act immediately.

Lawsuits a Go-Go

The second would be a wave of lawsuits. As we discussed in Part Two, many of the servicing agreements allowed for the trustees to force the depositors and sponsors to purchase mortgages without notes. That would be 100 cents on the dollar for mortgages worth pennies. If the trustees don’t take action, the investors could sue them. And the tranche warfare on this issue is intense, as foreclosures versus a few more payments radically change the balance between junior and senior tranche holders (See Tracy Alloway on tranche warfare here).

Here’s what this could look like. Read left side up for what the lawsuit screaming looks like and the right side down for the response:

Much of the activity would center around the four largest participants in these areas, the Too Big To Fail institutions of Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citi and JP Morgan.

And many of these mortgage-backed securities are cheap. So in an interesting scenario you could see hedge funds buying MBS for pennies just for the option to sue firms that are likely backstopped by the government.

If title insurance froze, or if the financial markets had a panic over fears of waves of lawsuits, there would be pressure for Congress to do something. Much of the law is New York trust law, so it isn’t clear Congress can act.   But there will be pressure.

Because if this bad-case scenario happens, which there is a small but reasonable chance it could, progressives need to have a clear sense of what they want in exchange for negotiations when the financial industry comes flying in over the cliff, a list of demands and questions to replace the in-large-part steamrolling of TARP over anyone’s interests but the banks.  Even if that doesn’t happen, but the slow bleed of the current dysfunctional mortgage market continues, progressive wonk policy initiatives that fix this crisis and get the mortgage market going again should be at the front of the debate.  We’ll cover this in Part 5.

Every single court challenge to the standing of MERS in the foreclosure process has been upheld, either in the initial court proceeding or upon appeal, when proper evidence is presented before the court. Prof. Peterson’s assertion that “virtually any company can show up, claim to own the note, and proceed to foreclose,” is false. Foreclosure is a terrible thing for homeowners but none of the confusion surrounding erroneous foreclosures can be ascribed to MERS.

MERS does not create a defect in the mortgage or deed of trust. Claims that MERS disrupts or creates a defect in the mortgage or deed of trust are not supported by fact or legal precedents. This argument is often used as a tactic by lawyers to delay or prevent the foreclosure. The mortgage lien is granted to MERS by the borrower and the seller at closing and that is what makes MERS the mortgagee. The role of mortgagee is legal and binding and confers to MERS certain legal rights and responsibilities.

MERS does not initiate foreclosure proceedings; it is the lender that initiates the proceeding. Similarly, certifying officers are designated by lending institutions and are allowed to execute only certain documents on behalf of MERS. Certifying officers selected by their employer are expected to fully comply with the policies of the lending institution for which they work, as well as MERS guidelines and all applicable laws and regulations.

Regarding the recording issue that was raised several times in the report, MERS fully complies with all recording statutes. The purpose of recording laws is to show that a lien exists, which protects the mortgagee and any bona fide purchasers. When MERS is the mortgagee, the mortgage or deed of trust is recorded, and all recording fees are paid. As for the fees themselves, these are local fees for service; if no service is needed or requested, no fee is appropriate. Additionally, any costs savings on fees are passed on to consumers.

MERS does not remove, omit, or otherwise fail to report land ownership information from public records and the trail of ownership does not change because of MERS. Parties are put on notice that MERS is the mortgagee and notifications by third parties can be sent to MERS. Mortgages and deeds of trust still get recorded in the land records.

The MERS System tracks the changes in servicing rights and beneficial ownership. No legal interests are transferred on the MERS System, including servicing and ownership. In fact, MERS is the only publicly available comprehensive source for note ownership.

While this information is tracked through the MERS System, the paperwork still exists to prove that actual legal transfers occurred. No mortgage ownership documents have disappeared because loans were registered on the MERS System. These documents exist now as they have before MERS was created.

We hope this helps clear up some of the confusion on these issues.

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

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eric seiger

This is a series giving a basic explanation of the current foreclosure fraud crisis from Mike Konczal; This is Part Four; you should also see Part One, Part Two, and Part Three)

Right now the foreclosure system has shut down as a result of banks’ own voluntary actions. There is currently a debate on whether or not the current foreclosure fraud crisis could explode into a systemic risk problem that perils the larger financial sector and economy, and if so what that would look like.

No matter what happens, the uncertainty about notes and what is currently going on with the foreclosure crisis is terrible for the economy. Getting to the heart of this problem so that negotiations can be worked out is important for getting the economy going again. There is little reason to trust what comes out of the servicers and the banks in whatever they conclude at the end of the month, and the market will know that. Only the government can credible clear the air here as to what the legal situation is with the notes and the securitizations.

But I wanted to get some unlikely but dangerous scenarios on the table in which this blows up. Bangs, not whimpers.  The kind where Congress is pressured to act over a weekend.  I had a discussion with Adam Levitin about how this could explode into a systemic problem.

Title Insurance Market Breaks Down

First scenario involves title insurance. Specifically if title insurers decide to take a month off from writing title insurance even on performing and current loans to investigate what is going on with note transfers.

If that happened there would be no mortgage sales (except for those involving cash) in the country. The system would simply stop. Everyone with an interest, from realtors to Wall Street to construction to huge sections of the economy, would face a major crisis through this short-term pinch. There would be a call for Congress to step in immediately.

You can tell that the title insurance market, which is largely concentrated and also holding very little capital for a nationwide crisis scenario, is investigating the current problems.   They are holding off on certain types of foreclosed properties;  if they decide to hold off all together you could see a scenario where Congress is pushed to act immediately.

