[bearishgurl]

[quote=Blogstar]Stage political stunt garden. Like the Bush’s reading to grade school kids when the cameras were on. First lady image stuff.

Really though , congratulations to Michelle if she is out there tending an nice “pottage”! Who dug all the beds for her? That costs a lot in either energy or time to get built maybe Obama broke out the rototiller?

On the rest of it you are shirking and pointing fingers again ,B.[/quote]

I’ll point fingers here … at the “elephant in the room.” Hint: it’s NOT about a particular race.

Religion

Michelle Obama is a Protestant Christian. She was raised Methodist and joined the Trinity United Church of Christ, where she and Barack Obama married, performed by Rev. Jeremiah Wright. On May 31, 2008, Barack and Michelle Obama announced that they had withdrawn their membership in Trinity United Church of Christ stating that “Our relations with Trinity have been strained by the divisive statements of Reverend Wright, which sharply conflict with our own views.”[51]

The Obama family has attended several different churches since moving to Washington D.C. in 2009, including Shiloh Baptist Church and St. John’s Episcopal Church. At the 49th African Methodist Episcopal Church’s general conference, Michelle Obama encouraged the attendees to advocate for political awareness, saying “To anyone who says that church is no place to talk about these issues, you tell them there is no place better – no place better, because ultimately, these are not just political issues – they are moral issues, they’re issues that have to do with human dignity and human potential, and the future we want for our kids and our grandkids.”[52]

(emphasis mine)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Lady_of_the_United_States

As the First Lady, Michelle Obama is surely allowed to take up a cause for which she is passionate about. In fact, it is her duty to do so. Being a native of Chicago’s south side, she knows the culture of “flyover country” like the back of her hand. She has seen the effects that cultural mores and customs have on the society she grew up in, first hand. Kids can still be molded … they aren’t yet entrenched in the local and regional customs that their parents and elders are. I find it admirable that she is taking on the lofty goal of educating children on proper nutrition for their continuing health into adulthood and avoidance of childhood obesity . . . weight of which is EXTREMELY HARD to shed as these children become adults and significantly lowers their self-esteem needed to be successful in life . . . regardless of educational level attained.

I see it several times per week as I pass through National City, CA. Many of the kids walking on the street are HUGE . . . different culture . . . same story. The culprit?? LARD and, to a lesser extent, SUGAR. Yes, these particular cultures DO cook at home – it doesn’t matter which region of the country they reside in. ESPECIALLY if they have an grandparent living with them. The problem is cultural and it affects Whites (in flyover country) as well.

I support any community education on nutrition which educates the public on the medical problems that high cholesterol and obesity can cause and teaches recipes and food prep on how to avoid them. Scripps and Sharp in San Diego have such free public information classes in place here in the South County (and likely elsewhere in the county, as well) located at easy-to-reach shopping malls.

And btw, many of the Ferguson lots exceed 10,000 sf and even 1/2 AC (even if there is only a permanently skirted double-wide mobile home situated on them). There’s plenty of room for a household to have a garden there. MANY Ferguson residents no doubt grow their own veggies (or some of them), ESPECIALLY if there is an elder in the house (grandparent/aunt/uncle). It’s what the household DOES with the food they grow that continues to exacerbate the entire family’s poor health, which I’ll address in a subsequent post.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=SK in CV][quote=no_such_reality]The lump sum payments are stunning.

[/quote]

I suspect much of these “one time payments” are their own money they’re getting back. My brother retired after 33 years with the SDPD last year, and would have been 4th on the list if the search criteria would have been different. But more than 2/3 of what he got was his money that he elected to defer. More than 90% was eligible for rollover. His ongoing pension, while healthy isn’t astronomical, and is much less than he earned while working.

Edited to add: I DID change the search criteria, and sure enough, he came up with a huge pension payout. Not quite as much as I thought, but I know to the penny what he got, and for some reason it doesn’t include everything. But it does include both his DROP payment and most but not all, of his deferred comp.[/quote]

Once again, thanks for pointing out the nitty gritty, here, SK. The general public really does not understand the concept of a public employee funding part of their own retirement. The truth is often not as glamorous-sounding as no_such_reality’s carefully-worded soundbyte.

