BankAtlantic files defamation lawsuit against analyst

Screw the analist. We're depositing $22,000 in our BankAtlantic account tomorrow!

Keep the deposits under 100K just in case.

I congratulate BankAtlantic here. For too long these analysts have gotten away with putting out all sorts of inaccurate, misleading, or downright fraudulent data. We've seen just as recently as the Enron scandal and the tech bubble bursting what these "analysts" can do.
And in the case of banks, whose entire business model is built on trust, these kinds of false reports can destroy both the bank and its depositors. Shame on you Bove.

SandL Survivor wrote:

I congratulate BankAtlantic here. For too long these analysts have gotten away with putting out all sorts of inaccurate, misleading, or downright fraudulent data. We've seen just as recently as the Enron scandal and the tech bubble bursting what these "analysts" can do.
And in the case of banks, whose entire business model is built on trust, these kinds of false reports can destroy both the bank and its depositors. Shame on you Bove.

You have no idea what you are talking about.

Just make sure if you are a depositer to have less that $100,000 in any account. I just went through the horror of Indymac, and luckily I was under the limit and am fully insured. But lot's of people I know lost a significant amount of money. You cannot trust ANY bank these days. They all lie, so so your homework.

Spell Checker wrote:

Screw the analist. We're depositing $22,000 in our BankAtlantic account tomorrow!

Good... just stay under the insured limit.

It's great that BankAtlantic holds another sleezy analyst accountable. For too long stock and real estate analysts have had a free reign of destruction while they secretly SHORT the investments they attack. Just look at the MISUSE of analysts by PAUL OWERS and The Sun-Sentinel.Owers has routinely MASQUERADED foreclosure and distressed property consultants as impartial real estate experts using their DOOM AND GLOOM mostly fabricated real estate horror stories to SCARE AWAY HOME BUYERS. And that's not all, PAUL OWERS HAS BEEN MISLEADING READERS about the number of foreclosures by counting foreclosure filings as actual foreclosures.! FORECLOSURE FILINGS DON'T EQUAL ACTUAL FORECLOSURES since there are at least 3 to 4 filings for each home being foreclosed. Rick Sharga, Realty Trac's vice president of marketing (the media source for foreclosure stats) STATED "The news media is distorting and INFLATING Realty Trac's foreclosure numbers by 300% for the past three years since Realty Trac tracks foreclosure FILINGS not foreclosures and there are 3 or 4 filings for each home in foreclosure." SHARGA added...I spend hours every day explaining the difference (foreclosures are a process NOT an event) to reporters (LIKE PAUL OWERS) but my warnings FALL ON DEAF JOURNALISTIC YEARS! PAUL OWERS is quite content to MISLEAD READERS by NOT STATING that the relationship between FORECLOSURE FILINGS and actual foreclosures is at least 3 to 1. That means that there are 3 or even 4 filings for every home in foreclosure. FUNNY THAT PAUL OWERS won't tell readers that little technicality! PAUL OWERS is very happy to let readers MISLEAD THEMSELVES while he dances on the head of a pin between foreclosure filings and actual foreclosures!! Typical SLANTED and biased JOURNALISM FROM THE SLUM-SENTINEL!

SandL Survivor wrote:

I congratulate BankAtlantic here. For too long these analysts have gotten away with putting out all sorts of inaccurate, misleading, or downright fraudulent data. We've seen just as recently as the Enron scandal and the tech bubble bursting what these "analysts" can do.
And in the case of banks, whose entire business model is built on trust, these kinds of false reports can destroy both the bank and its depositors. Shame on you Bove.

What an idiot. You really should work in large business and in particular financial firms before you write baloney like this.

The truth is, BankAtlantic is simply moving around money to make things appear a certain way, whereas this analyst took a "lump sum" approach to meter and assess the viability of the ENTIRE organization, and not just a part of it.

This is nothing more than a scare tactic by a sinking ship of a bank to deflect any MORE negative press, because the truth is, if negative press escalates, deposits decline, pushing them closer the brink of collapse.

And quiet frankly, any bank that runs that level of risk deserves to fold.

