Our yearly rent is less than 3% of what the owner was asking, before her house stood still and did not sell for over 6 months. All the other houses in our area have sold with no problem, within 3-4 months of being in the market.

With mortgage rates at 6%, it costs twice as much to borrow money to buy a house than it does to rent the same house. And it is to our advantage that the owner covers the costs of taxes, maintenance, and insurance, which would raise the price of this house to about 9% of the price she was originally asking. Which would be about three times the cost of renting it .

Buying a house is still a bad deal for the buyer on specific areas. Although the news boasts about Colorado’s increase on sales, prices elsewhere for the same house are about 50 thousand less, unfortunately, due to a lot of unemployment in some areas that have lower salaries, and fewer jobs.

If the total debt of the US was lower and the government would help to keep house prices affordable through programs that would really help buy a house, things would pick up in the housing market.

Allowing a mortgage debt for 30 years, gives interest to banks, and makes us spend more to keep it up, therefore the age of retirement becomes 70-80 years old . And we all know realistically that the housing market will continue to drop. People are loosing their jobs and security left and right. How would you even consider buying, when years ago, it was considered as an investment and now you will sit on devalued real estate that could possibly not sell.

It is not in the banks best interest to help out. They rather sit on millions of dollars of unocupied homes, waiting it out, than make them affordable for us.

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The FDIC backing their deposits, that will now be assumed by BB&T Corp. (Branch Banking and Trust Company, around since the 1800′s) The Colonial is the biggest fiasco in banking so far. This now makes about the 70th bank failure to date. The likelihood of more banks closing is very real, and, this is only August.

Their bailout will be at the tune of 2.8 Billion. So what happens when the FDIC runs out of money for all these failed banks?

Colonial BancGroup is rushing to sell all or part of their assets or seek new investors, and with only 60 days to raise a billion to appease demands for more capital, the clock is ticking away…tic-toc, tic-toc.

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You would think that someone so highly linked with the financial fiasco and ponzi scheme would soon be wearing an orange jumpsuit.

DiPascali in a preemptive move, is cooperating with prosecutors. And will soon enter a plea in federal court.

Although DiPascali was the contact for all the Ponzi victims, and answered their questions about the status of their accounts, deposit and withdrawals.

Not personally implicated by Madoff, he is singing like a canary and more will be caught up in the downfall. Indictments are in the works.

These two have been buddies for a long time, the knew each other since they both lived in Queens, and he started as Madoff’s assistant.

You would think that if there was any justice, these two should continue as buddies.

My vote is to place them in each other’s proximity in prison. Along with the accountant, his sons, his brother…the list goes on and on.

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Now his children are a different story, although they were born with all the advantages of unlimited financial resources. Ivanka and Eric have both work their way up the ladder alongside with dad. Both, business savvy entrepreneurs they each have made a name for themselves in every aspect of the Realtor’s world. All the way from construction supervising (not just a photo opp), to development and sales.

Eric has been in charge of their new Trump at Cap Cana, Dominican Republic, (also known as Punta Cana) develoment. Punta Cana has always been a ritzy destination. Oscar De La Renta made it famous when he opened the doors of his exclusive residence for all to see.

The new Dominican development, is currently the most significant in the Caribbean. Trump at Cap Cana will include a 350 room Trump Ocean Club Hotel, an International Golf Club, two residential condominiums buildings, and over 1,000 residential units.

A sales record was achieved when 68 lots sold for more than $360 million in just under 4 hours.

Eric, in charge of development and acquisitions works with other projects throughout the world. A Trump International Hotel & Tower in Dubai, that is currently selling at the highest price per square foot in the region, plus a Trump tower in Toronto, which is supervised by Ivanka.

Ivanka just finished her book, The Trump Card, I am sure this lovely young lady has a lot of advice for all Realtors. This is must read for anyone in the business.

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Targeting the wealthy foreigners that visit this area at least three times a year, just to be able to cross the street to go to the most famous outdoor mall in the East coast. So The Regent had a fabulous party a few years back to attract rich buyers, and try to sell their condos.

