Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Keith Gilabert, "How Much Is A Candy Cane Worth?"

Christmas holiday generates an estimated $1.4 billion in sales for Candy Canes.

Monday, December 24, 2012

Keith Gilabert Foundaiton Proudly Supports Children’s Hospice & Palliative Care


December 24, 2012

Keith Gilabert Foundation, thank you for caring so much about quality care for children and for honoring their families with your generosity. Children's Hospice and Palliative Care Coalition exists to ensure that seriously ill children and their families receive compassionate, family-centered care and to support families throughout the journey of their child's illness. 

We depend upon generous donors like you and on behalf of the children and their families, we thank you.

KEITHGILABERT.NET: Keith Gilabert Foundaiton Proudly Supports Children’s Hospice & Palliative Care

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Keith Gilabert, "Hedge Fund Investors Have Another Bad Year"

Hedge fund investors have another bad year.  Hedge funds have become more direct investment vehicles in the last several years instead of a well diversified portfolio of investment opportunities.

The S&P 500 equity bond index has now outperformed it's hedge fund rivals for ten straight years, with the exception of 2008 where hedge funds did actually hedge.

As a professional investor it is important to recognize opportunity and be able to act quickly and effectively.  Right now is not a good time for the financial markets.  The stock market traders are watching governments and the governments are watching the markets. 

The way a successful investor makes money is by looking beyond traditional investments and making a niche for themselves.  One of the best performing sectors in 2012 and I expect it to do well for many years is private financing sector.  Blackrock one of the best performing hedge funds in the world have a multi-billion dollar fund committed to mezzanine financing.  Now that the banks can't offer specialized financing to companies private firms have stepped up and are making boat loads of money at it.

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Keith Gilabert, "My Last Twinkie...."

This was the last Twinkie on the shelf at Albertson's.   I'm going to enjoy every last bite....

By the way, does anyone know where I can get a Snowball??

Monday, December 17, 2012

Keith Gilabert, "Is Aspartame really a poison?"


Aspartame is also known as as NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure.  It is used in most diet sodas.

There has been enough studies to suggest adverse effects to the chemical Aspartame.  Here is interesting article from a compelling site.

According to Lendon Smith, M.D. there is an enormous population suffering from side effects associated with aspartame, yet have no idea why drugs, supplements and herbs don’t relieve their symptoms. Then, there are users who don’t ‘appear’ to suffer immediate reactions at all. Even these individuals are susceptible to the long-term damage caused by excitatory amino acids, phenylalanine, methanol, and DKP.

Read Full Article

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Keith Gilabert, "Find Your Family's Missing, Lost, and Unclaimed Property, Money and Assets"

Free Money Search is your free source for information on the tens of billions of unclaimed money and property being held today in state and federal unclaimed accounts. By clicking on the "Search Your State" link you can freely search your state data base for unclaimed funds.
Here are some search strategies to find Unclaimed Funds:
1. Search for everyone - family (living and non-living), friends, and the names of businesses.


2.  Search for maiden names and common misspellings of your name.


3. Aside from state data bases - there is over $16 billion sitting in federal coffers waiting to be found. Remember those savings bonds you got when you were young ? Do you know where they are?

About Keith Gilabert
Keith Gilabert has worked side-by-side with equity and derivative specialist developing trading programs. In 1998 Keith  Gilabert developed a trading strategy to boost performance of managed portfolios.   The trading strategy returned a staggering 27% year over year return.  In 2002 while the market finished down over 30%, Gilabert’s strategy returned 15% net of all fees.  You can find him on Google+ and Twitter.


Full Article

Friday, November 9, 2012

Keith Gilabert, “Take Contol of Your Finances.”



Young people who want to take care of their future finances should discover how compound interest works. Save your money in an account where you will make money off of the interest that you earn as well as your initial investment.

Use your tax refund money to pay off any debts you may have. Most individuals use the money for frivolous things, instead of being reasonable with it. Those individuals will continue to carry their debt load once the cash has been spent.

