Organizing for America | Posts with the tag foreclosures

Posts with the tag foreclosures

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Attorneys Advise Clients to Stay in Their Homes

By G from Delray Beach, FL - Jul 2nd, 2009 at 1:06 pm EDT

Phil Agnes and other lawyers have two words for homeowners facing foreclosure: Stay put.

The flood of foreclosures has clogged the courts, allowing homeowners to stay in their homes while the paperwork goes through the system. Many homeowners are unaware that they can remain at home for months while the foreclosure is in court, attorneys say. Read more about foreclosures...

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Recession Survival Fair—Volunteers Needed

By signsSansSignifieds - May 28th, 2009 at 10:38 am EDT

Also listed in: 7 groups

The Recession Survival Fair will take place on 6/6 at the Brooklyn Brownstone School in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Volunteers are needed now. Details here:

http://signsanssignified.blogspot.com/2009/05/recession-survival-fairvolunteers.html

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Great News Today! Heading in a Better Direction!

By Don from Grand Rapids, MI - Feb 18th, 2009 at 5:10 pm EST

Dear President Obama,

Great news! I have been writing senators and representatives for months saying that unless we stopped the torrent of foreclosures coming down the river, we would need another 700 billion dollar bailout soon. Taking steps to stop the flow is absolutely essential. But please bear in mind that it is not just those who are behind in their payments who are suffering and struggling. I know of one family whose income was cut down to 30% of what is was, he took a job 40 miles away, commutes in a gas-guzzling truck that he can't sell because oil prices went crazy and they are still making their house payments on time ... because they feel it is the right thing to do. I applaud their courage and integrity but I imagine it is hard for them to keep that integrity intact when others who gave up and quit making payments are getting help and they cannot.

Now, please take the next necessary step. Get the glut of foreclosures absorbed. The $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers WILL NOT DO THAT, and here's why:

1) Most first-time home buyers are not standing in a pile of cash when they buy. Most often, they are scraping nickels together, asking for a little help from Mom & Dad, etc. Where do our lawmakers in Washington think these first-time home buyers are going to get the money to make these homes habitable?

2) Distress-sale properties are neglected or intentionally damaged because the homeowner is angry about losing it. Last week, (in 17-degree weather), I showed four homes to a first-time home buyer who wanted to buy one of these great foreclosure deals. None of them had heat on or lights. None of them were winterized. ALL of them had ice frozen in the bottom of the toilet bowl. When spring hits and the pipes let loose, that’ll be a $5,000 repair, thank you very much! Do you really think I should even suggest to a buyer he/she buy such a headache? Not for more than 10 cents on the dollar, anyway.

3) What first-time home buyer – or ANY buyer, for that matter -- is going to buy a home without being able to inspect it? Many of these third-party foreclosure companies refuse to turn the lights and heat on so a buyer can do inspections. They are selling it as-is, whatever as-is is, apparently.

4) A high percentage of first-time home buyers want to finance FHA. FHA will not finance a home that requires significant repairs but Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae won’t even turn the lights on to see if the furnace works. What do you think an FHA appraiser will do with that? Kill the deal!! Understandably so. What our legislators don’t seem to grasp is that FHA and Freddie/Fannie are working at cross purposes.

If you want to get rid of the foreclosures on the market, there is a very simple solution that will: 1) Absorb the glut of distress-sale properties within 12 – 18 months; 2) put trades people back to work; 3) Curtail the plummeting, deep-discounting of well-maintained homes because of the neighboring distress sales, and 4) free up cash for banks to lend money again.

ELIMINATE capital gains tax on any real estate purchase in 2009 and 2010. That’s it, nothing more. An investor could buy a $50,000 home in Wyoming, put $20,000 into it, and sell it where it should in a reasonably normal, healthy market, say, $90,000 to $100,000. The folks who are trying to sell the home they’ve taken good care of for 20 years are getting hammered by the foreclosure dumps. But if they were competing against other decent homes, they would not be subjected to the huge discounting happening now. Not only that, but remember those first-time home buyers who are not standing in a pile of cash? THEY would have choices of homes to buy that would require they spend thousands of dollars making it livable. Simple.

A lot of investors who lost 30, 40, 50% in stocks over the past couple years have moved their money into T-bills and are waiting to see where to invest it to make money. If they saw an opportunity to make 20 or 30% on their investment TAX-FREE, they would jump into the market. But would THEY do the work to fix them up? No, of course not. They would call plumbers and electricians, and furnace people and plumbers … and our trades would go back to work.

There would be no need for Mr. Gaithner’s joint venture to buy up bad paper. Our free-market economy will have already taken care of it.

Respectfully, Mr. President,

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Will Obama Extend the Homebuyer Tax Credit.

By Raina Wells Real Estate DFW - Feb 3rd, 2009 at 11:26 pm EST

Also listed in: 9 groups

HOMEBUYER TAX CREDIT TIME IS A TICKEN!

First time home buyers purchasing any kind of home—new or resale—are eligible for the tax credit. To qualify for the tax credit, a home purchase must occur on or after April 9, 2008 and before July 1, 2009. For the purposes of the tax credit, the purchase date is the date when closing occurs.

You claim the tax credit on your federal income tax return. No other applications or forms are required. No pre-approval is necessary; however, prospective home buyers will want to be sure they qualify for the credit under the income limits and first-time home buyer tests.

Any home purchased by an eligible first-time home buyer will qualify for the credit, provided that the home will be used as a principal residence and the buyer has not owned a home in the previous three years. This includes single-family detached homes, attached homes like townhouses and condominiums, manufactured homes (also known as mobile homes) and houseboats.

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW TO START YOUR SEARCH FOR A REALTOR A HOME, GET PRE-APPROVED AND GET MOVING TODAY!

http://138761-micro.yourmlshomesearch.com/atj/microsite/MicrositePageGetAction.do

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The ARK Foundation Real Estate Recovery Program

By Keith from Moreno Valley, CA - Jan 31st, 2009 at 4:48 am EST

The ARK Foundation©Real Estate Recovery Program

The raging economic storm is waging war against the Land of the Free. The waters of depression, hardships, loss, and despair are rising across neighborhoods around the nation. This model is a way to remain afloat and ride out the current crisis entering 2009.

President Barack Obama and other economic analysts have all stated “that the only way to begin economic recovery is to stabilize the housing market.” The real estate market must be stabilized before the financial markets recover, before the job market can improve, before the confidence of spending can return, before the businesses can improve, and before stability arrives…the real estate markets must be stabilized FIRST.

The Presidents’ exact plan is unknown, but will soon be revealed. Statements that have been made since the election have eluded to “securing the ‘bottom’ instead of saving the top”, “protecting the families that are losing their homes”, and “getting America back working”.

Here’s something that will fall in line with their thoughts and offer a solution to the way to approach it.

This is my model….