I personally know of several former members of local law enforcement agencies (incl SDPD) who retired in the last five years and have already died (age 57-63). None of these deaths were due to being out of shape or an alcoholic … far from it. They were all due to heart disease exacerbated partly from uncontrolled or unknown high blood pressure and stroke danger. Some who met the fate of an early demise couldn’t get out fast enough. That’s what constant stress of being in the force will do to you. So I don’t think all this worry about the perceived drain on taxpayers of future “Class C” (law enforcement) pensions is warranted. Not only does the typical CA law enforcement officer work 8+ years longer than the year which they are able to retire, a portion of them don’t last very long after retirement. Not ALL are still married at the time of retirement and some never married so not ALL elected to have survivor benefits upon retirement. In any case, their very costly survivor benefit premium is deducted from their monthly retirement check. their survivor benefit amounts to 1/4 to 1/2 of their pension check for their beneficiary, should they die first.

There’s a lot of misconception out there about what a public pension award actually consists of (actual % of employee contributions + % of employer contributions + investment proceeds + possible deferred comp) such a the DROP program which SK mentioned. Note that SK’s brother worked 33 years before retiring. There is absolutely no financial incentive to work past 30 years in any level of government. I would venture that 99-100% of SD employees who participated in DROP did so only because they were begged by their superiors to stay beyond their retirement age for a fixed number of years and the DROP program was used to sweeten the pot at the time (the program doesn’t exist anymore). I have a neighbor who was offered DROP to stay with City of SD past 30 years (back in the late 90’s) and he told them to pack sand …. he was retiring (he’s still alive, btw). The DROP incentive didn’t always work to keep all of an agencies’ valuable intellectual property (in the form of longtime employees) from walking out the door.

[bearishgurl]

I forgot to add that the incidence of severe asthma among children is very, very high in this region of the country. Why? A large portion of these kids’ older relatives are addicted to tobacco in all its forms and refuse to quit. Due to weather and culture, people smoke inside their homes and vehicles. Due to local custom and law, smoking is allowed inside truck stops, restaurants and some workplaces.

It is not uncommon to see a large face-shaped inhaler out in the open in a home where kids live. I myself travel to “flyover country” with a countertop air-cleaning machine to plug in and put a towel under the door as soon as I arrive at certain relatives’ homes so I can successfully stay in their guest room. I’ve gotten nauseated from breathing heavy cig smoke just from having to wait in line to pay for my gas inside truck stops (if the pump wasn’t taking CC’s). I’ve also had to leave laundries and wait outside or in my car in 95-degree humidity while my clothes were washing/drying due to (legal) smoking in there.

All in all, Ferguson kids (a good example and representative of their region) likely have a very different life that your kids here in Cali do, through no fault of their own.

[bearishgurl]

McCluer South Berkeley High serves five towns, including Ferguson.

http://www.edline.net/pages/McCluer_South-Berkeley_High

Although its teaching staff appears to be highly qualified (with avg tenure of 11.9 yrs – much less than CA teachers) I don’t see any indication anywhere on its website that it offers any Advanced Placement classes. The Ferguson teachers make more than state public school teachers overall (57.2% have Masters degrees) undoubtedly because the school lies in an “underserved” area. It appears the Ferguson teachers are doing great things with this (lower-income) population of students!

A few stats on McCluer South-Berkeley High (9-12):

-Dropout rate 7% (state rate 11.5%)
-Black dropout rate .9% (state rate 9.6%)
-Avg composite ACT score: 16.4 (= 1135 SAT score, incl writing). State avg ACT score is 20.6 (= 1496 SAT).
-75.6% students qualified for free/reduced lunch (state avg 47.2%)
-Avg annual teacher salary $51,890 (state avg $39,331)

http://www.city-data.com/school/mccluer-south-berkeley-high-mo.html#

In spite of these students’ daily hardships (incl the majority no doubt having to be bussed in from other towns), the dropout rate is really, really low for this HS serving a wide (semi-rural?) area. This speaks volumes on how dedicated its staff is.

Here are some links of successful students from the school’s web page:

Made possible by “rich” benefactor Master Card in partnership with local agencies:

http://www.fergflor.org/pages/Ferguson-Florissant_SD/News/McCluer_South-Berkeley_s_Jorda

Made possible by the nonprofit organization, “DECA,” serving HS’s worldwide for 60+ years:

http://www.edline.net/files/_4LKwQ_/7c830e48db7c83063745a49013852ec4/MS-B_DECA_TEAM_AMONG_BEST_IN_U.pdf

http://www.deca.org/about/

Local football hero accepted football scholarship from small William Jewell College in Liberty, MO:

http://www.edline.net/files/_0NHbO_/856cec216b3778453745a49013852ec4/CRUMP_NAMED_TOP_SCHOLAR_ATHLETE_BY.pdf

http://www.jewell.edu/home

Made possible by St. Charles County Arts Council along with a local art gallery:

http://www.edline.net/files/_0MF15_/bee5f99dd9e99f0e3745a49013852ec4/ART_BY_RONYEA_HARVEY_CHOSEN_AS_ONE_OF_THE_BEST_IN_ST.pdf

There IS money (both federal and private) being thrown at this school and it seems to be working as evidenced by its stats (in relation to state stats, overall).

