Hawaii ranks No. 7 for mortgage risk - Business

we live in a very bizzare society that is completed deluded by the obscenity of the mass greed of Wall Street

home price declines are very good news
as it is healthy to clean the speculators out of the market so working young people can look towards home ownerhip

rents and mortgage rates should never compose 75% of incomes --- time to WAKE UP and start celebrating this greatly needed correction

The 6-12 month economic lag thats been prevalent before will again be true this time. in others words, our housing downturn is far from over. If you were thinking of buying a home, don't. Prices will continue to drop well beyond the bottom of the mainland housing crisis. Money will be king as it always has been.

Hawaii is as vulnerable to changes in the global economy as anywhere else. Sure, there are local differences such as much higher multi-family living situations and a generally more conservative attitude to debt. But overall, when the Mainland, or Japan or China sneezes, Hawaii will catch the cold.

The point is that Hawaii residents need to become aware of what's going on outside of the islands. Read the world papers, study the economic data on Bloomberg and Barrons and the Financial Times. The things you read about today will impact Hawaii in time to come.

Currently, the economic news around the world is dismal. The recession seems impervious to quick fixes by the Feds. Japan's recession has deepened, China has cut its growth forecasts in half, the US indicators are in the tank.

The people affected by this miserable news are the same people Hawaii counts on as visitors to support its #1 industry, tourism. It means that tourism will continue sink deeper and deeper and the revenue from tourism will decline. That's the money that runs the government at all levels.

Bottom line: if you think times are a bit tough, you ain't seen nothin' yet. Hawaii has at least through 2010 to suffer through bad times. By then, much will have changed.

As for real estate, it will drop much more. Be patient. We are just seeing the start of rapid price deflation.

I have a hard time believing(accepting) "stupid" sub-prime, greedy, short-sell investment owners. Also, the "stupid" long-term, sub-prime homeowners that purchased more than they could afford. I didn't forget the greedy lenders that made the "questionable" loans with undocumented income.
It ranks up there with poor family planning and having too many kids than they can afford.
Hawaii sustainability planning by parents and future young adults is a joke...
Target is the long term solution for financial freedom or just a patch to "get by"?(Regardless, this is still good for Hawaii)
keep feeding construction industry and banking on tourism/DoD as the only solutions? Ag and high-tech... LOL
Stupid, naive, ignorant? Or very optimistic?

No mo money. Gotta sleep down da beach. Colleck my welfea check and sleep all day. How can, li dat?

PO taxpayer-homeowner wrote:

I have a hard time believing(accepting) "stupid" sub-prime, greedy, short-sell investment owners. Also, the "stupid" long-term, sub-prime homeowners that purchased more than they could afford. I didn't forget the greedy lenders that made the "questionable" loans with undocumented income.
It ranks up there with poor family planning and having too many kids than they can afford.
Hawaii sustainability planning by parents and future young adults is a joke...
Target is the long term solution for financial freedom or just a patch to "get by"?(Regardless, this is still good for Hawaii)
keep feeding construction industry and banking on tourism/DoD as the only solutions? Ag and high-tech... LOL
Stupid, naive, ignorant? Or very optimistic?

you won't change any of that --- so plan around it

it is really quite simple --- you must protect your own assets, safety, and children

then relax --- you can't stop the stupidity around you

Lesson learned. Don't believe what you read in the paper before you check the credentials of the people who are giving advice. Google their names.

No one saw this coming--ha!

I do take issue with those who blame the victims-Listen to this great report on This American Life:
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/Radio_Episode...

Then listen to Naomi Klein on the Shock Doctrine:
http://www.democracynow.org/2008/9/24/naomi_k...

Thanks Bill Chee. It's your greed and the greed of your company that have helped to get us to this point. In statement after statement, you and Paul Brewbaker have always said that we have nothing to worry about here in Hawaii: that home prices would just go up and up and up.

Lehman Brothers, Enron, Madoff ponzi schemes, Prudential Locations LLC.....

