Another Garrett County/Deep Creek Lake short sale contributing to the pain being felt on Wall Street and Main Street ..

Since the sale price listed here is well below the $400,000 loan amount from May 2007 we can assume that M&T Bank (or whoever they sold the mortgage to) took a significant loss on the sale of this property. The really sad thing is that sales like this one are robbing banks and financial institutions of the necessary capital they need to make loans for hard-working folks and small businesses who are responsible enough to repay any loans they might receive. Maybe in the new bailout bill Congress can ask the CEO of the company who approved this loan in the first place, the real estate agent who made a large commission from this sale and the previous homeowners who basically got a gift from the bank to contribute a portion of those proceeds towards the roughly $1trillion that might be necessary to fix this mess. That sure makes a lot more sense to me.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Whose fault is it anyway?

I saw this morning that Bush's approval rating is at 28% and the approval rating of Congress is at 18%. Obviously Bush is on the way out the door, but too bad we couldn't throw 82% of these bums in Congress out in the street too. And if you are curious why the approval rating of Congress is so low look no further than this shining example from 2003 in the NY Times.

''These two entities -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- are not facing any kind of financial crisis,'' said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. ''The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.''

And to think Barney Frank is blaming Bush for all of this. What a clown! How much do you think Fannie and Freddie were paying him to block efforts to regulate them? Affordable housing? As if going deeply in debt overpaying for a house but getting a short-term teaser rate that later doubles is somehow "affordable" to anyone? Mr. Frank if you want to blame someone for all these poor people being kicked out in the street you should look in the mirror and consider if any of your efforts actually make anything more affordable to anyone! Mr. Frank is certainly not alone either. Throw all the bums out in the street is what I say.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Tax breaks we love but can't afford ..

A spot on piece from Money Magazine assistant managing editor, Pat Regnier. Click here to read the entire list or see my personal favorite in the following excerpt:

2007 Mortgage subsidy cost: $85 billion
As every realtor will remind you, you can deduct the interest you pay on up to $1 million in mortgage debt on a first or second home. Does this promote home ownership? Doubtful. As a presidential tax reform panel noted in 2005, our 69% ownership rate is about the same as in Canada, Britain and Australia, which don't have the deduction.

Many would-be buyers enjoy no subsidy because they don't earn enough to itemize - Burman says they may even find it harder to buy insofar as the subsidy raises prices.

If anything, said the panel, the deduction may simply encourage higher-income people to take out bigger loans for bigger houses. This overinvestment in real estate might actually hurt the economy because it soaks up money that could have been put to more productive use.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Bailout bill voted down in the House ..

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Ever wonder why J.P. Morgan is one of the few banks able to buy up troubled financial companies at fire sale prices?

It's certainly no coincidence. Jamie Dimon, like some of the others I've mentioned, saw it all coming. The writing was on the wall as they say. The following is an excerpt from a recent Fortune article detailing how Mr. Dimon helped J.P. Morgan beat the credit crisis:

It was the second week of October 2006. William King, then J.P. Morgan's chief of securitized products, was vacationing in Rwanda, visiting remote coffee plantations he was helping to finance. One evening CEO Jamie Dimon tracked him down to fire a red alert. "Billy, I really want you to watch out for subprime!" Dimon's voice crackled over King's hotel phone. "We need to sell a lot of our positions. I've seen it before. This stuff could go up in smoke!"

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

I was searching my e-mails when I found this one from March 2007 ..

After reading this story from Fortune I sent it to a friend with whom I had been discussing home price appreciation around that same time and added the following comments:

"An hourly employee at Target got a loan for $696k!!! Wow, now I'm really certain housing prices aren't going up any time soon!!

Basically during the last five years there was someone out there who would give anyone a loan if they wanted it. Now a bunch of those people are going to end up homeless and the people who gave them the loans and going to be looking for jobs doing something else. That's the whole story in a nutshell. And to make up for the lost money the other banks will charge you more to do business with them (as if it wasn't bad enough already)."

So what's the point? The point is there have been a lot of warning signs leading up to this crisis and too many people chose to ignore them or explained them away for their own convenient reasons. Obviously real estate agents, politicians and bankers all had motivation to try to keep the good times rolling and to push aside warnings from people like Warren Buffett and Peter Schiff or even horror stories like this one from Fortune. Not long ago, I also talked to a friend who was considering buying a house last summer and called me to ask if the numbers "made sense." The numbers didn't make sense in my opinion and in the end this person ended up renting, so I asked if they were glad they decided not to buy that house. The response I got was "Oh dear God, yes!!!" Maybe I should start a testimonials section here on this site.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Peter Schiff tried to warn people a year ago ..

