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We Thought Our Nightmare Was Over, But It Was Just The Beginning

A report from CNBC. “Nobel prize-winning economist Robert Shiller is worried a bubble is forming in some of the market’s hottest trades. He’s notably concerned about housing, stocks and cryptocurrencies, where he sees a ‘wild West’ mentality among investors. According to Shiller, current home price action is also reminiscent of 2003, two years before the slide began. ‘If you go out three or five years, I could imagine they’d [prices] be substantially lower than they are now, and maybe that’s a good thing,’ he added. ‘Not from the standpoint of a homeowner, but it’s from the standpoint of a prospective homeowner. It’s a good thing. If we have more houses, we’re better off.'”

A reader sent in this transcript from the end of the audio that wasn’t printed in the article. “‘We naturally look at the Federal Reserve as a source of stabilization, and we have to thank them somewhat for having filled that role for a long time, over a hundred years. But I don’t think that the whole thing is explained by Central Bank policy, there’s something about the sociology of markets that’s happening. Then there’s the question whether they can stabilize it without causing it to crash……uhhhh, that’s hard to do.'”

From CBS News. “Colby Lampman owns Homes of Idaho, a real-estate agency that his mother, Debbie, founded in 1990. According to Zillow, home values in Boise have shot up 32.5% in a year, the biggest increase in the country. ‘This market, compared to the other hot markets in the past, is sizzling, burning up, on fire!’ Debbie laughed.”

“Smaller cities all over America are seeing a similar boom. Thomas Brown in Austin, Texas: ‘There was a home that came on the market. It was $460,000. Our client said, ‘Hey, here’s what we’ll do: We’ll buy this house, we will buy the seller’s next house.’ So, they bid in the mid-seven-hundreds on the home, and they offered to buy the seller’s next home.’ Their offer was accepted.”

“Dustin and Brenda Heft used Colby Lampman’s agency to find their new home in Boise. Like 20% of all Lampman’s clients, they bought their Boise house without ever having seen it in person; they’d had only a video tour. Q: Is there any pushback among the locals to see all the Californians moving in?’ ‘To your face, no,’ Dustin replied. ‘But, you know, in conversations and stuff, you’ll hear some people that are pretty unhappy. A lot of locals, you know, just can’t afford to buy anymore.'”

From KMTV on Idaho. “People from all over Blaine County attended the Occupy Ketchum Town Square event on Saturday. The topic at hand was a lack of affordable workforce housing, as the cost of housing in Blaine County continues to rise, whilst median income simultaneously declines. Blaine County resident John Anderson joked about the income disparity in the area by saying that in Ketchum people either have two or three homes or they have two and three jobs to pay a single rent. He added that people with money buy homes in scenic areas as investment properties or rent them out through Airbnb.”

“‘I live in a 500 square foot loft. It was sold for $420,000,’ Anderson said. ‘A 500 square foot loft! I am going to be homeless [on] September 1st. I have no idea where I am going.'”

The Post and Courier in South Carolina. “Condo inventory in the Greenville area isn’t as tight as that for single-family homes, due to the fact that new units regularly come online. As of last week, Robby Brady, an agent with Allen Tate Realtors in Greenville, said there were 64 units listed as either never lived in or to be built, and 38 others being offered for resale. And those numbers may be low; Rob Warfield, an agent with Keller Williams Greenville Upstate said that developers may sometimes list just one unit on the MLS when they’ll eventually have many more coming behind it.”

“But that doesn’t mean there’s a glut of condos on the market, either. ‘My guess would be the actual active units downtown is higher than 30, but it’s not higher than 50,’ Warfield said. ‘For the amount of condos down there, it’s a pretty low number.'”

From Miami Community News in Florida. “Local Miami victims of predatory lending practices and their attorneys came together to hold a press conference across the street from a Bank of America in Coral Gables on May 19, 2021. At the event, local homeowners and victims of mortgage fraud shared their stories regarding the illegal foreclosures they have been subjected to, in order to draw additional attention to the looming foreclosure crisis and ongoing fraudulent and unscrupulous practices by major banks that are costing people their homes.”

“‘I have spent the last ten years of my life defending my home from a fraudulent foreclosure action, paying over $30,000 in legal fees fighting banks over a $51,000 mortgage that my now deceased husband and I took to refinance our home in 2004 with Countrywide,’ shared Maria Williams-James, a local victim of mortgage fraud. ‘In 2014, the judge dismissed the foreclosure case filed by Bank of America; we thought our nightmare was over, but it was just the beginning. Because of Bank of America’s lousy accounting practices on my mortgage, I’m still fighting to preserve my home. I worked all my life to enjoy my retirement years, but instead, these corporations have taken away my money, my peace, and the stability I deserve––please, I ask you to investigate the fraudulent foreclosures that are still happening in our state.'”

