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You've no doubt seen these or examine them. Glossy adverts or four-color spreads in magazines and newspapers promising to instruct you all the juicy information regarding successful property investing. And all you need to do to learn each one of these real est investing surface encounters chuck russo secrets is to pay a rather high sum for a one-or two-day seminar.




Often these types of slick property investing seminars claim that you could make wise, profitable real-estate investments with absolutely no money lower (other than, of training course, the large fee you purchase the seminar). Now, how attractive is that? Make a make money from real estate investments you made with no money. Possible? Not most likely.




Successful owning a home requires cashflow. That's the type of any type of business or investment, especially property investing. You put your hard earned money into something which you desire and plan will make you more money.




Unfortunately too few newbies for the world of real-estate investing think that it's a magical kind of business exactly where standard company rules don't apply. Simply put, if you need to stay in property investing for more than, say, a day or a couple of, then you will have to create money to use and make investments.




While it might be true in which buying real-estate with no money down is easy, anyone who's even made a simple investment (such as buying their particular home) knows there's much more involved in real estate investing that will set you back money. For instance, what regarding any necessary repairs?




So, the number one rule people a new comer to real property investing ought to remember is to have obtainable cash supplies. Before you decide to actually perform any real-estate investing, save some cash. Having slightly money in the bank when you begin real est investing surface encounters chuck russo can help you make more profitable real estate investments in rental properties, for example.




When real-estate investing in rental attributes, you'll want to be able to select simply qualified tenants. If you've no cashflow when property investing inside rental properties, you could be pressured to take in a much less qualified tenant since you need somebody to pay you money to be able to take attention of maintenance or attorney at law fees.




For any type of real estate investing, meaning local rental properties or properties you get to resell, having funds reserved can permit you to ask for a higher value. You can require a higher price out of your investment because you surface encounters chuck russo won't feel financially strapped as you wait for an offer. You won't be backed into a corner and forced to accept just any offer because you desperately need the money.




Another downfall of several new to real-estate investing will be, well, greed. Make the profit, yes, but do not become thus greedy that you ask regarding ridiculous local rental or resale rates on any of your real property investments.




Those not used to real est investing must see property investing like a business, NOT a hobby. Don't think that real estate investing is going to make you abundant overnight. What enterprise does?




It requires about six months to determine if property investing in for you. If you might have decided which, hey I really like this, then give yourself a couple of years to actually start earning profits. It usually takes at least five years to get truly successful in real-estate investing.




Persistence could be the key to success in real estate investing. If you might have decided that property investing is made for you, surface encounters chuck russo keep plugging away at it and the rewards will be greater than you imagined.

You wouldn't think Apple and Indonesia have much in common. On the surface, they don't, but they can still teach you a lot about investing. Let's start with Apple.

Apple made the news recently with two major events. It is locked in a battle with Exxon over which is the most valuable company by market capitalization -- a remarkable turnaround. Apple has a market value of over $344 billion. Then Steve Jobs announced his resignation at Chief Operating Officer for health related reasons.

According to a thoughtful blog by Weston Wellington of Dimensional Fund Advisors (not available online), it was not so long ago that the financial media was trashing Apple. In February 14, 2005, Robert Barker, in an article in BusinessWeek stated "...Apple doesn't tempt me..." I wonder what did. Maybe Lehman or Bear Stearns!

Steven Gandel weighed in with an article in Money on March 24, 2004. He quoted Transamerica portfolio manager Chris Bonavico who opined that Apple stock is "...crap from an investor standpoint."

Many analysts credit the remarkable sales of its Apples Stores as the key to Apple's success. In a quote attributed to David Goldstein, Channel Marketing Corp, which appeared in an article in BusinessWeek on May 21, 2001, Mr. Goldstein gave Apple "two years before they're turning out the lights on a very painful and expensive mistake."

What can you learn from these comments about Apple stock? Read the financial media if you find it entertaining. It's useless (and potentially harmful) as a source of reliable financial advice.

What about Indonesia?

The financial media was preoccupied with the downgrade by Standard & Poor's of the credit rating of the U.S, which lowered its rating from AAA status to AA plus. The new rating places the U.S. below the United Kingdom, Canada and even the Isle of Man.

Many investors viewed the lower rating with alarm and considered it a precursor of low stock returns for decades to come. The data tells a much different story, and may indicate there is no better time to invest in U.S. stocks and bonds.

In another blog, Wellington notes that Standard & Poor's rated the credit of Indonesia a "B" in July, 2001, which placed it in the "junk" category. Over the past decade, its credit rating has never risen to investment grade.