*IDENTIFY THE TOP-20 U.S. CITIES HARDEST HIT BY
FORECLOSURES.
*SECURE $100 BILLION IN FEDERAL FUNDS FOR FORECLOSURE
RELIEF - $5 BILLION TO EACH CITY/REGION
*SELECT & ACQUIRE BANK OWNED RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE
*ASSIST OCCUPANTS OF DEFAULTED REAL ESTATE
*ESTABLISH NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH
FACILITIES/PROGRAMS
*PROVIDE JOBS TO REHABILATATE REAL ESTATE
*UTILIZE EXISTING CITY INFRASTRUCTURE
*REHABILITATE RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE
*EVERYONE CAN CONTRIBUTE, GIVING THEIR FAIR SHARE
*PARTNERSHIPS

IDENTIFY CITIES - Identify the top-20 cities in the U.S. that took the most severe hits in real estate foreclosures and loss in property values. Stockton, CA; Las Vegas, NV; Riverside/San Bernardino, CA; Bakersfield, CA; Phoenix/Mesa, AZ; Ft. Lauderdale, FL; Orlando, FL; Miami, FL; Sacramento, CA; Detroit/Livonia/Dearborn, MI; Sarasota/Brandenton/Venice, FL; Fresno, CA; Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater, FL; Oakland, CA; San Diego, CA; Palm Beach, FL;
Atlanta/Sandy Springs/Marietta, GA; Memphis, TN; Denver/Aurora, CO; Ventura, CA; Orange, CA; Jacksonville, FL; Washington/Arlington/Alexandria, DC MD VA WV; Cleveland/Lorain/Elyria/Mentor, OH

SECURE FUNDS - The U.S. government should use $100 billion in “Recovery Funds” (The ARK) to bail-out the hardest hit real estate markets in the U.S. After identifying the top-20 cities, $5 billion (5,000,000,000) will be invested to each city/region.
Instead of, or in addition to, loaning bail-out funds to Banks with foreclosed property assets, the U.S. government should fund banks, though City Economic Development Agencies (EDA), by exchanging funds for real estate assets that the bank holds within that city or region. This exchange is far better than a “bail-out” with a promise to pay back…but instead…it gives collateral for those funds in the form of real property.

The county seat City government will oversee the ARK Foundation model since it has the infrastructure to best apply this model. The City’s EDA will identify depressed property within its jurisdiction and acquire the properties from the Banks for a negotiated price. (The acquisition price should NEVER exceed the 2004 fair market price). It is not necessary to acquire all foreclosed residential real estate, but instead, focus primarily on the property that will allow for adequate leverage. All other over-encumbered property which the lender will not negotiate a lower fair price, will not be a likely acquisition.

ACQUIRE FORECLOSED PROPERTY: The City’s existing Economic Development Agency (EDA) will be the ‘Operation Central’ and oversee the program and will be fully accountable for the $5 billion funds. The current Director of EDA will hire a ‘ARK Foundation Program Director’ that will approve all real estate transactions, account for fund distributions, and report to the U.S. Secretary of Treasury of its status and obstacles.

All financial institutions that received portions of the $350 Billion U.S. government bailout of late 2008, will be required to grant residential real property that they have foreclosed on, and that is part of their asset inventory, over to targeted cities that have been identified as an ARK Foundation city or region. This will allow tangible assets in exchange for bailout funds. These foreclosed assets will now be able to be rehabbed and stabilize the value of the property instead of having the foreclosing bank, that lacks facilities to protect the homes, from allowing further decay.
NOTE: Currently, most Bank REO property are decaying neighborhood property values with un-maintained landscaping, boarded window & doors, trash, graffiti, and improper occupy of individuals for criminal activities.
EXAMPLE: ’Bad Loan Bank Inc.’ received $100 Million in bail out funds in 2008 from the U.S. Government. Now, the U.S. Government will obtain up to $100 Million in Trustee Deed value of ’Bad Loan Bank Inc.’ The U.S. Government will receive Grant Deed’s for all residential real estate ‘Bad Loan Bank Inc.’ has in that particular targeted city, up to $100 Million. The ARK Foundation, in that particular city or region, will now be granted ownership of the property from the U.S. Government, and will immediately improve the property and assist in stabilizing the property values.

Other targeted properties , outside of the ’2008 bailout exchange’ mentioned above, will be those bank REO properties that are creating the most negative impact upon neighborhood communities (open & vacant homes, boarded structures, and those that harbor criminal activity). Additional target properties will be those that have an active recorded ‘Notice of Default’, but has not yet reverted back to lender through the Trustee Sale. In these cases, the City EDA will attempt to purchase property at discount prior to the Trustees Sale. If possible, EDA will purchase property directly from foreclosing lender at the Trustee’s Sale. Caution should be used at Trustee’s Sales as to not purchasing property that exceeds the 2004 fair market price. Properties that have occupants (Trustors/Tenants) will be the main focus for acquisition at Trustee’s Sale, in order to prevent the displacement of families.

The properties chosen for purchase, that are past the Trustee’s Sale and now bank owned, will be the ones that will have the largest impact on the stabilization of property values within the City and volatile regions to include, but not limited to the following priorities in the following order:
1) Vacant Single family residences (SFR)
   A) Residential neighborhood blocks where over 25% of the parcels    are bank owned.
   B) Existing, if any, City or County neighborhood redevelopment    improvement areas.
   C) Unfinished parcels of new home subdivisions where construction    has begun but not completed.
   D) Other vacant SFR’s within the City.
2) Multi-unit complexes - Duplex, triplex, fourplex, and larger units not to
    exceed 16-units.
3) Commercial Buildings - Only those that will facilitate ARK
    Neighborhood Outreach facilities

The purchase price will either be the 50% of the original note value of the property, or the 2004 fair market value, which ever is less. A Grant Deed will then be issued to the City’s Economic Development Agency (EDA) (or the ARK Foundation) and the funds released to the bank. If the property was previously listed with a real estate brokerage, the EDA, with ARK Funds, will pay 6% commission to that brokerage. All recorded City or County liens will be paid during the transaction by the EDA, with ARK Funds, not to exceed 10% of the acquisition cost of the property.

ASSIST EXISTING DEFAULTED HOMEOWNERS AND TENANTS: - All Homeowners of single-family residences that are currently in a stage of foreclosure (notice of default or Notice of trustee’s sale) will be evaluated by the current FHA lending guidelines as to employment/self employment income and debt-to-income ratios to determine what value of home they can afford at the current 30-year fixed rate of interest. This evaluation will insure that the homeowner will be obligated to a debt that they can afford and will not exceed 1/3 of the gross household income of that family. Once this evaluation is established, then the current market value of the home will be reassessed and the homeowner will be offered the following options:
1) If the homeowner can qualify for the current market value price of the home at the current FHA fixed mortgage rate, then they will be able to stay in the home. EDA, through ARK funds will then purchase the home from the lien holder and become the beneficiary, or allow FHA to hold the new, adjusted note. (This adjusted property value will usually be lower than the original note)
2) If the homeowner can not qualify for the home at the readjusted market value price, then assistance will be granted to transition them into a home that they can afford. The homeowner can choose between a previously foreclosed home now rehabilitated and owned by the ARK Foundation, or another home of their choosing. ARK funds may be used to assist in closing costs and moving expenses. EDA may provide financing through ARK funds or through FHA funds that is less stringent than conventional financing.
3) If the homeowner can not afford to qualify for a home due to loss of employment income, then they can rent an ARK Foundation owned home at current market rents and may be obligated to become employed by the ARK Foundation and working on acquired property until other employment is obtained.