From CTV News in Canada. “A new trend in the Toronto real estate market, in which realtors are listing residential homes in the Greater Toronto Area for only a dollar, has left some buyers with questions. Listings such as 16 Kenrae Rd. and 15 Rebecca St. are examples of the trend, in which realtors opt not to disclose the actual value of the property. Just because a property is listed for a dollar, it certainly doesn’t mean that buyers will pay that much, though.”

“Toronto real estate agent Paul Poliszot currently has a property at 15 Rebecca St. listed for one dollar. ‘We’ve had a crazy six months. It’s been extremely volatile. Prices have fluctuated and asking prices and listing prices have not been reflective of a property’s value for quite a long time,’ Poliszot told CTV News.”

From Fort McMurray Today in Canada. “Keyano College is hoping someone in the private sector can come up with plans to develop 611 hectares of land it has owned since 2012. Development of the land, which is south of Fort McMurray, halted in 2015 when global oil prices crashed. Dale Mountain, the college’s interim president, said in a Thursday interview that the college will begin in the fall to ask developers to pitch ideas on using the land.”

“‘We’re looking at what are the possible opportunities for that land… We haven’t ruled out anything,’ said Mountain. ‘It’s possible it could be retail, it’s possible it could be residential or a mix. I would probably lean more to retail than residential. There’s a bit of a glut right now for residential properties on the market.'”

From News.com.au in Australia. “Thousands of investors are planning to offload apartments in Sydney and Melbourne in the coming months, according to a new survey, as unit values also take a dive in capital cities. The owners of over 2000 units in Melbourne and more than 2200 flats in Sydney intend to list their property, potentially flooding markets that are already grappling with oversupply, a survey conducted by Digital Finance Analytics shows.”

“Landlords with rental apartments in Sydney and Melbourne’s central business districts are expected to be a major part of the exodus due to the mortgage repayment holiday ending in March resulting in cash flow issues. This trend is backed up by a recent ME bank survey that showed 23 per cent of investors are wanting to sell their property in the next 12 months, compared with only 11 per cent of owner occupiers.”

“So what’s the reason for the mass exodus? Investors are finding it hard to fill apartments, as Australia’s international borders remain slammed shut. It’s creating high vacancy rates and competition, forcing landlords to take reduced rent with drops of up to 30 or 40 per cent, meaning some CBD landlords are struggling to even cover their costs, according to Andrew Wilson, chief economist of Archistar.”

“He said the closure of borders had also dampened the travel market meaning thousands of apartments that were used for short term stays like AirBnb had also hit the market, exacerbating the problem. It will mean a drop in prices for units that go up for sale, he added. ‘It will be interesting to see if more stress sales will be coming on to the market from investors given high vacancy rates and the end of mortgage rates holiday,’ he said.”

“Apartments are in oversupply right now, according to Tim Lawless head of research at CoreLogic, with 45,000 units currently being built in NSW and Victoria. ‘There is still a lot under construction and it’s yet to settle and complete at time when demand for units is relatively low and to top that off all that new supply is coming into a market that had a shock from a rental perspective with borders closed,’ he told news.com.au. ‘Inner city apartments aren’t being filled and vacancies are high. Some units are down in rental prices by 15 to 20 per cent in Sydney precincts.'”

“The drops were even higher in Melbourne with a 9.7 per cent annual fall in Moonee Ponds, which now has a median value of $566,000 and Ascot Vale had the same decrease with $570,000 value. Over in Kew, there was an 8.2 per cent drop to a value of $769,0000, while Essendon had a 7.8 per cent fall to a value of $577,000 and Glen Iris saw a drop in 7.2 per cent fall to $731,000 value.”

“These Melbourne suburbs have had quite a bit of new apartment stock built and there is more to come and lack appeal to most buyers, explained Wendy Chamberlain, who runs Melbourne-based Chamberlain Property Advocates.”

“‘Newer apartments in new blocks or larger towers generally tend to have smaller rooms, particularly bedrooms. Some bedrooms don’t even have their own window, just ‘referred light’ and higher owners corporation fees,’ she told news.com.au. ‘There is also no scarcity, as they can be ‘cookie cutter’ – your apartment is just the same as a lot of others in the same block. When I speak with real estate agents if I am looking for an apartment for a client, most have a lot of newer apartments available.'”