Investors in the Jakarta Composite have earned a total return of a whopping 29% per year over the last decade, ending June 30, 2011. According to Wellington, "If the Dow Jones Average had kept pace with Indonesian stocks over the past decade, it would be over 104,000 today."

Here's the lesson to be learned from Indonesia: A low (or reduced) credit rating on sovereign debt does not necessarily correlate to lower stock market returns. This is the opposite of what many investors and financial talking heads believe.

Most investors get their financial information from the financial media or brokers. As Dr. Phil would say: How is that working for you?

Dan Solin is a Senior Vice President of Index Funds Advisors (ifa.com). He is the author of the New York Times best sellers The Smartest Investment Book You'll Ever Read, The Smartest 401(k) Book You'll Ever Read, and The Smartest Retirement Book You'll Ever Read. His new book, The Smartest Portfolio You'll Ever Own, will be released in September, 2011. The views set forth in this blog are the opinions of the author alone and may not represent the views of any firm or entity with whom he is affiliated. The data, information, and content on this blog are for information, education, and non-commercial purposes only. Returns from index funds do not represent the performance of any investment advisory firm. The information on this blog does not involve the rendering of personalized investment advice and is limited to the dissemination of opinions on investing. No reader should construe these opinions as an offer of advisory services. Readers who require investment advice should retain the services of a competent investment professional. The information on this blog is not an offer to buy or sell, or a solicitation of any offer to buy or sell any securities or class of securities mentioned herein. Furthermore, the information on this blog should not be construed as an offer of advisory services. Please note that the author does not recommend specific securities nor is he responsible for comments made by persons posting on this blog.

(h/t Heather at VideoCafe)

It is a truism rarely acknowledged in this country: the single most important infrastructure investment we can make for the future is in education. I'm not talking about retrofitting the buildings or constructing more classrooms. No, we provide for the future by educating our young people, preparing them to become productive members of society. Study after study shows that the higher one's education level is, the higher the median income and the less likely one is to suffer unemployment.

But we're not doing that. No, in these austerity times, politicians clamor to cut services and jobs. Teachers are demonized. Vouchers are touted as the answer, when it's simply a way to privatize profits away from public schools. Hell, some GOP would be happy if we eliminate the Department of Education altogether.

A rare and welcome progressive appearance on the Sunday shows, Rep. Maxine Waters bemoans the disconnect between what politicians say we need to focus on and what they're really doing about it:

To tell you the truth, the plight of education in this country is shameful. Just a few days ago I learned that more cities, more states are reducing the number of education days down to four instead of five. And I could not help but stop and think, "Is this America? Is this the country that said and continues to say that education is a top priority?" Why are we not investing more in education? Why do we have dropouts? Why do we have educational systems that are failing? Why is it that we have a situation where many of our young people will not be able to compete in this high technological society because they're not properly educated? And so, no, we do pay lip service to education. We don't really invest in it, and that's got to change. But let me just say this, Americans want to work. This joblessness is not only hitting the middle class, but it is hitting all classes. It is absolutely unconscionable what is happening in the minority communities. When we look at this no jobs haven't been created in August and we find in the African-American community it has increased from 16 percent, 15.9, 16 percent, up now 16.7 percent, and now we're going to talk about cutting government by $1.5 trillion, this new 12 committee membership that we have after the raising the debt ceiling debate? And that means that we're going to lose more jobs, that means more people are going to be unemployed. The African-American rate will probably go up to about 20 percent. I don't know how our country can sustain that kind of...

Of course, David Gregory interrupts her at this point, because Lord know, the plight of the African American community doesn't concern him. But then again, he has the gall to say that we only play lip service to the importance of education. You know, the same guy who only pays lip service to journalism and who spent the better part of the last two years telling his viewers that Americans cared about the deficit when poll after poll proved him a lying hack with a corporate agenda.

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Knut,

I am directing this at your response(#27), not because I wish to attack you personally, but because if I take what you say at face value(ie. knowing nothing about you, your background or your values), I simply could not disagree more.

I like listening to and reading Paul Krugman, he is a feisty jovial fellow who is really good at scoring partisan votes for Liberal Democrats. But the depth of his analysis makes a shallow pond after a long hot summer look deep. His contributions to economic theory rank him right up their with another of America’s great Nobel Prize winning and utterly incompetent economists-Milton Friedman.

I wonder if you learned in graduate school economics that all of the models used, the entirety of the econometric methodology and that the ontological basis of modern economic theory are absolutely and unequivocally bankrupt, not only socially, but morally as well. Some how I doubt that was taught in grad school economics.

