My Wish for 2008

Wish #1
Ok...is illegal alien a negative term? Since when did illegal alien somehow become the same as undocumented immigrant. Immigrant, to me means someone who legally entered the country and plans to establish a legal permanent home here. This is not someone who found a way into the country by violating a law. My first wish is that we stop extending any benefit to anyone not legally in the country. I do, however, think that we need to offer a way for anyone to get in line to acquire a permit to work here if they follow the rules. What should happen to businesses who knowingly break the law. I predict that Arizona's new stance will have a huge impact on border states including Florida. We really are a border state..with an open border along much of our shoreline. We need to rationally address the problem and find a "legal" way to deal with it...without bending the laws or allowing one group or another to ignore established laws for entering this country and finding a job.

Wish #2
I hope we turn over control of Iraq security to Iraqi forces and reduce troops in Iraq. (as long as it is realistic and does not endanger the remaining US forces) I know this isn't realistic for 2008 and will likely take several years, but this is a wish and a wish doesn't have to be black and white....does it?

Wish #3
Lenders never offer 100% loans or no doc loans again. I am in the real estate industry and the incredible folly of selling a home to someone...then requiring no equity...is begging for a foreclosure. Go back to all documented loans and much stricter consumer credit. It is absolutely ridiculous to offer someone with no income cards totalling 50, 60, 100k in credit. I personally know someone with over $50,000 in cards and they haven't had an income in years. What kind of stupidity is this? All credit card companies should ahve to document income and pull a current credit report. Credit, including all loans, should be limited to an established percentage of 2 years of income. A realistic number would be 40% at max, with a verification of employment required through pay stubs or w-2. Appraisals, in real estate sales should, in my opinion, be based on a longer history. When large appreciation occurs in an area, a 2 year history of similar properties would reduce loans made on rapidly appreciating sites that later will be subject to a similar downside. Currently, appraisers go back 1 year and look for the most recent comps. This forces the appraisal up as high as possible. In a growing market, this increases instability and in turn makes loans more risky.

Make it simple, make it consistent. The current credit and real estate crisis is mostly based on an irrational approach to lending.