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This Post Has 70 Comments

  1. My thanks to the reader who took the time to listen to the video and sent me the transcript. I usually don’t watch them and when I did, he sure said that. So why would CNBC omit that quote in the print version?

  2. ‘This market, compared to the other hot markets in the past, is sizzling, burning up, on fire!’

    Look at me, I’m a runnin’ – with scissors!

    ‘There was a home that came on the market. It was $460,000. Our client said, ‘Hey, here’s what we’ll do: We’ll buy this house, we will buy the seller’s next house.’ So, they bid in the mid-seven-hundreds on the home, and they offered to buy the seller’s next home’

    OK, so do we have a bubble now that people are paying 700k for a 400k shack in Austin or a similar amount for a 500 sq ft loft in Idaho?

  3. Is there any pushback among the locals to see all the Californians moving in?’ ‘To your face, no,’ Dustin replied.’

    Why do my tires keep getting slashed?

  4. ‘there were 64 units listed as either never lived in or to be built, and 38 others being offered for resale. And those numbers may be low; Rob Warfield, an agent with Keller Williams Greenville Upstate said that developers may sometimes list just one unit on the MLS when they’ll eventually have many more coming behind it’

    ‘But that doesn’t mean there’s a glut of condos on the market, either. ‘My guess would be the actual active units downtown is higher than 30, but it’s not higher than 50’

    64 plus 38 Rob.

    1. Developers cant dump all the available downtown condo inventory at once because a) the local greenville market can not absorb it all, b) it will cause a oversupply which will quickly cause a spiral down in prices. developers only hope to sell all their inventory before the market drops.

      Historically condos are unattractive as far as value retention, they are the last to go up in value and first to drop.

  5. “‘We naturally look at the Federal Reserve as a source of stabilization, and we have to thank them somewhat for having filled that role for a long time, over a hundred years.

    Since the Fed’s clandestine 1913 establishment by a cabal of robber Barrons on Jekyll Island, SC, the dollar has lost 98 percent of its value. And this sheeple is thanking them? These gold collar criminals should be in prison for causing the 2008 GFC and then going on to create the most insane asset bubbles and Ponzi markets in human history.

    1. Chairman Mao Shiller loves central banking. He wanders off the plantation from time to time.

    2. “These gold collar criminals should be in prison for causing the 2008 GFC and then going on to create the most insane asset bubbles and Ponzi markets in human history.”

      Clearly you have no appreciation for fine works of art.

    3. What’s scary is these aszholes are “all in,” and have indicated they are going to destroy the country. Somebody needs to stop them. Where’s an ex-military sniper when you need him?

  6. ‘Newer apartments in new blocks or larger towers generally tend to have smaller rooms, particularly bedrooms. Some bedrooms don’t even have their own window, just ‘referred light’ and higher owners corporation fees’

    I knew there were window-less airboxes in Brisbane, but this is the first I’ve heard of in Melbourne. So why would developers build something like this? Chinese investors. Who never saw them and probably didn’t do more than glance at a phony image on a web site.

    1. This is also an example of REIC media telling us one day it’s red hotcakes and a week later saying these guys are fooked.

    2. “Some bedrooms don’t even have their own window.”

      Is it even legal in Australia to label such rooms as bedrooms? In the US, builders have to call them “dens.”

      1. This is common with 2 beds in Chicago lofts. The second bedroom lacks not only a window, but often even a full wall to the ceiling to allow in referred light. These lofts were selling for $400k 20 years ago.

  7. Then there’s the question whether they can stabilize it without causing it to crash……uhhhh, that’s hard to do.’”

    The Wall Street-Federal Reserve Looting Syndicate’s engineered boom/bust cycles are the most efficacious means of transferring the wealth and assets of the vanishing middle class to the Fed’s oligarch accomplices. We’re long overdue for another Great Muppet Reaping.

    1. Ahhhh, yes … the music …

      “The Wall Street-Federal Reserve Looting Syndicate’s engineered boom/bust cycles are the most efficacious means of transferring the wealth and assets of the vanishing middle class to the Fed’s oligarch accomplices.”

      Pure poetry.

  8. ‘I have spent the last ten years of my life defending my home from a fraudulent foreclosure action, paying over $30,000 in legal fees fighting banks over a $51,000 mortgage that my now deceased husband and I took to refinance our home in 2004 with Countrywide’

    What did you do with the money Maria?