Paul Krugman and many liberal elites keep calling out for more and larger stimulus.

Tell me something: Do you give a shot of adrenaline to patient dying of festering cancers, where the patients own cells are actively destroying each other?

No, the last thing we need is another stimulus. What we need will undoubtedly involve government borrowing, but the goal cannot be to return to where we were prior to this slight aberration in the housing market in 2007. Nor can it be to return to the glorious days of Clinton, which produced all of the deregulation that caused this depression.

Americans used their home equity as an ATM to the tune of trillions of dollars of credit. Yet the greatest surplus of credit the world has ever seen did nothing to ameliorate the then current unemployment, the disgraceful poverty in which so many millions of Americans have been forced to live and the profound economic disparity of American society. Instead Americans bought more houses, more cars, more HDTV’s, more Tivo’s and more I-phones and computers. Me. Me. Me. Me. Americans built gated communities to keep the restless downtrodden far away from delusional middle class (dys)utopias. Americans insured themselves so thoroughly that medical costs, acting like a parasite on the collective host of American society, raised costs so high that 40+ million Americans could not afford basic health care.

Americans left whole communities to twist in the wind, or even worse to simply rot(hello New Orleans). Americans allowed their infrastructure to degrade to a level that is more comparable to nations of the South than to other nations of the North, all the while exploiting workers of the South for cheap consumer goods(hello NAFTA), further impoverishing the South so that Americans could merrily shop away at Walmart. And Americans waged outright war on the lower class, turning everything that in any way served the common needs of Americans into for-profit private corporations and outsourced almost all public service of our government and military.

Americans drove ever bigger cars, consumed ever more electricity, polluted more and more and worked hard to sabotage international environmental progress. And Americans killed and killed and killed, each other, and probably close to a million Iraqi’s and Afghan’s and Yemenis and insert-Islamic-state, acting as the worst form of terrorists the world has ever seen(you look more like the man you hate….).

No the American patient does not need a stimulus. Entire industries(payday lenders) have bloomed which do nothing but feed on poverty, always increasing it, for therein lies their profit. Banks became the middle class equivalent of payday lenders for the middle class. And the financial industry treated Americans as if they were the parasites on the backs of the poor billionaires.

No, stimulus is not what is needed. Heavy doses of chemotherapy and medical marijuana is more like what this American patient needs. Consumption as an economic model has failed. Increased demand will not put Americans back to work-it will lead to more off-shoring and outsourcing.

A purging of the financial industry would be a good first step towards recovery. Nationalizing the American health care system would be another good step. Tax rates for the top 2% similar to what America had in the 1960’s could go along way towards righting the wrongs of economic distribution, but let us not forget that in the 1960’s there was nothing equitable about economic distribution, just ask our African American friends.

Of course my suggestions are absurd, but not nearly as absurd as to believe that Paul Krugman’s advice and a return to status-quo-ante is a solution that is going to return this American patient to any kind of healthy vibrancy.

The Worst American City to Live In? It's One You've Never Heard Of

AOL's money website WalletPop composed a list of the worst American cities to live in based on the climate, unemployment and foreclosure figures, crime stats, etc. Naturally, Detroit and LA both made the cut. But there were some surprises, too.

One thing you probably wouldn't have expected: The No. 1 city on the list is El Centro, California. Where? It's a city just across the Mexican border with a 27.5 percent unemployment rate, which is the highest in the country. So, yea, that sounds pretty crappy.

The other cities we could probably have rattled off just by thinking of the places that novelists and screenwriters use when they need a locale that sounds depressing. That includes the likes of Cleveland, Las Vegas, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, and Memphis, which round out the list. As for New York City, it doesn't appear on the top 10. Congrats: It's no longer the go-to symbol for urban decay!

[Image of a house in Detroit via Getty]

Send an email to Brian Moylan, the author of this post, at brian@gawker.com.

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From The Grio–Unprecedented levels of grassroots funding, increasing frustration with ongoing struggles in the Gulf region, an economy teetering on the verge of collapse, and an electorate eager for dramatic political change are all factors often credited by commentators seeking to explain Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential election win. But, one of the most significant factors, too often overlooked, is the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The Act, signed into law 45 years ago today by President Lyndon B. Johnson, helped create the conditions necessary to bring about Obama’s historic win. By helping to level the political playing field and providing a means to deal with ongoing voting discrimination, the Voting Rights Act has helped tear down barriers to minority voter participation that would have otherwise rendered the November 2008 election all but an impossibility.