This one is from 9-22-2007. He and I agree to a large extent and I'm somewhat surprised I had not previously realized that he was out there telling the story as well. You'll notice a lot of what he is saying is what I have been saying here on this blog. We are in a lot of trouble and the only thing that is going to correct it now is a perfect combination of time, luck and hard work. I'm going to have to read his book when I get a chance.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Who was right, Peter Schiff or the real estate agent?

Since it may not be clear to everyone this was aired in January 2008. The comments on the YouTube site are overwhelmingly brutal on the real estate agent and deservedly so in my opinion. Before you go read those comments yourself be aware that some do contain inappropriate language. That being said, as some of the comments there indicated, she was lucky they mercifully ended it when they did. And she's not trying to sell you anything? I laughed. I really did.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Peter Schiff tells it like it is 9-18-2007 ..

A lot of professionals you might hire don't have half the foresight of people like Peter Schiff, Meredith Whitney or Warren Buffett who I mentioned yesterday. Who do you want to take real estate or other investment advice from, people who are right or people you are paying?

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Yesterday we witnessed the largest bank failure in the history of the United States ..

In case you missed it Washington Mutual, a savings and loan with over $300billion in assets, was taken over by the FDIC. This is certainly a stark contrast to what we were hearing from some of the Realtors in the Deep Creek area back in May when the crisis was over and there were nothing but clear skies on the horizon. I believe "well and improving daily" was the phrase used to describe the local market by another agent. If you happened to see the August 2008 average sales price decline in the Garrett County market compared to August 2007 and believe that this is somehow related to the value of your own home you might disagree with that as well. Even a real estate agent can't find a way to put enough lipstick on that pig to cover up the fact that things are not well and improving daily.

In May, at the time of the linked posting above, I questioned, on this blogger's own site, whether this was good advice to be giving and subsequently questioned whether this posting was a violation of copyright laws since as you notice has been copied directly from the Wall Street Journal. Those posts were blocked and/or removed from the other site, but through this feed I was able to retrieve at least one of those comments which was approved by the moderator (see quoted text below). As many long-time readers already know the censoring of these comments also led to the creation of this blog.

"Jim Cramer was a hedge fund guy from Goldman Sachs, a firm which by most accounts has a significantly better reputation than Morgan Stanley, and he goes on TV every evening showing just how un-credible his resume makes him to predict the future. If you've ever tuned into his show Mad Money and followed even a handful of his suggestions you know exactly what I mean.

And let me ask you this, if these Wall Street firms and hedge fund guys know so much about the housing market why are they all writing down billions of dollars in losses related to subprime mortgages right now?

There's another guy out there who likes to give his opinion on things every year at his annual meeting which is often referred to as Woodstock for Capitalists. He's made a rather large fortune by buying at the bottom and being right about things like this. He also happens to be the richest man in the world so his record of being "right" about things kind of speaks for itself. Do you have any idea what he said about the credit crisis just in the last week? Or what he has said about the housing market? Or the warnings he was freely giving to folks like you and I in 2005 and 2006 when he said there was "a lot of dumb money out there in housing"?

You can make a lot of people seem credible but few earn it with results in my opinion."

If you didn't notice in my reply to this blogger I was talking about Warren Buffett who is once again in the news this week for his savy investment in Goldman Sachs and just sort of has a knack for being right. As I implied above you don't get to be the richest man in the world (or second right now) without some understanding of how the world works. Or as the UBS analyst quoted in the Goldman Sachs link said, "Warren Buffett is the ultimate stamp of approval." Of course the blogger's reply was that sometimes free advice is the worst advice, basically trying to tell me that he knows more than Warren Buffett because he is a real estate professional. I laughed. I really did.

"You should hire a professional and take their advice. The worst advice is often free advice." - Deep Creek Real Estate Blogger, May 2008

After seeing so much misleading information out there urging consumers to risk their own future so that someone else could profit I felt compelled to create this website and offer an alternative to what I felt was a constant stream of bad or misleading information. Today, much less misinformation is finding its way online in Garrett County, so in that respect this blog has been a far greater success than I initally imagined. Thank you all for continuing to keep tabs on what is posted here and for sharing your own thoughts as well.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

America's broke ..

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Boone Pickens on CNN talks about alternative energy solutions including natural gas ..