Lawsuits a Go-Go

The second would be a wave of lawsuits. As we discussed in Part Two, many of the servicing agreements allowed for the trustees to force the depositors and sponsors to purchase mortgages without notes. That would be 100 cents on the dollar for mortgages worth pennies. If the trustees don’t take action, the investors could sue them. And the tranche warfare on this issue is intense, as foreclosures versus a few more payments radically change the balance between junior and senior tranche holders (See Tracy Alloway on tranche warfare here).

Here’s what this could look like. Read left side up for what the lawsuit screaming looks like and the right side down for the response:

Much of the activity would center around the four largest participants in these areas, the Too Big To Fail institutions of Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citi and JP Morgan.

And many of these mortgage-backed securities are cheap. So in an interesting scenario you could see hedge funds buying MBS for pennies just for the option to sue firms that are likely backstopped by the government.

If title insurance froze, or if the financial markets had a panic over fears of waves of lawsuits, there would be pressure for Congress to do something. Much of the law is New York trust law, so it isn’t clear Congress can act.   But there will be pressure.

Because if this bad-case scenario happens, which there is a small but reasonable chance it could, progressives need to have a clear sense of what they want in exchange for negotiations when the financial industry comes flying in over the cliff, a list of demands and questions to replace the in-large-part steamrolling of TARP over anyone’s interests but the banks.  Even if that doesn’t happen, but the slow bleed of the current dysfunctional mortgage market continues, progressive wonk policy initiatives that fix this crisis and get the mortgage market going again should be at the front of the debate.  We’ll cover this in Part 5.

Every single court challenge to the standing of MERS in the foreclosure process has been upheld, either in the initial court proceeding or upon appeal, when proper evidence is presented before the court. Prof. Peterson’s assertion that “virtually any company can show up, claim to own the note, and proceed to foreclose,” is false. Foreclosure is a terrible thing for homeowners but none of the confusion surrounding erroneous foreclosures can be ascribed to MERS.

MERS does not create a defect in the mortgage or deed of trust. Claims that MERS disrupts or creates a defect in the mortgage or deed of trust are not supported by fact or legal precedents. This argument is often used as a tactic by lawyers to delay or prevent the foreclosure. The mortgage lien is granted to MERS by the borrower and the seller at closing and that is what makes MERS the mortgagee. The role of mortgagee is legal and binding and confers to MERS certain legal rights and responsibilities.

MERS does not initiate foreclosure proceedings; it is the lender that initiates the proceeding. Similarly, certifying officers are designated by lending institutions and are allowed to execute only certain documents on behalf of MERS. Certifying officers selected by their employer are expected to fully comply with the policies of the lending institution for which they work, as well as MERS guidelines and all applicable laws and regulations.

Regarding the recording issue that was raised several times in the report, MERS fully complies with all recording statutes. The purpose of recording laws is to show that a lien exists, which protects the mortgagee and any bona fide purchasers. When MERS is the mortgagee, the mortgage or deed of trust is recorded, and all recording fees are paid. As for the fees themselves, these are local fees for service; if no service is needed or requested, no fee is appropriate. Additionally, any costs savings on fees are passed on to consumers.

MERS does not remove, omit, or otherwise fail to report land ownership information from public records and the trail of ownership does not change because of MERS. Parties are put on notice that MERS is the mortgagee and notifications by third parties can be sent to MERS. Mortgages and deeds of trust still get recorded in the land records.

The MERS System tracks the changes in servicing rights and beneficial ownership. No legal interests are transferred on the MERS System, including servicing and ownership. In fact, MERS is the only publicly available comprehensive source for note ownership.

While this information is tracked through the MERS System, the paperwork still exists to prove that actual legal transfers occurred. No mortgage ownership documents have disappeared because loans were registered on the MERS System. These documents exist now as they have before MERS was created.

We hope this helps clear up some of the confusion on these issues.

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

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eric seiger

eric seiger

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

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We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger

This is a series giving a basic explanation of the current foreclosure fraud crisis from Mike Konczal; This is Part Four; you should also see Part One, Part Two, and Part Three)

Right now the foreclosure system has shut down as a result of banks’ own voluntary actions. There is currently a debate on whether or not the current foreclosure fraud crisis could explode into a systemic risk problem that perils the larger financial sector and economy, and if so what that would look like.

No matter what happens, the uncertainty about notes and what is currently going on with the foreclosure crisis is terrible for the economy. Getting to the heart of this problem so that negotiations can be worked out is important for getting the economy going again. There is little reason to trust what comes out of the servicers and the banks in whatever they conclude at the end of the month, and the market will know that. Only the government can credible clear the air here as to what the legal situation is with the notes and the securitizations.

But I wanted to get some unlikely but dangerous scenarios on the table in which this blows up. Bangs, not whimpers.  The kind where Congress is pressured to act over a weekend.  I had a discussion with Adam Levitin about how this could explode into a systemic problem.

Title Insurance Market Breaks Down

First scenario involves title insurance. Specifically if title insurers decide to take a month off from writing title insurance even on performing and current loans to investigate what is going on with note transfers.

If that happened there would be no mortgage sales (except for those involving cash) in the country. The system would simply stop. Everyone with an interest, from realtors to Wall Street to construction to huge sections of the economy, would face a major crisis through this short-term pinch. There would be a call for Congress to step in immediately.

You can tell that the title insurance market, which is largely concentrated and also holding very little capital for a nationwide crisis scenario, is investigating the current problems.   They are holding off on certain types of foreclosed properties;  if they decide to hold off all together you could see a scenario where Congress is pushed to act immediately.