The success of the Voting Rights Act over the last 45 years, however, by no means suggests that its time to turn our back on it. Stories about the Act’s success and the progress that has been achieved stand right alongside evidence of ongoing problems and threats to equal political participation. If anything, greater vigilance is required to deal with the persisting threats and new barriers that continue to rear their ugly head at a time that some have prematurely rushed to describe as a post-racial era.

States such as Georgia and Indiana have adopted mandatory, photo id requirements for voters despite evidence that many minority, poor and elderly voters lack such identification. Proponents of these laws disingenuously claim they’re necessary to deal with fraud despite the absence of evidence suggesting as much. Other states such as Arizona, unsurprisingly, have sought to put in place proof of citizenship requirements subjecting certain eligible voters to onerous and burdensome requirements that must be satisfied before these voters are added to or maintained on registration rolls.

Caging schemes continue to surface in many places with officials in Michigan and Indiana, for example, recently threatening to use foreclosure lists as a means of challenging voter eligibility inside the polls on Election Day. And, flyers distributing misinformation about the election continue to surface as one of many dirty practices used to help keep minority voters away from the polling place. In Charleston, South Carolina, for example, a fake letter purporting to be from the local NAACP threatened that voters with outstanding parking tickets or late child support payments would be subject to arrest on Election Day. And, in Wisconsin, a leaflet distributed by the fictitious Milwaukee Black Voters League was selectively distributed in majority black precincts instructing voters that if they voted in any election that year, then they were ineligible to vote in the presidential election and would face 10 years in prison if they attempted to do so. This list is by no means exhaustive but illustrates the real barriers and hurdles that deny and frustrate minority voters’ access to the polls today.

It is perhaps because of the success of the Voting Rights Act that the law has a target on its back. In just the last 3 months, 3 lawsuits have been filed challenging the constitutionality of a core provision of the Act — the Section 5 pre-clearance provision. Section 5 requires that a select number of states with long and egregious histories of discrimination submit their voting changes for federal review before they are put into effect.

Over the years, hundreds of discriminatory voting changes have been blocked by Section 5, including attempts to cancel elections in the face of growing minority voting strength, efforts to draw black candidates out of their districts, discriminatory redistricting plans and other naked attempts to turn the clock back on the progress that has been made. Section 5, widely regarded as the heart of the Act, is the central issue in all 3 of these suits. But civil rights organizations, such as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and others, are poised to defend the Act to ensure that its strong provisions remain in place.

In a 2006 speech before Congress expressing support for renewal of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, President Obama aptly observed that progress has been made but noted the importance of remaining focused on preventing the problems we have seen in recent elections from happening again. Obama noted that “e have seen political operatives purge voters from registration rolls for no legitimate reason, prevent eligible ex-felons from casting ballots, distribute polling equipment unevenly and deceive voters about the time, location, and rules of elections.” Indeed, many of these efforts are directed at historically disenfranchised groups. These groups must remain at the core of any future effort to remedy and address the long-standing barriers to full and equal political participation.

The 45th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act provides a moment to reflect on the long road that has been traveled and the great work that lies ahead. With redistricting commencing throughout the country next year, the Act will certainly play a key role in ensuring that federal, state and local boundaries are drawn in ways that do not disadvantage minority voters while help underscoring the importance of recognizing our country’s increasing levels of diversity.

The mid-term elections this fall are likely to bring about a new round of voter suppression schemes and dirty tricks but the Act remains one of the most powerful tool in the arsenal of advocates and lawyers committed to making the right to vote something meaningful. For 45 years, the Voting Rights Act has occupied a central place in our democracy and we can ill-afford to turn our back on it now.

(Check out more stories @ The Grio…)

Not bullshit. The new bankruptcy law after 2005 requires credit counseling. The IRS has the right to review and attend all hearings, effective with the new BK laws and can file additonal claims or delay it if they feel you are did some stupid shit like many real estate spinners did over the last 5 years.  The new law is tough on individuals, especially in 13's. Chapter 7's require a demonstration of an inability to pay and living standards at or below IRS standards as determined by the BLS and Census. If you filed yourself, congrats. Most individuals would not have a clue as to how to do it, how to deal with the paperwork or the legal traps you can set for yourself by failing to leave creditors and/or collection efforts out of the initial filing. You're a stud. Pat yourself on the back and crow some more. Initially they did not allow online counseling and almost every attorney I know wants to be paid in full upfront and the fees have gone from about $900 on average up to $2000 if they prepare them for you. It is a nice thing to have because under the new laws the attorney accepts some liablity for incorrectly prepared or declared information whereas in the past they did not.

