MetaFilter posts tagged with Housing

Oh, Five of Them, Actually

Danf — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 11:48:45 -0800

The Edge, AKA David Evans, wants to build a little comppound in Malibu, on "the most prominent landform along the coast between Topanga Canyon Boulevard and the Ventura County line." "In bringing together the very best environmental, architectural and design principles, the owners have sought to create homes that will both set new standards and withstand the test of time," Evans says on the website he created as part of his lobbying effort to move this project through. (Turn your sound on for the video.) "Unfortunately, it is impossible to construct the five homes strung over a mile of ridgeline and 7,800 feet of water main without resulting in unavoidable significant adverse visual and ecological impacts," writes Ronald P. Schafer, the President of the quasi-public Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy. A number of local residents are wondering how building 5 houses on a high ridgeline this close to the ocean could be considered the "right thing to do" by someone with such a progressive cred. The Malibu Times. puts us right on this. "However, U2 is known mostly for human rights issues and not environmental causes."

Homeowners! You Have Nothing to Lose But Your Mortgages!

jonp72 — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:05:20 -0800

The Moral Dimensions of Ditching a Mortgage: University of Arizona law professor Brent T. White has written a provocative new paper (pdf) that urges homeowners with "underwater" mortgages" to walk away by strategically defaulting on their mortgage debts. White argues that most "underwater" homeowners don't default on their mortgages, because "social control agents," ranging from the housing industry to President Obama, enforce an "asymmetry of norms" that makes it immoral if an individual homeowner walks away from a debt, but allows banks to walk away from debt with impunity. Meanwhile, other economic research appears to confirm White's argument that main barriers to homeowners engaging in "strategic default" are moral and social, not economic and legal.

"Donald Sterling Continues To Get Away With Being The Most Evil Man In Sports"

ocherdraco — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 17:28:43 -0800

The Donald Sterling Rule "Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling lives by his own rules. And the only one that matters, apparently, is this: all bad deeds go unpunished. Over the last six years, nearly two dozen L.A. residents have sued Sterling for engaging in racist housing practices and Jim Crow-style bigotry. In a 2003 deposition, the 76-year-old real estate mogul admitted to paying a former employee to have sex with him in an elevator. Three years ago, the U.S. government charged him with "willful" mistreatment of African-American and Latino tenants, and earlier this month, he agreed to pay the Dept. of Justice nearly $3 million to settle a federal racial-discrimination housing lawsuit, the largest award ever for a case of its kind." So why, asks California's Tenants Together, has the NBA said nothing about Sterling's less than sterling behavior? Dan Wetzel asks why the landmark settlement has gotten practically no media coverage. Sterling's problems extend to a lawsuit from his former GM, Hall-of-Famer Elgin Baylor. The landmark lawsuit: United States v. Donald Sterling. A list of Sterling's misdeeds, from Deadspin.

California "City"

joshwa — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:44:21 -0800

California City is the 3rd largest city in California (geographically), home to California's largest open-pit boron mine, a privately-run Federal Prison, and only 8,835 residents. Originally planned as a "large master-planned leisure community" of up to 1 million people, such growth never materialized, and the remains of the undeveloped streets and cul-de-sacs presage images of the current housing crisis, and are a modern, uniquely American version of the Nazca Lines.

People are not where they live, or where they sleep

l33tpolicywonk — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:14:37 -0800

Becky Blanton spent a year in her van grieving her dead father. Even with a full-time job and a writing career, a depression quickly set in which made Blanton feel like a homeless person. How do we define homelessness? The vast majority of homelessness is still linked to poverty, lack of affordable housing and eroding work opportunities. An opposing view: Apartments aren't worth the money in grad school.