Tenants that were victims of owners of the defaulted homes will be allowed to continue to occupy the home when the ARK Foundation becomes owner. Rents will then be paid to the EDA for rent if occupants are employed. If they cannot pay, then an eviction may be necessary to have occupants removed.

ESTABLISH NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH PROGRAMS: Community Centers will be established within neighborhoods to provide the following:
1) Trade Schooling - Hands on instructions and certificates for construction occupations such as, electrical, plumbing, carpentry, landscaping & yard maintenance, painting, drywall installation, and floor installation.
2) After School Youth Recreational Center - Providing sports, crafts, computer access, and games for neighborhood youth.
3) Counseling Portal - County agencies will have satellite offices to accommodate outreach for the elderly, children, disaster recovery, homeless and displaced counseling.
4) Daycare facilities - For low income families that are employed or in enrolled in an educational program.
5) Police Sub-station - City Police and/or County Sheriffs will have an interactive presence that addresses community criminal activity and establish relationships with the residents. They will monitor and track real property crimes directly related to depressed neighborhoods (graffiti, squatters, robbers, and vandals)

These facilities will be an ideal location for ‘Community Service’ and volunteer work that will directly positively impact local communities. Any that are seeking to volunteer can enroll here, and accountability will be kept by logging all volunteer hours and activities.

These facilities will also train and dispatch worker services to assist in ARK Foundation property rehab projects. All individuals that may be unemployed, can enroll free of charge, into one of the trade training courses and will be required to volunteer 8 hours of work into the community prior to starting the training course. Upon completion of a course subject, the individual will receive a certificate of completion and immediately begin working his newly acquired trade within an ARK Foundation property within the community. The individual will be paid as an apprentice of the trade out of ARK Funds. For each trade course an individual elects to take will require an eight hour volunteer commitment prior to starting the course. Professional Building Trade organizations will also issue certificates for certain courses.

Commercial properties selected will be from bank foreclosed commercial property that EDA will identify and obtain from ARK funds. EDA will decide when and where a ‘Neighborhood Outreach Center’ is needed.

PROVIDE JOBS TO REHABILITATE REAL PROPERTY: Jobs will be created in this ARK Recovery model while supporting and sustaining existing City jobs.
Jobs created are listed below, but not limited to:
1) Haulers: Collecting and properly disposing of trash, litter, and debris from ARK properties and throughout city. All recyclable materials will be recycled.
2) Yard Maintenance Workers: Keeping exterior yard areas of ARK properties maintained by frequent maintenance (irrigation systems, trimming, and yard care)
3) Landscaping Designers: Design effective landscape, irrigation systems, and drainage for ARK properties that are low cost and water efficient.
4) Landscape Installers: Installs landscape and irrigation systems as prescribed by Landscape designers. Artificial turf will be installed at visible yard areas especially in water conservation areas. Fruit trees in the rear yards will be planted.
5) Structural Architect Designers: Redesign older home floor plans that are outdated. They may design an existing floor plan to accommodate an additional bathroom, laundry room, or room additions.
6) Building Framers: Install or replace walls that need installation or replacement.
7) Retrofit Workers: To install regional retrofit requirements such as, wind sheer and seismic anchors to ARK homes.
8) Demolition Contractors: To demolish houses, or portions of houses, that are beyond repair. If the cost of repairs exceed the value of the house, then the property will be demolished and some materials recycled. The Building Architect will then provide a design for a low cost, and efficient home to be built that is compatible to the existing neighborhood housing stock.
9) Electricians: Will update all electrical wiring to current electrical codes such as: electrical service panels, entire re-wiring, outlets, GFCI outlets, high amp outlets, low energy light fixtures, and electrical accessories.
10) Plumbers: Will update all plumbing to current plumbing codes such as: plumbing fixtures, shut off valves, garbage disposers, water heater pressure relief lines, sewer access ports, septic-to-sewer lines, and installing water conservative toilets, energy efficient water heaters & shower heads.
11) Drywall Workers: Installing and/or repairing drywall to interior walls and ceilings.
12) Painters: Interior and exterior painters to paint walls as needed.
13) Roofers: Repair damaged roofs or install new roofs. New roofs will have a fire resistant material rating.
14) Carpenters: Design and install cabinets, doors, closets, built-in shelves, media alcoves, and countertops.
15) Floor Installers: Remove existing damaged floor covering and replace and/or install new floor coverings. No carpet will be installed. Only hard surface floor covering will be installed since it is durable and require less maintenance. Floor coverings such as linoleum, hard wood, tile, or simulated wood or tile will be installed on all interior floors.
16) Fence Installers: Repair or replace perimeter yard fencing.
17) Window & Glass Installers: Repair, replace, and install new window frames and glass. All windows requiring replacements will be done with energy efficient dual paned windows.
18) Locksmiths: Will install door locks or re-key existing locks. Keys will be held by EDA to each ARK property.
19) Appliance Installer: Will only install kitchen stove, built-in microwave, and dishwasher appliances within one week of occupancy to prevent theft of the items. All installed kitchen appliances will be energy efficient.
20) Garage Door Installers: Repair existing garage doors or replace garage doors.
21) Neighborhood Outreach Program Director: Oversee and organize a specific Outreach site. Will direct and monitor all activities within the Outreach Center. Duties will include, but not limited to: budgeting allotted ARK funds, insuring standards are maintained within the Trade Training center, child care center, and the activity center. Directs Managers of each of the three departments (Trade Training, Child Care, & Activities). He/she will report to the Director of ARK Recovery Program.
22) Neighborhood Outreach Program Managers: (Building Trades Manager, Child Care Manager, and Activities Manager) Manages the staff of the Neighborhood Outreach Program in everyday operations. Adheres to budgets and reports all activities to the Neighborhood Outreach Program Director.
23) Certified Building Trade Instructors: Will instruct all enrolled individuals on the various building/construction skills. Will provide hands-on instruction, exams, and certificates to recipients. Skills included, but not limited to, are: Plumbing, electrical, framing, drywall, flooring, windows, carpentry, painters, irrigation system installers, and roofing.
24) Daycare Workers: Licensed/certified Daycare workers to care teach, comfort, and care for the pre-K children of the neighborhood community as well as the children of those actively participating in the ARK Program and volunteer workers children.
25) Recreational Activity Workers: Coordinate, implement, and conduct activities at the Neighborhood Outreach Program Center. Events and activities, include but not limited to, are: Computer access & training, sporting activities, crafts, tutoring, cooking & nutrition, tours, entertainment tours, field trips, concerts, neighborhood block parties, arts, and music instructions.
26) ARK Foundation Program Director: Responsible for the entire program for the region that he/she is appointed over. Will oversee all aspects, including but not limited to: personnel, budgeting, acquit ion of real property, directing immediate staff, consulting with existing City/County elected officials, will meet with local Representatives & Congressmen and women regularly, and reporting to the Secretary of Treasury and/or any other U.S. Government official designated. The ARK Program Director will maintain office space within the existing City’s EDA Department.
27) Labor Attorney: Responsible for all legal labor aspects of the ARK Program. Will consult with the City Attorney Office and with the elected City/County elected officials. Will monitor and insure that all labor practices are legal and fair. Will disclose any and all labor law requirements to the ARK Program Director. Will represent the ARK Program on legal issues. The ARK Labor Attorney will be under the supervision of the ARK Program Director. Will maintain office space within the existing City’s EDA Department.
28) Real Estate Broker: A salaried plus commission position for a licensed Real Estate Broker in the state where the ARK Program is located. Will review and approve all real property transactions that the ARK Foundation are involved in. Will direct his/her staff on the negotiation and selection process of real property to acquire. Must be knowledgeable in real estate trends, and the make up of the area where the ARK Program is established. Will market all ARK owned property, negotiate all transactions, approve all sales of real property. The ARK Program Real Estate Broker will be under the supervision of the ARK Program Director, and will work with the labor attorney, and the existing private real estate community. The ARK Program Real Estate Broker will maintain office space within the existing City’s EDA Department.
29) Real Estate Asset Technicians: A licensed or unlicensed real estate professional that will perform duties specifically designated by the ARK Program Real Estate Broker. Must have experience in the fields of appraisal, sales, contracts, tax assessment valuations, notary, and/or real estate development. Will be directly responsible for gathering information on prospective real property acquisitions from Lenders that have defaulted/REO property. Establish pre-acquisition negotiations with Lenders and present information for the ARK Program Real Estate Brokers approval. Monitor the default process of prospective residential real property, and review options with the occupants (Owners/Tenants) on available ARK Programs that they may be able to participate in. The ARK Real Estate Asset Technician will initiate lease contracts, place repair orders, and manage leased and vacant ARK owned property. The ARK Real Estate Asset Technicians will maintain office space within the existing City’s EDA Department.
30) Administrative Technicians: All ARK Foundation Directors and Mangers will have an Administrative Technician assigned to them. There duties will be data entry, reports, receiving incoming calls &complaints, mailings, and all other duties assigned by the Director/Manager.

