Did anyone watch House of Cards on CNBC

[bjl584]

It's pretty interesting and informative. One thing that I did not like was that the producers of the show portrayed everyone on the show as an innocent victim that was tricked into a mortgage by some bank or lending institution. There was almost no mention of someone biting off more than they could chew or making a bad financial decision, or personal responsibility. However, it was still an interesting show and worth checking out. CNBC has been relaying it all weekend and most likely will be showing it again throughout the week.

[asmom]

It's pretty interesting and informative. One thing that I did not like was that the producers of the show portrayed everyone on the show as an innocent victim that was tricked into a mortgage by some bank or lending institution. There was almost no mention of someone biting off more than they could chew or making a bad financial decision, or personal responsibility. However, it was still an interesting show and worth checking out. CNBC has been relaying it all weekend and most likely will be showing it again throughout the week.

I saw the beginning of it and I fell asleep before I could finish it. (My Saturday nights are not what they used to be). I had a similar reaction as yourself in that the homeowners took pretty much no responsibility for their part in what happened. That was a disappointment but it was still a very timely and informative show as I recently had an argument with someone who insisted that the subprime mortgage crisis and thus the entire economic meltdown was caused by banks being forced by Democrats to loan money to "inner city poor" which was her euphemism for minorities. It's supposed to replay tonight at 8p so I'll try to finish it.

[Angio333]

I saw bits and pieces of it. I liked the little that I saw.

[myrdale]

What really amazes me about the whole situation is EVERYONE saw it coming. Five or six years ago, I remember hearing people talk about "When will the housing bubble pop?". Being a high school / college student these things were just stuff they talked about on the news and I didnt give them much consideration at the time.

But am I wrong? Did folks not talk about this was coming long before what they say got here, actually got here?

[CoreAssets]

Very informative. Why weren't they running these stories BEFORE the crash?

[CoreAssets]

I recently heard one of the lead journalist at Barron's repeat the old saw about how the market is a leading indicator of the economy.

Is that still true?

To be a leading indicator, a sizable majority of people out there, as in the past, have to trust in your lead in order to willingly follow and start buying with conviction to sustain an up cycle. The general public's trust with Wall Street,i.e. "The Market", has been broken. So, like in the old westerns, when they raise their hands and say "Forward Ho", how many will want to follow?

Isn't more likely that the average investor out there is going to want to see something more concrete than The Market's forecast before they take another dive in. Like the cheating spouse who gets caught in the act, the image doesn't fade too quickly.

[CoreAssets]

Is it time for some of the "money shows" out there to do some soul searching when it comes to their mission statement?

Is it just about driving ratings and making money? Put another way, are they really just an entertainment format, sort of like all good sports announcers who know that rule # 1 for success is always play to the crowds emotions with the old "Thrill of Victory - Agony of Defeat" theme constantly running? Steady up & down cycles that reflect how it reallly happens for most us at ground zero in the real world doesn't make for good drama -no drama, no ratings.

Have they become just a little to involved and chummy with the mover-and-shaker-crowd to promote and sustain their own careers, surrendering any real objectivity in the process?

[Broken Arrow]

What really amazes me about the whole situation is EVERYONE saw it coming. Five or six years ago, I remember hearing people talk about "When will the housing bubble pop?".

Well, even as late as 2006, there were still people around me talking about how real estate flipping was a great business venture to get into.

Within my experience anyway, the bubble didn't seem like a bubble at all. Many "smart people" were involved as well. For some, it was just hard to argue with the bottom line and hard numbers on the spreadsheet.

So, while I don't disagree, it was not my experience back then that there was a bubble....

I recently heard one of the lead journalist at Barron's repeat the old saw about how the market is a leading indicator of the economy.

Is that still true?

I would say that it is, but I personally consider it as a "soft" indicator. In other words, "Mr Market" can be moody sometimes, and can be irrationally upbeat or irrationally downbeat. So, I wouldn't take it completely seriously, especially if we're talking about day-to-day volatility. But in longer terms (in month-to-month increments at the very least), then it's tends to be a bit more accurate in my opinion.

[boosami]

One thing that I did not like was that the producers of the show portrayed everyone on the show as an innocent victim that was tricked into a mortgage by some bank or lending institution.

I saw the show, and thought this was ridiculous. I especially liked the woman who lived in Compton with gangs and gunshots daily. She was "tricked" into believing she could live in one of the most affluent suburbs near LA.

Seriously? You live in the ghetto and drive a beater. Someone tells you that you can afford to live in a rich neighborhood with Mercedes in every driveway. You have to be blinded with greed to not use some common sense there.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

What really amazes me about the whole situation is EVERYONE saw it coming. Five or six years ago, I remember hearing people talk about "When will the housing bubble pop?". Being a high school / college student these things were just stuff they talked about on the news and I didn't give them much consideration at the time.

But am I wrong? Did folks not talk about this was coming long before what they say got here, actually got here?

Regarding the bubble and everybody having known about it-- All I can say is I saw prices going higher and higher here in the inner city in a mostly lower middle class neighborhood and I couldn't understand it. I thought of it as insane. Our population was declining, more houses were sitting empty for sale, yet prices kept going up. I thought houses were insanely overvalued. I interpreted that as some sort of bizarre inflation. I had no idea at the time about subprime loans. I did not know they existed. I did not know such a thing as interest only loans existed. I had no idea that, across the income and purchase price lines, many people were putting down next to nothing on a house. I had no idea that so many people were forgoing fixed rate loans and opting for ARMs. I also did not know how many "flippers" were out there.

