I'll try.

Fascinating stuff, I for one would like to hear more. Here's a couple of links that if you are already not aware of, you might be interested in. They are both sites that I have followed for some time. The first lists a catalogue of the corruption, greed etc in the Republic going back to before the crisis, & the 2nd has some good stuff regarding ghost estates.

http://www.soldiersofdestiny.org/

http://geehair.blogspot.com/2010/12/ghost-housing-estates-of-ireland.html

I F S C!

When will that blow up? Ireland loses all those spivs who do not return to London, but sack their employers, as in Goths, and take the proceeds to Bali!

All this trust breakdown may have some consequences?

Inevitable!

This is good. Suffering these indignities will perhaps mean that next time we will not allow private credit creation!

That was a series of bad investments and they have not stopped yet!!!

What a great comment. Listen, I kow you are probably as busy as anyone, BUT – and I'll quite understand if you just can't or don't want to – but, would you be willing to expand what you've written here – use all the same text but add to it and give us the relevant extracts from the other document you link to. As well as, if you could, a pencil description of teh ghost places you allude to.

As I say, it's a lot to ask and we (on the blog) would all understand if you can't.

But what you've written is well worth saying on a guest blog. Email me privately if you prefer.

I just focused some of my attention on just one page of the HM Treasury document – P.37 of it to be exact – it deals with RBS's involvement and exposure to Irish domestic mortgages. Its titled EME Retail Residential Mortgages ( covering Eire & N.I. – nice to see we are still part of the UK! in the HM govs eyes ). Heres what I concluded.

It looks like RBS ( from the figures ) waded fully in at the absolute height of the speculation here ( in Eire ). They had no business here before that. This EME RRM is a positively toxic portfolio in itself. Average houses prices here are 50% down on the peak in late 2007 RBS gave out almost all their loans here between 2006-2008. The stuff they seem to have lent for seems to be the worst of it too so the valuations are probably down way more than that. A lot of has to be the ghost estate houses – its easy to tell from prices and areas mentioned. According to that page one third of retail residential mortgages were 'buy to let'. This was simply crazy speculation in two ways. 1st the Irish don't rent generally – we have an 83% home ownership rate the third highest in the world.Most of those who don't own are in social housing. 2nd these were really 'flipping' mortgages as rental returns where 'achieved' were never enough to cover the mortgages and justify the 'buy to let' tag unless they were 'interest only' loans which are inherently speculative in nature in which case the mortgage would maybe just break even if things went well.

For me this was mad speculation. Moronic actually it seems like no one looked at any stats on where things were at in Ireland at any point.Due diligence anybody?

On the bright side this particular portfolio only totals £4.5 BN or so.

Extracts follow from the IT article of February last which is linked below on the suject of RBS's announcment of losses in its Irish operations;

"Mortgages which are 90 days past due stood at 6 per cent of the bank’s £21 billion book, up from 3 per cent a year earlier". ( theres some big nasty toxic corporate/developer mortgage portfolios as well ).

and

"Mr McCarthy ( the RBS in Eire chief exec ) said that the bank was not offering debt forgiveness to any of its mortgage borrowers."

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2011/0225/1224290835851.html

Yes – somehow they think will extract blood from a stone and wring the money out of the original mortgage holders they gave it to as well…

Additional link re; Irish property prices.

http://www.daft.ie/report/Daft-House-Price-Report-Q2-2011.pdf

Actually the macro-economic based introducton to the linked report is worth reading in itself – its unbelievably blunt language for an economist…

You've got to look at it from Hester's point of view.

Statman, I've noticed myself being a bit morose about it all lately so have been doing more work to finish propaganda movie rig as smelling coffee is way down on peoples list thanks to their thoughts being hijacked 24/7.

I'm still having to explain what a zombie bank is to nearly everybody I meet. I did manage to get on telly again and I think that is a way forward. My heart would soar to dizzy heights if I saw somebody with a zombie Bank Death Squad T-shirt. They sell for the $0.50 higher than wholesale price incase they put their price up otherwise I'd sell them at trade price as it's no commercial enterprise. Alternatively you can download the evil dead font HERE and make your own.

Imagine the world wearing that T-shirt and the questions that would be asked about it. I swear that beats the 'save our pension' banners I saw last time or massive flags of individual unions.

Seriously, just imagine it.

Those four words could change the world.

Be great in different langu.. 2 ticks

Zombie Banca Morte Squadrone

Εκτελεστικό απόσπασμα τράπεζας Zombie

Escuadrón de la muerte del banco del zombi

Zombie Squad Bás Bainc

Makes me chuckle. Get a T-shirt and get on telly or take a pic and upload to something and make my day 😀

This makes for quite scary reading. A second bailout is certainly in the offing. My instinct tells me that the banks are fairly confident that they can pull it off again. Also, the gold price is twitchy but hanging in there, so not an overt sign of the markets fearing impending meltdown.

Les – it may be uncomfortable for the coalition to pass another bailout, but I wouldn't rule out them succeeding at it! The man in the street has been threatened with losing his ability to carry on his spending bonanza, so he'll play along again.

Nothing short of a parliament seige by the people (as in Iceland) would stop them from attempting another bailout. But I still don't see the UK people waking up "en masse" and smelling the coffee.

🙁

Turmoil in the markets might be followed by turmoil in the streets. Here you can see pictures of the police repression against the "indignados" in Madrid last night. Who's next?

http://politica.elpais.com/politica/2011/08/04/actualidad/1312444001_073563.html