We're moving on up!

okden wrote:

we live in a very bizzare society that is completed deluded by the obscenity of the mass greed of Wall Street
home price declines are very good news
as it is healthy to clean the speculators out of the market so working young people can look towards home ownerhip
rents and mortgage rates should never compose 75% of incomes --- time to WAKE UP and start celebrating this greatly needed correction

Completely agree! It's time Americans learn about sustainability and living within one's means. Unfortunately, greedy and unethical real estate developers and sales agents in Hawaii will still find willing suckers.

Politicians like Barney Frank and Chris Dodd want to give every one a home whether they can afford it or not.

The Fredie Mac and the Fannie Mae executives were giving themselves obscene bonuses all the way to 90 million dollars.

It's all about greed and DISHONESTY.

Oh StarBulletin, I thought it was rainbows and pretty ponies everywhere in Hawaii real estate?

Seems like the StarBulletin and Honolulu advertiser real estate staff are crawling back in to their holes.

I hope all of the StarBulletin and Honolulu staff lose their jobs as justice for all the National Assocation of Reaturds press release they have been publishing the last 5 years, instead of doing the real reporting that they should have. How many articles on mortgage fraud did they do during the boom years?

The good news is that house prices are going to crash at least 50% in real terms, and that working people (as opposed to speculators) will finally be able to afford houses here in Honolulu.

Ron Clark wrote:

Thanks Bill Chee. It's your greed and the greed of your company that have helped to get us to this point. In statement after statement, you and Paul Brewbaker have always said that we have nothing to worry about here in Hawaii: that home prices would just go up and up and up.
Lehman Brothers, Enron, Madoff ponzi schemes, Prudential Locations LLC.....

What did you expect from a Prudential franchise owner who has a wife at home and a mistress at the office. I know early on this year, Mr. Chee wanted to get his troops to find owners of homes that did not have any mortgage payments on their home to get into some monkey business project. I am glad I stayed away from that - it just did not sound kosher and now look at his office staff - many are starving because they are not making the sales they were early on when condos were going like hotcakes. Just ask all sales people at Prudential that were invited to be a partner for 10K. I would like to know what those partners now think about forking over 10K just to be able to say they are a partner!!! They don't know that the 10K went into Mr. Chee's pocket to take further care of his mistress!!! I wonder how those two former TV sports and news anchor are enjoying their new careers at Prudential? At least staying in the TV business, they had a regular paycheck!!!

So does this mean a prospective buyer should wait to buy a home? If so, when?

The latest figure just released also shows that 37% of homes that had their mortgages redone earlier this year are now at least 60 days delinquent in their monthly mortgage payment. 53% of single family homes sold in Southern Cal the last two months were homes that had been foreclosed. Today's news are showing that many retailers are asking people to make them an offer for their store products and some of those stores are Circuit City, Best Buy as well as Macy's!!! I know, I was just at Best Buy a few hours ago and they were willing to knock off another $100 on a big screen LCD TV - and it was already an item that was advertised on sale!!! I believe times are going to be difficult but I also believe that we will all come through this fine if everyone does their due diligence and manage their expense. Happy Holidays to all!!!

Fact of the matter wrote:

The latest figure just released also shows that 37% of homes that had their mortgages redone earlier this year are now at least 60 days delinquent in their monthly mortgage payment. 53% of single family homes sold in Southern Cal the last two months were homes that had been foreclosed. Today's news are showing that many retailers are asking people to make them an offer for their store products and some of those stores are Circuit City, Best Buy as well as Macy's!!! I know, I was just at Best Buy a few hours ago and they were willing to knock off another $100 on a big screen LCD TV - and it was already an item that was advertised on sale!!! I believe times are going to be difficult but I also believe that we will all come through this fine if everyone does their due diligence and manage their expense. Happy Holidays to all!!!

would it be nice if we came out of this with new approach

maybe the containers from china can start coming empty out direction and full going outbound

wow, what a concept --- we can stop buying all the doo doo from china already

The lenders are very tight in Hawaii, especially BOH and FHB!!!!!!!!