Chanel, Prada, Hermes, Luis Vuitton, Cartier, Tiffany, Neiman’s, Boucheron, Van Cleef & Arpels just to name a few, battle every day just to get your business. Although no SALE signs will ever adorn their windows. Fabulous restaurants under stunning palm trees have made this a popular spot a place to see and be seen. Tiny little dogs make friends as their owners stroll about. Tons of movies have been filmed there, well the mall has played small parts, Paris Hilton and Nicole Ritchie when they had that popular show, and most recently, Confessions of a Shopaholic. Wherein the main character says to her boss, You Speak Prada? I loved the line.

Sorry, as I was saying, got off on the shopping. The hotel that was converted into apartments, has not sold out as yet, although it was expected to. Some parts remained as a hotel to balance it out. But the luxury condominiums have gone down, way down in price, something about 80% or more on the smaller…studio condos. These little studios were fetching about $295,000 during the realty boom in 2005. I understand the prestigious address, and the lovely amenities, plus the ocean, but after seeing them, we thought they were a tad pricey.

During a recent trip to Miami and after inquiring again, my family would like to have a place closer to their business, we found out that the studios started between $29,000 and $35,000. Still they were very, very small. We were looking more in the 2 bedroom category. But considered the studios for my son.

So is this bottom price, or is the market going to suffer even more. Is it a wise investment? I would say it is, nothing beats the location, we are talking steps from the beach. Great shopping (there are more affordable stores close by) and dining within walking distance make this place something to consider.

Florida, specifically Miami had a huge renaissance a few years back, and they were building pricey condo’s as fast as they could say “Welcome to Miami”. Brickell, another posh area, closer to downtown, is renting a 2000 sq. ft with a view, all glass condo, for about $2000 a month. This same apartment fetched $9000 not long ago. My brother’s friend loves living there. With new clubs, and dinning options Brickell is the IT place, it also helps that the best Mojitos in town are served here.

But some owners are holding tight to their properties, expecting the market to boom again, meanwhile the deals in Florida, just like their delicious oranges, are ready for the picking.

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Things have changed a lot, the market, job security, and safety, especially since then. Both homes located in Florida. Today, both have reached a ‘value’ on today’s market that has surpassed anything that we could have imagined.

Although I loved both homes, located in a Fort Lauderdale suburb, if we had them now, the taxes would have been astronomical. Unaffordable in today’s unsecured job market.

The second home, I found out by chance was selling last year at a whooping half a million. We bought that home during 1999, and my husband paid about $195. It was a 3 bedroom, a little over 1900 sq. ft., two car garage, and on a man made lake, with gorgeous landscaping. We sold it at $315 during 2003.

The people that bought our home, were only paying interest on it, they hardly put anything down. Later they sold it, about two years or so, making about $80. Not bad at all. The next people defaulted on their loans.

Somehow the house ended being owned by the bank, it looks like the previous owners could not keep up with it. This was a lovely home. But it is not worth the amount the bank wanted.

I could investigate further and find out if it went on foreclosure and how much it finally sold for. But I guess I should let go. The neighborhood was different, the lady next to us became a lunatic and started fights over our landscaping, claiming she could not see ‘her lake’. Her property was NOT on the lake, yet she claimed she bought ‘lakeview’. She contacted the city and found some obscure law and we had to cut and chop some of our palm trees. This while we were selling our home. By this time, we wanted out. Perhaps too hasty on our part.

I am not sure if the value of our house would have escalated as much, and in reality, if we would have been able to sell the home we bought at $190, for half a million. The Florida real estate boom market, I believe hit it’s peak between 2000-2004. People were asking ridiculous amounts for their homes. A lot of them got the money they asked, a lot are still sitting, or have defaulted on their loans.

As we approach our ‘golden years’ we wonder if we should go back. My husband really loves Florida. I love the mountains and could not imagine being surrounded by palm trees for the rest of my life. But he has compromised and lived here in Colorado for a while. We might move to Santa Fe in between. But I am sure we will end up back in North Florida (South Florida is impossible).

I have been looking at the prices of homes, there are some pretty good deals around the North part of the State, a lot of bank owned properties. Unfortunately the job market down there is not happening.

So I go back and forth, like I could change the past (I do this with everything), having this annoying buyer’s remorse.
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Right. How many of us, wives, have ever said such a thing? No really, my husband is a genius! Yeah you must sound like a genius to your friends, but in here, in this house…GO take the trash out!