  9. “‘I live in a 500 square foot loft. It was sold for $420,000,’ Anderson said. ‘A 500 square foot loft! I am going to be homeless [on] September 1st. I have no idea where I am going.’”

    Heckova job, “Zimbabwe Ben” Bernanke, Yellen the Felon, and Jerome Powell. Yet probably not one in ten ‘Muricans is aware of the pernicious role the Fed and its easy money policies have played in turning housing into a speculative bubble.

    1. “Yet probably not one in ten ‘Muricans is aware of the pernicious role the Fed and its easy money policies have played in turning housing into a speculative bubble.”

      There it is again:

      Step 1. Dumb ’em down.

      Step 2. Profit.

      Thank you No Child Left Behind.

  10. “‘I have spent the last ten years of my life defending my home from a fraudulent foreclosure action, paying over $30,000 in legal fees fighting banks over a $51,000 mortgage that my now deceased husband and I took to refinance our home in 2004 with Countrywide,’ shared Maria Williams-James, a local victim of mortgage fraud.

    I think I see the main problem here, Maria, and it’s not you’re a “victim.”

  13. I have yet to hear any Real Journalists coverage of the George Floyd lovefest that includes business owners whose lives were destroyed by looters and rioters.

    1. ** “Sold the video of Ashli Babbitt….Mr. Sullivan, a Utah resident active on social media under the name “Jayden X” as a Black Lives Matter supporter”

      you’d think he would have learned a thing or two from fellow Utah “Pierre Delecto’s “ unmasking.

  15. “We naturally look at the Federal Reserve as a source of stabilization, and we have to thank them somewhat for having filled that role for a long time, over a hundred years. But I don’t think that the whole thing is explained by Central Bank policy, there’s something about the sociology of markets that’s happening.”

    Bahahahahahahahaha … what’s happening is a vast hoarde of totally dumbed-down ignorant pukes have, one way or another, gotten hold of lots of money and are pitting themselves against each other in various bidding wars.

    Pure ignorance + huge quantities of money = Buying panics.

    Buying panics lead to price rises. To the totally ignorant these price rises are interpreted as the creation of wealth.

    The ignorance will be forever with us, not so the available money. What available money that is needed to power the ignorance is controlled by the Central Bankers.

  18. What changed between yesterday and today to justify a massive spike in crypto prices? Some of these shiitcoins are up over 50% today.

    1. Q: “What changed between yesterday and today to justify a massive spike in crypto prices?”

      A: FOMO and available money.

      Cryptocurrency Prices, Charts And Market Capitalizations | CoinMarketCap
      https://coinmarketcap.com/

  19. This pandemic is OVER, at least in the US.

    Yesterday I took advantage of the nice weather to go to the beach. Only a few people were wearing masks in the stores or on the boardwalk, and nobody on the beach. I went maskless too. It was a little weird but I got used to it quickly.

    If you haven’t gotten a shot by now, that’s your choice. I do expect a final wave, as unvaccinated people get COVID and recover. Then they will be protected too. After that I anticipate smaller local waves, but that can be handled.

    Yes, there are a few — VERY FEW — people who were told by their doctors not to get a shot, and they might be in danger from an unmasked anti-vaxxer. To which I say, get an N-95 mask. You can buy them now. But I see no reason for thousands of people to mask up and hole up for a few.

      1. Watched the vids at the links. What I saw is not consistent with the words in your link – I couldn’t find the video with this quote at all.

        1. The guy does denounce the vaccines, but at least on the video he doesn’t say that everyone who has had them will die in two years.

    5. For the record, virtually nobody wore masks on the beaches in San Diego when we visited last summer. And they were pretty crowded!

    6. I got the Chyna Virus. It was kind of annoying but I had worse bouts of the flu. If you are generally healthy and young-ish if you get it, you will be fine. Forcing 20 and.30 somethings to get vaccinated is ludicrous.

  21. Is there at least some hope that cryptocurrencies will achieve too-big-to-fail status?

    1. Coinbase
      Goldman lobbyist joins crypto exchange Coinbase
      Faryar Shirzad was with the investment bank for 15 years
      Coinbase shares have fallen by a third since listing on Nasdaq last month
      Joshua Franklin 27 minutes ago

      A senior Goldman Sachs lobbyist has joined Coinbase as its new chief policy officer, bolstering the cryptocurrency exchange’s connections in Washington as US regulators voice concerns over lax rules in the crypto sector.

