How urban..........

"Cynthia Dunham is founder and executive director of The Leadership Centre, a non-profit that promotes homeowner association education and based at Chandler-Gilbert Community College. She said some associations are adding a "refurbishing" expense to their budgets, using assessments made on all properties to keep abandoned ones weed free.

"It is easier to send in a landscaping crew to trim weeds and spray than to have an eyesore," she said. "This is a temporary way to deal with an unfortunate reality."

I wonder how much they are paying the crews?

props to Atrios

Krugman: If it looks like a tramp

Having worked in the insurance business for 23 years, I learned long time ago, eventually the very disaster the company writes insurance for will occur. Eventually, somebody is going to pay.

The true thieves in the subprime mortgage debacle are the mortgage brokers. As they were manipulating the data on the mortgage applications, they knew these folks couldn't afford to make the payments.

Paul Krugman is dead on:

But the securities were never as safe as advertised, because the risk transfer wasn’t anywhere near big enough to protect investors from the consequences of a burst housing bubble. It’s not quite the metaphor I would have come up with, but here’s what the legendary bond investor Bill Gross had to say about C.D.O.’s in Pimco’s latest “Investment Outlook”:

“AAA? You were wooed Mr. Moody’s and Mr. Poor’s by the makeup, those six-inch hooker heels, and a ‘tramp stamp.’ Many of these good-looking girls are not high-class assets worth 100 cents on the dollar.”

Now we’re looking at huge losses to investors who thought they were playing it safe. Estimates of the likely losses on C.D.O.’s range from $125 billion to $250 billion, with some analysts warning that a wave of distress selling will deepen the housing slump even further.

Nobody Cares

It is a shame that this many foreclosures are occurring. No one keeps track of this because no one cares. It just happens to "those people." I am not saying the former homeowners should get a free pass in this mess, but they were clearly exploited.

The "American Dream" of homeownership is beat into people's heads. Renters are looked upon as less than adequate or deficient in some way. So when presented with a chance to own a home, they jump on it. No doubt at their peril.

When the unwitting are exploited everyone pays. New Century, the now struggling specialist in subprime loans, had a direct impact on the stock market. Unless all of your investments are in bonds, YOUR 401K took a hit last week.

These mortgage brokers are criminals and should be treated as such. They knew these people couldn't afford these homes but they had to meet their numbers.

Mortgage Predators

Why is it, those not in a position to defend themselves get screwed? The victims in the scam of predatory lending are those trying to buy a home.

Those scamming the victims will have the mortgages, these folks can't afford to pay for, are backed by the government.

These people should go to jail for fraud.