The Big Picture
Okay folks it is time to get in the fight again…
Time to make you voices and arguments heard. Barry Ritholtz, of the Big Picture, thinks that the NAMB and NAR efforts to fight against the consumer and industry impacts of ill-conceived HVCC legislation, “corrupt.”
Here is a brief excerpt from his post:
I called that a thinly veiled hint for “friendly” i.e., “corruptible” appraisals. I did some more digging, and I quickly discovered what this contemptible suggestion was all about: It is part of a broader lobbying effort by the The National Association of Mortgage Brokers (NAMB) and The National Association of Realtors (NAR) against honest appraisals.
Ironically, he uses the whole unsupported post to shill his new book:
Appraisal fraud was a huge contributor to the unsustainable run up in prices during the boom period. Realtors. Let’s go to the big book of real estate fraud, Bailout Nation
Here is what I would suggest:
I am not sure Mr. Ritholtz is going to allow a good honest debate in the comments, but I would sure try turning his flippant post into an honest debate – leave a comment on his blog post. I would say we could generate about a 100+!
Regardless, definitely below. Let’s show some action folks!
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{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
Bill, I read the article and then went to leave a comment but it doesn't appear that ordinary joe's like us have permission to contribute to the debate.
I emailed them and hope to hear back. Strange.
Ran into the same problem. It doesn't prevent us from having the discussion here. There is a trackback from The Big Picture and people are visiting. So, don't discount giving you side of the debate to Mr. Ritholtz in the comments section here.
I also just finished a great book – The Housing Boom and Bust, by Thomas Sowell. He contends, and I agree, “affordable housing” legislation is more to blame than any inflated appraisal problems that Mr. Ritholtz argues in his Bailout Nation.
The finer point to this argument is that more legislation is only likely to entangle us with more problems – as loan officers and Realtors are now witnessing at ground-level.
Why debate on his blog? I met Barry at Inman in New York and as pleasant as he seems, he doesn't matter. He's not in the business nor is he a regulator.
I vote for focusing efforts where they matter.
It looks like Barry Ritholtz is in the business of selling books.
He also does not have kind words for CNBC Rick Santelli.
http://agonist.org/tjfxh/20090228/barry_ritholt...
Barry Ritholtz: Rick Santelli’s Planted Rant ?
It turns out that there may be more to the story then originally met the eye, according to (yes, really) Playboy magazine.
Excerpt:
“How did a minor-league TV figure, whose contract with CNBC is due this summer, get so quickly launched into a nationwide rightwing blog sensation? Why were there so many sites and organizations online and live within minutes or hours after his rant, leading to a nationwide protest just a week after his rant?
“What hasn’t been reported until now is evidence linking Santelli’s “tea party” rant with some very familiar names in the Republican rightwing machine, from PR operatives who specialize in imitation-grassroots PR campaigns (called “astroturfing”) to bigwig politicians and notorious billionaire funders. As veteran Russia reporters, both of us spent years watching the Kremlin use fake grassroots movements to influence and control the political landscape. To us, the uncanny speed and direction the movement took and the players involved in promoting it had a strangely forced quality to it. If it seemed scripted, that’s because it was.
“What we discovered is that Santelli’s “rant” was not at all spontaneous as his alleged fans claim, but rather it was a carefully-planned trigger for the anti-Obama campaign. In PR terms, his February 19th call for a “Chicago Tea Party” was the launch event of a carefully organized and sophisticated PR campaign, one in which Santelli served as a frontman, using the CNBC airwaves for publicity, for the some of the craziest and sleaziest rightwing oligarch clans this country has ever produced. Namely, the Koch family, the multibilllionaire owners of the largest private corporation in America, and funders of scores of rightwing thinktanks and advocacy groups, from the Cato Institute and Reason Magazine to FreedomWorks. The scion of the Koch family, Fred Koch, was a co-founder of the notorious extremist-rightwing John Birch Society.”
What is Playboy’s evidence of this?
