A politician who is beholden to others rather than his own ego and hunt for power.Coburn is the most dangerous creature that can come to the Senate, someone simply uninterested in being popular. When House Speaker Dennis Hastert defends earmarks — spending dictated by individual legislators for specific projects — by saying that a member of Congress knows best where a stoplight ought to be placed, Coburn, in an act of lese-majeste, responds: Members of Congress are the least qualified to make such judgments.I wish there were more of them.
Date Archives February 2006
Rent -v- Buy
This past week I have advised one client and one consumer to rent rather than buy. Buying just didn’t seem to be the right thing to do for either of these people, for a variety of reasons for each. The consumer said that she works with a Realtor from time to time and each time she sees this person, she is told to “buy, buy, buy,” “you’re wasting your money renting!” This may be true, but buying is not always “the” solution for everybody…. the reasons not to buy can be as long as the reasons to buy. As professionals, we damage our credibility by giving stock answers without analyzing each individual situation. Hopefully, these people will remember my sage advice and candor and recommend me to their friends and colleagues. If not, I still feel I’ve done the right thing – that’s enough for me.
WordPress Upgrade
My site has been upgraded to 2.01 today. If anything seems out of sort, please point it out.
Excellent reading
The Washington Times has had an excellent series this week on the state of the lending industry. Brought to my attention by an astute reader, the series highlights many of the deceptive and predatory tactics used by lenders to take advantage of unwitting, uncaring and unprepared purchasers. Part OnePart TwoPart ThreeThe entire real estate industry (and associated professions) has become subject to short-term memory, and forgotten the cyclical nature of the market. The boon has spoiled many; any change will likely lead to a fair amount of turmoil and upheaval.Most mortgage brokers today are in their 20s or early 30s and have not lived through a deep recession or other “worst-case scenario” in their adult lives, Mr. Cruise said. “I’m not sure the loan officers themselves know what could happen” if rates rise precipitously or the economy plunges, he said. As with any profession, there are plenty of good, honest brokers and Realtors. Unfortunately they seem to get the short end of the press stick.
VPTC Economic Development forum
CPN has the podcast of yesterday’s forum.
Housing appreciation in Charlottesville
Good site with pretty graphs.
Another Albemarle Place update
CvilleTomorrow has another excellent update on the plodding path of Albemarle Place.I may be ignorant here, but this seems to be a partial reason for its non-approval so far:Buildings are being proposed that would exceed the 90’ height limit for residential/mixed use at this location … The applicant expressed frustration about the challenge of getting approval, all at once, for all aspects of a massive urban project like Albemarle Place. …