Another Great Depression?

[KnottedYet]

I'm a middle-aged single parent who has never owned a house.

I doubt I'd ever be able to buy one, either, cuz just this year I finally started making money at a REAL job and now I make too much to qualify for the downpayment grants our city gives single parents to help them buy their first home!

Of course, when I *did* qualify, I wasn't making enough to actually be able to afford the monthly mortgage payement, regardless of having a grant for the downpayment or not.

boogers.

And as the mortgage crisis comes to fruition, I'll be shoved right out of a mortgage through any bank. And my rent will continue to rise as people can no longer get loans to buy houses so demand for rentals goes up, and I'll never be able to save the $$ for a downpayment unless I start living in my car. (my rent for my apartment has gone up $300/month over the last 4 years)

[Zen]

I bet you can find a first-time home buyers loan out there somewhere.

[Trek420]

It's sure a great time to buy a house. Do you think it could simultaneously be a buyers AND a sellers market?

I'll tell you a funny story, when I got my loan and closed the house sI had to fill out all the forms and jump through hoops including verification of employment. At the antique store I work for that's done by a fax. You wanna know that I work there? HR sends a fax.

The bank insisted, said other employees always gave her a toll free number and a pin code and she called to verify employment.
Trek: No, HR sends you a fax.
Bank: What about the toll free number and pin code?
Trek: That's to verify that I USED to work here, like to check a resume or references.
Bank: But everyone else gave me an 800 number and....
Trek: Was it this? 800-EX-EMPLOY and this pin code
Bank: Yes, they always gave that one
Trek: That's the number to verify that I used to be, no longer am, was, ex employed, fired, retired otherwise no longer there ....
Bank: Oh.
Trek: You've been HAD

She thanked me and of course I got a fixed loan.

[NbyNW]

As a grad student with essentially nothing, the recession is scary enough. Seeing the word depression kinda blows my mind. As a history student, I've always hoped knowledge of the past actually does keep the same mistakes from being repeated (at the very least, the huge, devastating ones).

As a student of history, I've become resigned to the fact that many people don't pay attention to history and make short-sighted decisions. Mistakes get repeated and we wonder why no one saw it coming; when things go well, we take more credit than we deserve.

I've also had the experience of coming out of school during a downcycle. If you're resourceful and flexible, you'll find a way to pay the bills and pay down any school debt. The first job (first few jobs?) might not be the ideal fit for what you went to school for, but even in the best of times it can take a while to find a long-term professional "home."

I think the current situation is really painful for people who are finding they are not able to meet their expenses as planned . . . I work with a woman who has been watching her investments lose value just as she's getting ready to send her daughter to college, and it's going to take a lot more of her savings than she would have expected a year or two ago.

If you have very little, then you have very little to lose. This could be a good time to start doing some long-term planning.

DH and I have talked a lot about how comfortable our life is right now -- we don't live extravagantly but we can definitely find ways to economize -- and on top of that we can make do with a lot less. There's a lot of comfort in knowing that we've done it before as starving 20-somethings with liberal arts degrees, and we could do it again if push comes to shove.

[sundial]

Our region is known for rice production and an Anheuser-Busch uses rice in the production of their goods.

In our local news last week, Anheuser-Busch was purchased by a Belgium company. What was disconcerting about this was the US dollar was too weak to defend the company against the Belgium buyout. This is what causes me to really think about our state of affairs. What if China steps up to the plate next? Saudi Arabia? What if Muslims get a foot hold on our soil and gains economic control while eroding our democracy?

[tulip]

What if Muslims get a foot hold on our soil and gains economic control while eroding our democracy?

WHOA THERE, NELLY! You are treading on dangerous ground with that one. I suggest that the moderators nip this in the bud.

Or at least Zen should bring out her most heat-resistant mitts.

[Trek420]

Yep, let's calm down. This is not about religion, race or country of origin etc. And I don't see what anyones religion has to do with democracy

There have been Muslims in America for a looooooong time, paying taxes, building companies and in public service. We're a diverse country .... and discussion group

[Duck on Wheels]

And as for ruining democracy ... what's functionally left of the Bill of Rights nowadays anyway? According to my "disappearing civil liberties mug" (http://www.uncommongoods.com/item/item.jsp?itemId=13857) the NRA has managed to keep the 2nd amendment intact, and the 3rd still holds (no billetting of soldiers within the US). Property expropriation still requires compensation, and I haven't seen any cases of double indemnity yet. But the rest pretty much went down the drain in the "Patriot" Act. It may be like in the Middle Ages, that we have to count on the Muslims to archive all our old scientific and political knowledge until we lighten up enough to ask for it back.