EXISTING CITY INFRASTRUCTURE: The City where the ARK Foundation Program is established will utilize the existing city structure to facilitate the ARK Foundation Program. The City will receive up to $20 Million annually from ARK funds to provide such services from the following City Departments: Code Enforcement, Building Department, Information Technology, Finance, and Human Resources.
Code Enforcement will continue to make an impact on neighborhood communities by their contributions to stabilizing the real estate market. Enforcement efforts will be strengthened by spending less time and effort on foreclosed property and refocus their attentions to gaining compliance on property maintenance issues on the non-defaulted homes. Most cities have Code enforcement/compliance departments within them. ARK funds may be needed to hire more code officers in order to insure that surrounding properties are safe for occupancy, and enhance the appearance of the neighborhood, which in return will stabilize and improve property values. They are a vital role in stabilization since they have the ability to gain compliance to property owners that do not comply.
Building Officials will contribute by providing initial assessments of the ARK properties. They will provide reports in the form of ‘corrective measures’ for the ARK Foundation which will include structural integrity, plumbing, electrical, foundation, and roof. They will also issue building permits to the ARK Foundation to correct any deficient areas noted. ARK funds may be needed to hire additional building inspectors, planners, or permit technicians to insure that all ARK Foundation property repairs or rehabs are safe and permitted.
Human Resources will contribute by facilitating the hiring processes for all positions that the ARK Foundation funds. Making job announcements and job descriptions, providing and accepting applications/resumes, organizing interviews, and in-processing new hires. The new hires will have the same benefits as the City employees have and will be processed in the same manner as a City employee would be with the exception of a Union membership. ARK funds may be needed to hire additional staffing for the Human Resources department and/or fund the cost of providing health/dental coverage, retirement programs, and additional benefits that the City offers.
Finance Departments will contribute by establishing payroll for all ARK Foundation funded hires. Funds will be dispersed to the existing city’s finance department from the ARK Foundation in order to pay wages to ARK employees. ARK funded employees will be paid in the same manner as existing city employees. ARK funds may be needed to hire additional accountants in the finance department.
Information Technology Departments will contribute to the ARK Foundation by setting up computer and technological devices as needed for the ARK Foundation. ARK funds may be needed to hire additional IT technicians and professionals, servers, computers, programs, or other devices required.

REHABILITATE REAL PROPERTY: Residential real property continues to drop in value. This drop in value is more than the normal swing in the housing cycle that adjusts from a ‘seller’s market’, to a ‘buyer’s market’. The current real property condition of the ‘real estate meltdown’ is plagued by the rapid decay of the property condition. The difficulty in recovering from slumping housing values is that recovery or stability is difficult because the battle is not just with economic fluctuations in real estate markets, but now it has an added element that is crippling recovery or stability efforts. The added battle to recovery is the impact that physically distressed property has on neighborhood values. Distressed residential real property may have unattractive landscaping issues, trash & debris in and around, graffiti & vandalism, green pools, and stripped out appliances, wiring and plumbing from the interior. All these, further deplete values that causes well maintained homes in the neighborhood to suffer. This cycle makes stabilization very difficult to accomplish.
The ARK Foundation will address this issue immediately, by acquiring distressed foreclosed property and improving them. This action alone will protect neighborhood homeowners from further depletion of values, and should stimulate prospective homeowners and investors in purchasing homes in neighborhoods that are stabilizing and improving…which should be indicated by increased values. The problem now is the “how low can you go” mentality that investors & prospective homeowners have that continually discount property based on it’s depressed physical condition. The ARK Foundation will acquire property in highly distressed areas which may have older dwelling structures that may require more funds to improve than the recent modern dwellings in subdivisions that may not require as much improvements to stabilize. Due to the ‘sub prime’ lending practices, newer subdivision homes (those constructed after 2000) has contributed a vast amount of defaulted loans and foreclosed residential real estate.
So, the ARK Foundation efforts will be to stabilize both the older stock of homes in depressed areas, as well as the younger stock of recent subdivisions.
In the ideal situation, the ARK Foundation will rehab vacant distressed property that it acquired at a discounted value from the foreclosing lender. Once the property has been rehabilitated, the cost of the rehab will be added to the acquisition cost to establish the minimum sales price. The property will then be sold to a qualified buyer. If the market conditions will not support the revised value, then the property will NOT be discounted to lower values, but instead, rented/leased out to qualified occupants. When the tenants terminate the lease, the property will be evaluated to determine if it is able to be sold above and beyond the vested amount that the ARK Foundation acquired and rehabilitated.

