Free Republic

In this 17 minute video, Jason Jay Smart analyzes the role of Russian mafia clan corruption in the conduct of the war, and the risk of civil war.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D4ECbBdJHE

Perhaps (my speculation) the objective of the attack on Russian oil revenues, is to destabilize the regime through the mechanism of unleashing mafia civil war - fighting over a shrinking pie. The Capo of one of the major clans, is the head of Rosneft.

Putin’s Russia is a mafia State.

“Not sure why everyone is freaking out over this proposal.”

Because Trump...............

I read on the BBC that 50 year mortgages are common in Europe particularly in areas with affordability issues. Typically only interest is paid, and debtors switch to a different loan after 7-10 years, on average. Not sure why everyone is freaking out over this proposal.

Yep, my Tagline has been, and still is, accurate.

I actually should have re-phrased that: A Two Adult home. When a single person with kids tries to buy a home, they are saddled with a single income AND daycare. That makes it nearly impossible

Yes, in the 1950s a person could buy a home on a single income. But it could have been equally difficult when annual incomes were less than $10k a year.

I remember laughing with my Dad about his $83 mortgage payment. My first car payment was $88. He looked at me and said that there were months where coming up with that $83 was tough.

I guess my point is that the American Dream that a lot of these people are chasing is based on a culture that is disappearing. A lot of that has to do with the degradation of the US family unit.

“So - what a buyer using a 50 yr would find? They’ve built *very little* additional equity after 5 years because the amortization schedules ALWAYS weight towards the interest first. “

You don’t build equity in the loan. You build equity in the home.

Using $400k loan and the 6.5% for 30yrand 7% for 50yr you save about $1200 a year in paments. Invest in CD’s and that gets over $6k over 5 years,

The difference in payoff is about $1.5k.

Thus, taking out the 50 year gives you more cash to “upgrade”.

X has been putting a lot of dem posts in my feed ... I’ve blocked Gavin NewScum’s press office TWICE, now.

On X, 99% of Tweets about this are calling the 50-year mortgages “Jewish finance,” “Jewish bankers making Trump push this,” etc. What a cesspool that place is now. Can I flush my algo to just not see these, or does everyone get it?

Like actually fighting back and not giving two $***s about what the enemy says about you? Not surprising it’s taken an ex-Democrat from Queens to teach that lesson. We’ll have to wait and see how well it’s inculcated.

That's what we get for allowing Democrats to steal 3 Senate seats in 2024 and dozens more through illegal alien census counts.

Fanny Freddie are g’vt companies.

Housing costs are a matter of supply and demand. As long as we keep importing people, demand will rise relative to supply, and prices will rise.

Get rid of illegals and demand will fall, causing a drop in prices. Pulte won’t like that, but it is what needs to happen.
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OK, but how about also increasing housing supply — by ending zoning/environmental restrictions and the war on landlords?

“Get Me Out of Here”: Argentine Student Trapped Fighting in Russia’s War

Gianni Dante Bettiga, from Tierra del Fuego in Argentina’s far south, traveled to Russia in February to study Russian culture and language at a university in Yekaterinburg, about 1,600 kilometers east of Moscow, according to Argentinian newspaper Clarin on November 4.

But after meeting two Brazilian classmates, he was persuaded to sign a contract with a private company that recruits foreigners to fight for Russia—a decision that, his father says, quickly turned into a nightmare.

“He signed a contract—it was written in Russian—and what was supposed to be for one year ended up being for three,” said Juan Bettiga, Gianni’s father, speaking from Ushuaia, Clarin reported.

“He underwent military training for two weeks near Moscow, and in the third week, they sent him to Donetsk, Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia.”

Gianni told his mother he “ended up in the army by mistake,” saying the job he thought was administrative turned out to be combat training, Clarin reported.

According to his parents, cited by Clarin, Gianni had one clear condition: he did not want to be part of the Russian Army. But within weeks, he was enlisted and deployed.

A while ago there was a movie about the great horse Secretariat. One of the things I noticed was how relatively modest the owners were living. To own a Derby horse one must be in the “wealthy” class but they were living far from an opulent lifestyle.

I believe the rise of feminism and the two income families has effected the standard of living for people however over the decades the markets have adjusted to the new normality. I believe there is a growing demand for economy houses and cars that eventually the market will respond to.

I don’t think so.

Trump is a 1:1,000.

It takes really big balls and really thick skin to be like Trump.

Most people would have crumbled under the scrutiny and pressure he was put under, having the MSM and social media, nearly all gang up on him while the government is spying on him and using the IC and law enforcement to go after him.

The fact that he’s independently wealthy gives him a huge degree of decision making freedom most other people just don’t have.

But I get the point and agree. Stand up for what you believe in and don’t be a pandering weakling apologizing for ones political, economic and moral convictions.

FBI took out the Mafia with RICO. They didn’t want competition.

Totally agree, I was mainly addressing the o/p’s call for “higher wages” and “affordable housing”.
I bought my first house at 21, using wages to offset the mortgage.
My next two homes were purchased with cash. I paid off the first home in 7 years, and invested wisely after that.
Also, going without many “wants” along the way, controlling spending is key.

These people are tyrants. I have been saying this for decades, and I knew that it would ultimately come to this type of a conclusion. They crave power so badly that they can taste it. In view of their reaction to the Charlie Kirk assassination, as well as many other calls for the death of Trump and his backers in general, we should be harboring no illusions about who the left side of the political spectrum is these days. The old liberals of the 20th century are mostly dead and gone, the ones that simply disagreed with you, but agreed upon the rules and civilized behavior. That no longer applies.

If you want some guidance as to what a Democrat takeover will look like, review the history of the Soviet Union between 1922 and 1937 - and mix in a healthy portion of Moslem fanaticism to boot.

I will reiterate:

1) People who can “afford” extra payments, don’t need a 50. The *ONLY* attractiveness of a 50 is that you’d have slightly lower payments.

Autos are different than homes, but this is the same damn trap a lot of a fools get themselves into with ridiculous *7 YEAR!!!* autoloans. I’m trying to help a cousin out of a sinkhole of debt and I’m just shaking my head at the fact that his biggest problem is that he *HAD TO HAVE* that brand new pickup on a ridiculous 7 year loan. He’s underwater ON A TRUCK!

2) Generally, I’m all for “buyer beware”. But the problem is — the overwhelming majority of such mortgages will be FHA-backed. That puts ME - at least by proxy - on the hook for such bad decisions.

Even beyond potential bailouts - it’s going to lock people into homes longer than they might want to be locked in. That’s going to have knock-on effects on the market and supply/demand.

“I’m not quite sure why the President is even involved in this discussion. Shouldn’t it be between the bank/lender and the borrower?”

The government is deeply tied to the lending process either by acquisition or insuring the loans.