Realtors Predict Drop in 2007 Home Sales
Tuesday September 11, 12:27 pm ET
By Alan Zibel, AP Business Writer
Realtors Group Foresees 8.6 Percent Drop in Existing Home Sales in 2007

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A trade group for real estate agents on Tuesday lowered its forecast 2007 existing home sales for the seventh-straight month, predicting a drop of 8.6 percent from last year.
The National Association of Realtors' revised monthly prediction calls for U.S. existing home sales of 5.9 million in 2007, down from 6.5 million last year. The forecast was below last month's prediction of a 6.8 percent drop.

This year's sales would be the lowest since 2002, when sales hit 5.6 million. Home sale prices this year are forecast to drop 1.7 percent to a median of $218,200.

Next year, the trade group expects existing home sales to climb to 6.3 million. It forecasts new home sales will fall 24 percent to 801,000 this year and 741,000 next year.

The forecast comes as delinquencies among borrowers with weak, or subprime, credit have risen dramatically over the past year, and other loans are showing weakness as well.

Lawrence Yun, NAR's senior economist, said lower sales are related to the ongoing problems in the mortgage market for people with weak credit and a lack of funding for jumbo home loans above $417,000.

Those loans can't be packaged into securities sold to investors by government-sponsored mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Lenders have been charging higher rates for these loans because they are not backed by Fannie or Freddie.

The real estate trade group described a big cutback in the construction of new homes as a "healthy trend" that will reduce inventory. The group projected construction of new homes will fall to 1.4 million this year from 1.8 million last year.

Last week, the NAR said pending sales of existing homes fell in July to the lowest level in nearly six years as borrowers struggled to finalize home purchases, particularly in expensive areas.

Investors around the world have been spooked by the U.S. mortgage market's problems, amid uncertainty about how much they will grow. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. estimates that 2.5 million mortgages given to borrowers with weak credit will reset at higher rates and sometimes dramatically higher monthly payments by the end of next year.

The number of homeowners receiving foreclosure notices hit a record high in the spring, driven up by problems with subprime mortgages and heavy job losses in Ohio and other Midwest states.

You called it 2 years ago lady..

This is A petition that I began circulating on August 16th to Nancy Pelosi and the congress.

Madame Speaker Of The House
Ms Nancy Pelosi:

We the undersigned convey in behalf of the people the state of Tennessee this petition:
You have failed to uphold your oath to office, and to carryout your sworn duty to defend the Constitution of the United States.
Your constituents, and yourself have assisted the criminals within the Bush administration to infringe upon the rights,and freedoms of the citizens of this nation, moreover you have failed to bring to the table articles of impeachment against said criminals, you continue to fund an illegal war, refuse to take our American Troops out of harms way,furthermore Harry Reid and yourself bow to the demands of those criminal WARLORDS that would only stand to profit from A continued military effort in Iraq!

Therefore in regards to your failure to abide by the sworn oath to your office, to bring to account the criminals that would, in our opinion, destroy the very foundation that this nation was built upon, introduce and table the articles of impeachment against George Bush, and Dick Cheney, we respectfully request you to resign the office that was intrusted to you by the people of the United States of America. Honor Our Flag!

What do know,General Petraeus says we gotta stay the course, everything is going great, and we are only going to be in Iraq forever and 2 more years. meanwhile Ms. Pelosi and Mr.Reid stay clammed up while Cindy Sheehan goes to the slammer.
Wonder how the families of the 3774 dead American Soldiers feel about his little cheerleading "blah" report that was dictated by the Bushy propaganda machine.

On August 9th Pelosi hid from a few demonstrators in Stamford Conn. that were urging her to impeach Bush and Cheney,then calls the Code Pink demonstrators at her San Franciso home "Nuts" instead of addressing them.Pelosi holds the highest office ever held by a woman in the history of our nation, yet she see's fit to ignore the very people that put her in that position, and if she is an example of the leadership we can expect from A female, you would have to think if Clinton wins the office of the president, people we are in deep shit, maybe even worse than we already are!

Buzz Aldrin said a former astronaut charged with attempted kidnapping should be "admired" — but not excused — for her resolve in allegedly confronting a romantic rival, according to a published report.

Lisa Nowak was arrested in February after police said the married mother of three had driven nearly 1,000 miles to Orlando.

"Astronauts are not superhuman. They lead ordinary lives and have varied personalities," Aldrin said in comments published on Time magazine's Web site.

"I think Nowak should be admired for traveling across the country at night and not getting out of her car to put in gas or go to the restroom. It is not excusable, but it is understandable for an achiever to fall into a trap."

Police said Nowak used diapers during the trip to avoid making stops. Her lawyer disputes that she wore diapers, calling that "the biggest lie in this preposterous tale." The defense also says Nowak didn't drive nonstop.

Nowak, 44, pleaded not guilty to attempted kidnapping, battery and burglary with assault. She is pursuing a temporary insanity defense, according to court documents.

Aldrin, the second man to step on the moon, said he became depressed and had problems with alcohol after returning to Earth. He has spoken of the difficulties of astronauts readjusting to life outside the space program.

"Returning to Earth was challenging for me," he said in response to a question submitted by a Time reader. "I was a celebrity on a pedestal, and I had to live up to that. Like actors and writers who are on and off again in terms of employment, I had a very unstructured life. So the alcoholism and depression, which I inherited, were ripe to flourish."

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This is hilarious,how long are our courts gonna keep letting the women get off with with plea's of temporary insanity. post- traumatic stress, manic depression, and numerous other excuses for being absolute asshole's.
And if she drove 1,000 miles without stopping,it couldn't have been to temporary, and beside that if she goes to jail I want to buy the car she drove!

Dealer calls cops after pot stash stolen
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. -- A marijuana dealer telephoned police after armed thieves stole his quarter-pound stash of pot. The 19-year-old Felton man told police that two men, one of them armed with a handgun, robbed him at gunpoint as he sat in his car on Tuesday night.

"It was unique to have people who were dealing drugs calling us when they've been ripped off," police spokesman Zach Friend said.

After the thieves made off with his stash, the dealer telephoned police. When police arrived, the dealer's story became progressively confused.

First he showed officers a medical marijuana card and told them he bought the pot at a medical marijuana dispensary. Then he said he got the pot from a friend. Eventually the dealer admitted he had arranged to sell the marijuana to the men who stole it from him, investigators said.

The Felton dealer wasn't arrested.

"From our standpoint, it's more important to address the fact there are individuals out there who are willing to use a weapon to commit robberies," Friend said.