Among all of the complex financial instruments you have at your disposal today, the humble savings account is the most important for your financial well-being. You can save money for buying large purchases like a new TV or a new car. Save money so you can retire and be comfortable. No matter the reasoning, putting money away in a savings account is one of the best ideas a person can have.

Don't start new debts, and pay your old debts down diligently. Although our instincts tell us to do one thing, it is really quite easy to train ourselves to do another. Decrease your debt slowly without adding on more! Working at it consistently will find you debt free and in a place of personal financial freedom.

Being able to successfully manage your money is key to your success. Protect your profits and invest your capital. Put some of the money you earn into more capital investments, and make sure to stay on top of the process to ensure that you continue to make money. Set aside a specific percentage of profits earned, and invest the rest in capital that can make you even more profit.

Debt doesn't have to be negative. Debt that can be considered beneficial or good most often involve real estate purchases and investments. Real estate is good because, for the most part, they increase in value over time and the loan interest is tax deductible. "Good debt" may come in the form of paying for college tuition. Student loans have relatively low interest rates, and they do not need to be paid off until after the student graduates.

If you are not ready to sell, don't. If you are getting money from one stock more than another, let that one stay. Take a look at stocks that are performing less well, and think about making some changes with them.

Sacrificing your home is a difficult decision that nobody wants to make. But, there are times when it may be the best strategic option for getting back on your feet financially, since it can free you to pursue cheaper housing and rethink your budget from the ground up. It would be worse to fail at repayment efforts and then be evicted. Sometimes it's a good idea be preemptive.

Monday, November 5, 2012

How to Help the Victims of Hurricane Sandy

 How to Help the Victims of Hurricane Sandy

Red Cross
All donations will provide shelter, food, emotional support and other assistance to those affected by the storm. To donate, visit www.redcross.org, call 800-Red-Cross or text the word "Redcross" to 90999 to make a $10 donation.

Feeding America 
While those in need wait for life to get back to normal, they'll need food, drinking water, and more. This organization was already prepared before the storm hit, and is continuing to provide supplies. You can donate
here. 

Salvation Army 
Though religious organizations aren't the right way to help for everyone, The Salvation Army has a powerful structure behind it that can do a lot of good — not to mention lots of active volunteers. You can donate 
here. 


KEITHGILABERT.NET: 3 Great Ways to Help the Victims of Hurricane Sandy

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Fiscally Responsible Habits By Keith Gilabert

By Keith Gilabert,

Consider whether items you are removing from your home might have value to another person. You can have a yard sale or bring items into a consignment shop to see whether you can get some money for them. Personal finances can benefit when an old piece of valuable furniture is sold.

Do not incur substantial student loans unless there is a strong likelihood that you can repay them. Going to expensive private schools when you are unsure of what major to take could cause you a lot in the long run.
If you want to have truly sound finances, avoiding debt altogether is a very good thing to do. For larger purchases, like a house or a car, taking on debt is usually unavoidable. Do not use credit too much during your daily life.

Tax planning is an advantageous way of improving your overall individual financial picture. Do not neglect or pass over any employer-offered investment opportunities that let you invest dollars before taxes into qualified plans. Set aside pre-tax money for medical expenses. Utilize 401K matching programs your employer offers. Nobody can deny that responsible money management lays the foundation for lifelong financial freedom.
Planning for your children's college should begin as soon as possible. College can cost a lot of money, and if you only start saving when your child is a teen, you probably won't have enough for their tuition fees.