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Spurred on by bad advice from people in the industry ..

millions of Americans are now spending over 50% of their income on housing according to this article from the AP available from Forbes. And just after I read this one, I happened to see breaking news on CNN that the FBI is investigating the companies we are bailing out for mortgage fraud. If you are in the market and taking advice from someone who is getting paid to sell you something make sure you protect your own interests because the FBI can't protect everyone. Buyer beware!

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

The folks at Ridgeview Valley sent me this announcement this morning ..

You are invited to attend the concert by Wolf Creek Session at the open air amphitheater of Ridgeview Valley, this Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008.

For directions see the Ridgeview Valley website.

Food and beverages can be purchased at the site.

Admission is a $10 donation to our local cancer charity, Cindy’s Fund. Part of the food and beverage proceeds also go to Cindy’s Fund. To reserve your ticket please call 240-321-5010.



Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

AP video from PA farm country on potential natural gas windfall in the Marcellus Shale ..

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

In light of the failing economy and mounting bailouts ..

budget deficits could explode over the next 10 years according to a new report from the Congressional Budget Office which is discussed in the Washington Times. The implication of course could be higher taxes, higher borrowing costs for consumers and businesses, an even weaker dollar and cutbacks in government spending at all levels. As I have suggested here many times, now is not the time to go out on a limb and get yourself into a deep hole.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

More news from the TheHill.com ..

Not surprisingly the National Association of Realtors political action committee is spending big on this election in hopes of maintaining favorable rules for them. Haven't we all seen the horrible consequences of allowing powerful organizations such as this to buy influence in Congress?

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

"Panel debates wind power" ..

Mike Sawyers of the Cumberland Times-News reports on a recent panel discussion on the merits and drawbacks of wind power. Some familiar names were part of the panel discussion including David Friend of US Wind Power and Jon Boone of Garrett County. Eric Moore, a physics instructor at FSU and a PhD graduate from UMBC, also gave the objective view from the university's perspective. Dr. Moore's contention is that all options should be considered and the residents of western Maryland should think about local electricity generation and as well as sustainable living. I applaud Dr. Moore and the renewable energy team at FSU for their efforts.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

An op-ed from Joe Dowley that appears in TheHill.com ..

lays it all out there. Mr. Dowley is partner in the Washington office of McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP and was chief counsel of the House Ways and Means Committee when Congress last addressed tax reform. His basic message is very similar to what has previously been expressed by this blog and serves as a warning for politicians and citizens alike that we simply cannot maintain the status quo on issues such as entitlements, debt and energy as a few examples.

The new president’s fireside chat will have to be for adult consumption: honest, candid and factual, and it must call upon the best instincts of all us to be willing to share the coming sacrifices for the good of everyone. It should be the moral equivalent of an oral dose of cod liver oil, but it must also leave viewers and listeners some hope that we are really getting our house in order. The new president will have to reach out to strike a chord with citizens such that people will say, “That needed to be said a long time ago. Let’s get on with it!”

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Here's an idea ..

In the Financial Times Raghuram Rajan, Professor of Finance at the University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business, proposes that the government force banks to raise capital from within (i.e. from shareholders) instead of simply throwing taxpayer money into a bottomless pit. His position is that there is too little capital (and by the same token too much debt) in the financial system and that simply trading their worst assets for government money and thereby passing the debt onto the government still does not go far enough to prevent more problems from popping up. Interesting idea to say the least.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

John Bambacus continues to oppose wind turbines ..

this time in Allegany County where he resides. Read the complete details in the Cumberland Times-News. I might disagree with his opinion and his tactics but I can respect that he is passionate and consistent on this issue.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Should we really be surprised at where the economy is today?

A Yahoo! Personal Finance piece from Laura Rowley in February 2006.

"Mostly, we can't help wondering if the lending and spending free-for-all of recent history will end badly -- for all of us. Imagine interest rates continuing to rise amid an employment downturn. The option ARM holders and other over-leveraged consumers put their homes on the market, or hand the keys to their lenders. The housing market experiences a sharp decline. Commercial banks, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac require a taxpayer bailout (a la the early 1990s) -- increasing either the current or future tax liability."