Lawsuits a Go-Go

The second would be a wave of lawsuits. As we discussed in Part Two, many of the servicing agreements allowed for the trustees to force the depositors and sponsors to purchase mortgages without notes. That would be 100 cents on the dollar for mortgages worth pennies. If the trustees don’t take action, the investors could sue them. And the tranche warfare on this issue is intense, as foreclosures versus a few more payments radically change the balance between junior and senior tranche holders (See Tracy Alloway on tranche warfare here).

Here’s what this could look like. Read left side up for what the lawsuit screaming looks like and the right side down for the response:

Much of the activity would center around the four largest participants in these areas, the Too Big To Fail institutions of Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citi and JP Morgan.

And many of these mortgage-backed securities are cheap. So in an interesting scenario you could see hedge funds buying MBS for pennies just for the option to sue firms that are likely backstopped by the government.

If title insurance froze, or if the financial markets had a panic over fears of waves of lawsuits, there would be pressure for Congress to do something. Much of the law is New York trust law, so it isn’t clear Congress can act.   But there will be pressure.

Because if this bad-case scenario happens, which there is a small but reasonable chance it could, progressives need to have a clear sense of what they want in exchange for negotiations when the financial industry comes flying in over the cliff, a list of demands and questions to replace the in-large-part steamrolling of TARP over anyone’s interests but the banks.  Even if that doesn’t happen, but the slow bleed of the current dysfunctional mortgage market continues, progressive wonk policy initiatives that fix this crisis and get the mortgage market going again should be at the front of the debate.  We’ll cover this in Part 5.

Every single court challenge to the standing of MERS in the foreclosure process has been upheld, either in the initial court proceeding or upon appeal, when proper evidence is presented before the court. Prof. Peterson’s assertion that “virtually any company can show up, claim to own the note, and proceed to foreclose,” is false. Foreclosure is a terrible thing for homeowners but none of the confusion surrounding erroneous foreclosures can be ascribed to MERS.

MERS does not create a defect in the mortgage or deed of trust. Claims that MERS disrupts or creates a defect in the mortgage or deed of trust are not supported by fact or legal precedents. This argument is often used as a tactic by lawyers to delay or prevent the foreclosure. The mortgage lien is granted to MERS by the borrower and the seller at closing and that is what makes MERS the mortgagee. The role of mortgagee is legal and binding and confers to MERS certain legal rights and responsibilities.

MERS does not initiate foreclosure proceedings; it is the lender that initiates the proceeding. Similarly, certifying officers are designated by lending institutions and are allowed to execute only certain documents on behalf of MERS. Certifying officers selected by their employer are expected to fully comply with the policies of the lending institution for which they work, as well as MERS guidelines and all applicable laws and regulations.

Regarding the recording issue that was raised several times in the report, MERS fully complies with all recording statutes. The purpose of recording laws is to show that a lien exists, which protects the mortgagee and any bona fide purchasers. When MERS is the mortgagee, the mortgage or deed of trust is recorded, and all recording fees are paid. As for the fees themselves, these are local fees for service; if no service is needed or requested, no fee is appropriate. Additionally, any costs savings on fees are passed on to consumers.

MERS does not remove, omit, or otherwise fail to report land ownership information from public records and the trail of ownership does not change because of MERS. Parties are put on notice that MERS is the mortgagee and notifications by third parties can be sent to MERS. Mortgages and deeds of trust still get recorded in the land records.

The MERS System tracks the changes in servicing rights and beneficial ownership. No legal interests are transferred on the MERS System, including servicing and ownership. In fact, MERS is the only publicly available comprehensive source for note ownership.

While this information is tracked through the MERS System, the paperwork still exists to prove that actual legal transfers occurred. No mortgage ownership documents have disappeared because loans were registered on the MERS System. These documents exist now as they have before MERS was created.

We hope this helps clear up some of the confusion on these issues.

eric seiger

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

Good News! In August, Shaker Andy wrote a guest post about the campaign "directed at Stonewall, the UK's, and indeed Europe's, largest LGB lobbying organisation" to advocate for marriage equality. Andy just emailed to let me know the ...

World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

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We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

Good News! In August, Shaker Andy wrote a guest post about the campaign "directed at Stonewall, the UK's, and indeed Europe's, largest LGB lobbying organisation" to advocate for marriage equality. Andy just emailed to let me know the ...

World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

International news, in case you hadn't realised, is disappearing across the UK media. The trends are documented in 'Shrinking World' - an authoritative and compelling report on the demise of foreign news reporting in the UK, ...

<b>News</b> Corp to MySpace: Shape Up or Ship Out

We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

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World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

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<b>News</b> Corp to MySpace: Shape Up or Ship Out

We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

Good News! In August, Shaker Andy wrote a guest post about the campaign "directed at Stonewall, the UK's, and indeed Europe's, largest LGB lobbying organisation" to advocate for marriage equality. Andy just emailed to let me know the ...

World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

International news, in case you hadn't realised, is disappearing across the UK media. The trends are documented in 'Shrinking World' - an authoritative and compelling report on the demise of foreign news reporting in the UK, ...

<b>News</b> Corp to MySpace: Shape Up or Ship Out

We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger eric seiger
eric seiger

eric seiger
eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

Good News! In August, Shaker Andy wrote a guest post about the campaign "directed at Stonewall, the UK's, and indeed Europe's, largest LGB lobbying organisation" to advocate for marriage equality. Andy just emailed to let me know the ...

World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

International news, in case you hadn't realised, is disappearing across the UK media. The trends are documented in 'Shrinking World' - an authoritative and compelling report on the demise of foreign news reporting in the UK, ...

