Financial Bubble Hits Photography

[Capocheny]

As unfortunate and sad as it is for Leibowitz (and I certainly feel for her...) many people have fallen into similar situations (though, for most people, on a much smaller scale) due to the crazy economic roller-coaster of today!

Scammers that run off with $50B of clients money don't help matters either. The victims I feel the most sorry for are those who didn't have a lot of money to begin with, and at the end of the day, are now penniless.

The same scammer, BM, also stole from charities whose mandate was to help the neediest members of society and it is these folks who will suffer the most!

I think there are going to be more challenges coming down the turnpike for people of all economic status and walks of life... especially, when inflation kicks in due to bailouts to industry.

Annie, on the other hand, may still have a chance of rebuilding her financial picture because of her talent and other assets. However, some of the above mentioned folks (the elderly, the infirmed, etc have very little chance of rebuilding what they've lost through this thief.

So, Richard's comment is well taken...

[Btw, we also have someone in Eastern Canada who has been accused of absconding $50,000,000 of clients moneys. So, even though it's only a small percentage of the amount BM stole... it still represents a lifetime of saving by some of these investors.]

Cheers

[msk2193]

Not that I wish bad on anyone, but she did create this mess herself. If she stuck to photography, maybe we wouldn't be talking about this right now.

Some of the loans were taken out to pay the IRS on the inheritance taxes she owed from the estate of her partner (but not spouse).

[Joseph O'Neil]

While I do think some people have brought thing down upon their heads, I know just as many people who have had their retirement savings - 401K or RRSPs here in USA/Canada - just devastated by the economy and the recession/depression we are in or heading into.

I was reading a news report a few weeks back of how people lost money indirectly through Bernie Madoff. In short, the financial advisor they used in turn invested with a company associated with Madoff, or in some cases, Madoff hemself, without the original investor knowing any of this.

Lawsuits and / or claims against these financial advisors? Well, you know that old saying "you cannot squeeze blood from a stone"?
I don't pretend to have the answers myself, but a lot of people are hurting, and my fear is, we are yet to see more "Bernie Madoffs" at all sorts of different scales & sizes before this mess bottoms out

joe

[Richard M. Coda]

Some of the loans were taken out to pay the IRS on the inheritance taxes she owed from the estate of her partner (but not spouse).

I know and understand that. But she decided to become a real estate tycoon. She could have sold the properties and concentrated on what she is good at.

[SamReeves]

I like it. The big look down at you photogs get theirs in the end. I never liked Lebowitz at all, so I can't say that I'm sorry.

[Sylvester Graham]

Lawsuits and / or claims against these financial advisors? Well, you know that old saying "you cannot squeeze blood from a stone"?

joe

Eh, it's far from this simple. And financial advisors are far from evil, I know because my father is in this line of work. He actually met Bernie, but never ended up doing business with him, thankfully. Though some of the advisors involved with the BM scandal were certainly unscrupulous, none of them were involved. Some may have raised eyebrows, but simply looked the other way when they couldn't figure out how he kept delivering very high yields so consistently (impossible).

-Alex

[Mark Sampson]

Judging from the recent NYT article, Ms. Leibovitz is/was a complete financial incompetent. Not unlike Carleton Watkins, Rembrandt, and no doubt many other creative people (myself?). I hope she can avoid Mr. Watkins' fate, dying penniless in an insane asylum...

[Ellis Vener]

Richard do you mean she should have never bought property?

[mikebarger]

Can't/wouldn't speak for Richard, but it might have helped if she wasn't so heavily leveraged. While bonds and CD's don't pay much, it is a good spot for part of your portfolio to cover bad investments in tough times.

A lot of people who lost their entire savings/retirement may have been over committed in higher risk investments and didn't keep any reserve to protect themselves.

I know quite a few retirees that lost money in this market, but they hadn't put their entire nest egg at risk and are getting along fine.

If you get to the point where one deal goes bad and you can't cover it.... you "may" be to far out on the limb. Moderation can be a good thing when it comes to investing.

Only 2 cents worth.
Mike

[Joseph O'Neil]

Eh, it's far from this simple. And financial advisors are far from evil, I know because my father is in this line of work. He actually met Bernie, but never ended up doing business with him, thankfully.

-snip-
I stand corrected sir, I should not nor did I mean to paint all financial advisors with the same dark brush. Sadly that's all the news seems to be full of lately, at least around my neck of the woods, are guys who cleaned out life savings of the average little person.

I agree too some people brought things squarely on themselves. Traveling in the Keys a few months ago, I heard of many stories first hand of people who bought condos in southern Florida, sometimes sight unseen, with the thought of flipping them later for a profit. Too much greed, and not enough common sense.

Another issue, at least to me, is that the "official" inflation rate, or consumer price index, or whatever different governments call it has been vastly understated. In a "perfect world" interest rates should match the real rate of inflation, so that at the very least, your savings do not loose value over time.

The reality is they do loose value, so IMO, people for the past few years have gone shopping for returns on investment that at least match the real rate of inflation. Think about what kind of investments out there in the past few years appeared to offer a decent rate of return, and IMO, you have one of the many reason we are in the mess we are in right now

joe