“Within hours of Santelli’s rant, a website called ChicagoTeaParty.com sprang to life. Essentially inactive until that day, it now featured a YouTube video of Santelli’s “tea party” rant and billed itself as the official home of the Chicago Tea Party. The domain was registered in August, 2008 by Zack Christenson, a dweeby Twitter Republican and producer for a popular Chicago rightwing radio host Milt Rosenberg—a familiar name to Obama campaign people. Last August, Rosenberg, who looks like Martin Short’s Irving Cohen character, caused an outcry when he interviewed Stanley Kurtz, the conservative writer who first “exposed” a personal link between Obama and former Weather Undergound leader Bill Ayers. As a result of Rosenberg’s radio interview, the Ayers story was given a major push through the Republican media echo chamber, culminating in Sarah Palin’s accusation that Obama was “palling around with terrorists.” That Rosenberg’s producer owns the “chicagoteaparty.com” site is already weird—but what’s even stranger is that he first bought the domain last August, right around the time of Rosenburg’s launch of the “Obama is a terrorist” campaign. It’s as if they held this “Chicago tea party” campaign in reserve, like a sleeper-site. Which is exactly what it was.”
This looks like more than a coincidence. This is now a very serious charge.
The Big PIcture
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I wonder if Barry Ritholtz is aware of the following:
Cuomo doesn't care it's costing consumers 2.8 billion in extra fees generated by his code.
AMC's unregulated.
No Portability
AMC's run by some who lost their license as an appraiser.
Cuomo found misconduct with AMC's
WaMu and e appraise it investigation and lawsuit.
Cuomo's own website said, he investigated fraud in the appraisal and mortgage industry, involving some of the country's largest BANKS! NOT BROKERS, BANKS. It's on the NY AG website under “about the AG.”
Brian,
This is not to bash Mr. Ritzholtz–I read him regularly.
The point is: Media and politicians that actually drive these ideas into legislation and regulation also read and listen to the “opinions” of Mr. Ritholtz and others like him. Therefore, I can't think of any better place to spend your time if you don't agree with HVCC. If this is really an issue for consumer as well as mortgage and real estate businesses–it should be discussed/debated everywhere it is mentioned.
One last debate on your comment–loan officers, mortgage brokers, lenders, real estate brokers, appraisers, and others in the business, nor regulators make one single rule in the mortgage or real estate business. Smart people and thought-leaders, like Barry Ritholtz are the most important place to focus our efforts…IMHO.
“Smart people and thought-leaders, like Barry Ritholtz are the most important place to focus our efforts…IMHO”
I guess I don't really consider Barry Ritholz a thought leader. He's a guy with a blog
Bill,
By using words like corrupt and huge contributor looks like Barry is more a blog salesman than thoughtful and knowledgeable real estate and mortgage writer. Controversial statements do get noticed, for better or worse. His view on why NAMB and NAR are challenging the HVCC is narrow.
After reading Barry's article. I have to say I totally disagree. While yes there was some inflation of appraisals during the mortgage boom, it doesn't even come close to a standard among most appraisers . Answer how an appraiser cannot give a seeming inflated amount on properties that continued to escalate in value? There was virtually a frenzy amoung buyers and why? The financial institutions created an “anyone can qualify to buy mentality”. Sounds like pure greed doesn't it. Well it was! The bubble did have to burst eventually and unfortunately the financially institutions are the benefactor again with the bailout by the Federal Government. Consumers as usual always will brunt the cost of these type of fiascos. HVCC is another means of the banks control over appraisals and diminishes a true free market. It affects consumers also, in that it becomes somewhat of a gamble on whether to refinance or not. They pay in advance in hopes that a value comes in before the market continues to erode and if it does not, oh well tough luck there went 450 for an appraisal that was worthless to the consumer. In the past, at least a loan officer was able to discuss with an appraiser potential comps in a given area and the attributes as well as the problems that potentially would arise on a given property, and establish a potential range in value. It could help in determining that this is possible or the likely hood of valuation probably unattainable, thus allowing a consumer to make a choice as to proceed or not.
Barry has no influence. The NAR does and is weighing in. Ask your legislator “Are you with us or against us”? Sign the petition, legislators look at public reaction.