Good News for Cheated Homeowners?

In a lawsuit in California, U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman ruled that the Chevy Chase Bank had violated the Truth in Lending Act or TILA, and that thousands of other Chevy Chase borrowers could file suits or conduct a class action lawsuit.

The Truth in Lending Act, a 1968 federal law designed to protect consumers against lending fraud by requiring clear disclosure of loan terms and costs, lets consumers seek rescission, or termination, of a loan and the return of all interest and fees when a lender is found in violation.

The judge also found that cheated borrowers could force the bank

Panic in Support for the Euro Reported

Germans have begun to reject euro bank notes with serial numbers from Italy, Spain, Greece and Portugal. This reality is raising concerns that public support for the monetary union may be waning in the Germany, perhaps in reaction to Ireland’s rejection of EU’s founding attempts.

Bankers, being naturally detail oriented, have detected a curious pattern where customers are withdrawing cash directly from branches as they screen bank notes to determine the origin of issue. More Germans are asking for paper from the southern states to be exchanged for German notes.

Each country prints its own notes according to its economic weight in European Union under strict guidelines from the European Central Bank in Frankfurt. For example, German notes have an “X”‘ at the start of the serial numbers.

Some people clearly suspect that southern bank notes may lose

Global Storm Predicted by EU Bankers

Global confidence in banking has been breached as far as some European investment bankers are concerned. British-based Barclays sees a perfect financial storm on the horizon and a complete loss of credibility by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Barclays Capital has advised clients to batten down the hatches for a worldwide financial storm, warning that the US Federal Reserve has allowed the inflation genie out of the bottle and let its credibility fall “below zero”.

This is a strong admission for any banking institution. Most have quietly struggled while fearfully or relunctantly forging ahead over the last six months or so. Now, Barclays is not holding back on any punches.“We’re in a nasty environment,” said Tim Bond, the bank’s chief equity strategist. “There is an inflation shock underway. This is going to be very negative for financial assets. We are going into tortoise mood and are retreating into our shell. Investors will do well if they can preserve their wealth.”

Wow. The Royal Bank of Scotland has

Confidence, Mortgage Debacle & Fed Loans

Even though the Euro is on top of the world monetarily, European confidence is reported to be at the lowest level in 5 years. Whose confidence is being measured? There is no telling, but the guess would be the bankers, economists and investors. Because of the wonder of the mortgage securities debacle, the plight of many professionals globally in banking and investment circles is less money and fear of money trouble. Its all based on the outlook of growth, not only of collective economies, but of the financial system at large. Growth is a question mark on many fronts coupled with inflationary pressures.

Curiously, The Federal Reserve Bank of New York extended a $28.82 billion loan to JPMorgan Chase for the acquisition of Bear Stearns made in March. The Fed also released the minutes of two meetings on March 14 and March 16 that involve that loan. You would think that JPMorgan is prosperous enough to be able to cover that loan entirely after 90 days instead of having taxpayers float the loan for the credit, which is the reality of the situation. While JP Morgan is paying modest interest, the U.S. taxpayer is paying for interest put against the national debt. The Fed is collecting from both sides on money that they created from thin air.

The line of credit extended is based on collateral

More Jobless Bankers Set to Hit Job Market

Citigroup Inc., one of the larger international bank holding companies, will cut 10 percent or about 6,500 of the jobs in its investment banking division here in the States. Citigroup has trimmed more than 350,000 employees around the globe. By the end of March at least 9,000 positions had been cut based on information from the Wall Street Journal.

The Journal voiced that entire trading desks in New York and other cities are expected to be cut and especially hard-hit will be mergers and acquisitions bankers.

Meanwhile, certain investment firms like Stifel Nicolaus and Thomas Weisel are hiring to take advantage of the fire sale of available labor.

Meanwhile, the banking community continues to seek investors in an effort to stop the bleeding from bad securities. State government is piling on as well. California’s attorney general has filed a civil lawsuit against Countrywide Financial claiming the mortgage lender used misleading advertising and other unfair business practices to trick borrowers into taking on risky home loans they didn’t fully understand. Greed and bad business eventually consume the perpetrators. Banking is being forced to look at itself in the mirror.

Selling Short to Avoid Foreclosure

Increasingly, Americans are finding themselves in a no-win economic position while facing the possibility of foreclosure. The falling value of homes on the market is creating a substantial issue for lenders and borrowers alike. As record numbers of citizens lose their jobs and face other life situations, some are finding some solace in selling short.

Selling short requires the agreement of the banking institution that holds the mortgage and involves selling the house below the value of any held mortgage by the institution. Naturally, the banking institution would need to see a value to the bottom line over foreclosure in order to cooperate. In some cases, this action of selling short is exactly what is needed to get overstressed American pocketbooks out of a major cash crunch.

This action is not without effects to the borrower. Selling short is projected to show up on any credit report, thus impacting personal credit ratings. However, in an age “market housing walk-aways”, trying to do the “honorable thing” is exactly the choice of many homeowners for all kinds of variable reasons. Like banks, American citizens often have their own “bottom line.”

Fed Interest Rate Responsible for Inflation?

The joke of the day is CNN money’s recent article ruminating about the effect of the Federal Reserve’s low-interest rates and the creation of inflation. Low-interest rates for bank have helped the bottom lines of financial institutions. Consumers and investors have experienced little, if any, benefit.

According to the article, some think that low interest rates are at least partly responsible for some of the serious drags on the U.S. economy today, such as soaring prices of food and gas and the weak dollar. The interest rate of the Fed have nothing to do with such things at this low level of interest!

The country is fighting on two war fronts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Credit and monetary funding has been issued by the Federal Reserve on record levels. The national debt has grown exponentially since President Bush took office, which is probably his greatest legacy. The constant creation of monetary credit has thoroughly devalued the dollar in relation to the rest of the world. As a result, costs are higher. Capital value in the real estate market and economic pressure on the cost of goods continues to drive values down. This results in a contraction of the marketplace.

Wall Street and the media need to grow up. Sour grapes during tough times among people with most of the power and influence is ridiculous. Wall Street continues to find ways to make money. Scapegoating for their own benefit is exactly the situation. If you have read the information on this website, you know why the economy is in the dumper: financial and banking greed.

Most economists think inflation is here to stay. It’s likely to get worse.