EVERYONE CAN PLAY A PART: Corporations, as well as private individuals can contribute to this recovery effort that will be the start of total economic recovery of the nation. Corporations that are providers of construction materials can donate those materials in exchange for tax breaks. Businesses that specialize in home improvements can provide ‘Trade Trainers’ to teach building trades in the Neighborhood Outreach Centers. Their time contributions given to teach could be exchanged in the form of tax breaks for the businesses or organizations that they represent.
Private citizens can also play a part as volunteers. Those individuals that already possess special skills that are compatible with ARK Foundation job skills can volunteer time in their communities. All other willing citizens can volunteer in ARK Foundation areas or within other Federal, State, County of Municipal agencies as needed to make a positive impact. It is my belief that many will rise to the occasion and volunteer many hours of community service in order to change the current economic conditions.
A volunteer voucher program would be a federal approved program where all private citizens, businesses, and corporations can receive a validated voucher that specifies the amount of time, funds/materials/services, that were volunteered into the ARK Foundation. The validated volunteer voucher can now be claimed on the appropriate tax year filings. There should be no limit on how much time, money, materials, services, or property an individual or corporation can donate to this effort.

POTENTIAL ARK FOUNDATION PARTNERSHIPS:
Neighborhood Works ©America
Federal Housing Administration
U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
International Code Council©

Your comments, critique, and suggestions are welcomed.
Email me at n_effect2002@yahoo.com

The ARK Foundations’ Author - Keith Sartin is currently a resident in Moreno Valley, California and is employed with the City of San Bernardino, California as a Supervising Code Enforcement Officer. He has been employed in City Government for nearly a decade. Prior to service to City government, he was a licensed real estate salesperson in the Northern California Bay Area for over a decade, employed with Kaufman & Broad Homes, Prudential Real Estate, and Mason-McDuffie Real Estate. Prior to real estate, he served in the U.S. Army Military Police Corps for nearly eight years with the 259th MP’s at White Sands Missile Range, NM., and 3rd Infantry Division, Wurzburg, Germany as the Commanding General’s Bodyguard. Keith Sartin was born in Chicago, IL and raised in Brookhaven, MS and attended Southern University in Baton Rouge, LA. He is the father of two daughters (LaToya 27, and Zoe 4).

© 2009 Keith Sartin (ARK Foundation)   Read More »

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Radio Show Update

By "Voice for Humanity" - Jan 24th, 2009 at 8:01 pm EST

Schedule Update:

January 24, 2009, Air time - 8.00 - 10.00 P.M(PST)

Category: Current Events

Topic: Wall Street Bailout

Discussion:

What should financial institutions do with taxpayers’ bailout?

Why haven’t the financial institutions invested funds to stimulate economy?

What is public demand from them and the legislators?

——————————————————————————————————————-

January 25, 2009, Air Time 2.00 - 4.00P.M (PST) - (5.00 - 7.00P.M EST)

Topic: Free Palestine

Discussion:

1. How can we help to expedite independent state for Palestinians free of Israeli blockade, occupation and aggression?

2. What should the new administration do to be a trustworthy partner and unbiased peace broker in the Middle East conflict?

3. How can we help Israeli population elect a moderate government in early February favoring peace and diplomacy over military action for their national security and sovereignty?

——————————————————————————————————————

January 30, 2009, 120 minutes 2.00P.M - 4.00P.M - Cancelled due to restrictions on segments at frequent intervals.

Category: Current Events

Topic: Economy and Health Care - Please refer to blog post on www.padminiarhant.com for details and I invite you to post comments.

What should the new administration do for you and the economy?

How do we fix the Health Care system?

———————————————————————————-

Podcast live : http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Padmini-A

Guest Call-in-number: (646) 727 -3778

I invite you all to participate in the public forum and share your concerns, ideas and knowledge.

Your comments and thoughts are welcome in the political discourse.

Let us keep democracy alive and help our new President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden in rebuilding our nation.

Your participation is a huge encouragement and always appreciated - Thank you again.

Look forward to the session.

Thank you.

Padmini Arhant

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Radio Show Schedule - Padmini Arhant

By "Voice for Humanity" - Jan 22nd, 2009 at 1:51 pm EST

Radio Show Schedule

I will be doing a live radio show for 120 minutes from 2.00P.M to 4.00P.M. (PST) on the following days:

January 23, 2009 Friday from 2.00 - 4.00 P.M (PST) to accommodate listeners from all time zones.

Category: Current Events

Topic: Corporate Bailout

Discussion:

What should financial institutions do with the taxpayers’ bailout?

Why have they not utilized those funds to stimulate economy?

What is public demand from them and the legislators?

———————————————————————

January 30, 2009, 120 minutes 2.00P.M - 4.00P.M

Category: Current Events

Topic: Economy and Health Care

What should the new administration do for you and the economy?

How do we fix the Health Care system?

———————————————————————————-

Podcast live : http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Padmini-A

Guest Call-in-number: (646) 727 -3778

I invite you all to participate in the public forum and share your concerns, ideas and knowledge.

Your comments and thoughts are welcome in the political discourse.

Let us keep democracy alive and help our new President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden in rebuilding our nation.

Look forward to the session.

Thank you.

Padmini Arhant

P.S. My apologies for not being able to schedule a convenient time on January 21, 2009. I am aiming to provide as much time as possible through whatever avenues available in getting us back on our feet.

Your participation is a huge encouragement and always appreciated - Thank you again.

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Multiple Losses: Home, Job, Health and so on...

By Metalistic - Jan 16th, 2009 at 9:22 pm EST

With the increasing number of people unemployed, which translates to loss of medical coverage if you had it, fewer jobs available and so on.........there is a tsunami effect impactiing many people in this country that falls under the radar. I'm not referring to the long-term unemployed who no longer receive benefits - there have been guestimates on that number - but in reference to the recently unemployed who lose their medical coverage, who are homeowners in and heading in to foreclosure who are over 50 years of age, who experience sudden medical trauma, and still owe on their student loans. This group of people are compounded with the most critical top 5 issues that these political blogs and pundits have yet to address: people who have or are about to lose everything.

I should know...I am one of them.

As a third generation college graduate baby boomer who put two kids through college, I had a 25 year career in corporate America, worked as an independent consultant in higher education and training and in the entertainment field until life took an upswing and then a resounding crash. That's life. But in the downward spiral of the nations economy, a single Black woman well over 50 years of age isn't looked on as marketable. I spent 25 years in Human Resources so I know what I'm talking about. Add medical issues, downsizing your work hours, loss of medical coverage and the inability to keep up with mortgage payments due to paying out-of-pocket for medical bills.....a larger complexity developed. Utility expenses fall behind......you can't afford to repair your 16 year old car so a friend unloads it for you. I haven't even discussed the student loan I owe for well over $40,000 in a career change.

All this to say, a bailout of foreclosures and those approaching foreclosure would help keep people in their homes and not in shelters or forced into living with family, creating other issues. When I started in social services in 1971, the most important needs of my clients were a place to live and a job. Disproportionately women with children and single women are affected in these foreclosure due to the push for minority home ownership in the last five years. Now we, baby boomers who helped shape this country, are caught in the afterglow of the greed of a few on the backs of the many. So as you write policy and consider what type of bailout for who, weigh your consideration for the women who have held this country together in every possible way against the few corporations and the few men who have made greed the new powerball and set this depression in motion.