<b>News</b> Corp to MySpace: Shape Up or Ship Out

We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

big seminar 14

There are tons of cleaning business forms for sale, but when I started my foreclosure cleanup business, I could not find one that addressed the sticky situation of working with realtors and banks in a foreclosure-ridden market.

As a realtor and foreclosure cleanup business owner, I've seen both sides of contractor transactions: being a realtor hiring a contractor and being a contractor working for a realtor. I knew there were scenarios a blanket contract agreement would not cover. So I decided to create my own contractual form for my foreclosure cleanup business.

With the I's dotted and the T's crossed, I knew my business could operate successfully knowing we had a solid foreclosure cleanup business form in place to help ensure we got paid and to assist us if we had to sue someone for non-payment.

There are several clauses we use in our primary estimate and contract form to protect us. For example purposes, let's address the "contingency clause" as it relates to the foreclosure cleanup business form.

Just recently, a realtor client asked me if our company could wait until the property closed to get our check for a pending cleanup job. Since the closing was only a week away, we agreed to wait to get paid on the date of the closing. But we indicated in our contract that our getting paid was NOT contingent upon a successful closing.

"Contingent upon" means if A happens, then B will happen. If you have your contract CONTINGENT upon the closing, you're gambling that invoice away. That means if buyers lose financing, or the sellers pull out, or an inspection doesn't pan out, you will have worked for nothing and will be out-of-pocket on the job because you will have already completed the cleanup work.

Note, I said we indicated IN OUR CONTRACT that our getting paid was NOT continent upon a successful closing." If it ain't in writing, it ain't so. This realtor happened to be a colleague of mine; I'd worked with her before under a large real estate broker. But a verbal agreement would not do, no matter we were colleagues. It needed to be in writing, so I included the "non-contingency" clause in my contract with her.

As it turned out, the property did not close; it was a short sale that did not go through. The realtor ultimately took over a month to pay us, likely because the deal fell through and the bank or buyer didn't pay her. Imagine if we had made our getting paid contingent upon the sale.

TIPS:

Always make sure your foreclosure cleanup contract is NOT contingent upon a successful closing. You want to get paid whether the buyer closes or not.

Take care to put contractual details in writing to avoid confusion. No matter how casual you are with your clients, the point of a contract is "proof of meeting of the minds." You need something written you can show as proof in a court of law in the event of legal action.

Remember to list your "terms" on your forms (i.e., payment due IMMEDIATELY, within 30 days, etc.).

Also, if you're dealing with a real estate agent, you want the broker's contact information as well. Realtors enter into deals as arms of their brokers, so you want to know who that broker is.

Of course, you want the address of the subject property on the form, estimated time of job completion, and a host of other important details.

Commissions are lower and slower for real estate professionals, and banks are taking longer than usual to pay. If you don't have a solid foreclosure cleanup contract specific to the foreclosure cleanup industry, you may be busy as a bee, but working for free. Remember, don't make a deal on a verbal agreement or a handshake, or you'll likely get the raw end of the deal.

The beauty of this industry is that the professionals you will work with most of the time in the foreclosure cleanup industry will be realtors, mortgage personnel, bank employees, and investors. They are all accustomed to working with written contractual agreements.

The bottom line is to simply take precaution from the outset and use foreclosure cleanup forms with the proper clauses that will protect you and your business.

Of course, this article is not intended to be a substitute for legal advice.

by Cassandra Black, CEO, Foreclosure Cleanup, LLC and Author of the Foreclosure Cleanup Business Combo Estimate & Contract Form, How to Start a Foreclosure Cleanup Business, The Pricing Guide for Foreclosure Cleaning & Real-Estate Service Businesses: How to Price Jobs for Profit eBook and How to Market Your Foreclosure Cleanup Business: A Step-by-Step, Shoestring Marketing Guide for Foreclosure Cleaning Business Owners.



eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

Good News! In August, Shaker Andy wrote a guest post about the campaign "directed at Stonewall, the UK's, and indeed Europe's, largest LGB lobbying organisation" to advocate for marriage equality. Andy just emailed to let me know the ...

World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

International news, in case you hadn't realised, is disappearing across the UK media. The trends are documented in 'Shrinking World' - an authoritative and compelling report on the demise of foreign news reporting in the UK, ...

<b>News</b> Corp to MySpace: Shape Up or Ship Out

We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger

Shakesville: Good <b>News</b>!

Good News! In August, Shaker Andy wrote a guest post about the campaign "directed at Stonewall, the UK's, and indeed Europe's, largest LGB lobbying organisation" to advocate for marriage equality. Andy just emailed to let me know the ...

World <b>news</b> coverage evaporating in the UK | openDemocracy

International news, in case you hadn't realised, is disappearing across the UK media. The trends are documented in 'Shrinking World' - an authoritative and compelling report on the demise of foreign news reporting in the UK, ...

<b>News</b> Corp to MySpace: Shape Up or Ship Out

We've been clear that MySpace is a problem. The current losses are not acceptable or sustainable. They must show improvement ...

eric seiger

Making Money Through

Dr. Rado Kotorov is chief innovation officer at Information Builders, and is responsible for emerging reporting, analytic and visualization technologies. He has developed analytic models and applications for the pharmaceutical, retail, CPG, financial and automotive industries.

You’ve likely been experiencing a deluge of online information coming at you in recent years — an overwhelming number of status updates, e-mails, tagged images and so forth. You’ve probably also seen, and potentially been alarmed by, the growing accuracy of targeted advertisements — “People You May Know,” and other “offers” online.

As the quantity of irrelevant information has exploded online, so too has the market for the delivery of targeted offers and information. Social networks, in theory and in practice, expose many people to contact and influence. Without precise models, people will continue to be bombarded with ineffective offers and other irrelevant information. Predictive analytics, a branch of data mining concerned with predicting future probabilities and trends, applies a filter to users’ online interactions with the aim of delivering more value from a sea of irrelevance.