Save a bit day by day. Instead of shopping at a store because the location is convenient, compare prices at several stores before making a decision. Always look for food that is on sale.
Improve your finances by decreasing expenses. Saving with coupons should be more important to you than brand loyalty. As an example, while you may have always purchased brand X detergent, if you have a coupon that will give you $2 off brand Y, then buy it and save money.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Plan For Your Financial Future by Keith Gilabert


Don't trust any organization that guarantees success in repairing your credit. A lot of agencies will make general claims about their capability in repairing your credit history. This is not at all accurate since what is affecting your credit is not the same as another individual with credit issues. If you owe the money pay it.  If you do not have the ability to pay the credit cards off then hold off until you have saved enough money and work out a settlement.   When it comes to credit repair, there can be no guarantee of success.

Protect yourself financially with the best health insurance policy for you. Illnesses can spring up suddenly. Because of this, you should be sure that your health insurance leaves you protective. I once went to the emergency room and the bill was $6,700.00. With insurance you'll be covered instead of facing years of debt, my part of the bill was only $600.00.  If you have kids make sure you are covered, a hospital stay will cost you financially and will permanently damage your credit if you can’t pay.

You can improve your credit rating by paying your bills on time and in full each month.  This is really important because credit issuers want to see a debt-to-available credit at about 11 percent.  When you pay something early, you will know right away how much you have left to spend or save. You will not be as anxious about how you are going to pay your bills or having something come up financially you did not expect.

Full Article

Friday, August 3, 2012

KEITHGILABERT.NET:Stop Making Costly Money Mistakes

Buying a car is definitely one of the biggest and most important purchases you will ever make. Comparison shopping with all of the different retailers available to you is the best way to make sure you get a good price on a car. Don't forget to look on the Internet.  An excellent source is KBB.com, this site gives you  the wholesale cost of an automobile and you can use that as your negotiating point.

Always allocate a cash budget,  you can avoid splurging and spending your savings. You can use your cash allowance to reward yourself in whatever way you want, but you can't spend more than your allowance. This way you can reward and treat yourself on a consistent basis without damaging your overall budget.  STAY OFF THE CREDIT CARDS--- THEY ARE A BOTTOMLESS PIT!!

KEITHGILABERT.NET: First Step to Stop Making Money Mistakes – Stay out of Debt.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

KEITHGILABERT.NET: THE AVERAGE PERSON SPENDS $780.00 A YEAR AT STARBUCKS!

Write it Down!  A written budget is valuable to having successful personal finances. The first of each month, compose a list which describes every expense. Remember to include all expenses due, such as rent, lights, cars, phones and food. Try to take all expenditures into consideration. Add up your anticipated monthly expenses, and make sure you don't spend more than what you have left after paying them.

If the whole family wants an expensive item, then ask each member to contribute to buying it because this will show kids the value of money and make them appreciate what they have. When the purchase is for something the whole household can enjoy, like a new television, try convincing everyone to donate towards the purchase.

KEITHGILABERT.NET: Avoid Financial Pitfalls Now With These Simple Do-It-Yourself Tips

Monday, July 23, 2012

Keith Gilabert,"Importance of having a Code of Ethics." | SBA.gov

Keith Gilabert,"Importance of having a Code of Ethics." | SBA.gov

About Keith Gilabert

Keith Gilabert was born in Hollywood, California. His mother has ancestry from Barcelona, Spain and his father is French-Italian.   When he was two years old, his parents moved from Hollywood, CA  where his father worked for General Motors and moved to Saugus, CA.  Gilabert was brought up as a Catholic and served as an Alter boy at Saint Clare’s Catholic Church.  He attended Saugus high school in Santa Clarita, CA.  He went on to attend San Diego State University as Political Science Major and later changed to Finance and Accounting.   Gilabert currently resides in Valencia, CA while making career-related visits to London and Zurich.
Gilabert speaks conversational Italian and Spanish, though he has stated that he needs to brush up a bit on his spoken Italian, as it was a bit rusty.   
He has also expressed interest in vintage Ferrari racing, most notably the Mille Miglia, which is 1,000 mile rally up the coast of California.