Rarerly do creditors show up unless there are large sums involved. Usually they send in the proper forms to the trustee if they have a challenge to your filing or they feel that you are involved in crooked shit as you said. I'm not spreading bullshit, I'm telling you the average sheeple is not capable of doing this properly. Period. More people fuck themselves over by not following the letter of the law and filing every form properly so believe me, you think it's that easy, go for it. Try a claim with 100 creditors and real estate involved plus investments. Not so fucking easy.

 

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Two years into the housing crash, Fannie Mae just now announced a war on strategic defaulters:

WASHINGTON, DC — Fannie Mae (FNM/NYSE) announced today policy changes designed to encourage borrowers to work with their servicers and pursue alternatives to foreclosure. Defaulting borrowers who walk-away and had the capacity to pay or did not complete a workout alternative in good faith will be ineligible for a new Fannie Mae-backed mortgage loan for a period of seven years from the date of foreclosure. Borrowers who have extenuating circumstances may be eligible for new loan in a shorter timeframe.

Fannie Mae will also take legal action to recoup the outstanding mortgage debt from borrowers who strategically default on their loans in jurisdictions that allow for deficiency judgments. In an announcement next month, the company will be instructing its servicers to monitor delinquent loans facing foreclosure and put forth recommendations for cases that warrant the pursuit of deficiency judgments.

Troubled borrowers who work with their servicers, and provide information to help the servicer assess their situation, can be considered for foreclosure alternatives, such as a loan modification, a short sale, or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure. A borrower with extenuating circumstances who works out one of these options with their servicer could be eligible for a new mortgage loan in three years and in as little as two years depending on the circumstances.

It's an dramatic move for the much-maligned company. But first of all, the plan sounds too vague to result in many prosecutions.

Second, the war on default is a terrible market indicator. Fannie Mae is worried about an increase in strategic defaults, which is caused by and contributes to a fall in prices. Indeed, that's what's been happening all spring, as home values keep dropping in many markets.

Don't miss: 14 Reasons To Fear The Growing Mortgage Bubble

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli has sued two Virginia Beach mortgage loan modification companies, claiming they charged consumers as much as $1,200 in advance for help to fend off foreclosures.



Under the state's foreclosure rescue law, a business can't charge a fee for its services until after completing the job, as long as the deal doesn't include the sale or transfer of residential property. The two lawsuits filed Monday in Virginia Beach Circuit Court claim Nationwide Loan Modification Bureau LLC and Real Estate Resolutions LLC charged fees of as much as $1,200 and $995 respectively before starting work. The suits seek refunds for consumers in cases for which services were not completely performed, and also seeks civil penalties of as much as $2,500 for each alleged violation.



"During these difficult times, the last thing people need is to be kicked when they are down," Cuccinelli said in a statement. Real Estate Resolutions could not be reached immediately for comment and an automated operator said the number for Nationwide Loan Modification Bureau was not in service.



Paying up-front fees is a "red flag" to avoid when looking for foreclosure prevention help, says the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The agency recommends contacting your lender first to try to negotiate a new repayment schedule. But if that fails, the FTC says to stay away from businesses that:

• guarantee to stop the foreclosure regardless of the circumstances


• collect fees before providing services


• tell consumers not to contact lenders, lawyers or credit and housing counselors


• accept payment only by cashier's check or wire transfer


• instruct consumers to make mortgage payments to them, rather than the lenders


• tells customers to transfer the property deeds to them or offers to buy houses for cash at a price not set by the housing market


• offer to fill out the paperwork or put pressure on consumers to sign paperwork they haven't fully read or understand

Consumers facing foreclosure have other options before enlisting a foreclosure prevention company. Read about some of those on WalletPop.
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Drazzub is either a fool or the same troll that keeps posting about Charlie when the article is clearly about the criminal activity of Marco Rubio and his lies! Charlie has held a number of "elected positions" in our state Government. All of which pay very little compared to what he could make in the private sector. He refused a RPOF AmEx card and has paid all his bill on time and lives within his means! And as far as this Floridan is concerned... I have been very pleased with our Gov. and his commitment to the people of the State of FL.

Unlike Rubio who used the Republican party and the CCE's and PAC's as his personal slush fund. Don't forget that Rubio's AmEx Card showed he paid mortgage payments to the mortgage co. (on his 3rd house) with Party money!!! Can you say illegal? Then when he got caught said he had paid that money back. THAT WAS PROVEN TO BE A LIE! Now he is saying that he has paid off the 5 months past due payments on his Tally home... the court recorded have proven he is also lying about that! Another thing you should know (which I assume you do since you are a Rubio Troll) is that his income went from $180,000 a yr. when he became speaker to close to a 1/2 a MILLION when he left office. Where did that money come from? LOBBYING! which is against the Law!

