This week's wide ranging discussion starts off with our weekly look at what the Fed is or isn't going to do with interest rates right now (a topic on everyone's mind) and moves into a deeper discussion about how the Fed is really just there to control American Consumer Demand.  That means it does not really factor in world economies and whatever demand there might be for our products overseas, especially with our dollar being so low relative to other currencies. So are they missing key elements when it comes to deciding whether to pump the economy or slow it down thru their control of the Federal lending rate...the so-called "discount rate" the Federal Reserve charges commercial banks and other depository institutions on loans they receive from their regional Federal Reserve Bank.  You decide.  Then listen to the last part where our hosts Hamid and Fay Hamadanchy discuss using funds from your 401K to purchase your next fund.  You won't want to miss this one! Only on Orange County's only community radio station, www.OCTalkRadio.net.

Does the Federal Reserve actually WANT to raise rates regardless of whether they NEED to right now? Is it more than just holding off inflation?  Or do they see some larger crisis looming over the horizon which they feel REQUIRES them to raise rates (regardless of its short term effects on the election or the economy) so they can cut them back again in response to some unforeseen stock market correction, China meltdown or Eurozone explosion? That's the question our hosts Hamid and Fay Hamadanchy debate today (along with yours truly, the "everyman" on the show).  For if (as some speculate) there is surely a stock market correction coming or some Euro/China storm just over the horizon, then what could the Fed do if rates are already at or near zero?  Go into negative territory as some banks in Europe have already done? And how would banks continue to make money if interest rates were BELOW zero? It's a fascinating look at "macro-economics" today on our OC HOUSING CONNECTION show as we argue over not just IF or WHEN the Feds will raise rates but do they feel COMPELLED to do so (regardless of the short term effect on the economy or election) to give them ammunition for some future economic crisis?  You'll want to hear this one!

Don't miss this wide ranging discussion about the possible economic impacts of our upcoming national election. How will the stock markets react (or will they?)  What could massive deportation or immigration bans mean for our economy?  And why isn't Wall Street more nervous about the political revolt happening on Main Street America?

After we take our usual quick look at the real estate market and the macro trends affecting it (like lower job reports and worries out of China), our hosts Hamid and Fay Hamidanchy explore when the best times to sell your home nationwide and here in Orange County.  And the results may surprise you.  They also end this week's installment of this week's OC HOUSING CONNECTION with a quick review of "alternative ways to establish credit", particularly for those aging baby boomer (like me) who've paid off their houses and/or ripped up their credit cards and restrained themselves from buying anything big...leaving them with suddenly little or no credit history in this last chapter of their life.  Learn why too much frugalness may work against you and how to work around it if you still want to buy another home someday on credit (and invest the cash from your existing home for needed cash flow after you retire).  Fascinating ideas from Orange County's only community radio station, www.OCTalkRadio.net.

In a world of low, fixed rate mortgages, you wouldn't think the old adjustable rate mortgages (ARMS) so popular in the 90s would still be around.  But you'd be wrong!  Today our hosts Hamid and Fay Hamidanchy discuss their past experience with these popular products, how, why and where they can still be found and who might benefit from using one.  For example, most of us refinanced our homes somewhere before or after the "Great Recession" to take advantage of incredibly low, fixed rate loans.  We did this to take the risk out of potential rises in our loan costs (particularly those of us that had risky "high cap" loans that could soar someday into double digits).  But did we actually come out ahead?  We removed the risk but may (in fact) may have paid MORE over the last few years for these fixed rate loans, particularly since the indexes on which they were based (like LIBOR) also remained so low. ARM yourself with some amazing facts about adjustable rate mortgages on this week's installment of OC HOUSING CONNECTION and see how you fared here on Orange County's only community radio station, www.OCTalkRadio.net.

To a certain degree, Millennials and their Baby Boomer parents are two halves of the same housing problem which includes high prices, short supplies and few first time homebuyers. For 20 somethings, it's all about getting them INTO a home.  And for Boomers, it's all about getting them to move OUT of their home, or at least get the equity out of their homes (particularly when they need the money to supplement their sparse social security income).  So today, our host Hamid Hamidanchy spends this week's show examining each half of this interrelated housing problem.

Even those who've served in the military don't always understand the great loans available to buy their home thru the Veteran's Administration.  Who qualifies?  What are the advantages and benefits?  And does it take any extra time to process? All these questions and more are answered this week by our hosts, Hamid and Fay Hamadanchy as they look at one of the least understood Federally guaranteed loan programs available to all our veterans on this week's installment of the OC HOUSING CONNECTION, right here on Orange County's only community radio station, www.OCTalkRadio.net.

This week, we take a deep look at The Fed including it's history, structure and purpose. Who owns the Fed?  What's is it's relationship to the 12 Federal Reserve Banks and what do they do?  And (most importantly) what powers does the Fed have to increase or decrease money supply and affect the overall Monetary Policy of the United States.  Join our hosts Hamid and Fay Hamadanchy as they pick up from last week and dive deeper into this mysterious, quasi-governmental body (after first reviewing this week's economic indicators and likely Fed action).  Only on the OC HOUSING CONNECTION here on Orange County's only community radio station, www.OCTalkRadio.net.

For the first half of our program today, our hosts, Hamid and Fay Hamadanchy, explore the inner workings of the Federal Reserve (known to most of us as just "the Fed").  What comes out of this lively discussion is just how little most of really know about this mysterious entity despite it's crucial connection to our economy and housing markets.