Warm_Paw

Six Things to Learn from the Financial Crisis

I don't think the average investor understands how serious our situation is. To invest right now will become a loss that one will not recover from in their life time.
As for diversification or leverage, this is a time where you get your money OUT of the market. You'll get a good deal when blood is running in the streets which isn't far off. October I figure.
But of course you can write articles like this is 1986 and all is well.
This is a different world where all is not going to end well.

Nothing Suggests We're Anywhere Near the Bottom

How much of the toxic assets the bank holds have been unwound?
If cleaning these mortgages up is on the back burner to get a fake rally in markets for banks to issue stock, then we haven't went anywhere.
These mortgages will continue to reset and the situation will only get worse.

Most of 19 Banks Passed the Stress Test

It's obvious the stress tests are some feel good tonic for worried investors.
The devil's in the details.
I'd read BAC's balance sheet for Dec 2008.
Liabilities outweigh assets by close to a trillion dollars.
How the F did that get by a stress test.
Need to raise capital? They owe more than some countrys.

If the govt wants to instill confidence with me, tell me this:

#1. How much of each banks securities have been marked to market - on an actual mark to market basis?

#2. How much of the toxic assets of each bank has been unwound.

#3. Can the banks accurately assess what IS toxic?

#4. What percentage of each banks toxic assets faces future delinquincy due to defaulting homeowners,/creditors?

Real numbers.
Not a bunch of headlines telling me the banks are much better now and that swine flu is causing the market crash.