Rubio is over a Million dollars in debt, being investigated by the FBI and the IRS, and you want him to be our representative in the US Senate???

The Senate showed strong support for the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act by passing it with a 60-39 vote. It will be sent to the White House where President Obama is expected to sign it into law next week.

This historic bill represents a principled effort to bring financial fairness to all Americans and to ensure that lending transactions be both honest and transparent. Any policy that protects those consumers who do not have the means to protect themselves is a step in the right direction.

Many urban communities in America today are in a state of emergency, requiring the highest and most urgent attention of the private and public sectors. Passing the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act opens the way for a system that oversees the practices of participants in the financial markets, rewarding those who conduct business in the spirit of honest free trade and holding accountable those who continue predatory and abusive practices.

Certain provisions of the bill go a long way toward addressing the needs of the roots of our economic tree. In particular, this bill effectively addresses the root causes of the predatory lending induced mortgage meltdown that ultimately triggered the global economic crisis.

We are relieved and grateful that the final conference report addresses the crucial issue of foreclosure prevention. While 2.5 million families have already lost their homes to foreclosure, well over 5 million more are in imminent danger of doing so, and potentially as many as 13 million could lose their homes before the end of this crisis if they do not get some kind of assistance.

Overall, homeowners in America will be much safer as a result of the new mortgage standards. More effective foreclosure prevention will not only help homeowners, but also will help stabilize the economy and contribute to a strong recovery.

Again, we very much appreciate the act of congressional leadership shown by passing this historic legislation.

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[Ed. note: This post is authored by Evan Jowers and Robert Kinney of Kinney Recruiting, sponsor of the Asia Chronicles. Kinney has made more placements of U.S. associates and partners in Asia than any other firm in the past two years. You can reach them by email: asia at kinneyrecruiting dot com.]

Evan here. Please note that we have launched a new daily blog – THEASIACHRONICLES.COM – that will include our posts here at Above The Law, but also add additional daily posts, as well as source relevant Asia biglaw news from various media. You can search through all posts using “tags” (ie, expat packages) or any search term you come up with. Here is the latest post below:

***********************

WHY EXPAT / COLA DID NOT FALL IN HONG KONG

By Evan Jowers

A great draw of US biglaw associates to Hong Kong is the lucrative and somewhat illogical expat / cola allowances. Even though the cost of living in Hong Kong is not much different than New York (housing is a bit higher in HK), it is common to receive an expat / cola allowance of well over $60,000 USD.

Last year most in the Hong Kong market expected the lucrative US associate expat / cola allowances to lower dramatically, due to the global recession (which did greatly reduce deal flow in HK / China from late ’08 to mid ’09) and with many firms on global hiring freeze at the time. However, in reality, the expat / cola allowances at the more competitive US and UK firms in HK were never really in danger of dropping much, even during the very slow lateral biglaw hiring period in HK from December ’08 until October ’09.

Actually, when it comes to expat / cola at major US and UK firms in HK, there are two groups:

Competitive: the majority of the top 20 US and UK magic circle firms, and a minority of lower ranked firms, pay expat / cola somewhere in a range of $60,000 to $90,000 (for singles with no children; some of these firms give much higher expat / cola to associates with kids, especially school-aged), with the majority of those in mid 60’s and only a handful at $80,000 or above. These firms all have set in stone non-negotiable expat / cola allowances for each US associate and it is the same allowance at all associate seniority levels.

Less than Competitive: the minority of top 20 US and UK magic circle firms, and the majority of lower ranked firms, pay expat / cola in a range between zero and $55,000, with the majority of these firms in 30s and 40s. Unlike the Competitive group, the majority of these firms allow for expat / cola to be negotiated, on case-by-case basis, for each new hire (of course, most offerees do not realize that negotiation is possible), causing there to be at these firms different US associate comp packages at same levels. A large minority of these firms do have a set US associate expat / cola allowance, so that each associate receives same, so when a new hire negotiates for higher expat / cola, it effects the US associates already at the firm. A small minority of these firms have two or more different expat / cola packages, depending on the seniority of the US associate. A common theme among the less than competitive group is that expat / cola can fluctuate up and down a lot, depending on the actual market and perceptions of the market (sometimes perceptions of expat / cola in the market can be way off the mark, as happened at many of these firms in ’09 and early ’10, as US associate hiring started rising again in HK).