I personally have a few nephews who went to (rural) HS’s situated on K-12 campuses which served a wide attendance area in “flyover country.” Only two are left in college now (the others graduated). The two that got into “top” colleges did so with ~one year of credits upon their HS graduation by taking a bus to/from a “junior college” in another town in the afternoons of their junior and senior years to obtain college credit, so their parents wouldn’t have to help them with housing expense for four years at university. Why? Because they had 0-2 AP offerings at their schools!

I believe it is fundamentally unfair to penalize a college applicant without AP credits over one who has them when they both have the same or similar GPA, due to the first applicant having little to no AP classes available to him/her.

Apparently, many universities in flyover country agree with me.

We are fortunate here in SD County in that our HS’s are geographically close to one another, almost all have AP offerings and parents/students have “choice” in the form of zone and interdistrict transfers. This is NOT the case in most parts of “flyover country.”

[bearishgurl]

I think some of you ought to give Brian a break. I don’t see anyone else here stating that they’re volunteering at homeless/domestic violence shelters, etc. Or even contributing money to any.

Brian seems like the only one here sticking his neck out to keep this thread going. He’s entitled to his opinions and so is everyone else.

He’s absolutely right that the “rich” have left huge legacies all over America. In this state, we only have to look to the CSU campuses, the UC campuses, hospitals, large non-profit organizations such as scouting and locally, museums, Father Joe’s and the blood bank, etc, to see what the “rich” have been up to. I for one have seen, touched and heard many of the legacies they (and their organizations) have left behind to use and enjoy and greatly appreciate their contributions to society.

It is perfectly acceptable to me that the “rich” are best serving the poor by doing what they do best . . . that is, setting up charitable foundations and fund raising. If those activities involve regularly hosting $300+ plate black-tie events . . . so be it. I don’t care if the “rich” ever get their “hands dirty.” I appreciate all they have done and are doing for this county and state.

****

Back to Ferguson … the young people there don’t have the same opportunities that similarly-situated young people have in CA. Nor do they have regular and constant supplies of a wide variety of reasonably-priced fresh fruit and vegetables at their disposal like we in Cali do. Their CC’s (“junior colleges”) cost more money to attend for in-state students than CC’s in CA do and the few public university campuses in MO cost just as much or more to attend for an in-state resident in a state where the median household income is much less than that of 90% of the household incomes in CA’s locales.

For those many Piggs who have never seen first-hand the actual living conditions of the majority of residents of suburban, semi-rural or rural “flyover country” of the US, I’m here to tell you that you cannot compare your life here in CA (and your kid’s lives and the opportunities afforded them here) to the opportunities (or lack thereof) which exist locally for the vast majority of Ferguson families. We in Cali don’t have rust residue and/or sediment coming out of our taps and by necessity need to install water filters and change them often (an addt’l expense for poor families). Yes, we are all Americans but the lifestyles in each contrasting locale (no matter what the income level) are night and day.

I’m not making excuses for any of the players in this saga. I’m just saying that each of those players is coming from a different set of values and a different “playing field” which longtime Cali residents might have a difficult time understanding.

Which leads me back to Cali’s ENDLESS supply of “rich” benefactors who do so much good work for this great state. Yes, flyover states have their benefactors to public works and public causes as well, but there are nowhere near as many of them in those states as there are here.

And scaredy, I do not think a similar situation could happen here because, as you know, there is too much political pressure and constant legal pressure on CA law enforcement agencies to open up their records and deal with the affected employees swiftly while they (and their layered labor relations oversight agencies) conduct separate investigations.

Ya’ll should all be thankful for the opportunities and infrastructure afforded you and your families as CA residents and for the fact that you aren’t “trapped” in your mobility. It is highly likely that many (most?) Ferguson residents (young and old alike) can see no way out and so won’t even dare to dream about leaving.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=ctr70]I rent up in Seattle and rents have gone way, way up here, especially in the city of Seattle proper. My landlord raised my rent about 7% last year. I’ve been renting up here as I moved up here less than 2 years ago and still deciding if I want to buy & where I want to buy.