      Faryar Shirzad will start at Coinbase next month after 15 years with Goldman, where he was co-head of government affairs.

      “As chief policy officer, Faryar will engage with lawmakers, regulators and other policy experts to realise crypto’s full potential to fuel a more equitable financial system along with job creation, GDP growth and innovation,” Coinbase said in a statement on Monday.

      The position is a new role for Coinbase, the company said.
      …

    2. What’s all the consternation about crypto the last day or so? It’s already recovered all of its losses. A few hours of down prices and all the e-tulip speculators have a cow. Give me a break.

  23. From 9news:

    DENVER — Mayor Michael Hancock (D-Denver) is announcing a public safety recovery strategy for Denver on Monday as the city continues to bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic.

    During an 11 a.m. news conference, Hancock and public safety officials will address the “challenge of rising crime in our neighborhoods and on our streets, as well as ensure all of Denver’s Public Safety agencies use best practices to continuously improve operations and culture,” a release from City of Denver says.

    Excuse me while I pause and bust my gut with uncontrolled laughter.

    1. I guess the mass contingent of thugs out on the street is no longer useful since Orange Man Bad is gone.

    2. Denver is a toilet. Imagine paying property taxes to that 79.55% voting for Pedo Joe sh*thole. I never will.

      My money moves in one direction from Denver. I go to Denver, get some money, and spend it somewhere that’s not Denver.

      No property taxes or sales taxes gibs for you!

  24. Is it fair to say that while Bitcoin is a bubble, it is neither an asset nor a currency?

    In fact, I would go so far as to say that Bitcoin is a liability, given the high electricity and carbon costs of extracting it. If it weren’t a bubble, these costs would overwhelm its intrinsic value.

    1. Key Words
      Bitcoin isn’t a currency or financial asset, but ‘looks like a bubble’: Roubini
      Last Updated: May 24, 2021 at 3:01 p.m. ET
      First Published: May 24, 2021 at 12:23 p.m. ET
      By William Watts
      Cryptos ‘have no income or utility, so there’s just no way to arrive at a fundamental value’
      Nouriel Roubini Bloomberg

      ‘Bitcoin isn’t even a reliable hedge for risk-off events, let alone inflation shocks. It’s actually highly pro-cyclical…In difficult times, crypto assets don’t go up; they go down.’
      — Nouriel Roubini, CEO, Roubini Macro Associates

      That’s New York University economist Nouriel Roubini in an interview with Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s “Top of Mind” publication, pushing back against the idea that bitcoin and other cryptos are an alternative to other instruments as a hedge against inflation. In fact, Roubini argued that cryptos aren’t any sort of currency or asset at all.
      …

    2. overwhelm its intrinsic value

      Which would be what, exactly?

      It’s not a bubble. It has no intrinsic value. It doesn’t even exist. I got acknowledged for solving some math problems once upon a time. It had no intrinsic value.

      I’d agree that it is a mania.

      1. It has no intrinsic value.

        It gets more ridiculous. Grifters are now greenwashing cryptocurrenty (think “blood” diamonds): “green coins” vs “conflict coins.”

        1. ridiculous

          If it weren’t for GS’ obsession, I wouldn’t be paying attention to this mania at all. Not a criticism, it’s just that there is only so much to say about stupid.

          1. It’s incidental to other things I follow. I’m just looking forward to the other side of these manias. The 10′ round metal frame pool is only going to last so long.

  26. Here it comes:

    The Fed is getting serious about the digital US dollar.
    Lael Brainard, a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, laid out a case for a secure, central bank-backed digital currency that could create a more efficient payment system and expand financial services to Americans who have been underserved by traditional banks.

      1. The next step would then be to eliminate physical currency. Then, if they want to unperson you, they take away your “digital wallet.”

        1. if they want

          “They” only can do what we allow.

          These days we seem to allow alot.

          1. Since “go to time” hasn’t already happened, I doubt it ever will.

            But yeah, seeing how we collectively folded for the lockdowns (some regions more than others) I don’t get warm fuzzies.

      2. No kidding! What would be the substantive difference between Cryptodollars and the current version of printing press money?

  28. Border Patrol Agent from Arizona I know of recently said they refer to this as getting Kamikazed. They get one Border Patrol Agent by himself and rush him with a bunch of adult male class valedictorians.

    30-40 Illegal Immigrants Rush Across The Border With Only 1 Border Agent Chasing After Them

    May 24, 2021

    https://youtu.be/q13LqMzBrLE

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