OLD REAL ESTATE LAWYER wrote:

It's great that BankAtlantic holds another sleezy analyst accountable. For too long stock and real estate analysts have had a free reign of destruction while they secretly SHORT the investments they attack. Just look at the MISUSE of analysts by PAUL OWERS and The Sun-Sentinel.Owers has routinely MASQUERADED foreclosure and distressed property consultants as impartial real estate experts using their DOOM AND GLOOM mostly fabricated real estate horror stories to SCARE AWAY HOME BUYERS. And that's not all, PAUL OWERS HAS BEEN MISLEADING READERS about the number of foreclosures by counting foreclosure filings as actual foreclosures.! FORECLOSURE FILINGS DON'T EQUAL ACTUAL FORECLOSURES since there are at least 3 to 4 filings for each home being foreclosed. Rick Sharga, Realty Trac's vice president of marketing (the media source for foreclosure stats) STATED "The news media is distorting and INFLATING Realty Trac's foreclosure numbers by 300% for the past three years since Realty Trac tracks foreclosure FILINGS not foreclosures and there are 3 or 4 filings for each home in foreclosure." SHARGA added...I spend hours every day explaining the difference (foreclosures are a process NOT an event) to reporters (LIKE PAUL OWERS) but my warnings FALL ON DEAF JOURNALISTIC YEARS! PAUL OWERS is quite content to MISLEAD READERS by NOT STATING that the relationship between FORECLOSURE FILINGS and actual foreclosures is at least 3 to 1. That means that there are 3 or even 4 filings for every home in foreclosure. FUNNY THAT PAUL OWERS won't tell readers that little technicality! PAUL OWERS is very happy to let readers MISLEAD THEMSELVES while he dances on the head of a pin between foreclosure filings and actual foreclosures!! Typical SLANTED and biased JOURNALISM FROM THE SLUM-SENTINEL!

You again.

We all know you're angry, but I'm asking this question *JUST* out of curiosity (and I'm sure on the behalf of others who regular these boards)...are you a RE attorney who had some RE venture that failed as a result of the downturn?

Because with all that anger (the "all caps" is used to indicate yelling on the internet, in case you didn't know) and thorough fact pushing you do about the hype in the media about this, it sure feels like it.

Not that I'm saying you're wrong, well, partially, but still, I'm curious.

OLD REAL ESTATE LAWYER wrote:

It's great that BankAtlantic holds another sleezy analyst accountable. For too long stock and real estate analysts have had a free reign of destruction while they secretly SHORT the investments they attack. Just look at the MISUSE of analysts by PAUL OWERS and The Sun-Sentinel.Owers has routinely MASQUERADED foreclosure and distressed property consultants as impartial real estate experts using their DOOM AND GLOOM mostly fabricated real estate horror stories to SCARE AWAY HOME BUYERS. And that's not all, PAUL OWERS HAS BEEN MISLEADING READERS about the number of foreclosures by counting foreclosure filings as actual foreclosures.! FORECLOSURE FILINGS DON'T EQUAL ACTUAL FORECLOSURES since there are at least 3 to 4 filings for each home being foreclosed. Rick Sharga, Realty Trac's vice president of marketing (the media source for foreclosure stats) STATED "The news media is distorting and INFLATING Realty Trac's foreclosure numbers by 300% for the past three years since Realty Trac tracks foreclosure FILINGS not foreclosures and there are 3 or 4 filings for each home in foreclosure." SHARGA added...I spend hours every day explaining the difference (foreclosures are a process NOT an event) to reporters (LIKE PAUL OWERS) but my warnings FALL ON DEAF JOURNALISTIC YEARS! PAUL OWERS is quite content to MISLEAD READERS by NOT STATING that the relationship between FORECLOSURE FILINGS and actual foreclosures is at least 3 to 1. That means that there are 3 or even 4 filings for every home in foreclosure. FUNNY THAT PAUL OWERS won't tell readers that little technicality! PAUL OWERS is very happy to let readers MISLEAD THEMSELVES while he dances on the head of a pin between foreclosure filings and actual foreclosures!! Typical SLANTED and biased JOURNALISM FROM THE SLUM-SENTINEL!

As to the facts you state-- they are *mostly* true. Yes the media favors the doom and gloom view, in particular this newspaper, however, I must point out that every article I have read, DOES in fact make the distinction that these are filings and not actual foreclosures.

Another thing-- people decide to their homes not because of what they read, but because of their own personal financial situations.

The Anti-dope wrote:

<quoted text>
As to the facts you state-- they are *mostly* true. Yes the media favors the doom and gloom view, in particular this newspaper, however, I must point out that every article I have read, DOES in fact make the distinction that these are filings and not actual foreclosures.
Another thing-- people decide to their homes not because of what they read, but because of their own personal financial situations.

Within the past few months the media has been correctly citing foreclosure filings in their coverage. For the past three years they didn't! However, the media dances between filings and actual foreclosures in the articles and deliberately misleads readers that filings equal foreclosures. OWERS is particularly guilty of this and knows better. In fact, by TELLING HALF-LIES he's actually worse than most other reporters!

Good...I hope Bank Atlantic is awarded a huge sum for damages...