I own condo rental properties I bought in San Diego from 2009-2011 and vacancy rates are very low. I like to keep my rents a little below market so tenants feel they are getting a good deal and don’t bug you & stay for a long time to pay off your property for you. I have had zero vacancies and not one missed rent payment.

Also, as a reminder to make money investing, often you have to go against the crowds. I remember people right here on this forum arguing with me about buying condos in SD back from 2009-2011, thinking I was crazy. Bearishgirl telling me they would “depreciate” and that condos were bad investments. Those condos have all been AMAZING investments. I was buying 2 bed condos in good rental areas of SD for $130k-$150k like North Park, Rancho P., etc..(that now go for $300k+ and get $1,500/mo in rent). My mortgage payments on some of my condos aren’t much more then car payments. And back then in 2009 NOBODY WANTED THEM. Everyone was scared. Like Warren Buffet says, buy when others are fearful and sell when they are euphoric.

You have to be really careful who you listen to on these forums. There are a lot of big time long winded BS-ers that don’t know s**t. Try to get investing advice from someone who has a higher net worth than you. Not some flunkies on forums who may be flat broke yet handing out advice.[/quote]

ctr, you know me better than that ….

First of all, I am not now (nor ever have been) “flat broke.” And you have no idea what my “net worth” is. In the past, you’ve actually complimented me on the sh!t that I DO know, both on and off these forums. I don’t have time to go hunt it down right now, but you actually used words to the effect that I was “right on” after you went to check out areas and streets on the ground, which you had asked me about. You then asked me if I did “RE consulting.”

When you were shopping for investment properties here, I tried to be straight up with you about the types of tenants you would likely get in the various areas you were considering purchasing in. You must admit that I went above and beyond to try to help you become more familiar with the RE market in SD County when you were obviously “all over the map,” not having resided here very long.

I don’t like condos for a variety of reasons which I’ve posted here ad nauseaum, all of which have to do with lack of control over nearly every facet of ownership. Their biggest cons to individual owners in my mind are lack of control over dues collection and deferred maintenance resulting in special assessments and lack of control over lawsuits a condo board chooses to engage in. A close third is that each unit can share plumbing, gas lines and other systems, resulting in damage to other units from one owner or tenant’s negligence or bad luck. Some, but not all, of these detriments can be mitigated by a buyer who does thorough due diligence on a complex prior to making an offer or releasing all their contingencies in escrow.

You “say” your condos in SD are now worth $300K+ but you should know just as much or more than anyone here that you won’t really know what they are worth until you get a willing buyer who makes a (qualified) offer to you which you are willing to accept.

I’m happy that you’re happy that you found some good investment properties here before you left. I remember you telling me several times that you yourself didn’t find anything you personally wanted to live in here for the price you were willing to pay but that SD County was fine for purchasing investment properties in. Different strokes for different folks. I wish you the best in Seattle (I actually envisioned you as living near mtns and skiing :))

[bearishgurl]

[quote=Nazzy_17]Yes, definitely just a status symbol and the only time it seems to get you something is when you check-in to a fancy hotel with the card-you can try and finagle an upgrade or when you book a trip through Amex there’s some type of upgrade – however, I’ve noticed that the prices on Amex is slightly higher than booking through Expedia – so an iffy benefit there.
When I was researching the card, it seems to benefit travellers – $200 annual airline credit(so depending on when you pay the annual fee and it crosses over into another calendar year you already get back $400 for bag fees, wifi, misc airline fees) and is a bonus to access lounges and priority boarding and bypass security checkpoints for international travel. Having said that I don’t travel enough to benefit from all of this and was lucky that my annual fee was waived because I got the card through Ameriprise-fee free for the first year. If they try and charge me the fee next year, I will cancel since I don’t reap the $450 back. THE BEST CARD HANDS DOWN IS AMEX BLUE CASH – I think they changed their rewards program but i basically get back around $2,000 year that I take as statement credits every month. They offer around 3 % for gas and grocery purchases (average after you cross the tiers).[/quote]

Just saw this Nazzy (see post, above). The Blue Cash Preferred is a screaming deal offering 6% cash back at grocery stores (for up to $6K in purchases per yr but I would never buy that much). This card was just released on 4/2/14 (in its present form). You may want to switch yours out and pay its $75 annual fee:

https://www304.americanexpress.com/credit-card/blue-cash-preferred/28000?ccsgeep=28000&psccsg=CCSG__Google_Blue%20Cash%20Preferred_Exact

The only caveat is that you likely wouldn’t qualify for the $150 stmt credit after your first $1K on the card because you are already a “Blue Cash” cardholder.

edit: A “big box” store is not considered a “grocery store” by AMEX. They consider those “gen’l mdse” stores and thus only award 1% cash back on those purchases.