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Sometimes it's no fun being right ..

and today the IMF is predicting that the worst of the crisis is still ahead. No fun indeed. At this point there is no need for me to pile on since millions and millions of Americans are hurting because of this and the entire global financial system is on the brink of collapse. But as I have said previously, think for yourself and be careful who you listen to or take advice from.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Another story on natural gas drilling in Garrett County ..

and once again, it's in the Baltimore Sun and features quotes from local residents as well a photograph and a map. T. Boone Pickens even gets a mention in the article for helping to cause a "paradigm shift" in the US. I'm still somewhat puzzled that the local papers are seemingly ignoring this story but still it is good to know that someone is out there telling it. In fact, I had not seen this article myself until I noticed an unusually large number of "Garrett County natural gas" Google searches landed on this blog on Sunday.

Here are some comments from local resident Henry Bowser who, like me, is interested in maintaining the rural heritage of Garrett County and hopes these upfront lease payments will allow landowners to hold onto their land and stave off development.

Bowser said many landowners will likely spend the payout on property taxes and land upkeep - to ward off economic hardships that force some to sell to companies developing property around tourist-popular Deep Creek Lake.

"For farmers and people like us who have fairly large tracts of acreage, it's a way to keep the property from being sold and broken up," Bowser said.

"There is so much selling and splitting up of property in this area, with the development around the lake. For the people still trying to keep Garrett County as a rural area, it makes it a lot easier for them to hold on to their property."

For previous postings on this blog about natural gas click here.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

County commissioners consider ridge top definition in comprehensive plan too vague to support ..

Sarah Moses reports in the Cumberland Times-News.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

The credit crisis rears its ugly head again ..

Months after one of the local real estate blogs pronounced the credit crisis to be over, Lehman Brothers faces bankruptcy, Merrill Lynch faces a likely sale to Bank of America, AIG faces a huge asset fire sale and stock futures plummet over concerns about the health of the entire financial system. Hold on tight, this ride is far from over despite what some would try to tell you. In fact, Reuters calls today's events a potentially "unprecedented shake-up."


Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Even more on natural gas which is apparently plentiful in Garrett County ..

Aubrey McClendon of Chesapeake Energy Corporation is joining with the PickensPlan to promote natural gas as a transportation fuel and help reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Learn more at cngNow.com. I think you have to admit that their message, i.e. keeping dollars here by using our own resources instead of relying on others, makes a lot of sense even if you don't completely agree with the entirety of the plan.

Full disclosure: given all that I am reading and that natural gas is a North American resource that can help supply us with the energy we need I plan to purchase a small stake in this business. Some people would call that practicing what you preach, but I see it as something that can improve our future and I can buy a piece of right now. The risk of course is what happens to natural gas prices (and their profits) when all these new sources of supply are opened up and it is not widely adopted as a transport fuel? That's why I'll buy a small stake now (at nearly 50% less than it was selling for earlier this year) and add to if the opportunity presents itself later. To borrow a line from real estate agents though - they're not making anymore natural gas - at least not on the human time scale.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Speaking of natural gas ..

if you are up late this evening check out T. Boone Pickens on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Pickens will have a tough act to follow though as Matthew McConaughey is the headline guest this evening, presumably wearing a shirt too which in itself would be news.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Since this natural gas story is not being told by the local media ..

I've been trying to look around and see what else I could find on the subject and attempt to come up with a better idea of what this all means. In my searches I found this piece on the Marcellus Shale from Seeking Alpha which I have previously alluded to as a great source of information for the individual investor. The author notes a number of big and small players in the natural gas sector, but there is no mention of or reference to "Lodge Energy" which was mentioned in the piece from the Baltimore Sun. Maybe they are a division of one of the larger players or simply a smaller, under-the-radar firm. Either way I would like to know their story, so I will continue to look for more answers.

Much like the price of a barrel of oil, the well head price for natural gas tends to fluctuate quite a bit based on a number of different factors. Recently, these natural gas prices have generally ranged from about $5 to $10 per 1000 cubic feet. According to the Seeking Alpha article it may be possible that each vertical well spaced on 40 acres in the Marcellus shale contains 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas reserves and each horizontal well spaced on 80 acres contains 2.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas reserves. Do the math on the more conservative reserves number (even though as I understand it horizontal drilling is the preferred technology) and that is 1 million times roughly $10 which times 15% is $1.5 million over time on top of the initial land lease payment. Even at $5 per cubic foot that is another potential $750,000 per 40 acres. Needless to say these numbers could really start to add up IF there is as much natural gas under Garrett County as some believe and IF I am understanding what the Baltimore Sun is reporting.

As I learn more I will be sure to share it here on the blog so stay tuned. Eventually you might even see something about this in the Cumberland Times-News or the Republican. From what I am hearing secondhand from some land owners involved in the consortium it's a done deal and lease agreements are in fact in place.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Tentative deal reached on natural gas leases in Garrett County ..

