Owner: The Political and Financial Markets Commentator URL:http://politicsandfinance.blogspot.com Join Date: Thu, 18 Sep 2008 10:50:04 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: Discusses the world of politis and the financial markets, and how events in both affects us all. Site statistics:Click here
Time To Start Moving Forward? Back To Basics With Marketing 2008-09-17 07:18:35 AIG, AIG, AIGThe meltdown in the financial markets was averted for now as the Federal Government stepped in with an $85 billion bridge loan to AIG. What this shows us after the bailout of Bear Stearns, the willingness to let Lehman Brothers die and the bailout yesterday is that the government has made it clear that they will get involved if in its' estimation a failure would cause catastrophic mar Read more:Basics
, Forward
, Marketing
, Moving
, Start
Golden Parachutes: Executives Fiddle While Employees, Shareholders and The Economy Get Burned! 2008-09-16 09:09:16 What is the deal with Golden
Parachutes?I sit fixated in front of my T.V. and watch as companies go bankrupt, companies appear to be on the edge of bankruptcy and the financial system creaks under the strain.I see tens of thousands of shareholders lose their investments, 401K's depleted and employees both young and old losing their jobs, retirements and potentially their futures.Executives Fiddle Read more:Shareholders
Enough Of All Of This Damn Doom and Gloom 2008-09-15 08:49:36 Enough Already!OK. I think that we have established that there are some big problems out there, and today is going to be very interesting. But you know what? At the end of the day what happens to Lehman and AIG and everyone else does not in actuality put food on my table and send my kids to college.We will revisit the situation of course since it is going to be extremely dynamic and course setting Read more:Enough
, Gloom
Market Events: Pick Your Poison! 2008-09-14 15:02:19 I am not happy todayThe tone of my blog today is not one of happiness and joy unfortunately. I have spent the weekend watching and listening to the events that are unfolding somewhere down in lower New York City. Another investment bank teeters on the edge of going out of business after being in business since the 1800's. The Fed, the Treasury and the heads of all the other major financial inst Read more:Market
, Poison
Network, Network, Network 2008-09-13 15:07:23 I wanted to share some websites that if you are serious about mortgages, real estate and networking, you should join. Each has its' own benefits, but all provide the opportunity to meet people with similar interests, as well as those that can answer questions on just about any topic (LinkedIn in particular).All provide the opportunity to educate yourself in a variety of areas.If you are already me
Here We Go Again!!! The Bell Is Tolling For Lehman and AIG 2008-09-12 18:33:02 I hate to use this platform that is supposed to be used to discuss the commercial mortgage and real estate markets to discuss specific companies and the stock market, but as a former trader and avid stock market observer, the two are in some way intertwined. Maybe in a large way.What's Going On?We have had the recent federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and now we have the imminent pot Read more:Again
, Lehman
Where Were You? 2008-09-11 12:44:10 It sounds very cliche, but I am sitting at my desk and my mind wanders to where I was on September 11, 2001. Also cliche is that this event is compared to where people remember that they were on the day that Pearl Harbor was attacked or the day that John Kennedy was assassinated.Be Vigilant, Stay StrongThis leads me to think of how we as Americans need to remember this event and not let it fade in
What Goes Up Must Come Dowm (and visa versa) 2008-09-11 05:51:29 "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."George SantayanaCycles: Seen them before, we'll see them againWe have been through the cycles of the real estate market before , and we will go through them again. Right? We have seen the rise and the fall of the stock market many times, gold, oil ,copper, coal and any number of other markets and will see them again. Right?When I trai Read more:versa
What Do You Mean The Deal Won't Close This Week (or at all)? 2008-09-10 06:01:25 A commercial property presents itself to you for purchase. In this scenario, you can be either the buyer or a mortgage broker. It is a mixed-use property, which we know is commercial on the bottom and residential up. In this case it is a 3 over 1, or 3 residential apartments over a retail store.The borrower has a 720 credit score, and based on the net operatiing income, the loan desired and the pr Read more:Close