With increased value comes the potential for social networks to make money as well. Here’s a look at some specific ways in which predictive analytics will make social networks money.

Recruiting

Many recruiting sites out there on the web, from LinkedIn to SelectMinds to Monster, promise to be able to match candidates with job requirements in unique and increasingly accurate ways. Predictive analytics is at the core of their business model, as it automates the process of making these matches.

When a recruiter posts a job description, a predictive algorithm runs through candidates and calculates compatibility. The technology is, in many cases, embedded in search applications. The most accurate and efficient of these analytics will deliver the most value and see the greatest adoption over time. Those recruiting and talent acquisition sites that allow businesses to leverage the existing social networks of their current and former employees are the best positioned to monetize their users’ employment data in new ways. Businesses can get value from these existing networks without the time and resource commitment it takes to build their own.

Sentiment Analysis

As sites like Twitter and Facebook gain value to the business world, many companies have cropped up to analyze and establish what the sentiment is of the collective online intelligence and also to identify individuals with influence and authority. Companies including Klout, ViralHeat and Radian6 all scan blogs and other social media channels with predictive models to determine if the content surrounding a brand or person is negative, positive or neutral. As this information becomes increasingly valuable to businesses of all sizes, these sentiment analysis companies are expected to grow rapidly.

Market Fluctuation

Social media channels are open to everyone. Day traders, retail investors and analysts are cruising around on Twitter and Facebook. What these types of people say and do online is not insignificant in an era when [Flash Crashes and Fat Fingers] are being closely scrutinized and regulated. New models are cropping up to predict stock fluctuations based on Twitter posts. Similar to sentiment analysis, these companies are able to look at the total number of tweets, as well as positive and negative comments to predict whether a stock price will go up or down. These types of companies will become a hot commodity as investors begin to rely on the wisdom of crowds.

Recommendation Engines

No one likes to be bombarded with irrelevant offers and content while using their favorite social network. But the more active you are online, the more effectively predictive analytics can work to deliver targeted and relevant offers.

Sometimes it feels like Facebook knows you better than you know yourself. RSVPed “Yes” to that big gala? You may see a discount offer for Saks. [Are you a woman between the ages of 18 and 34? A Facebook ad may tell you how you can lose those extra inches around your waist.] These offers are no longer random and are therefore increasingly effective. Leveraging the existing data from your previous activity to predict what will happen in the future is becoming, rightly, more prevalent and valuable to social networks that can sell this promise to businesses and intermediaries.

Location-Based Marketing

Do you walk down the same street at dinner time every day? Wish restaurants on that street would compete in real-time for your business?

As social networks add in more location-aware features like Facebook Places and whole new businesses are built on the promise of geo-location including SCVNGR and ShopKick, predictive analytics deliver insights into where groups and individuals will be and when, not to mention what their interests may be. For businesses, there is big money to be spent on location-based advertising in the coming years. As a result, social networks can run their existing location data through predictive models to provide companies with future insights into where to allocate their marketing and advertising budgets for the biggest returns.

More Business Resources from Mashable:

- How Companies Can Use Sentiment Analysis to Improve Their Business/> - HOW TO: Earn Some Inexpensive Online Exposure for Your Small Business/> - HOW TO: Accept Credit Card Payments on Mobile Devices/> - 6 Tips on Starting a Digital Business from the Founder of Pandora/> - 5 Big Social Media Questions from Small Business Owners

Images courtesy of iStockphoto, Nikada, AUDINDesign

For more Business coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Businessclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Business channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

The real message from voters was “Fix this stinking economy.” But Republicans have no intention of doing so.

With Republicans in control of the House, forget spending increases or tax cuts to stimulate the economy.

Republicans don’t believe in stimulating economies. They think markets eventually clear — once the pain is sufficient. Or in the immortal words of Herbert Hoover’s treasury secretary, millionaire industrialist Andrew Mellon: “Liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate the farmer, liquidate real estate. It will purge the rottenness out of the system. People will work harder, lead a more moral life.”

Of course, Mellon was dead wrong. Nothing was purged. Instead, the economy sunk into deeper and deeper depression.

So how do we get out of this bog?

By default, all the responsibility is on the Federal Reserve — which announced today (Wednesday) it will pump $600 billion into the economy between now and June to reduce long-term interest rates (“quantitative easing” in Fed-speak).

The Fed thinks lower long-term rates will (1) push more businesses to expand capacity and hire workers; (2) push the dollar downward and make American exports more competitive and therefore generate more jobs; and (3) allow more Americans to refinance their homes at low rates, thereby giving them more cash to spend and thereby stimulate more jobs.

But without an expansionary fiscal policy, the Fed’s goals are pipe dreams.

Lower rates won’t spur businesses to expand capacity and jobs because there aren’t enough consumers to buy additional goods and services.

Lower rates won’t push down the dollar and spur more exports. They’ll only spur more competitive devaluations by other nations determined not to lose export shares and jobs.

And lower rates won’t allow middle-class and working-class Americans to refinance their homes because banks won’t lend to families whose incomes have dropped, whose debts have risen, or who owe more on their homes than the homes are worth. That is, most of us.

Without an expansive fiscal policy that puts more money into the pockets of consumers and gets them out from under their huge debt load, the Fed’s billions will just fuel another stock-market bubble.

It’s already started. Stocks are up even though the rest of the economy is still down because money is already so cheap. Bondholders who can’t get much of any return from their loans are shifting into stocks. Companies are buying back more shares of their own stock. And Wall Street is making more bets in the stock market with money it can borrow at almost zero percent interest.