Just as bogus is their kid’s statement, who claim that they knew nothing about ‘dad’s doings’, and that they hate and despise him. He is not hurt by their statements nor actions, nor does he expects them to visit. They share the blame, they should be treated as tainted goods. Not only they benefited from their dad’s ill gotten fortune, but their businesses flourished as well. These are not kids that had a job at McDonalds for the summer. These are kids that had everything that they wanted or needed.

The next lawsuit should be against them. Everyone in that family has benefited. Mrs Madoff’s sister comes to mind as well. Millions were transferred to her during the initial investigation.

Attorneys for Mrs. Madoff are claiming that the money she now has, is the result of an inheritance. And the subsequent investment of that money by her own husband! So her investments paid off big time. And no one else had the same result as she did? Amazing. He played with OPM but not with hers.

I remember how a local resident, a senior citizen, was shown recently in the news. He was packing groceries because his lifetime savings had been in the hands of Bernie. This was the money both his wife and him had saved for their golden years. I guess Bernie did not work as hard for their money as he did for Ruth’s. The gentleman did not have a sour attitude at all. He was rolling with it.

As opposed to Ruth that was rolling in it for so many years. I would like to see her penniless, packing groceries at a bodega (a tiny Spanish supermarket) located either in Queens, the Bronx, or Jersey. Asking paper or plastic? or did you bring your recycled bag?

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In Mexico, specifically Cancun, a fine hotel on the beach, thought that stealing sand from other hotels would bring more tourism to his hotel. With the claim, that ‘other hotels don’t have sandy beaches but we do’.!!

The erosion brought on by hurricanes has caused this sand to basically disappear, washed into the sea.

So in a sea of sand how do you identify yours?

Right now this area is being treated as a ‘crime scene’, and further investigation needs to be done. I think this should be the place where the Miami shark, the one that ended up in a street, after riding the Metro Rail, should go. Certainly both cases merit a full blown investigation, and the resources allocated to do this.

The owner of the hotel had already built retainer walls to keep his ill gotten sand from being washed, and also to protect it from it’s rightful owners, the hotels close by.

So this part of the beach is closed to the tourists that visit Cancun specifically for this reason.

They should just take a picture and place it on the side of a milk carton. Have you seen me lately?

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Helmut Lang’s dresses destroyed with red paint. But worse, window designers trying to be ‘avant garde’ totally pushed the envelope on this one. Even New Yorkers were appalled as they walked by their 5th Ave windows.

The creative director of Barneys, said the displays were installed while he was away overseeing advertising shoots and that he had ordered them dismantled. Doubtful, having worked in the ‘business’ a sketch of the window to be designed is drawn and then sent for approval.

I still don’t know what ‘artistic’ message, if any, they were trying to convey. Perhaps that violence is so easily accepted and we are so flippant about it, that it is ok to display it as haute couture.

But finally, something that makes busy New Yorkers, myself included, halt, lift an eyebrow, and stop the fashionistas from dictating what is appropriate to look at.

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We used to live there, so these unbelievable stories were a part of our daily lives. I love this one. Is totally worthy of Carl Hiaasen stories. His book, Tourist Season a great sample, of what living in Florida is really like.

Two men, caught a nurse shark. Then they decided to sell it at the fish market. But they had no transportation. So they jumped on the train. The smaller train that runs on a loop, just around downtown Miami. People used to the bizzare saw nothing out of the ordinary. Others were appalled probably because the shark was beginning to smell, decided to call the police. This was a 6 ft. shark, people! Like I said, very Miami.

At least two workers at the local fish markets said that two men, stopped by and tried to sell the dead shark for about $10. Obviously both markets rejected the offer. Stating that ‘we do not buy sharks off the streets’.

With no place to dump off the dead shark, they left it in the middle of NW 5th Ave. Later, this is the part I love, the crime scene investigators showed up. They took pictures, fin prints, and gathered evidence. There was no way to question the victim. Dead sharks tell no ‘tails’.

CSI Miami will probably air a very similar episode soon. Not to worry, David Caruso will ‘catch’ the ‘lone’ shark’s killers.

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