| Foreclosures hitting Dane County hard
Mortgage foreclosures in Dane County leapt nearly 80 percent in 2007, matching the national increase as the local housing boom went bust and risky loans went sour. In 2007, there were 513 foreclosure sales scheduled with the Dane County Sheriff, compared to 286 in 2006, a 79.3 increase. That compares to a 79 percent nationwide increase, from 717,522 homes in 2006 to some 1.3 million in 2007, RealtyTrac, a California-based realty tracking company, reported Tuesday. Not all foreclosure lawsuits brought by lenders end in actual seizure of the property from borrowers, who sometimes manage to refinance debt or find a buyer before the property is sold out from under them. But neither are those who avoid foreclosure necessarily on sound financial footing. An 87 percent leap of foreclosure actions filed in Dane County Circuit Court over two years, from 478 in 2005 to 894 in 2007, points to an even larger portion of the community whose housing, and housing investments, are in jeopardy.
PAULSON WEASELS OUT OF FIXING CROOKED MORTGAGE DEALS
Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. unveiled new details of the Bush administration's mortgage-relief plan yesterday, including a proposal that would grant new powers to local governments to refinance the mortgages of struggling homeowners. . . . The worst slumps are in California, Florida, Nevada and parts of the Washington region, especially Northern Virginia, Zandi said. Most of those areas have seen at least a 7 percent decline in housing prices from the beginning of the summer, he said, adding that a 20 percent decline overall is likely by early 2009. . . . The major sticking point is the investors who buy securities made up of subprime loans. For years, they provided the financial backing that allowed mortgage firms to expand their lending. No type of loan made more money for investors, or was as risky, as subprime mortgages, because they required homeowners with shaky credit to pay more interest.
Beam Me Up
The fund-raising 'Conversation with Warren Buffett' drew over 1,500 people, including a mix of Silicon Valley executives such as John Doerr, a partner at venture-capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers... Tickets ranged from $100 to more than $2,300, drawing in around $1 million, according to the Clinton campaign." How ludicrous - the country's prominent venture capitalists and its best known and beloved "capitalist" raising funds for a committed welfare statist and socialist. On CNBC, Hillary agreed with Buffett's position to maintain the estate tax because, in her words, "It's really a tax to prevent us from having inherited wealth generation after generation which would undermine the kind of spirit and meritocracy that the United States stands for." This is awfully charitable of Hillary and Warren to provide such a vital service to our "free" society.
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