ACORN under fire

Deathalicious — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 10:05:08 -0800

ACORN already drew fire last year during the election, accused of voter fraud, although ACORN points out there was no real fraud going on [pdf]. Now, they are facing controversy over a recent video showing ACORN officials offering advice to amateur actors posing as a pimp and prostitute on what to say when seeking a mortgage for a brothel. A second video captured an ACORN worker claiming to have murdered her husband (she later said she was simply messing with the filmmakers). As a result of these recent controversies, the Senate voted 83-7 to prohibiting the use of funds to fund ACORN. It's likely that a big motivation to block this funding came from issues surrounding Acorn and the Census. The Census Bureau had already decided to sever ties with ACORN , partially because of fears that ACORN would play an active role in the Census, although this was not at all true -- they were simply one of 30,000 Census Partners. The vote to block funding will mean that ACORN will no longer receive HUD grants, which it uses to offer free housing counseling to lower-income individuals.

Making Policy Public

netbros — Sun, 31 May 2009 11:14:59 -0800

Urban Omnibus is an online project of the Architectural League that explores the relationship between design and New York City's physical environment. They are featuring Making Policy Public, a program of The Center for Urban Pedagogy, through their articles about Vendor Power and Predatory Equity. "Just as we were beginning our collaboration, 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, a predatory equity building in the Bronx widely recognized as the birthplace of hip-hop, was being overleveraged by a predatory developer. This was not only a case of people potentially losing their homes; but also of New York City losing its heritage and culture. The threats are social and cultural as well as economic. Through their work helping tenants organize and speaking to lawmakers and media sources, (we) knew that the poster would have to address two different audiences: 1) Tenants who wanted to know how the law and predatory equity practices could directly affect them and 2) decision-makers who would need inside information to take action. They imagined the publication’s goal was to mobilize tenants in affected and at-risk buildings and to convince politicians and banks to recognize the problem and take immediate action. We agreed finding a way to visually explain predatory equity was the best place to start."

Demographics & Depression

Adamchik — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 00:06:27 -0800

I have heard many explanations of the housing crisis, but First Things, A Journal of Religion, Culture, and Public Life had one that I had never heard: America’s housing market collapsed because conservatives lost the culture wars even back while they were prevailing in electoral politics. A number of observers have pointed to household formation as a key driver in the current and future housing markets, but no one else I have run across writes things like "the world is poorer now because the present generation did not bother to rear a new generation".

watch the american housing market spiral out of control

uncle harold — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:41:17 -0800

subprime. Beautiful animation about the US housing market.

We won't be like that again.

Abiezer — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 22:23:00 -0800

Behind The Rent Strike [YouTube playlist; six parts of 50ish min. documentary] Nick Broomfield's graduation piece, a documentary on the 14-month rent strike by the people of Kirkby New Town, near Liverpool, which began in late 1973 in response (it wasn't the only one) to the Heath government's Housing Finance Act. Broomfield gets plenty of insight from local people and examines the social conditions behind the events. Great viewing of good film-making and an opportunity for a bit of nostalgia if you're a viewer from round that way.

Blow-by-blow of Wachovia's Demise

SeizeTheDay — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 12:48:14 -0800

A blow-by-blow analysis of Wachovia's demise, as told by the bank's local paper, The Charlotte Observer.

She's not a brick house

klangklangston — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 18:06:24 -0800

Thomas Edison's Concrete Houses From 1902 to roughly 1917, Edison was in the concrete business, and concrete houses would be one of his biggest failures. Shown here and here as models, Edison promised that they would be the salvation of the slum-dweller, priced at $1000 each (a third the cost of a new home at the time). He even made concrete furniture. Many of the houses still stand on Ingersoll Terrace," Union, NJ.

Tanta Vive!

mullacc — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 15:12:53 -0800

The Compleat ÜberNerd: a fascinating series of blog entries detailing the nitty-gritty behind the mortgage industry by Calculated Risk's "Tanta." If you're curious about automated underwriting systems or the ins and outs of mortgage servicing or if you just enjoy some Mortgage Pig Excel art, Tanta was the blogger for you. Tanta, otherwise known as Doris Dungey, passed away on Sunday morning (NYT obit, CR obit).

Crap - I only made $15B last year

blahblah — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:16:53 -0800

There are still some smart people left on Wall St. Hedge fund manager, John Paulson, made a cool $15B for his fund as the housing market imploded. His cut? $3-4B. Not too shabby for a year's worth of work. Interestingly, Greenspan was an advisor to the hedge fund. How much did he make out in the housing decline?