In other words, with Republicans in charge of the House, the economy remains anemic. It may even succumb to another bubble that bursts.

Could it be that Republicans want to keep the economy this way through Election Day, 2012?

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company

Dr. Rado Kotorov is chief innovation officer at Information Builders, and is responsible for emerging reporting, analytic and visualization technologies. He has developed analytic models and applications for the pharmaceutical, retail, CPG, financial and automotive industries.

You’ve likely been experiencing a deluge of online information coming at you in recent years — an overwhelming number of status updates, e-mails, tagged images and so forth. You’ve probably also seen, and potentially been alarmed by, the growing accuracy of targeted advertisements — “People You May Know,” and other “offers” online.

As the quantity of irrelevant information has exploded online, so too has the market for the delivery of targeted offers and information. Social networks, in theory and in practice, expose many people to contact and influence. Without precise models, people will continue to be bombarded with ineffective offers and other irrelevant information. Predictive analytics, a branch of data mining concerned with predicting future probabilities and trends, applies a filter to users’ online interactions with the aim of delivering more value from a sea of irrelevance.

With increased value comes the potential for social networks to make money as well. Here’s a look at some specific ways in which predictive analytics will make social networks money.

Recruiting

Many recruiting sites out there on the web, from LinkedIn to SelectMinds to Monster, promise to be able to match candidates with job requirements in unique and increasingly accurate ways. Predictive analytics is at the core of their business model, as it automates the process of making these matches.

When a recruiter posts a job description, a predictive algorithm runs through candidates and calculates compatibility. The technology is, in many cases, embedded in search applications. The most accurate and efficient of these analytics will deliver the most value and see the greatest adoption over time. Those recruiting and talent acquisition sites that allow businesses to leverage the existing social networks of their current and former employees are the best positioned to monetize their users’ employment data in new ways. Businesses can get value from these existing networks without the time and resource commitment it takes to build their own.

Sentiment Analysis

As sites like Twitter and Facebook gain value to the business world, many companies have cropped up to analyze and establish what the sentiment is of the collective online intelligence and also to identify individuals with influence and authority. Companies including Klout, ViralHeat and Radian6 all scan blogs and other social media channels with predictive models to determine if the content surrounding a brand or person is negative, positive or neutral. As this information becomes increasingly valuable to businesses of all sizes, these sentiment analysis companies are expected to grow rapidly.

Market Fluctuation

Social media channels are open to everyone. Day traders, retail investors and analysts are cruising around on Twitter and Facebook. What these types of people say and do online is not insignificant in an era when [Flash Crashes and Fat Fingers] are being closely scrutinized and regulated. New models are cropping up to predict stock fluctuations based on Twitter posts. Similar to sentiment analysis, these companies are able to look at the total number of tweets, as well as positive and negative comments to predict whether a stock price will go up or down. These types of companies will become a hot commodity as investors begin to rely on the wisdom of crowds.

Recommendation Engines

No one likes to be bombarded with irrelevant offers and content while using their favorite social network. But the more active you are online, the more effectively predictive analytics can work to deliver targeted and relevant offers.

Sometimes it feels like Facebook knows you better than you know yourself. RSVPed “Yes” to that big gala? You may see a discount offer for Saks. [Are you a woman between the ages of 18 and 34? A Facebook ad may tell you how you can lose those extra inches around your waist.] These offers are no longer random and are therefore increasingly effective. Leveraging the existing data from your previous activity to predict what will happen in the future is becoming, rightly, more prevalent and valuable to social networks that can sell this promise to businesses and intermediaries.

Location-Based Marketing

Do you walk down the same street at dinner time every day? Wish restaurants on that street would compete in real-time for your business?

As social networks add in more location-aware features like Facebook Places and whole new businesses are built on the promise of geo-location including SCVNGR and ShopKick, predictive analytics deliver insights into where groups and individuals will be and when, not to mention what their interests may be. For businesses, there is big money to be spent on location-based advertising in the coming years. As a result, social networks can run their existing location data through predictive models to provide companies with future insights into where to allocate their marketing and advertising budgets for the biggest returns.

More Business Resources from Mashable:

- How Companies Can Use Sentiment Analysis to Improve Their Business/> - HOW TO: Earn Some Inexpensive Online Exposure for Your Small Business/> - HOW TO: Accept Credit Card Payments on Mobile Devices/> - 6 Tips on Starting a Digital Business from the Founder of Pandora/> - 5 Big Social Media Questions from Small Business Owners

Images courtesy of iStockphoto, Nikada, AUDINDesign

For more Business coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Businessclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Business channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

The real message from voters was “Fix this stinking economy.” But Republicans have no intention of doing so.

With Republicans in control of the House, forget spending increases or tax cuts to stimulate the economy.

Republicans don’t believe in stimulating economies. They think markets eventually clear — once the pain is sufficient. Or in the immortal words of Herbert Hoover’s treasury secretary, millionaire industrialist Andrew Mellon: “Liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate the farmer, liquidate real estate. It will purge the rottenness out of the system. People will work harder, lead a more moral life.”

Of course, Mellon was dead wrong. Nothing was purged. Instead, the economy sunk into deeper and deeper depression.

So how do we get out of this bog?

By default, all the responsibility is on the Federal Reserve — which announced today (Wednesday) it will pump $600 billion into the economy between now and June to reduce long-term interest rates (“quantitative easing” in Fed-speak).

The Fed thinks lower long-term rates will (1) push more businesses to expand capacity and hire workers; (2) push the dollar downward and make American exports more competitive and therefore generate more jobs; and (3) allow more Americans to refinance their homes at low rates, thereby giving them more cash to spend and thereby stimulate more jobs.

But without an expansionary fiscal policy, the Fed’s goals are pipe dreams.

Lower rates won’t spur businesses to expand capacity and jobs because there aren’t enough consumers to buy additional goods and services.

Lower rates won’t push down the dollar and spur more exports. They’ll only spur more competitive devaluations by other nations determined not to lose export shares and jobs.

And lower rates won’t allow middle-class and working-class Americans to refinance their homes because banks won’t lend to families whose incomes have dropped, whose debts have risen, or who owe more on their homes than the homes are worth. That is, most of us.

Without an expansive fiscal policy that puts more money into the pockets of consumers and gets them out from under their huge debt load, the Fed’s billions will just fuel another stock-market bubble.

It’s already started. Stocks are up even though the rest of the economy is still down because money is already so cheap. Bondholders who can’t get much of any return from their loans are shifting into stocks. Companies are buying back more shares of their own stock. And Wall Street is making more bets in the stock market with money it can borrow at almost zero percent interest.

In other words, with Republicans in charge of the House, the economy remains anemic. It may even succumb to another bubble that bursts.

Could it be that Republicans want to keep the economy this way through Election Day, 2012?

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company

bench craft company

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company

Dr. Rado Kotorov is chief innovation officer at Information Builders, and is responsible for emerging reporting, analytic and visualization technologies. He has developed analytic models and applications for the pharmaceutical, retail, CPG, financial and automotive industries.

You’ve likely been experiencing a deluge of online information coming at you in recent years — an overwhelming number of status updates, e-mails, tagged images and so forth. You’ve probably also seen, and potentially been alarmed by, the growing accuracy of targeted advertisements — “People You May Know,” and other “offers” online.

As the quantity of irrelevant information has exploded online, so too has the market for the delivery of targeted offers and information. Social networks, in theory and in practice, expose many people to contact and influence. Without precise models, people will continue to be bombarded with ineffective offers and other irrelevant information. Predictive analytics, a branch of data mining concerned with predicting future probabilities and trends, applies a filter to users’ online interactions with the aim of delivering more value from a sea of irrelevance.

With increased value comes the potential for social networks to make money as well. Here’s a look at some specific ways in which predictive analytics will make social networks money.

Recruiting

Many recruiting sites out there on the web, from LinkedIn to SelectMinds to Monster, promise to be able to match candidates with job requirements in unique and increasingly accurate ways. Predictive analytics is at the core of their business model, as it automates the process of making these matches.

When a recruiter posts a job description, a predictive algorithm runs through candidates and calculates compatibility. The technology is, in many cases, embedded in search applications. The most accurate and efficient of these analytics will deliver the most value and see the greatest adoption over time. Those recruiting and talent acquisition sites that allow businesses to leverage the existing social networks of their current and former employees are the best positioned to monetize their users’ employment data in new ways. Businesses can get value from these existing networks without the time and resource commitment it takes to build their own.

Sentiment Analysis

As sites like Twitter and Facebook gain value to the business world, many companies have cropped up to analyze and establish what the sentiment is of the collective online intelligence and also to identify individuals with influence and authority. Companies including Klout, ViralHeat and Radian6 all scan blogs and other social media channels with predictive models to determine if the content surrounding a brand or person is negative, positive or neutral. As this information becomes increasingly valuable to businesses of all sizes, these sentiment analysis companies are expected to grow rapidly.

Market Fluctuation

Social media channels are open to everyone. Day traders, retail investors and analysts are cruising around on Twitter and Facebook. What these types of people say and do online is not insignificant in an era when [Flash Crashes and Fat Fingers] are being closely scrutinized and regulated. New models are cropping up to predict stock fluctuations based on Twitter posts. Similar to sentiment analysis, these companies are able to look at the total number of tweets, as well as positive and negative comments to predict whether a stock price will go up or down. These types of companies will become a hot commodity as investors begin to rely on the wisdom of crowds.

Recommendation Engines

No one likes to be bombarded with irrelevant offers and content while using their favorite social network. But the more active you are online, the more effectively predictive analytics can work to deliver targeted and relevant offers.

Sometimes it feels like Facebook knows you better than you know yourself. RSVPed “Yes” to that big gala? You may see a discount offer for Saks. [Are you a woman between the ages of 18 and 34? A Facebook ad may tell you how you can lose those extra inches around your waist.] These offers are no longer random and are therefore increasingly effective. Leveraging the existing data from your previous activity to predict what will happen in the future is becoming, rightly, more prevalent and valuable to social networks that can sell this promise to businesses and intermediaries.

Location-Based Marketing

Do you walk down the same street at dinner time every day? Wish restaurants on that street would compete in real-time for your business?

As social networks add in more location-aware features like Facebook Places and whole new businesses are built on the promise of geo-location including SCVNGR and ShopKick, predictive analytics deliver insights into where groups and individuals will be and when, not to mention what their interests may be. For businesses, there is big money to be spent on location-based advertising in the coming years. As a result, social networks can run their existing location data through predictive models to provide companies with future insights into where to allocate their marketing and advertising budgets for the biggest returns.