[Geonz]

I do have concerns that other countries - having nothing to do with their religion - might already have economic roots. Yes, the foreigners getting the big beer company says something.
This means there might be even tougher times, tyrannies, nuclear war... I'm going to do my darndest regardless to keep my morals from being swallowed by my fear or anybody else's.
We have nothing to fear but fear itself. Fear drives people to be willing to support horrible things like wars and terrorism... and finding a way to categorize other peoples as something threatening and evil to justify the harm done to them.
Einstein said "Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind." Or something like that. Boy, do I wish there were a vaccine.

[Tuckervill]

WHOA THERE, NELLY! You are treading on dangerous ground with that one. I suggest that the moderators nip this in the bud.

Or at least Zen should bring out her most heat-resistant mitts.

I think she meant Islamists, not Muslims.

Karen

[Grog]

I do have concerns that other countries - having nothing to do with their religion - might already have economic roots. Yes, the foreigners getting the big beer company says something.

The United States has had pretty deep "economic roots" in most if not all countries of the world since the Second World War. That has not necessarily meant tyranny for all the countries involved, although it has meant that for some. Americans (well, especially the richest of Americans) have reaped the benefits of a globalized economy for a while. Unfortunately, I am afraid that it is not the richest Americans who will pay the price when it is realized that globalization is not a one-way street...

[sundial]

I think she meant Islamists, not Muslims.

Karen

Yes, Karen is correct. I should add I meant Islamic extremists. Sorry about the confusion.

[Mr. Bloom]

Isn't it interesting how we often confuse or stereotype nationality or politics with religion.

Israeli does not necessarily mean Jewish (and vice-versa)

Arab does not necessarily mean Muslim (and vice-versa)

American does not necessarily mean Christian...

[OakLeaf]

Isn't it interesting how we often confuse or stereotype nationality or politics with religion.

Israeli does not necessarily mean Jewish (and vice-versa)

Arab does not necessarily mean Muslim (and vice-versa)

American does not necessarily mean Christian...

And neither Israeli nor Jewish means Zionist. And many (most?) of the American Founding Fathers were not Christian.

It's infuriating and sad when outsiders make these stereotypes. It's even more so when insiders exploit them.

[smilingcat]

extremist views no matter who or what it is, is generally not good.

Islamic extremist are not the views of average Muslims. The average Muslim's concern is really no different than yours or mine. Quality of life, pursuit of happiness. Good education for your children...

As for Muslim extremists and their views, similar thing can be said about Christian extremists too. Look to the middle ages with Crusaders killing and pillaging. And bringing war and destruction to the Moors in Spain. Moors were actually more civilized than the Crusaders. Moors had utensils forks, table knives spoons... schools, libraries.. while the crusaders were still eating out of a bowl with bread and breaking food with their small knives used for hunting, warfare ...

King Phillip II of Spain was a meglomania and who used Christianity to conqure most of Europe. and oh not to forget, the Inquisitions. Do you dare to challange the words of GOD?? Look at Galileo

They are the faces of extremists and its not just limited to Muslims.

We also have extremists within Hindu religion... Buddhism unfortunately, is considered religion. It really should be considered a philosphy since it does not directly infer an omnipotent being of any kind. Nor does it have a central being whose wishes we try to live by. (okay so as it developed, pantheon of "gods" were created along the way.)


words, words and words. My understanding is the following

Islam is the name of the religion.
Muslim is the term applied to those practicing the Islamic belief.

Back to the depression related conversation

One of you was asking about the "crazy idea of interest only mortgage payment"

Here is a simple explanation:

This form of loan should only be used by those who have the ability to pay off the note in one lump sum. If you are able to secure a low enough interest rate, you are effectively freeing up the maximum amount of money from your loan. The money you didn't use to pay the principle can be used to finance other income bearing activity i.e. purchasing stocks with divident payout. If your loan interest is at 5% and you can get 8% return on your investment. you are coming out ahead by 3%.

So your loan is $1million. keeping it as a simple interest rate you would be paying $50,000 in interest only. but the same $1million would get you $80,000 in divident. You made $30,000 by borrowing money. And it didn't take into account of tax deduction on your loan. Clearly, the less money you spend on servicing the loan, the more money you will have from the divident payment. And this is one way of leveraging your money.

This is the basic premise of a interest only payment. It should never be used to get you to qualify for more money than you can really afford. Unfortunately, the basic principle and the reason behind the interest only loan was lost to those eager to qualify for a bigger loan. and they got into big trouble (because they had no hope of generating money for the principle. Their only hope is that the increase in valuation of your house or inflation to devalue your loan).

simple explanation. I hope this made sense.

Smilingcat