…no confirmation of whether the borrower has the ability to pay back the loans and allows loans made outside of escrow requirements in which borrowers may be confronted with costly…

…the case of the Bubble, so people who might have survived bullet loans or even amortizing floaters with or without caps ended up getting, er, encouraged to take loans that…

…considered almost risk-free because if the borrowers default, Fannie or Freddie will pay off the loans (assuming Fannie and Freddie remain solvent). Non-conforming loans go into pools known as private-label…

…made money for the government. But due to funny accounting procedures that were used for such loans, the books didn’t look like the loans were making money for the government….

…in private-label securities. These securities included subprime loans, which were extended to people with thin or weak credit histories, as well as exotic loans such as adjustable-rate mortgages known as…

…every lewd or offensive music or fashion statement that otherwise contained strong language was labeled and shunned puritanically. The result was that more albums were sold that were labeled highly…

…is just the change in bank loans outstanding.7 Holding gains When it comes to asset creation, holding gains are the 8,000-pound elephant in the room. Accumulated holding gains in this…

Two Trump (who else?) executive orders were issued in March (2026) which basically cause minority borrower additional hoops to jump through or road blocks to loans. In fact, the claim…

…purchasing companies] were known as “leveraged-buyout operators.” But LBO became a bad name. … Their new label became “private equity,” a name that turns the facts upside-down: A purchase of…

…“gamed the system” through favorable laws or connections, while not really producing anything of value. Note: if you think committing fraud while providing borrowers with loans they ultimately cannot repay,…