Category Archives: News
Protestors trouble Liarnar Homes
Saturday I received a phone call from a friend that went like this: “Hey do you know why there are people protesting Liarnar at Riverbend? They have a big ole sign that says buyer beware of Liarnar Homes.” I said, “Probably because they build crappy homes.” Now I wasn’t sure that was going to be the case because it is a much better story when it’s the FBer’s protesting the price reductions. Like a good blogger I decided to go check it out for myself and here is what I found.
Sure enough the protestors were local 2361 carpenter union members letting people know that Liarnar builds crappy homes. Unfortunately the gentleman in the picture wouldn’t say much but he did give me the flyer below and the business card for an attorney. He said the attorney would be more than willing to give me more information. I called the attorney late yesterday and I will try again today to get some more info. I know it is not Irvine but he did say that there are others protesting at Liarnar projects. If anyone else has seen something like this in or around Irvine please let us know.
Now I am not sure how many people read Mish’s blog but he has been following Mike Morgan’s fight against Liarnar in Florida for their faulty construction. Mike Morgan is in so deep that Liarnar is even suing him over his website. If you have not read some of the stories on his site and Mish’s I highly recommend that you do. Some of the stories are so disgusting that you may never look at Liarnar the same again. As you can tell from the flyer it sites an OC Register article that can be found here. As with most in the MSM the Register has not done any follow up. I checked www.occourts.org and searched for Liarnar but nothing came up. It will be interesting to see how Liarnar handles these types of things because they have a majority of the units in the pipeline for OC. They have a big pipeline in Irvine with the Great Park project of 9500 homes and 1400 homes at Central Park West. Of course Liarnar touts its commitment to quality.
For the record I have nothing against Liarnar nor are they the homebuilder that I used to work for. I just do not know of any other major homebuilder who receives as much negative news about faulty construction as Liarnar.
Whiner, Whiner, Whiner
Selling Price: $1,050,000
Selling Date: 4/18/2007
Purchase Price: $1,188,000
Purchase Date: 1/25/2006
Address: 25 Lakeview, Irvine, CA 92604
Beds: 4
Baths: 3
Sq. Ft.: 2,500
Year Built: 1977
Stories: 2
Type: Condominium
View: Lake Front, Lake, Mountain, Panoramic
Neighborhood: Woodbridge
$/Sq. Ft.: $420
MLS#: S475949
Status: Active on market
On Redfin: 71 days
Premiere property in the heart of Irvine: This flip should have been a no-brainer…
Perhaps you saw the following letter written by a local realtor published in the OC Register [italicized comments in brackets are mine]:
Late breaking letters: Media experts and the ‘coming’ real estate market crash
Posted, Wednesday afternoon, April 11
It was with great disappointment that I read the latest Jonathan Lansner diatribe on how the sky is falling as it pertains to the Orange County real estate market [“
Both Lansner and Schiff, as well as UCLA and Chapman College representatives have all been predicting the bursting of the real estate “bubble” year after year. They have all been consistently wrong and have probably cost the would-be homeowners, who held off due to these dire and inaccurate predictions, untold thousands of dollars in returns on a sensible real estate investment [so sensible the writer lost his a$$], and the subsequent appreciation (not to mention the significant tax deductions.)
For those foolish enough to listen to them, and who held off purchasing a home, it may be too late. Many will probably never be able to afford a home in Orange County [priced out forever, LOL] now thanks to the doom and gloomers. Particularly offensive was Schiff’s advice: “When everyone in real estate is waiting tables (or in jail) [ROFLOL] and your neighbors think you are crazy for even considering real estate, then it will be time to buy. [Peter Schiff is my new hero]” I have spent much of my life in Southern California real estate. I do my best to provide accurate advice and handle my clients with professionalism and courtesy. Schiff’s broad-brush stereotyping of thousands of hard-working real estate professionals reflects much more on his reputation than ours [Realtors are considered by the general public to be on a par with used car salesmen]. I still consider O.C. real estate an outstanding long-term investment [liar], and history unerringly proves me correct [except in the 90’s when it didn’t].
The primary cause of the recent (and temporary) slow down in this market, in my opinion, is due to the piling on of media and pundits that must feed the fears of their readers on a daily basis in order to stay in business [I feel so powerful. I and a few other bloggers ruined the market. LOL]. Schiff’s prediction of a 50 percent decrease in O.C. home values is beyond ridiculous [he is probably right on]. Despite what Schiff and other fear mongers predict, the law of supply and demand hasn’t stopped working and the whole world still wants to live in Orange County [The whole world wants to live here, LOL. This guy should do stand-up comedy. He managed to make every ridiculous kool-aid-drinkin’ bullish statement in one writing. Great stuff.].
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Boo Hoo, somebody call the whambulance; perhaps our crybaby realtor friend wants some cheese with that whine. When you read a diarrhetic thought stream like that you can’t help wondering if there is more to the story. There is.
(Chuck Ponzi at Southern California Real Estate Bubble Crash wrote a great post concerning this letter.)
This letter to the editor was published one week before our realtor / failed flipper lost $138,000 plus commissions on the property above. He bought a great property in a great neighborhood (waterfront in Woodbridge) and still lost a bundle. Does it make you question the sincerity of his feeble assessment of the “recent (and temporary) slow down in this market?” If it was only temporary why is he dumping this property at a $138,000 loss? Did he write the letter above to generate business while his real opinion about the market shows in his actions? Do his actions speak louder than his words?
Besides being a whiner, what would you call him (I’ll give you a hint)?
Liar, Liar, Liar
Liar, Three Dog Night – 1971
***** Note — Thanks to Zovall, we now have threaded comments. You can reply directly to a previous comment. Enjoy *****
Home Sales Data thru 4-6-2007
The Inside Scoop – 1
As I mentioned in my first post I am IrvineRenter (Inventory Cholesterol), I sometimes have access to information not widely known to the general public. Today I came across something I thought would be of interest to the board. In a conversation with a City Councilman from a city in Riverside County, I was told the following:
- New home permits (and associated fees) are down by 64% this year.
- Sales tax revenues are down 6% – 8% this year.
- As a result, the City is going to slash its budget by 10% which will likely result in layoffs.
It’s different in Riverside County, you know. What is going on there?
IMO, the drop in new home permits is just a sign of the deepening crisis in the housing market. Where is the spring rally? What about all the foot traffic we have been hearing about? If the builders were anticipating renewed strength in the housing market, wouldn’t they be starting on new homes?
IMO, the 6%-8% decline in sales tax revenue is even more alarming. If unemployment is low and everyone is working, why would consumer spending fall off so dramatically? Were the builders and sub-contractors activities accounting for that much of they local economy? What role does the decline in mortgage equity withdrawal have in this decline? Is everyone tapped out? Many of the housing bears have stated the economy is too dependent on real estate and continued Ponzi Scheme borrowing and it is due for a crash. Are they right? A 10% drop in economic activity sounds like a pretty hard landing to me.
On a related but lighter note, my bearish outlook is starting to take a toll on my spiritual life. Last night I had a dream in which I prepared my family for disaster. I outfitted everyone with lead jackets, and we hunkered down behind a thick wall of reinforced concrete. Not long thereafter a nuclear bomb detonated in our proximity. We witnessed the destruction from ground zero. We were the only survivors.
Anybody want to analyze that one? Pardon me while I refit my tin-foil hat…