That’s what people are looking for in Phoenix.  I just spent a few days at home with the family and saw some friends in the real estate business as well.  I didn’t blog the entire trip, because I decided I was going to actually not work while I was at home.  Novel idea huh?

So this was work, but fascinating nonetheless.  It is a bargain basement, fire sale, on the cheap, low ball market in Phoenix right now.  Did you see Case-Shiller? Yes, that was Phoenix, on top again, lucky us!  Investors are flying in on private jets, putting multiple low offers on properties (sometimes 10 in a day) then leaving town that night and waiting to hear if anyone is desperate enough to take them up on it.

So, is this a good idea for the rest of us? My sources tell me NO.  Think about this.  Before, you could flip a new build, maybe sit on the mortgage for a month or two, and then sell it right away.  Never living in the property, sometimes not even seeing it, and then doubling your money.  Yes, I am serious, this is what the peak of the Phoenix market was like back in 2005.

Now, if you are going to buy distressed property in Phoenix, expect to be the last person paid back on a national stage.  They were the first to fall, the hardest city to fall, and they will be the last city to recover.  The bearish forecast comes from those on the ground, and I thought it was worth sharing.

CC

On a personal note, I have to tell you that today was a good day.  After one year, and a little more than two months since we launched as a network, my hometown of Phoenix has finally begun to carry the Fox Business Network.  Sure, we’ve been on DIrect TV there, but it was great today to be able to greet the folks of sunny Arizona.

In the next few weeks we are expanding thanks to new agreements with Las Vegas, San Diego, and Hartford plus many more cities. 

This morning I appeared on the local newscast of KSAZ Channel 10.  Not only was I able to talk about the national landscape, but get to talk specifically to folks in AZ.  I lived in Texas until I was 10, but Arizona was the place I grew up, and I look outside my office window at snow that is blowing sideways thanks to the winds, I can’t wait to see the sunny skies of Phoenix next week.

Have a great weekend!

CC

That was the headline on the front page of the New York Post this week.  A picture of Bernard Madoff, and new details for the day on which charity, celebrity, or nice old couple lost money to the scheming sleazeball.  Yes, these are all just alleged acts, but remember, he admitted to it, and his sons turned him in.  He is on record as saying yes it’s true, I lost their money.  That’s according to court records.  Two interesting theories have come up about this I want to pass on.

One, that there is NO WAY he could have pulled this off alone.  Whether it was his brother that knew what was going on, but either looked the other way, or was involved in the trades.  Second,there is also a strong belief that possibly his sons turned him in, even though they knew what was going on, but it was decided that Madoff is 70, and his sons are in their 40’s, so they let Dad take the fall to spend the rest of his life in prison, and their young lives were spared.  Again, this are theories that New Yorkers are batting around at dinner tables in the city, and I thought it was if nothing else interesting enough to pass on.  This case is only just beginning.

Also, if you go over to East 64th Street, it is a scene right out of a movie.  There are paparazzi everywhere, not just news crews from local and national outlets, but celebrity photographers trying to get a shot also.  The entertainment shows are represented if you can believe it, I assume because of the Steven Spielberg factor, and no doubt screenplays are already being written for a movie or made for television series at the least.

New Yorkers are pretty hardened folks, but he really is the devil in the eyes of the residents here.  When he was shoved by a photographer, then he fought back, most everyone was rooting for the photographer.  So many people want a piece of this guy, he has security 24 hours a day, and there is security at his offices also.

Who else was involved? We don’t know yet, but we are not good reporters if we don’t start asking the questions now.

CC

As I write this there is still no clear answer as to whether or not the automakers will receive any federal financing assistance.  The story has taken a back seat this week to Bernard Madoff and his $50 Billion ripoff of religious groups, celebrities, and other investors.  Today Jeff Flock talked to Alan Mullaly at Ford, who has oddly become the hero among the Big Three CEO’s.  I find it interesting that he was in Washington twice sitting next to Alan Mullaly and Robert Nardelli asking for assistance from Congress, yet keeps making statements that Ford is doing well, and not truly in need of assistance.  So why was he there in the first place? Do you need the money or not? My suspicion is he believes GM and Chrysler in bankrutpcy would adversely affect Ford.

And who doesn’t want to get TARP’d? If the feds are handing out money, hey why not right? Anyone could use a little extra cash.  On the show I promised a poll, and despite the best efforts of the web team, we don’t have the technology to add a poll to our blogs.  So, I leave the question for you.

Should the automakers:

A) Receive funding from the TARP Program?

B) Receive funding from the Department of Energy?

C) Receive nothing!

Let us know, we’re going to publish some of your comments on the air.

CC

I had the opportunity to speak exclusively with Dunkin Brands Chairman and CEO Jon Luther today.  He named his replacement effective January 6th, Nigel Lewis, and talked about the economy, the competition, and the future.

CC