[bearishgurl]

AMEX Platinum is not a “credit” card, per se. It is a “charge” card. Thus, it must be paid off every month.

The annual fees on the AMEX Gold and Platinum programs are only worth it if the cardholder:

-travels by air frequently (3x pts on flights
booked with airlines)
-travels first class on occasion
-travels overseas (no foreign transaction fees on
Platinum)
-makes use of airport lounges (depending on airline)
-doesn’t already have AAA or other Roadside
Assistance such as a plan with their insurance
carrier
-frequently stays in 4 and 5-star hotels where AMEX
offers fourth nights free and $75 food vouchers
-enjoys using the AMEX website to book (no-refund)
discount travel pkgs (run by travelocity)

I’m sure there are a few other “privileges” but nothing that Joe or Suzy 6P (that’s me) would need or want.

Road warrior that I am (who uses $45-$70 night motor lodges and friends/relatives back bdrms), the $150 annual fee for my Gold Card Plus didn’t pencil out for me at all.

The AMEX “privileges” of being able to get the best seats in the house sold by Ticketmaster and Live Nation are a joke. I’ve never had any luck getting any good seats with my Gold card, even while attempting to book immediately when the tix were released for sale. The persistent captcha copier can do just as well with any other CC.

And when I test-visited some of those 4/5 star hotel sites, I found that they offer the same fourth-night deals to the general public.

On amazon.com, AMEX points are only worth .70 per 100 points.

My annual Gold Card fee was due 9/8 so I have already canceled it after getting the AMEX Blue Cash Preferred card and have been using it the last three weeks.

https://www304.americanexpress.com/credi…

The two “Everyday” and two “Blue Cash” credit cards AMEX just came out with in April 2014 (2 w/membership pts and 2/cash back) are all see-thru plastic cards and mine DOES show “Member since 2009” on it just like ER stated it should here:

http://piggington.com/effect_credit_score_cancelingdowngrading_my_amex_card

Incidentally, my FICO score only dropped 3 points so far for downgrading (from 822 to 819), likely from the credit inquiry. It will be interesting to see if or how much more it moves due to the cancellation.

In addition, I am eligible for a sign-up bonus of $150 statement credit on the new card (because the Blue Cash a “credit card” and the Gold card was a “charge card”) after spending $1000 or more the first 3 billing cycles. This card’s main form of “reward” is statement credit (keeps things simple and less-costly for me) which is 3% cash back on standalone gas stations, 6% cash back on standalone grocery stores and 1% cash back on everything else. Its annual fee is $75 (half of Gold Card Plus) but I KNOW I will recoup all of it and much more in statement credit.

I’m very satisfied with the Blue Cash Preferred card so far.

I’ll pm ER and see what he has to say about the Platinum card and what he uses it for. He’s our resident “AMEX expert.” After reading many reviews on these cards, it seems lots of people just use the Platinum card to flash for airline upgrades/extra bags and entrance to select airport lounges but never actually put a dime on the card.

For these people, the $450 annual fee seems to be well worth it for those purposes only.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=livinincali] . . . I suppose it could trigger some movement in people. Pensioners facing a big haircut might move to a lower cost of living state. Huge tax increases might encourage businesses and individuals to leave the state/city. . . . [/quote]

Well, I’m representative of the typical local Suzy Q. Gubment-Pensioner with a fairly low income. But every time I look at listings the places I WOULD be interested in fleeing to (wine country and mtns, in and out of state), I’m finding the home prices to be just as much or higher than where I currently live … and utilities higher or much higher. And I don’t owe very much on my current home … relative to its value …. and could pay it off anytime I so choose to. And I have a running vehicle and know how to get on the interstate ….

So there you have it …. the “real” dilemma facing state and local gubment pensioners who are native San Diegans or have resided in SD County nearly all of their lives.

Sorry, but I just don’t see a “mass exodus” of SD County retirees, even if Tier “A” loses their (minuscule) Supplemental Benefit Allowance (this was supposed to happen 6/30/14 but SDCERA must have found a way to “patch the hole” for FY 14/15).