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Home values may not return for another 20 to 50 years

By JimBO - Dec 16th, 2008 at 6:49 pm EST

Also listed in: North Las Vegas, MLK - Nellis Organizing Team (NV 164)

Here is the link to my prediction of when home values will come back to their highs in 2006:

http://www.t-shirtshopper.com/future_home_values.htm

I based my chart on a historic home price chart I found at http://housingbubble.jparson.net . I expanded the chart to show the historic trajectory of home values in order to predict the home values bottom and when values will recover from the height of the market in 2006. If this chart is correct, it looks like home values and their prices will be corrected sometime in the 1st or 2nd quarter of 2009. That's the good news. The bad news is that anyone that bought a home in 2006, may not see their home values come back until as early as 2029 and as late as 2062. I did this to show just how serious the problem is. There are alot of people that think their home values will come back in just a couple years. I hope I'm wrong, but I wanted to show everyone what I found. If anyone else has data that suggest the contrary please post it on the blog.

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Proposed New Federal Law to Prevent Future Home Foreclosures

By JimBO - Dec 15th, 2008 at 5:11 pm EST

Also listed in: North Las Vegas, MLK - Nellis Organizing Team (NV 164)

I propose a new federal law, that protects home buyers from ever losing value in their home by no fault of their own. If a home ever goes under what it was originally purchased for the mortgage company will be required to take a loss and write off the principle. At first I'm sure you are saying no way, this is wrong, and maybe even unAmerican. But what does it mean to be an American? Does it mean that we corrupt and like it that way? Does it mean that we do not look out for one another, and try to pull each other down anyway we can whether or not it's ethical or moral? It seems to me that alot of the times now a days that's exactly what it is. And we allow it to go on and turn the other cheek and just say to ourselves that's just the way it is and nothing can change it. Well not nothing. We can change it if we want to. I have put a little thought into this new law and I think it may very well be the correct solution. Let's think about it for a second. If there was a law that required a mortgage company to write down a principle if a home went under that value originally purchased, do you think maybe banks would make sure they are making good loans? Ummm absolutely. If they don't get the home value right, they will take the loss. Not the buyer. Do you think they will make sure they are not handing out risky loans? Absolutely, we all know what happens now when you have too many foreclosures. Would this create a real estate market that was fair and stable? Yes, a market that is as safe and stable as a FDIC insured savings account and a market that people would want to invest in again. One of the big problems now is that people do not trust the market anymore, and just don't want to take such a risk anymore. The law is simple and straightforward, the banks take the loss. After all they are to blame as well. They are taking the risk of whether or not you are going to pay back the loan. Now things are so bad, no one wants to pay the loan and they are risking their entire companies. Why? They're reputations are now that they cannot be trusted and now no one wants to do business with them.

Now the only problem I forsee with this law is that banks may end up dictating home prices. That's a big maybe.. I think the reason they require 20% or 10% down is just in case you pay to much for a home. So if you put 20% down and the home is worth 20% less well, the bank wouldn't take that loss. That would be on you. But if it goes beyond the 20%, then the law would state the bank would be required to write down the principle of the loan to the home value minus the 20%. This is only fair that the bank would do this. After all you've already lost everything you put down. You took that much risk. The bank should take the rest.

If anyone has any thoughts or ideas for or against proposed law, please add it to this blog.

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New Law to Solve Foreclosure Crisis

By James from North Las Vegas, NV - Dec 14th, 2008 at 2:38 pm EST

I started this blog because I bought a home a few years ago in Las Vegas, when the market was hot and now I've lost so much money on my home I can't even sell it if I want to. If I did I'd probably end up with a net loss of over $100,000. It was my first home. I put nothing down, with a 5 year arm. I have good credit, and so far have not missed any payments. However because the economy in Vegas is getting worse, I'm not sure how much longer I can afford to stay in this home. And since it's not appreciating and doesn't look like the value will be coming back anytime soon, it's looking more and more like a lost cause. I know there are many others in Las Vegas that are in the same situation that I am in, so this blog will be a good place to express your anger toward the banking system and government. I believe they both share in the majority of the blame for the foreclosures. I hear talk that the Govt. is working on it and Obama is planning on doing something, but not much action or specifics as of yet. I'm not sure the government really does have a plan. At least doesn't seem like they have any real good ideas yet. So I started this blog so Americans can post their thoughts themselves and discuss some possible solutions. The foreclosure crisis is the root of all our economic problems and what triggered the recession, so we will not only be solving the foreclosure crisis, but also saving the entire country from meltdown.

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Obama-Biden Supporters Wanted To Recruit People To Be Financial Professionals-Help End The Economic Crisis

By Creator of A New Financial System - Dec 6th, 2008 at 1:40 pm EST

Also listed in: 8 groups

Us the materials below to communicate my plan for helping Obama-Biden administration to solve the economic crisis:

Entreprenual independent contractors, collaborators, needed to market, a New Financial System. That's right, a New Financial System (NFS). A NFS to compete against the problematic current system of Wall Street, Banking, Multinational Corporations, etc. My NFS is so promising that "pretender(s)" are already beginning to spring up in the very small test market in which it is involved. But this NFS is based upon well-guarded confidential processes and strategies, and multiple streams of revenue, which make it potentially the most valuable asset owned by a private entity. I need bold entreprenual types or teams to market the benefits of my NFS to one or more of the 165 Nations of the world as well as the largest and most important Non-Governmental Organizations, Multinational corporations, financial institutions, etc. Average sells will be in the $5-$10 million range, with larger clients/partners paying much more. Commission-only compensation. Accordingly, only those with the right connections, experience, mind-set, and financial resources needed to succeed, are encouraged to apply. If you wish to apply in confidence then indicate in your reply.

As a strategy to help protect the confidentiality of my New Financial System, you will be required to refer serious-minded persons who have close connections to potential client(s) to me, but ONLY after they have made a request for more details of my New Financial System directly to you. Knowledge of the processes and strategies of my New Financial System will not be revealed to you. Only referrals with a high potential of leading to a sale will be considered to be legitimate. I will maintain records of all legitimate referrals. I will pay fees based on legitimate referrals. I will pay commissions of $10,000-$1,000,000 for legitimate referral(s) leading to a successful sale. I will pay smaller commission amounts for legitimate referral(s) leading to preliminary sales. Preliminary sales are where potential clients pay for partially participating in one or more of the programs of my New Financial Systems.
If you are seeking a long-term professional relationship with me then do not submit illegitimate, scatter-shot referrals.

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Loses your home - 5 years before you can own!

By Jasmine - Nov 21st, 2008 at 10:02 am EST

I started this blog, because I wanted to talk about my efforts to save my home, and to really just get some thing off my chest.