Politics: Whose Country Is It Anyway? 2008-09-08 20:47:46 For anyone that watches ESPN's Jim Rome, this is my burn. I am going to talk politics here, but I am not going to give away my party preference. It is not necessary. This is a commentary against both Democrats and Republicans, and the way that the people's business is conducted.The reality, unfortunately highlighted by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, is that our business is always secondary to the Read more:Anyway
, Country
Fnm and Fre Takeover: Happy days are here again? 2008-09-08 04:30:22 The need for the events of yesterday morning to re-open the mortgage markets for home purchases and refinance was discussed in this blog on August 27th.This morning an announcement was made by the Secretary Of The Treasury that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were being put into conservatorship because they are not capable of operating in a safe and productive manner on their own. The "takeover" of the Read more:Happy
, Takeover
I Need Tools And I Need Them Now!!!! 2008-09-05 09:48:13 Optimization, key words, Google Search, SEO are all terms that we have heard used in the past to describe the tools that we need to use in order to maximize our reach and penetration for our websites and businesses. I use them myself and find them to be invaluable.But, what tools do I use in my everyday business to maximize my reach and optimize my business. MBO is mortgage business optimization ( Read more:Tools
Commercial Appraisals: How Come So Much? 2008-09-04 05:32:25 Once a loan scenario has been submitted and determined to have a high probability of getting funded, the LOI is issued and the potential borrower signs and returns it. It is now time to move on to the next step, which is the underwriting of the loan. A key aspect of this will be the appraisal of the property, typically done by an appraiser on the lenders approved list (do not have an appraisal don Read more:Commercial
Is There Hope For The CMBS Market Going Forward? 2008-09-03 07:31:45 Once upon a time, commercial mortgage lending as a conduit was a thriving and vibrant market, providing fantastic liquidity for financing commercial purchases and refinances. Once upon a time you would have "strict" underwriting criteria that needed to be met in order to make sure that the loans that you were trying to make would conform to the mold and be able to be packaged with like loans and s Read more:Forward
, Going
, Market
New York City Finally Feeling Some Heat 2008-09-02 08:45:58 Today I wanted to take a look at a market that is in my backyard, and which for the most part has remained somewhat resilient with most of the markets around the country hitting on some very hard times, the multifamily rental market.The financial sector, which is a major key to the vitality and strength of the New York
City real estate markets, is taking its toll, with the latest shoe that is expe Read more:Feeling
, Finally
, New York City
When Can LOI Be A Four Letter Word? 2008-08-29 11:36:07 In the best of times when a borrower or mortgage broker would bring a scenario to a lender, an LOI, or letter of interest, would typically be fairly easy to obtain. This "indicated" that the lender, or the broker in conjunction with the lender, was providing a pre-approval of your loan based on a set of conditions being met. One of these conditions is that the third party reports come back satis Read more:Letter
Do Cap Rates Tie Into Treasury Rates? 2008-08-28 08:42:41 In a "normal" real estate market, capitalization rates, or cap rates, will typically drop as interest rates drop, and go up as interest rates rise. Remember that cap rates represent the return that a buyer of an income producing property will earn on their investment. If rates drop, then the spread between "risk free" investment returns (aka Treasuries) and the various commercial property types sh Read more:Rates
, Treasury
What Will Resolve Our Real Estate Crisis 2008-08-27 07:45:29 What is going to take the real estate crisis that we are in and begin to stabalize it and allow us to move forward. For answers to my questions I look for people who on a macro-economic basis typically have a great handle on things. In this case, my source may sound like a strange one, but it is Jim Cramer, the guy on TV that talks stocks. While his stock picking can be good and bad, given his Read more:Crisis
, Estate
, Real Estate
, Resolve
The Commercial Mortgage Market: Educate The People 2008-08-26 07:54:01 I have written previously about how in this market, it is critical to use more creative ways to drive business. One of the best methods that we have utilized is to provide short educational seminars to both mortgage brokers and real estate investors that are interested in learning more about commercial real estate and how financing these properties differs from financing a home.These seminars are Read more:Commercial