[bearishgurl]

[quote=CA renter]Yes, the pension funds were once well-managed by staid, boring pension managers, most of whom were in-house.

Over the years, Wall Street has corrupted the public pension funds, and more and more of the pension money is being placed at greater and greater risk in more “financially innovative” investments. We have Wall Street and the Federal Reserve to blame for this. The Fed’s insistence on keeping rates at ~0% are exacerbating the problems.

As for how it will affect the bond market, I believe that most people who work in these markets understand the risks…at least, I sure hope so.

It’s important to note, though, that public employees have been the ones to take the biggest hits, so far. They’ve been moving more employees, especially the newer ones, into hybrid retirement plans, and most employees with most municipal agencies haven’t been getting retiree healthcare for decades — they’ve been phasing it out since the early/mid 90s. Also, PEPRA has made quite a few changes regarding pensionable compensation, benefit caps, and increased pension contributions from employees.

The above information is related mostly to changes in California, though I know that other states and municipalities are moving in the same direction.[/quote]

Good point, CAR. In fact, SDCERA (mentioned in the OP’s article) has substantially reduced their “Supplemental Benefit Allowance” (intended to help pay healthplan premiums, if not covered by someone else) in recent years for 99% of the workers who retired (or took “deferred retirement”) after March 29, 2002 (Tier “A”):

http://www.sdcera.org/PDF/Supplemental_Benefit_Allowance_FS.pdf

This probability and also the fact that the SBA was could be withdrawn at any time was known to all active employees at the time of signing up for the plan (March 2002) but the vast majority elected to be folded into Tier “A” (from Tier I/II) at the time due to their future monthly retirement annuity being calculated upon a full percentage point higher of their highest annual salary. The caveat is that they would be required to contribute 7.5% of their salaries towards the (Tier “A”) plan where Tier I/II employees were not. Fortunately, for taxpayers, a very large portion of Tier I/II retirees are now deceased, and, in any case, the portion still living (all folded into Tier I) have much smaller pensions than those in Tier “A” which are based upon a much less generous calculation and smaller highest-year salaries.

In addition, SDCERA has implemented Tier “B”, a “defined contribution” plan or “hybrid plan,” (as discussed above) offered to all employees who were first hired between 8/28/09 and 12/1/12:

http://www.sdcera.org/PDF/Tier-B_booklet.pdf

… and Tier “C”, an even scantier “defined-contribution” plan” offered to all employees who were first hired after 12/1/12:

http://www.sdcera.org/PDF/retirement_plan_Tier-C_booklet.pdf

Here is an overview page of the 3 retirement tiers now administered by SDCERA which still have active employees:

http://www.sdcera.org/active_retirement_benefit.htm

[quote=phaster]To show why the current SD county pension “operations” is a bad idea, google “buying stocks on margin” and check out the first search result.

The math is pretty simple to understand (just add “000,000” to the following $ figures):

A Buying Power Example
Let’s say that you deposit $10,000 in your margin account. Because you put up 50% of the purchase price, this means you have $20,000 worth of buying power.

http://www.investopedia.com/university/margin/margin1.asp

Returning to our example of exaggerated profits, say that instead of rocketing up 25%, our shares fell 25%. Now your investment would be worth $15,000 (200 shares x $75). You sell the stock, pay back your broker the $10,000, and end up with $5,000. That’s a 50% loss, plus commissions and interest, which otherwise would have been a loss of only 25%.

Think a 50% loss is bad? It can get much worse. Buying on margin is the only stock-based investment where you stand to lose more money than you invested. A dive of 50% or more will cause you to lose more than 100%, with interest and commissions on top of that.

http://www.investopedia.com/university/margin/margin4.asp

[snip][/quote]

Uh, well, I don’t think our fact-skimming newbie, Phaster, had a chance to see this recent piece from the UT (hint: google SDCERA and it comes up first :)):

…. For the past decade, San Diego County and its employees paid 100 percent or more of their annually required contribution to the SDCERA retirement fund. Consistent employee and employer contributions over the years have laid a foundation for investment gains and asset growth. SDCERA’s investment strategy helps the employer’s budgeting process and stabilizes employer costs by reducing the volatility of returns and steadily achieving the rate of return needed to fund the benefit.

