The Fed ignores the president, FICO lobbies Congress, and Grant Cardone needs a CFO. From the wild and wooly world of real estate, here are our Hits and Misses for the week of July 28-Aug. 1.
Miss: If You Can’t Say Something Nice. For the past several weeks, President Trump, members of the Executive Branch, several members of Congress and Trump supporters in the media and financial services world engaged in a non-stop barrage of name calling, character assassination, threats, and manufactured outrage to denigrate the integrity of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell in a coordinated campaign to force the central bank to lower rates. This week, the central bank ignored the attacks on Powell and opted not to lower rates. Whether you think that was the right decision and whether you think Powell is doing a good job can easily be debated in an intelligent and congenial manner. What was neither intelligent nor congenial was the endless abuse heaped on Powell, and the ridicule will probably continue until the next Fed rate policy meeting in September. You know, it is possible to disagree without being disagreeable.
Miss: FICO Doesn’t Score. The Fair Isaac Corp., the folks behind the FICO score, are raising their lobbying presence in Washington thanks primarily to Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte. The company hired a new lobbyist and allocated $460,000 to its federal influencing campaign during the second quarter, which is double what they spent in the first quarter. Pulte accused the company of running a “monopoly who has ripped off Americans for decades” and caught them off-guard with his announcement that lenders will now be able to use the rival VantageScore 4.0 credit scoring model for mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. FICO CEO Will Lansing also made a rare appearance on CNBC to defend his company against Pulte’s attacks. How do you think this FICO influencing campaign will go?
Hit: Who Wants to Be a CFO? High-profile real estate investor Grant Cardone has a unique way of conducting business. Consider this message on his X page: “Looking for a CFO with REIT experience running a public company to take Cardone Capital public. If you are tired of being in a ‘dead-end’ REIT with no way to grow and tired of doing the same thing over and over, pay attention to this opportunity.” To his credit, Cardone knows what he wants and isn’t shy about saying it, telling potential applicants: “You must have the mind, energy and hustle of an ambitious person. “If you act old, tired and are comfortable don’t bother, this won’t be for you.” Any takers out there?
Hit: Go Play Pickleball Somewhere Else. Mayor Daniel Rodrick of Toms River, New Jersey, has reversed his campaign to take the 11-acre property belonging to Christ Episcopal Church. Rodrick wanted the property for a proposed park that would include pickleball courts and a soccer field. The church, which has been operational since 1865, was not interested in selling its property, so Rodrick raised the potential of using eminent domain to seize the land. But that sparked angry public opposition, resulting in a 9,000-signature petition submitted by the church’s supporters. Rodrick stepped away from his efforts while cluelessly grumbling, “I thought they would be willing sellers.”
Hit: Saying No to Taxpayer-Funded Stadiums. A pair of Republican lawmakers in Missouri, State Sen. Mike Moon and State Rep. Bryant Wolfin, have filed a lawsuit seeking to block a recently-signed law that provides up to $1.5 billion in state tax funds to back bonds that would fund new construction or renovations at the stadiums used by the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals. Gov. Mike Kehoe advocated for the legislation to keep the teams from moving to Kansas, but the lawsuit claims the use of state funds for these projects only benefits the teams’ owners and will “likely produce political contributions in vast sums from those able to make such contributions.” The Missouri Independent reports the new law also includes property tax provisions not connected to the stadium projects, but the lawsuit argues these provisions are “special laws” forbidden by the state constitution. Who wants to bet the court will side with the plaintiffs?
In Memoriam: Wesley LePatner and Julia Hyman. The real estate industry lost two exemplary individuals in Monday’s evening horrific shooting rampage at an office tower in Midtown Manhattan. Wesley LePatner, 43, was the CEO of Blackstone Real Estate Investment Trust – she was promoted to that position in January. Julia Hyman, 27, was an associate at Rudin Property Management. These wonderful women represented the best qualities of the real estate profession, and their senseless deaths leave us heartbroken. We would like to express our deepest condolences to their families, friends, and colleagues.
Phil Hall is editor of Weekly Real Estate News. He can be reached at [email protected].
Photo: Eoneren / Getty Images
No pity for “No Home Jerome”! He obviously wants to stick it to those trying to buy or refinance. He wants the debt high to also try and stick it to Trump.
HE’S NOT TRYING TO STICK IT TO ANYONE. HE’S TRING TO MAKE THE BEST DECESION BASED ON THE CURENT ECONOMIC SITUATION.