I finally lost my home to foreclsure sale in June 08, after trying to work with the bank ( countrywide/BOA) for over a year. As a result of this my credit is such that I can't even begin to think about getting a home for at least 5 years. Countrywide and BOA ran me around for over 1 year, just to not help me at all.

I think the problem with all this talk about helping out the homeowners, is that it is up to the bank, they can chose to help or not. If they think that they can get these assest off there books by a sale, or government help, then they are less likely to do anything to help keep the home owner in the house. I found out the hard way that not only do the banks work with each other, so do the courts.

We the homeowner can't win, even if we had money to pay for a lawyer to help us.

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Home Foreclosures

By Ms. Mary - Nov 2nd, 2008 at 6:22 pm EST

Also listed in: 10 groups

Everyone should be aware that home foreclosures cannot stop you from voting. But they need an address in order to vote. Even if they are homeless, their address is wherever they spend their time.

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Foreclosures up over 70%

By Joshua Mathews - Oct 23rd, 2008 at 10:44 am EDT

WASHINGTON - The number of homeowners ensnared in the foreclosure crisis grew by more than 70 percent in the third quarter of this year compared with the same period in 2007, according to data released Thursday.

By the end of the year, RealtyTrac expects more than a million bank-owned properties to have piled up on the market, representing around a third of all properties for sale in the U.S.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27329406

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Practical solution today - virtually zero-cost, to Foreclosure Crisis

By Martin Dudziak - Oct 21st, 2008 at 11:23 am EDT

Also listed in: 7 groups

The full text, two pages, is at http://forteplan.com/obama/foreclosure_solutions.pdf (or .doc)

The basics here:

In the worst case, of an actual foreclosure and title revision/transfer back to the lender, the people stay - the occupants stay - and they become tenants with first option to rebuy in a reasonable contract.

Show me a vacant, run-down, becoming-delapidated house and yard that is selling well !

Show me a neighborhood full of such homes that is working out well for the lender-foreclosure-owners !

Read the outline, and consider that this saves everyone money and stress - AND - it increases and fuels the economy in other ways, for jobs and for businesses that sell things that homeowners, or home occupants and tenants, do buy, but that rats and cockroaches never seem to buy!

Go figure.

(Why are bankers seeming more and more to be so stupid when it comes to financial management and planning?)

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Housing Prices

By Robert from Phoenix, AZ - Oct 15th, 2008 at 7:08 pm EDT

Dear Mr. Obama,

I doubt that this letter will ever be read by you or your staff, but I can always hope. I am a registered Republican from the state of Arizona, and I am strongly leaning toward support of you and your campaign.

The reason for my support of your campaign is not so much what you have said during your campaign, but rather what John McCain has said, specifically relating to US Taxpayers buying mortgage backed paper. I feel that this will lead to further financial meltdown and will stabilize home prices, temporarily, at unrealistic, unadjusted levels.

Home prices were due to take a correction. If you couldn’t see the train coming you must have had your head in the sand. Banks and lending institutions should have seen this train coming and applied protective measures necessary to protect themselves and their investors incase of a market correction. Rather, they were making loans that were 125% of the value of the property. This is sheer stupidity, and unfortunately we will all share in the burden of these bad decisions. But we move forward from here.

I feel that McCain’s plan rewards greed and stupidity and guarantees huge debts to future taxpayers. From what I’ve heard from you, I believe you feel the same way. But the big question is… what is the alternative to McCain’s plan?

I realize that I don’t have a grasp of the complexity of the financial engine that drives the US economy. However, I do have a simplified plan on what can be done to stabilize the housing market and at the same time allow a large number of homeowners to remain in their homes with a much smaller downside risk to taxpayers than what McCain is proposing.

It must be noted that very little investor money is entering the residential real estate market due to the unrealistic values that lenders are placing on foreclosed properties. Yet, at the same time, these lenders need to be bailed out by the federal government because they don’t have enough cash to support their day to day operations. I’m sure the lenders believe that if they don’t sell the properties they won’t have to report the losses to their shareholders, but rather can report these investments as unrealistic assets on their books. This is a deception to both current shareholders and investors considering buying equity in the company. Lenders should be required to liquidate their assets at realistic values and take the associated losses, therefore sharing in the burden of this downturn just as all Americans are doing. Liquidating these assets at reasonable prices will give these companies badly needed capital without the help of the federal government’s assistance, will trigger investors to re-enter the residential real estate market, will infuse cash into a cash strapped system, will reduce inventory, and will stabilize home prices at a more reasonable, post-corrected, price point.

Another downside to allowing lenders to hold property is that they don’t maintain the property. Properties owned by banks are left to wilt and fall into disrepair. This leads to urban blight, crime, and causes further erosion in property values.

I speak from experience. We live in Phoenix, Arizona, which was a boon town during the recent building craze. I was recently employed by a civil engineering firm that was directly involved in the development of residential property. Since the onset of the residential real estate downturn I have lost my job and am finding it tough to find another in this business climate. Nevertheless, we purchased a new home in 2006 (prior to me losing my job). At the time of purchase we did not expect home prices to continue to increase at their previous unrealistic pace, (even though I was hoping that they might). I thought that the increase in home prices would decelerate and possibly stagnate. I also thought that there might be a possibility of price retraction. We did not want to be house poor and therefore bought what we could afford. We put a good amount of capital down on the property and therefore are not upside down on our mortgage yet, but we have lost significant equity in the property. We financed the home at a fixed rate for 30 years.

However, a few of our neighbors bought property with the expectation that home prices will continue their unreasonable escalation. Buyer greed was as much a part of this foreclosure disaster as was deception in the mortgage industry, despite what McCain would have you believe.

The neighbors to our west moved here from San Diego. They rented their home in San Diego and purchased a new home in Phoenix. They put in all the bells and whistles, and had a beautiful home with beautiful landscaping and a sparkling pool in their backyard. They also paid a pretty penny for the house and put very little money down. They financed the home with a sub-prime ARM and were probably thinking they could sell the home in a couple years and make a decent profit. On top on this they took out second and third position loans on the property. When the market went south they were immediately underwater. They tried selling the property for what they put into it but there were no takers. The lender refused to work with them on a short sale. Their mortgage rates were going up and they could no longer make their mortgage payments, and since they were already underwater, they had little incentive to make them. The lender foreclosed on the property and they packed up and moved back to San Diego.

The house went up for auction on September 22nd. I kept an eye on the property with assistance from a friend of mine in the real estate industry. He told me that the house did not sell at auction because the opening bid, (by the lender), was too high. So, the property is now lender owned. The water and electricity have been turned off. The plants are dying, the pool is green and the house, I’m sure, is worth less than it was at the time that it went to auction. On top of this there is a very real threat of disease spreading due to mosquitoes breeding in the stagnant water of the pool.

The neighbor to our east moved here from New Jersey. They purchased three homes in the Phoenix area, and currently have lost two. The third will be auctioned on December 23rd. Merry Christmas! The woman has no idea what she will do or where she will live. On top of this she is going through a divorce. Talk about tough! However, they bought all three houses with very little money down and with adjustable rate mortgages. They also took seconds on the properties. If this home is not sold it will wither like the one on our west.

