Free Republic

The rent’s too damn high in New York — but the broker fees are really murder. City dwellers wanting to score a place to live at a reasonable price are finding that out the hard way — as they are being socked with outrageous fees of up to $20,000 just to be able to rent an apartment. One home shopper claims he almost lost it when a broker tried to soak him for a $15,000 fee for a $1,100, rent-controlled apartment in a run-down brick building in Flushing recently. “I never replied because not in a million years would I...

A San Diego family has learned the hard way why it’s important to know every detail about your car insurance and to keep it updated. Sergio Preciado got in a car accident back in July of 2022 when he was exiting Interstate 805. He admits it was his fault, adding that nobody was injured in the crash.

Popular cryptocurrency broker Genesis is expected to file for bankruptcy within days, insiders have revealed. It would make the firm the latest crypto casualty following the spectacular downfall of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX, where the company held some of its funds. According to people familiar with the matter, Genesis is currently in the final stage of its Chapter 11 paperwork as it works toward a deal with creditors. The company, which is owned by venture capital firm Digital Currency Group, had been considering filing for bankruptcy for some time, as it reportedly owes creditors more than $3billion.

The obligation to tape record oral communications is imposed on all oral discussions whether they are conducted by telephone, voicemail, mobile device, or other digital/electronic media for a period of at least one year. Conversations must be captured and recorded by registrants whether they occur over company owned equipment or staff owned equipment (ie personal mobile phones, tablets, computers, etc.). These recordings are then also required to be cataloged, maintained, and archived in a form and manner that is both identifiable and searchable by transaction. In person, face to face meetings are excluded from the tape recording obligation.

Minister for International Affairs Yuval Steinitz on Sunday dismissed reports that Turkey may take an active role in mediating between Israel and the Palestinians in future peace talks. In an interview to IDF Radio, Steinitz said the process did not require any additional mediation to that already provided by the International Quartet. “I think it is a baseless report. I personally am not familiar with any such decision,” said Steinitz in response to a Turkish media report claiming US Secretary of State John Kerry planned to ask Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to play a part in the Mideast...

On June the 30th 2009 oil mysteriously jumped by more than $1.50 a barrel during the night, to reach its highest price in eight months, the kind of swing that is caused by a major geopolitical event. The amazing, true cause of this price spike has now been released by a Financial Services Authority investigation (FSA). Although not authorised to invest company cash in trades Steve Perkins, a long standing, senior broker at PVM Oil Futures, had managed to spend $520 million on oil futures contracts throughout the night. On the morning of the 30th an admin clerk called Mr...

The federal goverment is eliminating the $100 commission program aimed at brokers who assist consumers enrolling in the federal Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP).pcip broker GEHA, the insurer administering PCIP for the federal government notified brokers about the change last week via email: "We are writing to thank you for the extraordinary efforts you have made in helping to increase awareness of and enrollment in the PCIP program. We have determined that our outreach efforts have succeeded in significantly raising awareness of PCIP and enrollment in this program. As such, CMS will end the PCIP Broker Referral Payment Program in...

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: Laurie, who can't say where she is. Is that right? She's worried about lawsuits, so she can't say where she is. Laurie, welcome to the EIB Network. You're worried about the lawsuits from what you're going to say here? CALLER: Well, it's possible, Rush, and, by the way, it's an honor to speak to you. RUSH: Thank you. CALLER: I worked as both a packager and an advertising executive for a mortgage brokerage firm. I saw the rise and fall of the housing market and what infuriates me about when Obama speaks or Barney Frank or anyone...

snip... Customers of the bankrupt firm are starting to complain about getting checks that bounced, having requests to transfer funds denied and receiving inaccurate account statements. The growing litany of woes is adding to the tasks for the receiver assigned to liquidate MF Global and causing some investors to voice concern about the basic plumbing of the financial services system. Steve Meyers, an independent futures trader in Florida, said he asked for $500,000 from his MF Global account to be wired back to him on October 28 because he was concerned about the firm filing for bankruptcy. The money never...