Friday, April 27, 2012

Keith Gilabert to receive Catholic Charities Award

“I have always admired Catholic Charities for its tireless commitment to supporting some of the most vulnerable members of our community,” Keith Gilabert said. “I am truly humbled to be honored with this award, particularly since it is being presented by Monsignor Benz, who has always been such an inspiration to me.”

Keith Gilabert to be Honored with Catholic Charities Award

Keith Gilabert, Carry forward losses? | SBA.gov

Keith Gilabert, Carry forward losses? | SBA.gov

Friday, April 20, 2012

Keith Gilabert: Orange Chicken That Tastes Like Candy! - Los Angeles Area - Chowhound

Keith Gilabert: Orange Chicken That Tastes Like Candy! - Los Angeles Area - Chowhound

Keith Gilabert, "How to Market Your Business Online for Free." | SBA.gov

Keith Gilabert, "How to Market Your Business Online for Free." | SBA.gov

Biography of Keith Gilabert:  
Keith Gilabert, a Valencia, CA resident, has served as the President of Renovatio Group, a non-partisan human rights organization representing victims of abuse, since 1999. Prior to co-founding Renovatio, he was an investment banker for notable Wall Street firms such as Lazard Fredericks and Crowell Weedon. Throughout his career, Keith Gilabert has been an outspoken advocate for people with intellectual disabilities. Mr. Gilabert also serves on the Board of Advocates of Children’s Aid, and the Advisory Board of the Keith Gilabert Foundation.
Mr. Gilabert’s humanitarian work has been recognized by a number of organizations, including California Special Olympics, and Hospice of Los Angeles.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Saturday, March 17, 2012

2012 Keith Gilabert: Most Americans Have These Traits In Common

Read Full Story here...Most Americans Have These Traits In Common

Bio of Keith GilabertKeith Gilabert is an advocate and author.  He dedicates 50% of his time to community service projects that supports funding for women and children of abuse.  Keith Gilabert sits on the Board of Directors of BentleyForbes Analytics a public policy firm and Renovatio Group a human rights activist organization.  He also heads foundations for health, education and safe harbors for victims of abuse.  

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Keith Gilabert Interviewed: How To Spot the Bottom in Housing