At $10 billion, the SDCERA fund is able to pursue certain investment strategies that larger plans like CalPERS cannot access and smaller plans do not have the resources to deploy. SDCERA’s investment strategy is purposely designed to be no riskier than traditional pension fund asset allocation strategies. Risk-parity and trend strategies, which utilize leverage, are limited to 25 percent of the SDCERA portfolio, not the entire set of portfolio assets. The other 75 percent of the portfolio is managed using traditional asset allocation and rebalancing approaches…

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/aug/15/sdcera-pension-investment-strategy/

see also: http://sdcera.com/investments.htm

[bearishgurl]

[quote=phaster][quote=The-Shoveler]I don’t worry about the Fed Debt, I worry about local municipalities and state debt (they can’t print their way out).

No one is going to pay this back (well at least not in today’s dollars).

Deflation will not be a long lasting thing, the local municipalities can’t afford it.[/quote]

you’re spot on with that observation, I calculated the hit per parcel in san diego (using web based figures), and its an eyeopening figure:

http://patrick.net/forum/?p=1247288&c=1118128#comment-1118128
[/quote]

phaster, I just saw your comments on the patrick.net forum re: the Mills Act in CA and they are misleading at best:

…the battle over some rich dude w/ a fancy beach house not wanting the “poor” masses to camp out in front of the aforementioned “fancy beach house” is/and always will be a point of contention between the haves and have nots…

put yourself in the rich guys shoes, you’ve got money and ya don’t want the trailer trash partying and leaving their garbage in front of your designer beach pad (so ya try and cut off the “general public” from having access to the “public” beach)

http://articles.latimes.com/2000/dec/11/news/mn-64093

looking at the issue form trailer trash point of view, one could understand why after working at some hard labor job at an “inland” location five days a week, all joe six pack want to do is enjoy a day at the beach (which is public land), and let off some steam w/ friends and family.

the rich guys home might have historic status, but thats not the issue here (access to the beach which is public land, is the issue at hand)

the tax scam scenario I outlined, is more along the lines of some entitled jerk decides to build a fancy “old looking” house on the beach, and figures out a way to classify his beach house as “historic.”

If the house is classified “historic” the entitled jerk can lower his property taxes by 70% (for example), and is also able to take a million dollar tax write off (for example) by saying he promises not to change the exterior of his “old looking” house. Here an easement (is given a value of a million dollars) and is donated to some “Historical Preservation Society” (like the one in portrayed in caddyshack 2). so get the idea? here, the entitled jerk is gaming the system in order to have “tax payers” subsidize the costs of ownership of a fancy “old looking” house on the beach

http://patrick.net/forum/?p=1247288&c=1116619#comment-1116619

For starters, “entitled jerks” are not allowed to build a house and then label it “historic” for purposes of property tax abatement pursuant to the Mills Act. Quite the reverse is true. “Entitled jerks” (or anybody else, for that matter) are not allowed to change the facade of the existing structure or change it in any way which detracts with the period it was built. In addition, the dwelling or comm’l bldg needs to be at least 75 years old to qualify for Mills Act status AND proven to have a story behind it (ex: designed by renowned architect of the period it was built or belonged to a former government official who was instrumental in the development of the locality or region or a philanthropist whose contributions greatly benefited the locality or region).

see: http://ohp.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=21412

The Mills Act has been CA’s wisest effort in encouraging preservation of the state’s historic treasures, IMO. Without it, many of these homes would be razed with newish mcmansions with cheap facades built in their place (or multifamily units if local zoning allows for it). If you don’t believe me, feel free to go visit Chevy Chase, MD (just north of DC) and you will see for yourself what all the longtime property owners there are spitting bullets about. On a drive-by tour, you may notice newish “Tuscan” mcmansions with stryofoam-looking mouldings which were somehow able to sprout up next door to a gracious, authentic Victorian (circa 1850-1910) in recent years.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/01/AR2005100101470.html#

McMansions and community character in Montgomery County (Updated)

In return for a 10-year Mills Act contract (and its renewal at 10-year intervals), the CA property owner of an historic property is giving up their fundamental right to alter the building in any way, shape or form which would detract from the period it was built and its original style of architecture. If YOU want one of these properties, you are free to purchase one yourself. In recent years, I have found that listed homes in San Diego County with Mills Act contracts in place have a price premium built into them due to their contract’s renewability resulting in future tax savings for the new owner. This asking-price premium runs from $70K to about $120K, depending on location of the property.

There is no free lunch here.

In order for an owner of a property qualifying for the Mills Act to recoup a “million dollar tax write off (sic),” as you posted on patrick.net, they would have had to own a typical Mills Act property in CA (worth $850-$900K in today’s dollars) for 100 years! In addition, there is no “easement” given (to the gubment?) for the privilege of a Mills Act property tax abatement . . . that is, unless it is a tree or utility easement in which the entire neighborhood it is situated and is subject to (in a neighborhood of both Mills Act and non-Mills Act properties).

