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HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
Splattered by a bursting bubble
By JOE MATTHEWS
Journal Correspondent
“Well, this is another fine
mess you ’ve gotten us into. ”
Georgia native Oliver
Hardy
Unless you’re a
hermit living in a
cave, you’re acutely
aware of the financial cri
sis gripping the nation.
Chances are you’ve felt it
yourself already. Lacking an
actual cave residence, it is
guaranteed that you will.
Freddie and Fannie, the odd
private-public hybrids that
now appear to have com
bined the worst each sector
has to offer, have toppled.
VOTE
From page iA
“If we bill (send out tax
bills without the Homestead
Exemption) and collect
money and the state decides
to fund it, we are not eligible
because we did not give it to
the public (to start with).”
If the City does approve
Monday to give the exemp
tion, those eligible and
receiving it can expect to see
this on their bill: “The state
credit on your tax bill is the
result of your homeowner’s
tax relief enacted by the
governor and the General
Assembly of the State of
Georgia. If repealed by the
State, the City will have no
choice but to bill the hom
eowner at a later date.”
• ••
Also on the agenda is to
determine if the millage rate
will be set at 9.255. The fig
ure, explained Opitz, is up
one-thousandth but that’s
not an increase - from 2007’s
9.254 - due to the rollback,
she said. “It is an increase
but it’s still within the roll
back parameter,” she said.
• ••
There was also some debate
on the naming of Frontage
Road. Councilman Tom
Simms Jr., brought up that
the council had been visited
twice by the local Vietnam
Veterans group and they
had requested it be named
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Highway.
However, “I think it’s an
honorable request,” said
Councilman Bob Wilbanks.
“However, we have a lot
of World War II veterans,
Korean War veterans, Gulf
War veterans. Now, not
that I’m opposed to putting
‘memorial’ on it but we need
to honor all of our veter
ans.”
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The financial giants of Wall
Street - who you think would
know better - are falling like
dominos. To avert a complete
national financial meltdown
the Federal government has
rushed to the fore offering
financial support totaling up
to S7OO billion (yes, that a “b”)
for Fred and Fran Taxpayer
to pick up. You know things
are critical when you’re get
ting actual bipartisan action
in Congress.
President Bush did a
pretty good job as an econo
mist on national television
explaining how the crisis had
come about. A large influx
of foreign investment in
America; the over-selling of,
“Not that I disagree with
you Councilman Wilbanks,”
said Simms, “but in the past,
Korean veterans and World
War II veterans and such
were all praised when they
came back from the war.
They’ve been lifted up many
times at the museum. I think
it’s time Warner Robins made
a stand and said ‘thanks for
being there’ to Vietnam vet
erans and thanks to their
families for their losses.”
• ••
Dave McMann, Director of
Maintenance and Facilities
with the Houston County
Board of Education was also
at the work session to pro
vide an update on how things
are going with the construc
tion of Veterans High School
... Mostly.
But there was another rea
son: To ask for help.
“We need gas,” he said,
later adding? “We are not in
the city. But we want to be in
the city (some day).”
“There is not gas to this
site,” he said. He also added
that they had let that be
known 18 months ago to
another organization but it
had not “come to fruition
that we know of,” he said.
From his understanding,
he said, there is gas at 247
where Piney Grove comes
out and on Moody Road.
“We’re sort of in between
them,” he said. The city
boundary is about five miles
from the school’s front
entrance, Acting Mayor
Clifford Holmes added.
“We would request that the
city would supply gas,” he
said. “And then in the pro
cess of doing that it would be
a revenue source just from
us. Plus we’ll have the mid
dle school plus we may have
something else (he eluded to
it possibly being an elemen
tary school), plus all those
residents (typically, he said,
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mortgages, many to people
who could not really afford
them; the overly-creative
repackaging of said mortgag
es as investments; lax over
sight by Federal regulators;
and the mistaken belief that
house prices would continue
increasing forever. “Can’t
afford that 3,500 square foot
McMansion? Don’t worry, it’ll
be worth 25 percent more in.
a year. Flip, flee, and onto the
next one.” Now if only the
president had done a little
better as the president...
There’s plenty of blame to
go around. Unfortunately,
when things are going good,
no one wants to call an early
there is always major growth
in that regard around a new
school) around would have
access to gas.”
Anything else?
Well, yes, they also need
sewer. (Note: When asked
why this had not been worked
out well in advance, McMann
said they were under the
impression it had been with
Mayor Donald Walker. But,
nothing official had been put
in writing.)
Currently McMann said
they have looked at three
scenarios. One, the school
system buys the material
and the city installs it. Two,
the city has a “windfall”
somewhere and does it all.
Not really an option, quipped
Councilman Terry Horton,
but in all seriousness he said
“We need to support the
school system.” Three: “Ya’ll
built it, ya’ll make it hap
pen,” McMann said.
• ••
In addition, the council
decided to send a request to
Vision 2020 to see if there is
countywide support for an
ordinance requiring “hands
free” cell phone usage only
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Tickets are $lO each.
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You must have a ticket to attend.
Sponsored by Houston Healthcare,
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end to the party. Besides,
lots of people who are good,
solid creditors did get bigget/
nicer/newer homes. Ironically
those reliable creditors are
the ones now being asked to
clean up the mess.
Speculative bubbles
always burst, going back to
the Dutch tulip craze of the
16305. Everyone involved
knows this, but as long as
' the value of the investment
keeps going up, people think
they can get out “in time”.
It’s much like a gambling hot
streak. Up big? Keep play
ing! Theoretically there’s no
limit on winning. However,
in the end most people end
up losing because they lack a
personal limit on how much
they’re willing to win. When
they get down again, the
house definitely puts a limit
while driving.
• ••
They also received a visit
from about a dozen mem
bers of the Houston County
NAACE One of their
requests was to ask the city
to take a second look at the
“saggy pants” issue and con
sider using community ser
vice as a punishment versus
a fine and/or jail time, which
in turn results in the offend
er having a criminal record.
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SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2008 ♦
on how much they can lose.
“No funds, sir? You may wish
to check out the lounge act.”
Where were those laws of
supply and demand when
we needed them? In the face
of the tremendous, credit
fueled demand for new hous
es, shouldn’t their limited
supply have forced up pric
es, restrained the runaway
growth, and headed off the
eventual collapse? It takes
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Claaaaa begin § t:3OPN
13 th Annual
Breast Cancer Luncheon
“What’s New in
Breast Cancer”
Houston Healthcare
months to construct a house,
and they’re real tough to
import - mostly.
To the benefit of those
riding the bubble, a huge
influx of cheap immigrant
labor - legal and otherwise
- fueled housing construc
tion and kept supply surg
ing with demand. Not too
long ago it was very pos
sible to have a house
See BUBBLE, page ioA
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