Colorado sets new unemployment record (Denver, Colorado Springs: short sales, foreclosures, house)

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by motoracer51

Are you also envious of the countries fiscal problems ( debt ) - second to Greece.

Their social programs along with copious amounts of welfare have pretty much decimated any industry there.

And that changed when? Berlusconi's and his right wingers have been in charge long enough they could have fixed that. The reason for all the debt has a lot less to do with social programs than with the fact that there's a culture of tax evasion in both countries.

In my next life I want to come back as an Italian boy.

[Mike from back east]

Stick to the topic of COLO or this thread is history....

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

Maybe that's because the banks are finally wising up and are figuring out that lending money to stupid-a** Ponzi scheme land developments and non-economically viable businesses is a lousy business plan for a bank that might actually want to stay in business--especially if they aren't going to be allowed to sell all those "toxic" loans to a bunch of chumps down the line, or stick the taxpayers with them in some bailout scheme.

No, Josseppie, the banks are not the problem, the borrowers are the problem.

Maybe those crotchety old bankers are actually going back to looking at the "5-C's" of credit in reviewing the creditworthiness of a potential borrower. Of course, most Business graduates puked out by the colleges in the last 20 years have probably never heard of the "5-C's". Here they are:

Character
Capacity
Capital
Collateral
Conditions (Economic conditions)

No its the banks. First then lend to to many people in Colorado causing the bubble and now they don't lend to enough people causing the Colorado economy not to grow like it should. If they can find a happy medium then things will be much better and I suspect that will happen this year as things are already getting better. In fact I read where sales tax collections are up in Pueblo so that is yet another good sign.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

No its the banks. First then lend to to many people in Colorado causing the bubble and now they don't lend to enough people causing the Colorado economy not to grow like it should. If they can find a happy medium then things will be much better and I suspect that will happen this year as things are already getting better. In fact I read where sales tax collections are up in Pueblo so that is yet another good sign.

Maybe you should read the Bankrate.com report on your own hometown bank, Pueblo Bank & Trust Co.--a formerly solid old-line bank that went hog wild in the "go-go" development and commercial real estate lending that you think the banks should return to. In its September, 2010 report, Bankrate gave it a "1-star" rating, its lowest rating for safety and soundness. Read the full report here:

Bankrate.com Safe & Sound (tm) Bank, Thrift and Credit Unions rating feature

In the memo accompanying the report, Bankrate said this:

ASSET QUALITY ANALYSIS
The bank revealed, as previously stated, very questionable asset quality. Our conclusion with respect to asset quality incorporates our analysis of data depicting regional economic conditions as well as our computations of a highly problematic September 30, 2010 nonperforming asset ratio, substantially below normal reserve coverage for nonperforming loans, and much greater than average holdings of commercial real estate and construction loans, two categories that can intensify credit risk. (emphasis added) The bank's current level of nonperforming assets could lead to sharp write-downs and consequent substantial loss provisions. Hence, careful monitoring and additional inquiry are warranted.

Commercial real estate and construction loans should be examined for:

•Loan underwriting and appraisal standards that differ from normal bank guidelines.
•Loan-to-value benchmarks deemed not in conformance with prudent underwriting requirements.
•Speculative construction activity.
•The deferral of interest payments during construction periods.
•The funding of the entire amount of construction costs and land valuation.
Other asset categories, such as farm and consumer loans, which may carry more than usual default potential, should not have a substantial negative impact upon future results.

By the way, the list of "5-star" banks in Colorado (the best rating given by Bankrate.com) is pretty short. It is mostly small agricultural banks in the rural parts of the state that remained very stodgy and conservative--read: prudent--in their lending practices, and DID NOT get on the growth and development bandwagon. There's a lesson there.

[Josseppie]

Jazz,

You just made my point for me. I said that banks went to far before and Pueblo Bank and Trust was one of those that did. Now they have gone to far the other way and as soon as they get in the middle, where they should be, the Colorado economy will see some growth.

[Bob from down south]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

Jazz,

You just made my point for me. I said that banks went to far before and Pueblo Bank and Trust was one of those that did. Now they have gone to far the other way and as soon as they get in the middle, where they should be, the Colorado economy will see some growth.

Where they should be--and with a 1-star from Bankrate very likely will be--is featured on one of those FDIC closure notices that go up just about every Friday evening.

[donisanasfan]

The Californization of this once great state continues to sadden me. Having grown up in Cal and then living in Colorado for a decade I could see it coming. The "progressives" inching their reach beyond the fantasy land borders of Boulder , Breckenridge, etc. Melting the once sane minds of Colorado's citizenry. Falling for whispers of inclusiveness, and believing all the Californians were bringing was good food, albeit in small portions. Then one morning you wake up and the smell of pachouli and dirty knit hats has even over taken the western slope capital of Grand Junction and you know the end times have arrived.

[motoracer51]

Originally Posted by donisanasfan

The Californization of this once great state continues to sadden me. Having grown up in Cal and then living in Colorado for a decade I could see it coming. The "progressives" inching their reach beyond the fantasy land borders of Boulder , Breckenridge, etc. Melting the once sane minds of Colorado's citizenry. Falling for whispers of inclusiveness, and believing all the Californians were bringing was good food, albeit in small portions. Then one morning you wake up and the smell of pachouli and dirty knit hats has even over taken the western slope capital of Grand Junction and you know the end times have arrived.

+1It's one of the reasons we're considering leaving. It's sad to see, but even here on the western Slope, I can see the gradual shift over just the last ~6 years I've been here, and I'm concerned. The water issue also worries me.

If you really want to read a good book, check out The Blueprint: How the Democrats Won Colorado (and Why Republicans Everywhere Should Care) by Adam Schrager. Pretty amazing what a handful of wealthy liberal people have done to this state.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by donisanasfan

Falling for whispers of inclusiveness, and believing all the Californians were bringing was good food, albeit in small portions. Then one morning you wake up and the smell of pachouli and dirty knit hats has even over taken the western slope capital of Grand Junction and you know the end times have arrived.

That's one of the most evocative passages (albeit not the most grammatically perfect) I've ever read on here.

[wanneroo]

Originally Posted by donisanasfan

The Californization of this once great state continues to sadden me. Having grown up in Cal and then living in Colorado for a decade I could see it coming. The "progressives" inching their reach beyond the fantasy land borders of Boulder , Breckenridge, etc. Melting the once sane minds of Colorado's citizenry. Falling for whispers of inclusiveness, and believing all the Californians were bringing was good food, albeit in small portions. Then one morning you wake up and the smell of pachouli and dirty knit hats has even over taken the western slope capital of Grand Junction and you know the end times have arrived.

Well I first saw it back 20 years ago when they first started to flee California. It's like a disease that spreads. They ruin their state and then head for yours and ruin it, with the same type of silly ideas, over regulation, taxation and kooky inclusiveness.

Colorado is not the same state I knew as a kid in the 1980's and while I don't expect it to be, I think it's worse for wear rather than better.

Can't say I though I have missed it, since i left. Nice to visit, but I can't see myself moving back anytime soon.

I think if Colorado opened themselves back up to mineral extraction on a wider scale, they'd bring in a lot of money from outside the state, which in turn would help create other jobs.