We had Michael Lewis on TechTicker yesterday. He told the story of how his Merrill broker sold him Lehman preferred and auction-rate securities just before the financial crisis. Lewis has since fired Merrill and moved to Schwab. Best-selling author Michael Lewis knows his way around Wall Street and the world of money. His first book, Liar’s Poker, chronicled his misadventures as a bond trader in the go-go 1980s. In Moneyball, he explored the way economic analysis is applied to baseball. And in The Big Short, which has just come out in paperback, he chronicled how a few shrewd investors managed...

LITTLE HOUSING CRISIS ON THE PRAIRIE. BY SUSAN SCHORN - - - - Laura and Mary got up early the next morning, for Pa was arranging the financing that day. They rode across the prairie in the covered wagon for a long time. Finally, they stopped. "Here is where our house will be!" Pa said. Laura and Mary hurried to look. All around them stretched the prairie. For miles and miles, there was only grass and prairie hens and wild creatures. "Where is the school?" Ma asked. "Where is the golf course?" Mary wondered. "Where will the tax base come...

Hey everyone - This is not for me, but I'm trying to find out some options for a friend. It's possible they have a good case against their broker for negligence and breach of fiduciary responsibility. Anyone who's got some knowledge or background, could you please Freepmail me? Thank you.

Broker turned monk focuses priorities Bulgarian monk Brother Nikanor, 32, looks inside the church of Tsurnogorski monastery, some 50 km (31miles) west of the capital Sofia, September 24, 2008. The Nasdaq broker turned monk advises his former colleagues, shattered by the financial crisis, to keep a jar full of soil on their desks to remind them about where we are all heading to and what really matters in life.

First Lady 'is White House power broker' By Philip Sherwell in Washington (Filed: 26/03/2006) Laura Bush plays a much greater role in shaping White House policy, appointments and even budgets than previously acknowledged. Mrs Bush, 59, has stayed largely in the background for the past five years. White House advisers have portrayed her as the "non-Hillary" - a reference to her predecessor, Mrs Clinton, who made no secret of her interest in public policy during her eight years as First Lady. Laura Bush admits she and her husband discuss appointments But a different picture of the influence the quietly spoken...

Insider trading infects Nature Conservancy Palm Beach Post Editorial Thursday, May 15, 2003 The Nature Conservancy, whose brand name is right up there with Good Housekeeping, has been running a scam worthy of Enron. As described last week in a Washington Post series titled "Big Green," the environmental charity bought pristine lands, then sold them at a discount to trustees for fabulous private-home sites. Nature Conservancy President and CEO Steven J. McCormick whined that the Post had "painted a distorted picture" and "misrepresented our motives and methods." Wrong response. The Nature Conservancy, with 1 million members and $3 billion in...

NASHUA, N.H. -- The parents of a New Hampshire murder victim are waging a campaign against Internet information brokers like the one used by their daughter's killer. Tim Remsburg, the stepfather of Amy Boyer, who was slain in October of 1999 when she was 20, has been fighting against such companies ever since. Boyer was shot to death by former high school classmate Liam Youens, who paid an Internet information broker to track down personal information about her. After killing Boyer, Youens killed himself with the same weapon. Youens detailed plans for the attack on a Web site and even...

Middle TN Freepers, would any of you care to refer me to a good investment broker of a friendly persuasion? I need someone conversant in SEP's, Roth IRA's, etc. Need to be able to contact via email as well as phone, and the need is immediate. Michael

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea denied on Wednesday that it had invited former U.S. President Bill Clinton to visit the country to play a role in mediating with the United States and to cool rhetoric from Washington. A North Korean official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters on Monday that the North's leader Kim Jong-il had hoped Clinton could play a mediating role similar to one played by another former Democrat president, Jimmy Carter, who visited Pyongyang amid a nuclear crisis in 1994 to broker talks. In a statement issued a day after the United States confirmed that North...