In mid ’08 (just before hiring and deal flow fell dramatically for some time in HK biglaw) expat / cola in HK at the competitive top US and UK firms ranged from $60,000 to $80,000. Today the range in the competitive group is $60,000 to $90,000, with no movement at the vast majority of those firms. Every HK firm paying expat / cola in the $60,000+ range in ’08 continues to do so today and not one of these firms even temporarily dropped below $60,000 at any point in since the global recession hit. In fact, only four firms had any movement at all (one firm moved from 65k to 90k, one lowered from 80k to 65k and then returned to 80k, one lowered from 80k to 65k, and one firm lowered from 79k to 65k).

The less competitive major US and UK firms in HK had expat / cola ranging from zero to $55,000 in mid ’08 and today most of those firms are offering about the same that they did before. However, a number of these firms substantially lowered their expat / cola allowances temporarily in ’09 and early ’10, but now have returned to previous mid ’08 levels. Some of these firms seriously considered stepping up to $60,000 plus group in early to summer ’08, before the IPO shutdown in China hit that fall, and now are again considering to do so. Two already have made the jump up

During the recent global recession and still downturn in biglaw work globally, Asia markets have obviously fared much better than the West, and that includes biglaw deal flow per US attorney in the market. In HK / China, things have been sizzling, especially concerning IPOs since last summer. A major drop off in deal flow in HK / China occurred from late November ’08 until around May ’09, but in the key practice area for most US and UK firms in HK, cap markets, things have been booming since ’09.

During the rebound of work in Asia, especially in HK / China, US corporate practices had staffing problems, but not because of there not being a large number of outstanding US associate candidates available on the market from late ’08 through ’09 (it was quite the contrary, with sometimes more than ten stellar candidates for one opening, the type of candidate that would have multiple offers in two weeks if on the market in ’07 in HK), but because even understaffed groups were typically not given the green light by firm management to make hires. As we all know, most firms were on either a strict hiring freeze, or at least a quasi-hiring freeze in the US, during ’08 and ’09 and that freeze extended to even the much busier offices in Asia.

However, the little biglaw hiring that was being done in Asia from late ’08 through ’09 was highly competitive. Firms that were able to hire (mostly top 15 US firms and UK magic circle firms) wanted to only consider the very best candidates on the market. These firms doing most of the little hiring in ’09 in Asia (mostly in HK / China) had some of the highest expat packages and were competing for the top candidates coming from top 5 NYC firms and who expected those expat packages to continue. Further, these firms, already understaffed in some cases (mostly, cap markets groups in HK / China), could not afford to lose their own US associates, which at least in theory (with hiring freezes in place at many top firms, not likely) could have happened if expat packages were dropped, while still being available at peer competitor firms. At the very least, US associates at top US practices in HK would have not been happy if their expat / cola fell and would have taken note that same did not happen at peer firms during the slow hiring time, but during an IPO boom, a time when many US associates in HK were busier than ever and in understaffed groups.

While there was little change in expat allowances among the competitive group in HK, many among the less competitive group dramatically lowered theirs, in many cases erroneously assuming that the top of the market were dramatically lowering theirs. Some of these are highly ranked US and UK firms.

On numerous occasions throughout ’09 and very early ‘10, I had a similar conversation with a partner at one of the less competitive firms that wanted to hire one of my US associate candidate clients, but was convinced that high expat / cola was a thing of the past in HK, due to the global recession. I would give them the current numbers at the time with regards to expat / cola at top firms in HK and they were usually in disbelief and still fully expecting those numbers would drop dramatically soon. In most of these instances, the firm ended up being open to negotiation regarding the offeree’s expat / cola and significantly raised the number by the time the offer was accepted.

By early ’08, many of the less competitive top US and UK firms in HK had started to cave in to the need to offer high expat allowances in order to compete for talent. Back then, it was a necessity to be able to bring on board qualified US associates.

Today, there are at least 5 times as many qualified US associate candidates looking to move to HK, for each position available, than was the case in ’06, ’07 and ‘08. Thus, expat allowances are not at all necessary to fill US associate openings, but competitive allowances are a requirement to be able to attract the best talent on the market.

And that is what biglaw recruiting is always about at the vast majority of firms – to hire the best possible candidate who you are able to interview, relative to the market conditions at the time.

When the US associate lateral market in HK was booming from late ’06 to mid ‘08, the top US practices fought each other to be able to hire enough qualified associates to be adequately staffed. The leverage belonged to the candidates on the market. Now the number of openings is just about the same as in ’07 in HK, but the leverage is with the firms. There are just too many very qualified US associate candidates on the market, so firms are fighting each other to get the very best talent, the native fluent in Mandarin US associates who hail from cap markets and / or M&A practices of top 5 Wall St. firms, and who also happen to interview very well and have the right personality fit for a small and busy overseas office.