, Educate
, Market
, Mortgage
What Does It Take To Succeed In The Mortgage Business (Or Any Business)? 2008-08-25 09:23:24 As promised when I started this blog, not everything will be about mortgage training, but some will be about what I consider to be life training. Whether you are a mortgage broker, real estate broker, investor, teacher, builder or anything else, there are certain basic tools that are needed in order to succeed.None of these tools represent rocket science, but through my experience it sometimes hel Read more:Business
, Mortgage
Commercial Mortgage Underwriting Through the Eyes of the Underwriter: The Conclusion 2008-08-21 23:06:36 Paperwork Preparation, or The Loan PackageRemember in the beginning we talked about the importance of putting your best foot forward when applying for a loan either for yourself or for a borrower. We talked about having one chance to make a good first impression on the underwriter.The first step is to know the situation as well as possible so that potential surprises can be avoided (although they Read more:Commercial
, Mortgage
Commercial Underwriting Through The Eyes Of The Underwriter Part 2 2008-08-20 23:41:19 Commercial mortgage underwriting is done on a case by case basis, because every borrower and property to be financed creates a unique situation. Remember that with commercial borrowers there are typically stories that need to be told, whether it concerns the building, the borrower or both. It is the commercial property investor or LO’s ability to communicate the story effectively, and the will Read more:Commercial
Commercial Mortgage Underwriting Through the Eyes of the Underwriter 2008-08-20 03:51:48 This is going to look at the underwriter and the process as though it was being approached by a mortgage broker. If you are an investor in commercial property looking to get a building funded, the thinking is the same only in the 1st person.At first some of what you read today will sound redundant, but as we move into the next couple of days I hope that we can demystify the process, and bring you Read more:Commercial
, Mortgage
The Bailout Bill: Why So Glum? 2008-10-05 19:07:46 The Bailout Bill Passed: Why Are People So Glum?OK. Arms were twisted, some pork was added, the potential ramifications of doing nothing were averted, Main Street was saved (even if Wall Street also benefited), the middle class was rescued and the Bailout Bill was passed in the House after passage earlier in the week in the Senate.In anticipation of passage, the stock market was up over 200 points
The Votes Are Counted: And The Bailout Bill Passes 2008-10-03 13:28:34 The Bailout Bill Passes
In The House: Quick Market UpdateAs promised this morning, I wanted to take a look at two of the indicators of fear and liquidity before the bill passed, and after, to see if there are any noticeable differences. Would the passage in both parts of Congress relieve everyones concerns, or is it still going to take a while?The VIX: This morning: 45.26 Now (2: Read more:Votes
Watching The Numbers That Are Watching The Vote 2008-10-03 10:16:49 Measures of Liquidity and FearAhead of the jobs data and in front of the House vote on the bailout bill, I want to take a look at two of the markers for fear and liquidity. These are the ted spread which is a comparison of the 3-month LIBOR and the 3-month T-bill. The wider the spread, it is an indication of a lack of liquidity in the credit markets.Didn't get this out before the jobs number. Jobs Read more:Numbers
, Watching
Is It March Madness Already? 2008-10-02 21:34:57 Vice-Presidential DebateI am sitting and watching the debate, and it is making me long for a happier time, which for me is MarchMadness
and the NCAA Tournament. Because we are a long way off, I am forced to participate in another tournament. This one is a little harder to handicap, but worth a try none the less. Who will be left standing at the end?september madnessOriginally uploaded by cjammetA Read more:March Madness
The Message Of The Markets: Stock, Credit and Mortgage 2008-10-02 12:54:18 The Message
Of The Markets
The Senate passed the Bailout Bill 75-25 last night, in a fairly strong showing of bi-partisan support. Amendments were added to gain votes, and more importantly to entice some of the House members to vote yes without losing too many that had already voted yes and might now vote no.True to form, some Senators got some minor cuts and bruises on the stampede to the micropho Read more:Mortgage
, Stock
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