WaMu: From Bad To Worse…….

A few quotes from today’s Seattle Times article:

“It’s always emphasized growth over all other aspects of its business.”

“they had to reach down to a new level of the marketplace. They had to seek out a lower quality of customer than they were used to dealing with.”

“Even though there was weakness in the market, they put their foot on the accelerator, because they were losing business to Countrywide and other lenders.”

I was impressed with the Sunday article about Washington Mutual by Rami Grunbaum, wherein a former WaMu executive, and insider, revealed his thoughts about the company’s current problems. It was interesting to read what I and many of my colleagues have suspected for some time. But today’s article by Drew DeSilver blows the doors wide open. Can you imagine anything more audaciously arrogant, from a banking perspective, then counting the growing principal on negative amortization loans as PROFIT?!?  Let me explain: rather than viewing the unpaid interest on neg am loan when borrowers chose to make just the minimum payment, not enough to cover the principal and interest on a 30 year amortization schedule, WaMu literally counted the money that was not received as profit! How weird is that! From a Bank!

This is all very sad for a venerable local institution. Maybe you are old enough to remember the ads that touted Washington Mutual as, “The friend of the family”. This is sort like finding out that the friend of the family is an addicted gambler.

Hallelujah!

After 3+ years of refuting, critiquing and criticising the writings of The Seattle Time’s Elizabeth Rhodes on real estate matters, the Times has finally heard our pleas and replaced her with a new, actual Real Estate Editor. Meet Cindy Zetts. In her first article for the Times in yesterday’s Real Estate section, Cindy quickly demonstrates that “SHE GETS IT!” She has experienced multiple real estate transactions and has taken the time to study, and thus understand, how real estate works.

I am both thrilled, and relieved, that Ms. Rhodes has been demoted in what appears to be a lateral move with the new title of “Business Reporter”. Great! Let her torture the business sector for a few years with her uninformed, poorly researched, and otherwise confusing and misleading articles.

Unless you are in the business, my zeal for this improvement may seem over-emphasized. Allow me to explain: The time that we have spent explaining Ms. Rhodes inaccuracies and wrong-headed view of real estate over the last 3+ years to confused clients and prospects has been frustrating, to say the least. Now we can fully focus on the tasks that matter, helping people navigate the real estate buying and selling processes without fighting the rip tides caused by Ms. Rhodes.

Although it is early in the game, if the first article by Ms. Zetts is any indication, Western Washington may finally have a columnist that will help them in their quest to understand real estate.