A major concern for government offices which depend on tax revenue to continue vital operations is the health of the housing market.  Executive Director Keith Gilabert of public policy firm BentleyForbes Analytics, says “housing is a major concern because 55% of the net worth of U.S. households was in the equity of their homes.”  This calculation was supported by Alan Greenspan in 2001 during the first financial crisis.
Gilabert says, “you still need to be cautious when looking at the unemployment figures.  There are 23 million Americans on unemployment benefits but if you factor in the people that have stopped looking for jobs and the people that are underemployed that number can easily be over 40 million Americans out of work.” 
According to a statistical analysis performed for The Wall Street Journal by the online real-estate information and search firm Zillow, home values in a handful of communities are where they were just before the most frenzied days of the real-estate bubble. Focusing on communities with sufficient sales activity to produce statistically valid value estimates, Zillow spotted 25 places that are within single-digit percentage points of their home-value peaks. (Zillow found no communities where values have surpassed their high-water marks.)
What are the factors that have helped those communities get by may help homeowners to better gauge what's going on where they live and for future homeowners properly gauge a fair price.
I would like to emphasize that housing isn't an investment like stocks or bonds and shouldn't be approached that way.  If you need to liquidate a stock or bond you can easily sell these investments in one day for fair market value.  If you take the same approach with a house, you may end up selling at a substantial discount to the market thus causing you a major loss.
The key factor why people buy a home is most are just nice places to live, places where anyone might want to work and raise a family.  Typically the nicer the area the more of a premium it will command.
So what does a healthy real-estate market look like today?
Here are three key factors to look for employment, rents and foreclosures.  If these traits are present you may already be on the rebound.
Employment
The No.1 factor to look for is not location, location, location.  It is JOBS.  Does your area support gainful employment?
Clearly, the factor in determining whether a community has passed through the worst of the housing debacle is its current state of employment. There has always been a connection between the local jobs picture and the local real-estate market, but it's even greater today.
The official U.S. unemployment rate was still a very high 8.3% as the prime home-shopping season began in March.
Look at North Carolina, where three communities appear on the Zillow list of real estate bottoming out. Although North Carolina's unemployment rate is higher than the national average, all three communities are lower than the state rate. Jacksonville, where values are just 0.1% below their peak, is the home of the Marine Corps' Camp Lejeune and New River Air Station. Fayetteville has the Army's Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base. And Durham is one of the vertices of the Research Triangle conglomeration of universities, state and federal government offices, and government, nonprofit and corporate research facilities.
Gilabert says, “you still need to be cautious when looking at the unemployment figures.  There are 23 million Americans on unemployment benefits but if you factor in the people that have stopped looking for jobs and the people that are underemployed that number can easily be over 40 million Americans out of work.”
Rents
The No. 2 factor is local rents.   Local rents are a real time indicator of real-estate values. Home prices in most communities that have best weathered the downturn, have been area with at the low-rent end. That is, they have lower price-to-rent multiples, and house hunters will often find it cheaper to buy properties than to rent them.
According to Gilabert, “when it comes to "rent vs. buy" the figure I rely on is if prices are more than 15 times annual rents, then a market favors renters; under 15 times, buyers. To do the calculation on your own find a comparable home and take the monthly asking rent and multiply the annualized rent by 15, this will give you an estimated real-time value of your home.”
But you also need to be careful of extremely low price-to-rent multiples can be warning flags for seriously depressed markets that are glutted with unsold properties. Trulia, another real-estate information site, regularly publishes a rent-to-buy analysis of large metropolitan areas, and the most "affordable" markets are a Where's Where of the real-estate bust: Las Vegas (prices 6 times rents), Phoenix (7), Miami (8). At the opposite end, Trulia's survey says the "least affordable" market is New York City (39), where home values are down just 9.1% from their peak.
Foreclosures
Foreclosures are a cancer to a communities housing prices.  Healthier communities have fewer foreclosed properties pulling down values of other homes.
Even in good times, one foreclosed property in a neighborhood can bring down the values of every other house around it. And, in bad times, entire metropolitan areas can be swamped by abandoned, foreclosed houses.
In 2010, the worst year so far, about 2.23% of all the homes received a foreclosure filing, according toRealtyTrac, an Irvine, Calif., firm that monitors foreclosed properties. In Las Vegas, the poster child of the Sun Belt's real-estate bust, the foreclosure rate was 12%, more than 80% of homes are worth less than their mortgages and values are down more than 50% from their peak.
Are we there yet? Gilabert suggests, there is some evidence available right now that the housing market is at or very close to bottoming out. 

The prudent homebuyer should look at the economy first, and then at prices.

Evidence of a HousingBottom


The National Association of Homebuilders' Housing Market Index rose five points to 29 in February marking its fifth consecutive monthly increase. 

The ideal number is 50, it represents the neutral level for the index. Even still, the current level of 29 is up 20 points off of the low, and is the highest it has been since 2007.

More positive is news is coming from housing starts, which rose in January to an annualized 699,000 units.
 

Now these numbers do not represent a comeback compared to 2005's total of 2,068,000. But it shows the market is stabilizing and it is much better than 2009's average of 554,000 and 2010's 586,000.
 

The most important data in here because it shows there is demand and a trend in housing. Multi-family starts were 175,000, up more than 70% over 2009, while single-family starts of 508,000 were only modestly above the 2009 average.

Lastly, foreclosures in January 2012 were down 19% from a year earlier.
 