How can we stabilize home prices and keep most homeowners in their houses? My answer may be over simplified, but I think it’s a good solution.

The procedure goes like this…

1. Allow current owners facing foreclosure to go into foreclosure. Everyone shares the burden. People who are not underwater on their mortgages due to prudent decisions, have faced substantial losses in equity. It seems only fair that buyers that made bad decisions lose the equity that they originally had in the property.

2. Persuade lenders sell the property at today’s values and require them to give the first option to buy the property to the original owners prior to selling the property at auction. This will cause the lenders to take a loss on the property as well as allowing a great percentage of homeowners to remain in their homes. Everyone shares the burden. If the government can not persuade the lenders to sell the properties at a loss they can pressurize lenders to do so by passing legislation forcing them pay all taxes and fees associated with the properties as well as a requirement to maintain the properties, thus avoiding the urban blight often associated with bank owned properties. If they fail to follow the rules of the new legislation they can be fined. If they refuse to pay the fines the federal government can acquire the property and can sell it at auction for a fair price. All proceeds from the sale of the property will be used to pay down the tax debt realized during the bailout of the financial market. Allowing these properties to sell at “fair,” post-corrected prices will cause inventory to dry up and should stabilize the market.

3. Because many buyers will have recently faced foreclosure, (as mentioned in paragraph 1, above), they will not be able to qualify for a loan, or if they can qualify, they will be faced with irrationally high interest rates. Therefore, it will be necessary for the federal government to step in and guarantee these mortgages. This will allow for a very safe investment opportunity and will influence investors to once again invest in mortgage backed paper. It will be much less expensive for the tax payer as well due to the fact that private institutions will be funding these loans and the only time federal coffers will be opened is if a loan fails which will be much less often since these loans will be made on post-corrected property values. On top of this, if a loan does fail, the federal government can sell the property to recover the losses. For borrowers to qualify for a government guaranteed loan they will have to meet stringent underwriting requirements established by the federal government. Not everyone will qualify, but people that have faced foreclosures will not be discriminated against in the underwriting process.

The ridiculous notion that home prices need to be stabilized at current prices is a fairy tale. They may be temporarily stabilized, but market pressure, due to an excess of inventory, will cause further downward pressure and eventually a second bubble will burst causing a continued decline in home prices, eventually ending at a price point that the market will bear.

Also, off the subject of housing, and turning to the subject of job creation. I think you should emphasize a vision of the future that supports research in biotechnology. A government investment in research related to finding cures for disease could create thousands of jobs. This sector has been stymied by Bush’s efforts to stop stem cell research.

Good Luck,

You have a lot on your plate.

Sincerely,

Robert Wells

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Barack Sees Green Economy On the Horizon in Lucas County

By Michael in Ohio - Oct 13th, 2008 at 1:52 pm EDT

Also listed in: 9 groups

Barack addressed a riled up crowd here in the Sea Gate Convention Center in Toledo, where prior to his appearance, excitement to have him in town (for 4 days!) boiled over into never heard before chants of "We Will, We Will, Barack You!" and "Bye Bye Bush! Bye Bye Bush!" Even during his speech, in this dark but spacious Convention Hall, they hooped and hollered and even stomped on the risers, to thunderous effect. But they paid attention when attention was due, because as Barack says, "These are serious times."

Local Field Organizer Jesse urged everyone in the crowd to not only vote early but vote today, and do their share of the work to reach out to voters, mentioning the "collective power of small action." Senator Sherrod Brown, who has become all but a fixture on campaign stops, mentioned that Lucas County had the potential to be a leader in the alternative energy sector, and it was a common theme throughout the day. A fellow who had been laid off his job for fourteen weeks made an appropriate introduction for Barack, who took this opportunity to roll out the steps of his Rescue Plan for the Middle Class:

The first involves the thing that's on everyone's mind, and it's easy to spell: J-O-B-S.
We are going to take a cue from Toledo, which has become a leader in solar panel technology...

Barack fleshed out the rest of his 4 step plan:

A New American Jobs Tax Credit - a temporary tax credit for firms that create new jobs in the United States over the next two years.
Relief to Families - penalty-free withdrawals of up to 15% of retirement savings from IRAs and 401(k)s in 2008 and 2009.
Relief to Homeowners - a 90 day foreclosure moratorium for homeowners that are acting in good faith in their efforts to pay their mortgages.
A Lending Facility to Address the Credit Crisis for States and Localities - the Federal Reserve and the Treasury should work to establish a facility to lend to state and municipal governments.

He called on everyone to participate in the fiscal responsibility that Wall Street has so brazenly bucked in the last eight years, and that the nation will need to demonstrate to overcome this crisis:

We have to break that cycle of debt.
We have to take responsibility for living within our means.

As a city that has seen much better days, but never more potential progress, Toledo was the perfect place for Barack to lay the foundation of his plan to rescue America's economy.

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HOA Problems $$$

By Amy from Orlando, FL - Sep 28th, 2008 at 10:09 am EDT

Our home owners at both of our properties is going up because of the influx of foreclosures. We are having to take care of the overgrown lawns and the people paying are footing the bill!!!! Can we consider some sort of tax break for HOA groups to offset the costs that home owners are paying for properties under foreclosure?

Drowning in fees !!!

Amy

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The Bush Bailout Plan: Let 'em have cake and eat it, too

By Marjani - Sep 27th, 2008 at 6:34 pm EDT

Also listed in: 4 groups

Apparently, the Republican "plan" isn't good enough.

The verbiage is sketchy, general, and not addressing the real issues here, which is the homeowners who got ripped off. The banks ripped themselves off trying to cheat others to meet their monthly quotas in loan closures.

This draft proposal of Bush's mentions not a damned thing about 'homeowners victimized by sub-prime lending'. It was constructed strictly around the rich lenders and the upper income "taxpayers" who have the bulk of their money invested in REITS and Capital Markets. Again, to protect the upper income sector who got rich ripping off the poor in the first place.

There is no consideration for the poor and the homeowners (according to John McCain that's "anybody making less than five million a year") who got burned in this Bush "bailout plan," not a dime's worth of consideration for them. You'll need to take that one to the people who don't do their homework and didn't see this coming years ago.

***

Sec. 3. Considerations.

In exercising the authorities granted in this Act, the Secretary shall take into consideration means for--

(1) providing stability or preventing disruption to the financial markets or banking system; and

(2) protecting the taxpayer.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/business/21draftcnd.html.

This Wall Street market crash, as Pat Robertson and John Hagee would say, must be "god's punishment" upon the rich. And rightfully so.

This bailout plan had better include giving those people who were cheated in the predatory lending market back their money and/or their homes...period. Because Wall Street asking for a $700b welfare check (a reward for screwing up the mortgage industry to prove a -wrongful- point about low income and minority borrowers) isn't going to cut it.

http://www.hud.gov/library/bookshelf12/pressrel/treasrpt.pdf

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