“From Morgan Hill to Moraga, from Santa Rosa to Santa Cruz, Bay Area residents are tightening their belts. You might say it’s a move from shop till you drop to dropping the shopping. Dire reports of an economy on a downward spiral are prompting people from many walks of life to rethink spending plans, cut back on extravagances and set aside what they can in anticipation of harder times.
It’s all part of a nationwide consumer retrenchment that’s not only an effect of a listless economy, but also a major contributor to that weakness. The gathering pullback by consumers threatens to knock out the most important prop holding up the economy, across the region and across the nation.
Purchases of goods and services by ordinary Americans - everything from haircuts and soda to SUVs and HDTVs - represent roughly two-thirds of the nation’s economic activity. The question now is how far consumers will pare their spending and how much damage that might do to an economy already on its knees.”
“As the mortgage crisis claims more homes - more than 11,000 Bay Area residences were repossessed by lenders last year - an increasing number of tenants are facing rapid evictions by banks eager to partially recoup their losses by selling the properties. In November, a Chronicle analysis of Bay Area foreclosures showed that about one-fifth had nonresident owners. Presumably many of those investor-owners rented out their properties to produce income.
Foreclosure-related evictions of renters show how fallout from the mortgage meltdown can spread even to people who don’t own houses.
Tenants’ rights in such situations are minimal. If they live in a city with rent control, they are covered by its eviction regulations. Hayward, where Diharce and Vasquez live, does not have rent control for single-family residences.
Otherwise, renters are subject to state law, which generally requires 30 days notice. A foreclosure usually invalidates an existing lease, legal experts said.”
AZ, NV And So Cal - Countrywide’s Bermuda Triangle
Posted: February 5, 2008 at 9:34 am by Somesh
From Blown Mortgage (PDF File)
This is the market wise risk assessment by Countrywide.
Higher Risk -> Lower Risk
5 -> 4 -> 3 -> 2 -> 1
AZ Mohave Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ 5
AZ Maricopa Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 5
AZ Pinal Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 5
AZ Yavapai Prescott, AZ 5
CA Merced Merced, CA 5
CA Stanislaus Modesto, CA 5
CA Riverside Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 5
CA San Bernardino Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 5
CA Monterey Salinas, CA 5
CA San Joaquin Stockton, CA 5
FL Volusia Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL 5
FL Broward Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, FL 5
FL Miami-Dade Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, FL 5
FL Collier Naples-Marco Island, FL 5
FL Charlotte Punta Gorda, FL 5
FL Manatee Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, FL 5
FL Sarasota Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, FL 5
MI Genesee Flint, MI 5
NV Carson City Carson City, NV 5
NV Clark Las Vegas-Paradise, NV 5
NV Storey Reno-Sparks, NV 5
NV Washoe Reno-Sparks, NV 5