I saw that people buying here continued to have generally the same sorts of jobs as they did when we first moved here, yet the prices were 2-3.5 times higher. I wondered how in the world anyone could buy the homes around us when they only had the income of a grade school teacher, a city water department worker, lawn care business, a musician, a tree trimmer, a Steak N Shake assistant manager. These were definitely "starter homes" lived in mostly by people with "starter incomes," yet the prices had gotten to be more like I would have expected in a new suburb with 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, instead of the 2 bedroom, 1 bath that we tend to have here. I just could not figure how these new folks moving in could even afford these bottom of the market houses. Yes, it seemed insane and I would laugh to see that a small house I had viewed for possible purchase in 1993 for $30K was now asking $125K. This was definitely higher than the general rate of inflation. By the time zillow.com came online and I could see their formulaic estimates, I would hoot at the insanity of the price they "zestimated" for my own house and those on my block.

And of course I would see the ever bigger, ever more expensive houses being built in the 'burbs and know that some of my husband's colleagues were buying there and filling them with all new furniture and quickly redecorating or remodeling, adding multi level decks, pools, garage additions, and the most amazing kitchens. How? How can they afford that and we cannot do so on the same pay even though we know ourselves to be very frugal. Who can afford to live in those houses in that manner? I did not judge them negatively, I just couldn't figure how they could make it work.

I puzzled about this with an older, long retired neighbor who said to me that you never know who may be helping those people (implying parents) and that they may well be making payments on everything they "own." Well that explanation did not make sense to me, because I innocently thought that not that many people would be so irrational.

Apparently, that is where I was wrong. I had no idea how comfortable people were with debt huge relative to income, how optimistic they were about their future ability to pay even if their present ability were no better than my own. I had no idea how common second mortgages were (and no one seemed to call it that any more), even though the public airwaves were bursting with ads for them. When it first began to dawn on me, yes, again I just thought it was all crazy.

That was my outlook on the housing situation: It is insane. It doesn't make sense. It shouldn't be this way. I had a vague understanding that housing, like so much else in our economy, was overblown and could not be sustained. I was always likening it to the entertainers I saw on 1960's Ed Sullivan TV who would spin plates in the air on long broomsticks, amazing us with seemingly defying the natural laws. And I figured those plates would have to come crashing down eventually. It cannot go on forever. I just found it so far beyond fathoming, though, that I could not say, "this is a bubble and it is going to pop this year/next year/five years/ten years from now." I don't give myself credit for knowing that much. ...So even though it seemed insane and unsustainable I did not really KNOW it was going to crash imminently. And for those who have a more optimistic and risk comfortable nature, I could imagine they just truly did not see it coming in any way. I include a lot of people who were in businesses that paid them directly through the real estate market--I think a lot of them did not see it coming because they were not looking fundamentally at how the business was working. Neither did I; I was using analogies and vague Malthusian thinking. I suspect many in the business did not even give it that level of thought.

So, no, everybody did not see it coming.

[cantretire]

I saw the show, and thought this was ridiculous. I especially liked the woman who lived in Compton with gangs and gunshots daily. She was "tricked" into believing she could live in one of the most affluent suburbs near LA.

Seriously? You live in the ghetto and drive a beater. Someone tells you that you can afford to live in a rich neighborhood with Mercedes in every driveway. You have to be blinded with greed to not use some common sense there.

THANK YOU!

I rent in a private home. The value of this home just 18-24 months ago was triple what it was in 2003. Now everything is bust. I may not be out of debt, but I certainly never even considered trying to buy a house. I can't afford it. I can't even afford a car right now. About 18 months ago, I just got a bad feeling about how 'good' everything was, so I started to cut back on my debt repayment to put extra money in my emergency fund. That was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Now, because of so many idiots, my job had big layoffs from the housing and stock market disaster. I am unemployed because of other people's mistakes. If I don't find something soon, I'll move back to my parents' house so I don't have to completely wipe out my emergency fund. (I think my Dad would actually prefer that - he worries about his little, 45-year-old girl, LOL!) All these morons who bought houses they couldn't afford are now getting help.

It just sucks that I've tried to do the right thing, I get the kick in the pants, and I'm not getting any bailout!

[blankcheck]

Is it time for some of the "money shows" out there to do some soul searching when it comes to their mission statement?

Is it just about driving ratings and making money? Put another way, are they really just an entertainment format, sort of like all good sports announcers who know that rule # 1 for success is always play to the crowds emotions with the old "Thrill of Victory - Agony of Defeat" theme constantly running? Steady up & down cycles that reflect how it reallly happens for most us at ground zero in the real world doesn't make for good drama -no drama, no ratings.

Have they become just a little to involved and chummy with the mover-and-shaker-crowd to promote and sustain their own careers, surrendering any real objectivity in the process?

Well, TV's motif is entertainment first, information second. We all have to be aware of this. I watch mad money just like millions of others, but I never made a financial decision because of it; I read about how much house I could afford, how much money I'm supposed to have in EF, etc, and I chose to follow that stuff, rather than how I could game the system. That's MY job. I've always looked at it that way, subprime glut or not.

[QuadSquadMom]

FYI - House of cards is scheduled to replay Sunday, March 15 at 8pm on CNBC.