The point is that there is and always will be still a fierce competition among peer firms in HK for the very best talent available on the market and the top US associate talent available on the market will receive offers and will expect a competitive expat / cola allowance. While it is very rare that an associate candidate will choose one firm over another for less than a $20,000 difference in expat / cola, a larger difference will usually be influential in a decision.

I can’t foresee the expat / cola allowances in HK falling unless there were to be a catastrophic drop in deal flow in HK / China and the US markets at the same time. During the recent global recession, China was severely affected, but only for a fraction of the time that the US and other Western markets were affected and China’s rebound was rapid and a full boom. As long as the top US and UK firms in HK are competing for the best US associate candidates on the market, as well as fighting to keep their own talent from being poached away, it is not logical for expat / cola to fall. This is the case, even though expat / cola in HK is in many ways illogical, considering the true difference in cost of living between NYC and HK and the fact that many US associates get an enormous tax windfall in HK (many US associates are not US persons for tax purposes) and all get at least some significant tax advantages (even US persons for tax purposes are not subject to US tax on a large portion of their income in HK).

Hard to say who the worst member of Congress is. But there are few short lists that would exclude narrow-minded and extremist Minnesota religious fanatic Michele Bachmann. However, today isn't about Bachmann. You want Bachmann, you go to DumpBachmann; no one does it better. At the time of the 2008 election, Bachmann was just as odious as she is today. Blue America didn't get involved in that race though because her opponent simply seemed... "better than Bachmann." That standard is too low for us.

And today we're going to meet state Senator Tarryl Clark (below in the comments section), a hard working leader with a proven track record who would be a great candidate whether she were running against Michele Bachmann, or just some garden variety Republican.

People say this suburban/exurban district mostly north of the Twin Cities is too red for a Democrat. But that isn't true. Bush won it in 2004 with 57% and 4 years later McCain took 53% but, the district has also voted to elect Amy Klobuchar to the Senate-- and against Mark Kennedy, the kook who represented the district before Bachmann. And in the 15th senatorial district near St Cloud, the part Tarryl represents-- and which was a GOP bastion before she came along-- the vote totals in that 2006 race were very interesting. Because she knows what it means to work hard and work smart, and with a very committed Wellstone-style of campaigning, Tarryl outpolled everyone on the ballot:

Clark 15581 (56.30%)

Klobuchar 14980 (53.45%)

Pawlenty 14307 (51.1%)

Wetterling 13082 (46.81%)

Bachmann 12542 (44.88%)

MN-06 has the most devastating unemployment rate in Minnesota and the worst foreclosure crisis in the state. But Bachmann has neither understood nor been sympathetic to her constituents finding themselves in a jam because of the vicissitudes of an economy buffeted by disastrous conservative ideological experimentation. She has not only not contributed to finding solutions to these very real problems, she has tried to capitalize of politicizing them.

Tarryl's reaction, as a state legislator, has been the exact opposite. Instead of running around the country and ranting and raving at tea parties, she proven herself an effective leader for the people she represents, working to secure the funds to upgrade the facilities at Saint Cloud State University, working to ensure Central Minnesota’s nursing homes are paid fairly, working to establish a special law enforcement unit to fight gang activities in Central Minnesota.

Tarryl’s been a champion for issues including early childhood and higher education, health care, serving veterans, protecting Minnesotans from predatory lenders, and investing in the local communities that make America strong. Because of that her colleagues elected her to serve as the Senate’s Assistant Majority Leader. Bachmann's colleagues have recognized her as a clown and have tasked her with going on Fox to stir up divisiveness and animosities.

Tarryl’s record of results on reducing unemployment:

• Created 22,000 jobs with last session’s bonding bill

• Helped small businesses add new jobs with Angel Investor Tax Credits

• Authored the Central Minnesota Bioscience Initiative to bring jobs in the biotech industry into the 6th district

• Authored economic development bill that improved workforce development (job training) and expanded the Small Business Growth Acceleration Program, and entrepreneur and small business development grants.

Tarryl’s record of results on reducing foreclosure:

• Authored legislation to protect seniors from predatory lenders and reverse mortgages

• Helped families in keep their homes with the MN Subprime Borrowers Relief Act

• Authored legislation to reduce the burden of property taxes on middle class families

Tarryl is the newest member of the Blue America family. If you can volunteer for her campaign, there's a sign up form here and if you can help the campaign financially, she's on the Blue America endorsed candidates list.

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