As first reported by the Baltimore Sun's Jay Hancock and according to Garrett County's own Delmer Yoder a tentative deal has been reached that would pay a consortium of Garrett County land owners $1,150 per acre to lease 31,000 acres of land for energy exploration and development in the Marcellus Shale. Additional revenue sharing and royalties appear to be included in the deal that could make some farmers into Garrett County's newest millionaires. The leasing rights alone could bring over $35million in income back to Garrett County.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Mike Kennedy weighs in on the Fannie/Freddie takeover and what it might mean for the Deep Creek area ..

As I've alluded to earlier if anyone can be counted on to give you the real story, it's Mike Kennedy. Here, it seems he has given us another objective view of some of the potential changes we might see in the local market. The only thing I might add is that the takeover plan as it is currently structured allows Fannie and Freddie to take on more loans in the short term (loans no one else will currently buy) but also requires them to become smaller in the longer term. The first question that came to my mind was is this another Washington band-aid solution that doesn't address the real problem and simply delays the inevitable? Ignoring the fact that few in Washington could be trusted to balance a checkbook, ask yourself who is going to buy these loans when Fannie and Freddie are required to start selling them off at a rate of 10% per year in 2010? Are we really solving anything or just delaying the pain of pushing the reset button and cleaning up the entire mess right now? Of course by 2010 Mr. Bush and Mr. Paulson will be long gone and it won't be their problem to deal with will it?

So yeah, after all else failed, the government is essentially stepping in and subsidizing cheaper loans in a effort to get people with record levels of debt to borrow even more. As I have said before, I may never understand how more borrowing solves a problem due to over borrowing, isn't that like stuffing your face in an attempt to lose weight? I want someone to say step away from the feed trough, put down that fork, look in the mirror and get real! I guess that is neither here nor there at the moment, we are just supposed to follow the herd and spend, spend, spend while enjoying the lower interest rates for as long as they may last. Wasn't that the same story we heard in 2002 as well? And guess what, we are in a bigger mess now than we were then. Shocking, huh?

How long rates may actually remain lower though is anyone's guess because it is basically out of our hands at this point and depends directly on the rest of the world being willing to send us their money at low rates of return. If Japan and China say wait a minute this doesn't really look like a good deal to us afterall, the short term decline in interest rates will suddenly disappear just as quickly as it appeared. In any case, beware because just when you think we're in the clear, 2010 will be here and no one will want to buy what Fannie and Freddie are selling and then we're two years down the road from today and nothing has really changed.

In a related story from CNBC, we may be running out of options to prevent recession. That Dan Mitchell sounds a lot like someone else I know.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

"For sale: Allen Iverson's six-bedroom home in Villanova, PA" ..

Speaking of the housing market, here is an interesting story from Yahoo! Sports Blog and the Wall Street Journal concerning the sale of Allen Iverson's Philadelphia area home - well below what he paid for it in 2003 it seems.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

"US Government seizes control of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac" ..

I guess the Bush Administration had their own answer to the question I posed for all my readers on Friday. As one reader put it in an e-mail to me, no matter what happens get ready to "open up your wallet" to pay for someone else's mistakes.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

More of the same .. DNR Police Blotter ..

Remember to venture out onto Deep Creek Lake at your own risk. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources recently provided another weekend's worth of alcohol related arrests on Deep Creek Lake. It's good to see that they are doing their job, but wouldn't it be nice if they were doing their job and didn't have to arrest anyone, just one weekend?

Garrett County – On Saturday, Aug. 30, at 10:00 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Jan W. Leonard, 62, of Salt Lake City, Utah with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol on Deep Creek Lake.

NRP stopped Leonard for allegedly not displaying proper navigational lights on his vessel. Leonard was arrested and charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol and or drugs and operating a vessel between the hours of sunset and sunrise without proper navigation lights. He was released on his signature.

Garrett County – On Monday, Sept. 1, at 8:05 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Anthony J. Lagratta, 51, of Santa Rosa Beach, Fla. with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol on Deep Creek Lake.

NRP stopped Lagratta for allegedly not displaying proper navigational lights on his vessel. Lagratta was arrested and charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol and or drugs and operating a vessel between the hours of sunset and sunrise without proper navigation lights. He was released on his signature.

Garrett County – On Sunday, Aug. 31, at 7 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Thomas A. Walsh, 46, of Walkersville with operating a personal watercraft while under the influence of alcohol on Deep Creek Lake.