More Business Resources from Mashable:

- How Companies Can Use Sentiment Analysis to Improve Their Business/> - HOW TO: Earn Some Inexpensive Online Exposure for Your Small Business/> - HOW TO: Accept Credit Card Payments on Mobile Devices/> - 6 Tips on Starting a Digital Business from the Founder of Pandora/> - 5 Big Social Media Questions from Small Business Owners

Images courtesy of iStockphoto, Nikada, AUDINDesign

For more Business coverage:

class="f-el">class="cov-twit">Follow Mashable Businessclass="s-el">class="cov-rss">Subscribe to the Business channelclass="f-el">class="cov-fb">Become a Fan on Facebookclass="s-el">class="cov-apple">Download our free apps for iPhone and iPad

The real message from voters was “Fix this stinking economy.” But Republicans have no intention of doing so.

With Republicans in control of the House, forget spending increases or tax cuts to stimulate the economy.

Republicans don’t believe in stimulating economies. They think markets eventually clear — once the pain is sufficient. Or in the immortal words of Herbert Hoover’s treasury secretary, millionaire industrialist Andrew Mellon: “Liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate the farmer, liquidate real estate. It will purge the rottenness out of the system. People will work harder, lead a more moral life.”

Of course, Mellon was dead wrong. Nothing was purged. Instead, the economy sunk into deeper and deeper depression.

So how do we get out of this bog?

By default, all the responsibility is on the Federal Reserve — which announced today (Wednesday) it will pump $600 billion into the economy between now and June to reduce long-term interest rates (“quantitative easing” in Fed-speak).

The Fed thinks lower long-term rates will (1) push more businesses to expand capacity and hire workers; (2) push the dollar downward and make American exports more competitive and therefore generate more jobs; and (3) allow more Americans to refinance their homes at low rates, thereby giving them more cash to spend and thereby stimulate more jobs.

But without an expansionary fiscal policy, the Fed’s goals are pipe dreams.

Lower rates won’t spur businesses to expand capacity and jobs because there aren’t enough consumers to buy additional goods and services.

Lower rates won’t push down the dollar and spur more exports. They’ll only spur more competitive devaluations by other nations determined not to lose export shares and jobs.

And lower rates won’t allow middle-class and working-class Americans to refinance their homes because banks won’t lend to families whose incomes have dropped, whose debts have risen, or who owe more on their homes than the homes are worth. That is, most of us.

Without an expansive fiscal policy that puts more money into the pockets of consumers and gets them out from under their huge debt load, the Fed’s billions will just fuel another stock-market bubble.

It’s already started. Stocks are up even though the rest of the economy is still down because money is already so cheap. Bondholders who can’t get much of any return from their loans are shifting into stocks. Companies are buying back more shares of their own stock. And Wall Street is making more bets in the stock market with money it can borrow at almost zero percent interest.

In other words, with Republicans in charge of the House, the economy remains anemic. It may even succumb to another bubble that bursts.

Could it be that Republicans want to keep the economy this way through Election Day, 2012?

bench craft company

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company bench craft company
bench craft company

bench craft company
bench craft company

Scripting <b>News</b>: How good is Sprint 4G in NYC?

Recent stories. Twitter links. My 40 most-recent Twitter links, ranked by number of clicks. My bike. People are always asking about my bike. A picture named bikesmall.jpg. Here's a picture. AFP news pic. Calendar ...

Tonino Lamborghini Spyder Series Luxury Mobile Phones | iTech <b>News</b> <b>...</b>

Following CULV notebooks, Tonino Lamborghini releases in Hong Kong its Spyder line of luxury mobile phones. There are six models, S-600, S-610, S-620,

This is Terrific <b>News</b> | RedState

I just heard that Jeb Hensarling is going to run for Conference Chair to replace Mike Pence. This is terrific news. Hensarling is one of the most substantive.

bench craft company reviews

With the internet, people are finding sites that can make you money. Let me tell you one thing; it' is not easy money. It takes a lot of work and patience in order to make money online. Some sites, you see a little payout almost immediately and others, it takes a while to get there.

Squidoo

This is one I have come across by accident. I had no knowledge of what was out there when it came publishing online. By joining this site, I ended up finding other sites that pay. The minimum to get any money through squidoo is a dollar and that is not that hard if you write enough lenses and your lenses rank well within the site. Within a few months, you may start seeing money coming in from there. It may not be a whole lot, but it is something. What I have found from them is that each month, the amount of money I get from them has improved.

Hubpages

They are similar to squidoo in nature, but on the other side of the coin. They are a totally different kind of site. Squidoo you can promote products and services. That is not allowed over at hubpages. You can write about products, but it can't be overly promotional. They have less modules compared to Squidoo. Its easy to write two or more hubs in a day.

Helium

It takes a while to make money through this site as the payout is twenty five dollars. Some people it does take a lot less, but it depends on how much work you are willing to invest in this site. In order to make money on your articles, you need to have at least one rating star. I have found that its really easy to do. You can make three dollars if you have five rating stars and this is based off of a ninety day period, You are competing with each other and if you look at other's articles, you do have a chance of making some money based off of people actually viewing your articles.

Associated Content

This is what this is written on. I found the real easy way of making money through this site is by trying to go for upfront payments. Not everything qualifies. Basically the same things that do not qualify over at helium, do not qualify over here so you have a choice of which site you want to publish on first. Here, you can choose your own subjects. Over at helium, they have the topics already chosen and you have to pick the topic you want to write about over there. You also make money based off of views to and I believe you have to make at one dollar and fifty cents to make payout here. It does take work to get there, but I think the more you publish, the easier it will be to get payout.

Bukisa

This is another site you can try. I found that it does take work to make payout, but it's worth trying anyways.

There are many more sites out there, but these are the ones that I have tried and are worth checking out. The way I feel about writing articles online is to not keep everything all on one site. What if there was a time that a site closes down, the money you have made is down the tubes and then you will be searching for another site to do the same thing. Keeping things in multiple baskets is a good thing and a good backup plan if something happens.