There is strong evidence that housing is forming a bottom but it’s values could stay depressed for many years before it begins to trend back-up.  The only way a home owner will build equity is by paying down their mortgage.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

America’s Quick Fix With Prescription Drugs

“The United States is 5% of the world’s population but we consume 50% of the world’s prescriptions and 80% of the world’s narcotic prescriptions such as Prozac and Xanax,” Gilabert said.
Dr. Howard Wetsman, chief medical officer at the Lafayette-based recovery system Townsend, said benzodiazepines such as Xanax are essentially "minor tranquilizers" that can work well for people who are not biologically pre-disposed to addiction.
"They will fix just about anything. They will chill you out. The reason people use them is that it really doesn't matter what's the matter, they are going to be symptomatically better for a short period of time," Wetsman said.

Read on

Sunday, February 12, 2012

How To Stall a Foreclosure

How To Stop a Foreclosure

Keith Gilabert of Policy Research Firm BentleyForbes, said, “Whether or not you can stop a foreclosure proceeding depends on a number of factors, most importantly is how much you owe and what the loan value is compared to the rest of the market.  If you are upside down more than 15% and behind on your payments, it’s time to move on.  The restructuring needs to make sense to the bank, they will not lend based on your emotional attachment such as neighbors or the school yours kids want to stay in.”

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Scientific Study Links Bacon To Cancer


By Health Nation, Denver, CO
Nutritionist Keith Gilabert says “Scientific study suggests 2 slices of bacon a day increases a person’s risk of developing cancer.”

Scientists have found that small amounts of processed meat increase the chance of developing pancreatic cancer. 

Nutritionist Keith Gilabert says, “What makes processed meats so deadly is that they are made with Sodium Nitrite.   This chemical is used to cure meat products and has been implicated as a cancer causing agent.  If you have ever consumed a ham sandwich, then you have been exposed to this chemical.”  Gilabert says, “what is most troubling is that all nutrition experts know of this risk with processed meats but nearly all school lunch programs currently serve schoolchildren meat products containing sodium nitrite, that is why we are seeing cancer rates skyrocket.”

The USDA actually tried to ban sodium nitrite in the 1970’s but was preempted by the meat processing industry.

Pancreatic cancer kills 80 percent of people in under a year of being diagnosed due to the symptoms being vague – such as back pain, loss of appetite and weight loss.  By the time the disease is diagnosed it is often too late, only 3 percent of patients live beyond five years.

Sodium nitrite is an FDA approved food additive.  It is used to extend shelf life and inhibit growth of the bacteria that causes botulism. 

Now scientists in Sweden have found that eating just 50g of processed meat a day raises the likely hood of cancer by almost 20%.  Gilabert says, “50g a day of meat is equivalent to 3 slices of ham.”

Overall, small amounts of cured meats containing sodium nitrite are not likely to cause cancer.  If you want to avoid sodium nitrite altogether there are many nitrite free products.  Gilabert adds,” look for products labeled uncured, one sausage product I am very impressed with is Aidells all natural sausage.  Theses sausages are made with no msg, nitrites or hormones, I serve these to my kids.”

Eating a diet that is high in fruits and vegetables, especially when eaten raw, is the most essential thing we can do for our health. Those that are rich in fiber are especially good for the behind. The fruits and vegetables that are highest in fiber include:

* Avocados

* Peas

* Broccoli

* Brussels sprouts

* Cabbage

* Carrot

* Chick Peas/Garbanzo Beans

* Eggplant

* Greens - collards, kale, turnip greens

* Mushrooms

* Pumpkin

* Peppers

* Rhubarb

* Spinach

* Sweet Potatoes

Regular exercise, healthy eating and a positive attitude are generally known to stave off all forms of cancer.

About nutritionist Keith Gilabert
Keith Gilabert is an author and is highly experienced in all aspects of the fitness industry and has a keen interest in nutrition.
His website www.keithgilabertfoundation.com provides the latest research on preventing disease, looking naturally gorgeous, and feeling emotionally and physically fabulous. You can also find some of the most powerful super foods on the planet including raw chocolate, purple corn, and many others.  