NRP stopped Walsh for allegedly towing individuals on a tube within 100 feet of a dock. Walsh was arrested and charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol and or drugs and towing a person within 100 feet of a dock. He was released on his signature.

NRP reminds persons operating vessels while towing a person on water skis, aquaplane, or similar device must keep 100 feet from wharfs, piers, pilings, jetties, bridge structures or abutments, individual or individuals in the water, and other vessels.

Garrett County – On Saturday, Aug. 30, at 7:45 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged Jonathan C. Voelker, 24, of Bethel Park, Pa. with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol on Deep Creek Lake.

NRP stopped Voelker for allegedly operating his vessel in a negligent manner. Voelker was arrested and transported to the Maryland State Police McHenry Barrack for processing and charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol and or drugs and negligent operation. He was released on his signature.

Garrett County – On Friday, Aug. 29, at 8 p.m., the Maryland Natural Resources Police charged August D. Savio, 55, of Oakmont, Pa. with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol on Deep Creek Lake.

NRP stopped and checked Savio and his passenger while they were fishing. Savio was arrested and transported to the Maryland State Police McHenry Barrack for processing and charged with operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol, operating a vessel while impaired by alcohol and or drugs. He was released on his signature.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

More than 4 million homeowners are behind on their mortgage payments as of the end of June ..

as nearly 10% of all Americans with a home loan have fallen behind. Given the number of comments I've received on this blog of late, I'm curious if my readers, many of whom have at least some familiarity with the real estate and mortgage industries, have any suggestions for what could or should be done to address what is becoming more and more of a problem all across the country. The article makes it seem as though the problem is abating in Maryland, but at the same time fails to point out that a new law recently extended the foreclosure waiting period by more than 4 months. In many cases this just delayed what appears to be inevitable for many (apparently while they live rent free as well).

So let's hear those suggestions, how can we solve this problem and what can and should be done about it? Any and all comments and suggestions are welcomed here. If you've been reading this blog regularly you probably have a good idea of my thoughts on the topic but let's see if others have their own thoughts and ideas as well in an attempt to use comments towards a constructive goal as one of my readers suggested earlier today.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Puzzling ..

Two weeks ago this Deep Creek Lake access property was listed as a short sale just like this new construction Deep Creek vacation home, today it's not. Which is it? Are they hiding something or is it really no longer a short sale? Based on previous experience, who really knows.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

I'm really starting to wonder if dictionary.com is a blocked site in all of Garrett County's offices ..

I've edited this advertisement only to block out the name but have otherwise left the text unchanged. Anyone care to guess what type of free services this gentleman is offering when he suggests you contact him for a free "consulatation," once again Garrett County's "professionals" are doing a disservice to the reputation of Garrett County and its people. Maybe it's time to contact the board of education and see if they can raise their standards a bit. Or maybe I should just send this one off to Jay Leno for his "Headlines" skit. Maybe once this organization was the butt of a nationally televised joke they would start taking a serious look at what they are putting on their own websites and reexamine how they are portraying themselves. Clearly, my efforts alone are not enough to clean up the mess.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Hanna potenitally paying a visit to the Deep Creek area next weekend ..

Hurricanes and tropical storms aren't the first weather-related events that come to mind when you think of Deep Creek Lake and Garrett County, MD but the current projected track of Hanna bears watching if you have outdoor plans for the weekend. Old-timers in the area still talk about the heavy rain Hazel brought to western Maryland in October 1954. More recently, people probably remember the 2004 hurricane season which saw several former hurricanes track northward also bringing heavy rains to western Maryland.

It's obviously very early in the process at this stage of the game and the storm could still take a number of different paths, but as I said this one bears watching if you have outdoor plans for the upcoming weekend.

Updated 9/3/2008: It now looks like the storm track is zeroing in on eastern Maryland not western Maryland, so the Deep Creek area may yet dodge the bullet on this one.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

"Homebuyers turn screws on desperate sellers" ..

Much as I have suggested several times (Deep Creek real estate market update and "well and improving daily") here on this blog, this story from CNNMoney.com confirms that buyers certainly have the upper hand right now and if they are willing to be patient and shop around they just might find a distressed seller with no choice but to sell at rock-bottom prices. Also check out the video on the same site concerning mortgage fraud skyrocketing in the early part of this year. Look for bargains and don't settle for anything less but as the video suggests watch out for the scammers getting paid to make deals happen not to look out for your interests.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.