These analysts constantly manipulate data and spin it to their benefit, without any regard for the shareholders...If they can short it down to zero, they will trash the company relentlessly, and hype it to the moon when they are long...

It's about time someone took them to task...

do you think it is the right time to invest in bank atlantic shares ?

The Anti-dope wrote:

<quoted text>
...to deflect any MORE negative press, because the truth is, if negative press escalates, deposits decline, pushing them closer the brink of collapse.

You provide the best argument against yourself.

CCC wrote:

<quoted text>
You provide the best argument against yourself.

How so? It simply supports the evaluation of an organization holistically, rather than in parts, as BA is claiming in their filing.

CCC wrote:

<quoted text>
You provide the best argument against yourself.

Oh and one more thing-- defamation is based on baseless allegation, not facts. The truth is, this lawsuit is without merit because the balance sheet of the PUBLIC companies was used in compiling the data. Since the report points to historical trends based on *facts* it is simply *implying* without stating explicitly, that BA is in danger.

Unfortunately, this is unwinnable for BA due to the fact that speculation is not statement of fact unless explicitly done.

(unless the analyst's attorney turns out to be incompetent)

:)

Guy walks into a bank. Sticks his finger in the bank president's side saying, "This is a screw up."

Bank president says, "You mean this is a stick-up?"

"No, it's a screw up, I forgot my gun."

I would like to say something negative about the BankAtlantic executive management team - but I am afraid that I might get sued!!!

August 1, 2008

I am writing today in reference to shameful and criminal acts by Bank Atlantic. On July 22, 2008 I logged into my account online too see that I had been charged $160 in overdraft fees in one day. This happened shortly after I was fired by a crooked employer who to this day still not has paid me money that I am owed. I deposited a check into the account from my wife’s employer the previous weekend that cleared without issue, but not until the following Wednesday, the day after I was charged the fees. These overdraft fees were a result of me and my wife using my Bank Atlantic bank card to make purchases.

Having several conversations with multiple representatives from this bank, I have discovered that they have policies in place to ensure that these charges will be forced, and that they will in fact rearrange the order of any card transactions to maximize these charges. I asked again today why my transactions are simply not declined if I do not have available funds to cover the transaction. I was told by a bank manager that since I deposited a check in advance, their system would approve the transaction, and then charge me an overdraft fee if the transaction hits the bank before my deposit clears. So if I had not made the deposit, the transactions could have been denied and I would not have been charged the transactions. But since they knew there was more money on the way, they had the ability to simply take that money from me.

I have also been told that when these transactions clear, the bank system intentionally puts them in order from largest to smallest. This policy ensures that the maximum amount is taken out first, so that the account is considered overdrawn when the smaller transactions are applied. This allows for additional overdraft fees to be applied even if the account wasn’t actually overdrawn when those smaller purchases were made.

This has happened at a time when I am having severe issues providing for my wife and child. As I mentioned, I was recently let go by a crooked employer who is refusing to pay me money he owes me. I was struggling to find a job when this happened, as are many other Americans right now. And I am still trying to find a way to borrow the money required to pay my families rent. I am also concerned about being able to pay for gas to get to the new job I start next week.

I have had several conversations with a number of representatives regarding the 5 overdraft fees that hit my account. I was treated like I was the single most worthless human being on the planet by some of the Bank Atlantic customer service reps, although a handful of people did express concern for my family. Taking $160 from my family while knowing that so many families are struggling to make ends meet is not how any professional organization does business. This is the single most shameful act I have had to deal with seen in my life. Knowing that I had $160 taken from me, I was told by Bank Atlantic representatives that I was being difficult, I was told to "get over it," I was insulted several times, and my wife was treated in a similar manner. Because of my complaints, they are now closing my account.

This is a bank that is open 7 days a week, every time I go into the bank they ask me to refer a friend, and they give gifts to those who open accounts. I’m sure if I did the math, I would find that they spend more than $160 on marketing per person to get these accounts open. So how do they justify pushing me to the side over this amount of money? This is a large amount to my family, but can’t be much to a bank. I cannot be expected to believe that the way in which they handled these transactions to maximize the overdraft charges is legal. It certainly is not ethical, and organizations such as Bank Atlantic must be held to higher ethical standards. We see from the current housing and credit crises that there is a large economic impact when banks decide to brush aside ethics.

To old Real Estate Lawyer and anyone else interested in helping stop the press from getting away with Defamation.
I have finally got the facts that a large newspaper violated their privledge by printing a defamatory story that they shouuld have known was not true. Does anyone know or is there an enterprising lawyer in South Florida that wants a sure winner.

?