You may have to Search all our reviewed books and magazines, click the sign up button below to create a free account.
Former subprime lender Richard Bitner once worked in an industry that started out helping disadvantaged customers but collapsed due to greed, lack of financial control and willful ignorance. In Confessions of a Subprime Lender: An Insider's Tale of Greed, Fraud, and Ignorance, he reveals the truth about how the subprime lending business spiraled out of control, pushed home prices to unsustainable levels, and turned unqualified applicants into qualified borrowers through creative financing. Learn about the ways the mortgage industry can be fixed with his twenty suggestions for critical change.
Conifers are the perfect choice for groundcovers, shrubs, or trees in almost any garden. Evergreen and always architecturally interesting, they’re also drought, pest-, and disease-resistant, and rarely have any demanding cultivation needs. The Timber Press Pocket Guide to Conifers is the perfect companion for anyone who needs a portable guide to conifer choices. With everything you need to know to choose and grow just the right conifer, this book also provides stunning photos of conifers in gardens so you can pick the plant you truly love.
With blue, green, and gold foliage and shapes ranging from spiky to weeping, conifers have the potential to be garden design stars. But they are commonly misused in gardens and landscapes, leading to looming spruces squashed against a house or rows of kettledrum-shaped yews along a sidewalk. When used correctly and creatively, conifers can be star players in creating beautiful, long-lasting plant combinations or serene backyard havens. Designing with Conifers shows readers exactly how to choose the best conifers for specific needs. Chapters cover shape, color, and conifers for specific sites and conditions, including front gardens, hedges and screens, topiary, dwarf conifers, shade gardens, ...
The loans ordinary Americans take out to purchase homes and attend college often leave them in a sea of debt. As Devin Fergus explains in Land of the Fee, a not-insignificant portion of that debt comes in the form of predatory hidden fees attached to everyday transactions. Beginning in the 1980s, lobbyists for the financial industry helped dismantle consumer protections, resulting in surreptitious fees-often waived for those who can afford them but not for those who can't. Bluntly put, these hidden fees unfairly keep millions of Americans from their hard-earned money. Journalists and policymakers have identified the primary causes of increasing wealth inequality-fewer good working class jobs...
A dramatic look at fraud's role in our financial markets-and how you can protect yourself Fraud In the Markets reveals the critical role fraud played in the global financial crisis-even as many of the perpetrators continue to go unpunished. Shedding light on the reckless conduct of the former senior executives at major Wall Street firms such as Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch and others just before their collapse, this timely book shows how the culture of "anything goes" on Wall Street fueled the innovation of exotic but deadly asset-backed securities. A frank insider look at the most dramatic economic and business headlines in recent memory, you will find revealing discussion of The egregiously fraudulent lending practices that engulfed the entire US mortgage industry The brazenly deceptive marketing of asset-backed securities A road map to prevent similar disasters from recurring Fraud in the Markets offers forward-looking advice, with practical guidelines for protecting yourself and your company from various forms of fraud that were found to have played a role in the current economic and financial crisis.
Before the interstates, Main Street America was the small town’s commercial spine and served as the linchpin for community social solidarity. Yet, during the past three decades, a series of economic downturns has left many of the great small cities barely viable. American Hometown Renewal is the first book to combine administrative, budgetary, and economic analysis to examine the economic and fiscal plight currently facing America’s small towns. Featuring a blend of theory, applications, and case studies, it provides a comprehensive, single-source textbook covering the key issues facing small town officials in today’s uncertain economy. Written by a former public manager, university pr...
The book deals with contemporary issues in financial regulation, given the post-crisis regulatory landscape. The major idea put forward is that rampant corruption and fraud in the financial sector provide the main justification for financial regulation. Specific issues that are dealt with include the proposition that the Efficient Market Hypothesis was both a cause and a casualty of the global financial crisis. The book also examines the regulation of remuneration in the financial sector, credit rating agencies and shadow banking. Also considered is financial reform in Iceland and the proposal to move away from fractional reserve banking to a system of sovereign money. A macroeconomic/regulatory issue that is also considered is quantitative easing and the resulting environment of ultra-low interest rates.
The Skinny on the Housing Crisis is an in-depth look into how America dragged itself into the worst housing and credit crisis since The Great Depression. The story is told through the experience of a young couple, Billy and Beth, who in 2006 buy their first house. Two years later, they lose their house to foreclosure.