 Source:

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Keith Gilabert: Facebook and Twitter Will Decide GOP Candidate


By BentleyForbes Analytics , Beverly Hills, CA

“It’s official, Facebook and Twitter will decide the next GOP candidate,” says Keith Gilabert Executive Director of BentleyForbes Analytics.  As the GOP candidates are getting ready for another round of low blows and finger pointing this weekend in New Hampshire, Facebook will be streaming the presidential primary debate though a partnership with NBC News.

 Mitt Romney’s victory was on paper only.  Many observers state the race was to close to call according to the AP Press.  Romney won the Iowa GOP by 8 votes over Rick Santorum, more than 122,000 ballots were cast, a record for Iowa Republicans.  With such a close race the New Hampshire primary should make the action much more interesting.

Gilabert says “the GOP Candidates are using social media more than ever before.  Their views and positions can be viewed on such sites as Facebook.com and Twitter.com which rank in the top ten on google.com search results.”  President Obama’s 2008 campaign changed the way we view social media and it’s relations to getting potential voters to act.

The Meltwater Group is currently monitoring the candidate’s campaigns by tracking and analyzing posts on blogs, Facebook and Twitter.  Gilabert says, “this is an excellent way to monitor word cloud and the candidates can use this tool in a very effective way by fine tuning the messages they are sending and getting real time feedback.” 

The Pew Internet & American Life Project has reported the 2008 election for the first time “more than half the voting-age population used the internet to connect to the political process during an election cycle.”

A recent survey by Digitas, found that 61 percent of adults expect the candidates of the 2012 U.S. presidential election to have a social media presence.  Almost have of the respondents stated they will base their decisions on information found on social media sites such as Facebook. Com and Twitter.com.  According to Digitas, 88 percent of U.S. adults that are social media users are also registered voters.   

President Obama already has a strong presence on social media.  President Obama’s campaign also started a page on Myspace.com with over 110 million members in 2008.  He is on 15 social networking sites and has over 5 million friends, 3 million of those friends on Facebook alone.  As reported by The Social Pulpit:  Barack Obama’s Social Media Toolkit, by Edelman, President Obama started a profile on AsianAve.com, MiGente.com and BlackPlanet.com. 

The Edelman toolkit explains that during Obama’s campaign to the White House, nearly 2,000 YouTube.com videos were watched more than 80,000 times.  Gilabert explains, “this allowed people to watch content by the Obama campaign as well as user generated content, this strategy gave the people the feeling they have a voice that is being heard.”  Posts on Youtube.com opened the doors to discussions from the neighbor around the corner to the voter across the country.  “President Obama’s campaign could challenge any opposition head-on by posting a video at any time or place, social media has become a very powerful tool” says Gilabert.

Through the use of social media, President Obama shaped the future of elections.  Social media such as Facebook and Twitter has become a part of our lives, and future candidates will have to incorporate these sites into their campaigns if they want to win.

Monday, January 2, 2012

Keith Gilabert on BofA Foreclosure Rentals

Keith Gilabert for BentleyForbes Analytics - Bank of America has stated they may rent back foreclosures to former owners.  I think this is a terrible move by BofA because if the owner couldn't make the mortgage payment, what makes you think this person will make rent payments.  Keep in mind, to get foreclosed on this borrower has to default by not making a single payment in 9 months.

In my humble opinion, if a person cannot make mortgage payment in 9 months what makes you think they can make a rent payment??

I think the appropriate move for BofA would be to stop floating bad loans and purge their mortgage portfolios of all the non-performing assets and start with a clean slate.

The banks have been holding this ghost inventory of homes hoping the housing market improves but it hasn't and it won't.   The US economy has not created any jobs or industry in the last 4 years.  There is no catalyst for wealth so were is the consumer going to find the money to buy a home? The housing market has dropped 10% in 2011 on average and will drop another 10% in 2012.  I think the housing market may stop falling by the end of 2013.  I am in no rush to buy and with patience of capital you can find a good deal out there if you're thinking of buying a home.