In the future, phaster, you might want to peruse all the fine print before posting about a gubment program on the internet.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=scaredyclassic]I’d prefer not to live next to a slaughterhouse but if the price is right…[/quote]

Well, scaredy, the price is never right. It seems that some Piggs may choose to “make a tradeoff for the sake of their family” to live in the path of of the likes of “Slaughterhouse Cyn” Rd. off SR-67, the junkyard capital in SD County of both American and Japanese vehicles, lol …. i.e. Lakeside, CA, or similarly situated … roll on, folks …

Caltrans insists that the corridor analysis address each issue and improvement separately. But not one of those issues or improvements studied speaks to the need for a center median anywhere on SR 67 other than a 1.5-mile stretch between Slaughterhouse Canyon and Scripps Poway Parkway. In June 2009, Caltrans completed a project study project/project development report that proposes to add one general-purpose lane in each director from Mapleview to Highland Valley Road/Dye Road.

http://patch.com/california/poway/you-can-t-fix-reckless#.VAAIn6M0_z0

Do Piggs actually realize that two elementary school children were killed crossing the street to their school back in the day by a young speeding motorist on SR-67?

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.true-crime/f5G_Bhxv2Zo/

The “Slaughterhouse exit” off SR 67 and surrounds are a sure deathtrap for motorists and pedestrians alike. The fwy was built thru a residential area in Lakeside, CA, which was never configured to accommodate those biz/schools which already existed. In other words, no “service road” existed at the time of the several fatalities in the vicinity that occurred (over and above the deaths of two schoolchildren) due to this (unrestricted) fwy going though.

This is just another classic example of “economic obsolesence,” folks, exacerbated by the new fwy in the presence of both (former) residential construction and (former) school construction.

Our local leaders have not generally been cognizant of the ramifications of their individual votes. Thus, the homebuying contingent who “settle” for incessant “freeway noise” because they “insist” on newer consruction in their price range generally get the bottom of the barrel in local home selection if they choose to buy it. Why?? There isn’t anything in that realm that is located in desirable land in SD County because it has long ago been spoken for.

[bearishgurl]

zk, I’d like to know what you think is a “higher priority” than quiet enjoyment of one’s real property.

Leave the school attendance area out of the equation for a moment, since CA public school districts can basically place your student anywhere they have room for them so school placement is essentially out of a parents’ control.

What would be the reasons you would choose to make offers on a house with incessant freeway noise (or under a busy military or commercial flight path) over a house which didn’t have these flaws?

Name the pros and cons (and guesstimate price differences) of each property. Thanks.

And no judgments on my end. I am really, truly curious.

[bearishgurl]

zk, you’re making the same tired, circular argument. Are you trying to say that that ONLY houses WITH freeway noise which possess all the “requirements” (including price range) of the OP are available? We don’t even know what the his/her “requirements” or price range is! What school attendance area are you referring to and what is so special about these three public schools (elem/middle/HS) that would cause buyers to choose to make offers on single family homes to raise their families in which had fatal flaws over listed homes which didn’t? Do these schools have gold-plated steps to the front door? Do the teachers there all have doctorates??

Given the congestion and overcrowding up there, a better question might be, do each of those 3 schools guarantee a slot for each student who resides within their attendance boundaries?

And how do you know that a particular school district is what the OP is seeking or even if he/she has any kids?

Its seems here that you may be trying to put yourself in the OP’s shoes and so stated here what YOU would do in order to live in a particular school attendance area.

Maybe the OP just wants to live closer to work. Until they come back with some feedback, you’re just spinning your wheels.

[bearishgurl]

I totally agree with flyer that success in life post college (after obtaining a degree) is where the rubber meets the road.

So far, I haven’t had any “boomerang” kid(s) on my doorstep needing a place to live due to being too busy “making bank” in the Silicon Valley. You are entirely correct, flyer, that “connections” are ultimately what gets a recent college graduate’s foot in the door … it doesn’t matter WHO made the “connection” … only that it was made. After that, it is all on them so “work ethic” also matters. No hiring mgr in the “real world” is going to give one whit about where their job applicants attended elem school, middle school or even HS.

My last kid is leaving for college next month and I don’t expect them to ever return to SD County to live, either, when so much better opportunities exist elsewhere in the state.

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