Mortgage
Agent Convicted of Cash Back at Closing Scam - (www.mortgagefraudblog.com) Jawad “Joe” Quassani, 42, Las Vegas, Nevada, a
mortgage agent, has been convicted for his role in a “cash back at closing”
mortgage fraud scheme that netted $1.43 million in fraudulent mortgage loans. After
a three-day trial before U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks in the District of
Nevada, a federal jury convicted the defendant on July 10, 2013, of one count
of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud,
and two counts of mail fraud. According to court documents and evidence
presented at trial, Quassaniparticipated in a scheme in which the prices
of two homes were falsely inflated, mortgage loans were obtained through the
submission of loan applications containing false and fraudulent information
about the buyer’s income and intent to occupy the homes as primary residences,
a portion of the loan proceeds was diverted at the close of escrow to the
defendant’s co-conspirators, and commissions on the fraudulent loans were paid
to Quassani and his co-conspirator.
China
Shipyards Hurt by Low Down Payments Amid Credit Crunch - (www.bloomberg.com) During
the 2007 shipping boom, China’s shipyards charged down payments of as much
as 60 percent of a vessel’s value. Now, shipbuilders are cutting those payments
to as little as 2 percent, giving an advantage to state-owned companies that
can tap the government’s cash. With flagging demand pushing shipyards to
compete by cutting down payments and China taking measures to rein in lending,
the nation’s privately owned yards are getting squeezed by state-owned rivals
that enjoy greater access to financing. China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group Holdings Ltd. (1101), the largest shipbuilder outside state control
by order book, said this month it’s seeking government support after failing to
win any new vessel orders this year. “The payment terms mean shipyards have to
burn their own money to build ships, which brings them extraordinary cash-flow
pressure,” said Lawrence Li, a Shanghai-based analyst at UOB-Kay Hian Holdings
Ltd.
Detroit’s Bankruptcy Reveals Dysfunction Common
in Cities - (www.bloomberg.com) No
city was hit as hard by the recession as Detroit, America’s one-time industrial
capital whose decades-long decline cut its population in half and left $18
billion in debt it can’t afford to pay. Even so, the pressures that pushed
Detroit into the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history are playing out
on a smaller scale around the nation. Diminished tax revenue and rising labor costs have left four
cities insolvent since 2007. Service cuts were made by others such as Detroit,
where street lights are dark and police are scarce. “None of the other cities
are as far along, but there are dozens, if not hundreds of cities that have
similar issues,” said Alan Mallach, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a public-policy research organization in
Washington. “Every other industrial city has problems that could send them down
the same path.”
Hallelujah, Spain is recovering - (www.telegraph.co.uk) Spanish
Finance Minister Luis de Guindos assures us that his country has beaten the
crisis and will soon be recovering nicely. "The recession is already
behind us," he said. I wish him the best, but this is what loan growth
looks like in Spain (courtesy of Miguel Navascues at Ilusion Monetaria): The
IMF has downgraded its economic growth forecast for Spain to minus 1.6pc this
year, and zero next year. The depression grinds on, and on, and on. I nothing
further to say other than to note that property prices fell 7.8pc in the second
quarter from a year earlier, and are now back to 2004 levels (nominal, minus
30pc real). Bargain hunters are emerging, but bear one thing in mind. Property
Consultants RR de Acuna in Madrid say there is now an overhang of 2.2m homes
either on the market, or held by banks, or in foreclosure proceedings, or still
being built (presumably mostly in the less depressed areas liked the Basque
country or Navarre). I can't vouch for these figures, but the firm has been
much more accurate about the true disaster in the property market than the
cheerleaders in the banks, or the government.
After
Detroit bankruptcy filing, city retirees on edge as they face pension cuts - (www.washingtonpost.com) Orr
has discussed a range of steps the city could take to pay off its debts, and
some have speculated that they could include selling Detroit’s international
airport and valuable collections from the Detroit Institute of Arts. For
current workers, he has proposed stopping pension contributions and shifting
employees to individual retirement savings accounts. But no part of the
bankruptcy process is stirring as many passions as the potential need to slice
pensions and benefits for retirees. Small cities that have filed for bankruptcy
protection in recent years have significantly cut retirees’ benefits. Harry
Harper, who lives in northeast Detroit and retired in 2003 from the city’s
Water and Sewerage Department after 30 years of service, said talk of benefit cuts
is making him very anxious. “I feel very vulnerable. I don’t feel we have any
protection,” said Harper, 61, who receives $2,100 a month in pension payments.
“I thought that at 30 years, you earned a pension that was accrued and you did
not have to have a concern about that.” Retirees
such as Harper say that living in Detroit on a fixed pension is tough since
public transit has been cut back and fuel prices have been going up. Michigan’s
gasoline prices are among the highest in the country.
Detroit:
How the Motor City went bust - (www.usatoday.com)
Exclusive: China in $5 billion drive to develop disputed East China Sea gas - (www.reuters.com)
Exclusive: China in $5 billion drive to develop disputed East China Sea gas - (www.reuters.com)
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