Say It Aloud

chuckdarwin — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:02:17 -0800

Norfolk & Holmes is no ordinary estate agency. More here.

The Shire is in Foreclosure

jrochest — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 22:52:00 -0800

Subprime crisis worse than we thought... The Shire, an Oregon housing development based on Tolkien's Hobbit village, is in foreclosure.

The Beginning of the End of Suburbia?

Telf — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 12:18:24 -0800

The New York Times article, Rethinking the Country Life as Energy Costs Rise , is just one of many articles documenting the apparent demise of suburbia. Unlike the notable Atlantic article which focused mostly on the mortgage bubble (previously), these more recent articles are beginning to focus of the rising cost of gas and transportation in general. (Previously) Is this the beginning of The End of Suburbia as predicted by the curmudgeonly James Howard Kunstler? (Discussed previously here and here.) Or are Americans simply readjusting their lifestyles to fit current economic limitations?

The Arrival of Energy Positive Buildings

rongorongo — Thu, 22 May 2008 16:06:26 -0800

A positive energy building is one that produces more power than it consumes (yes they have been around for a while). The Masdar Headquarters in Abu Dhabi – due for completion in 2010 claims that it will be the first to do this on a substantial scale (mainly thanks to use of solar energy). David Fisher's spectacular “Dynamic Architecture” building in Dubai will aim to achieve the same goal using wind. Scaling up on the ambition stakes France has pledged all of its new housing will fit into this category by 2020.

The Giant Pool of Money

empath — Sun, 11 May 2008 22:20:37 -0800

The Giant Pool of Money. This American Life teams up with NPR News to explain the Housing Crisis. (I know everybody here already knows about TAL, but this is an exceptionally well done episode, and worth checking out even if you don't get the podcast.)

Value-added housing costs

Blazecock Pileon — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 11:04:16 -0800

How far away from work do you live? How much of your pay gets used up to get you to and from work, get you around town, and pay for where you live? As gas and food prices continue to rise, "affordability" has become a more critical notion for everyday Americans. The Center for Neighborhood Technology developed their Housing + Transportation Affordability Index, which aims to help better inform renters and owners about the relationship of transportation options to where one lives.

Domestic Violence Discrimination in Housing

jacobw — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:06:08 -0800

Disclosing victim status could mean being denied that housing is even available. Women strong enough to flee their homes and their abusive situations were more likely to be denied housing outright, something that did not happen to people not disclosing.

Housing Crisis: 1 in 33 Face Foreclosure Within 2 Years

jacobw — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:30:35 -0800

Will States Respond to the Foreclosure Crisis? Their headline is that 1 in 33 homeowners are projected to face foreclosure in the next two years. But I found the stat that neighboring homes will lose $356 billion in value a rather staggering number to swallow for those not facing the threat of foreclosure.

Circuit Split on Online Housing Ads

goatdog — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 17:22:05 -0800

Last month, Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals: you cannot sue Craigslist for housing ads that violate the Fair Housing Act. Full decision (PDF); summary and analysis. This week, Ninth Circuit: you can sue Roommate.com for housing ads that violate the Fair Housing Act. Full decision (PDF); summary and analysis. The difference? Roommate.com facilitates the violations with its insidious check-boxes. It all hinges on how the courts interpret a section of the Communications Decency Act, a question that the Supreme Court may have to settle.

Rent Vs. Buy Myths That Ruined the Housing Market

Afroblanco — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 16:38:56 -0800

Rent Vs. Buy Myths That Ruined the Housing Market

mobile homes built without nails

nickyskye — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 23:41:26 -0800

Chattel houses were very small houses, built by freed slaves or plantation workers, that could be dismantled quickly and moved in the event they were fired or unable to pay property tax to the plantation owner on whose land the house stood. Examples in Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad l Sunday 25 March 2007 marked 200 years to the day that the British Parliament passed an Act to outlaw the slave trade in British colonies. Images of chattel houses from the Caribbean Poetry site. Stories of people in slavery Definition of chattel house from the Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage