Survival of Big Florida Bank In Doubt

Survival of Big Florida Bank In Doubt
by Martin D. Weiss, Ph.D.

First, the subprime mess clobbered subprime lenders like Countrywide Financial.
Then, the cancer spread to America's largest banks that invested heavily in risky mortgage-backed securities.
Now, it's metastasizing again — spreading to regional and state banks as well.
Two prime examples: Integrity Bank of Alpharetta, Ga., which just failed Friday with nearly a billion in deposits ... plus an even larger bank in trouble: BankUnited Financial Corp.
BankUnited is Florida's largest bank with 85 branches in 13 counties and with total assets of $14.2 billion.
In the first three quarters of last year, it reaped a profit of $23.2 million. The first three quarters of 2008? $200 million in losses!
Why? Because a whopping 58% of the bank's "assets" are option ARMs.
Like other adjustable-rate mortgages, option ARMs lure in unqualified homebuyers with bargain-basement interest rates ... then jack up rates — and loan payments — in later years. What's worse, each month, an option ARM gives borrowers three choices:
Option #1. Pay principle and interest normally.
Option #2. Pay interest only.
Option #3. Make a bare minimum payment that doesn't even cover all the interest due.
What happens to the unpaid interest? It gets tacked on to the unpaid balance.
The big time bomb: Borrowers are only allowed to do that for a pre-specified period of time or until their loan balance rises to a certain threshold, typically 110% or 115% of the original loan amount.
When that happens, they have to make the full payment — principle AND interest ... which can be many times higher than the minimum payments.
That's why massive numbers of borrowers are choosing a fourth "option" which no one anticipated: No payment whatsoever. In other words, DEFAULT.
And that's also why ...
The Amount of Non-Performing LoansAt BankUnited Has Surged 770%Just in the Last Twelve Months!
And if you think that's bad, the loans the bank doesn't expect to be repaid has soared a staggering 1,964% since this time last year.
Meanwhile, the non-performing loans in BankUnited's portfolio are rising at the rate of 10% per month — and the number of foreclosures in the bank's inventory is up 18% in July alone.
Now, the government is demanding that BankUnited raise $400 million of new capital and offset losses on its $10 billion of home loans.
Bottom line: BankUnited's stock is already down 91% in 12 months. And analysts are warning that it's likely to fail!
BankUnited Is DEFINITELYNot the Only Bank in This Soup!
If BankUnited were an anomaly, it wouldn't be such big news. But the fact is, the cancer that's brining down Florida's largest bank has also reached a raft of other financial institutions stuck with massive amounts of option ARMs.
At Bank of America, the $25.4 billion in option ARMs it acquired when it bought Countrywide are sinking fast. A whopping 72% of the borrowers aren't even paying all the interest due on these loans. One in eight is at least ninety days late on payments.
At Wachovia, the story is similar: Wachovia bought Golden West Financial at the peak of the real estate bubble in 2006 and as a result now has $122 billion of option ARMs in its portfolio — a staggering 25% of its total assets. Some 14% of those option ARM customers already have zero — or negative — equity in their homes. And that's only going to get worse as home prices depreciate further.
And at banks all across the country, we see the same pattern.
This is why we've repeatedly urged you to take two crucial steps while you still have time ...
FIRST, to achieve true safety for your money, don't wait one more day to take the steps we set forth for you in our recent "X" List video.
SECOND, once you've got most of your money — even as much as 90% — in safe, conservative investments, seriously consider using inverse ETFs — designed to soar in times like these — to help you multiply your money many times over.
You now have a rare THIRD CHANCE to go for double-your-money gains as financialstocks continue to plunge!
We've done our level-best to prepare you for this, Investor ...
Two weeks ago, we urged you to join Safe Money Report no later than the following Sunday to go for huge profit potential as weak banks continue to fall ...
One week ago, we pleaded with you once again to get on board for the next round of profit opportunities as bank stocks fell even further.
Both times we were right. Both times, key financial stocks cratered right on schedule. Both times, our favorite ETFs — designed to surge as financial, housing and other sectors fall — did just that.
Now, we're alerting you again:
You have a rare, third chance to activate your Safe Money membership before the next bloodletting in these stocks — but to get our urgent recommendations, you MUST be on board BEFORE our next full set of new recommendations to be issued this coming Friday, September 5.
The simple fact is, we told Safe Money Report subscribers these financial stocks would crash and burn. We named their names and urged subscribers to dump them more than 40 months ago in April of 2005, saying — and I quote — "Avoid these stocks like the plague."
Since then, almost all of the stocks we panned have crashed and burned: MDC Holdings is down 43% ... Fidelity National has declined 45% ... Countrywide dropped 86.6% ... MGIC Investment Corp has plummeted 27% ... and Washington Mutual has plunged 90%.
Plus, PMI Group has been beaten down 92% ... Fannie Mae has had a 89% haircut ... Radian Group has cratered 93% ... Freddie Mac has crashed 92% ... and New Century Financial has simply ceased to exist, its share price obliterated; plunging 100% in value to ZERO.
Plus, we told you about specialized investment vehicles to profit as they bit the dust.
Not short-selling ...
Not futures that expose you to unlimited risk ...
But inverse ETFs that you can buy on almost every major sector ... that strictly limit your risk ... and that give you virtually unlimited profit potential!
If you still own stocks that may be vulnerable ... have money in banks that may fail ... or hold real estate properties that could sink in value ... these inverse ETFs can help you create something akin to a personal, self-directed "hedge fund."
And if you have some money you can afford to invest more aggressively, then I think buying inverse ETFs on the stock sectors that are likely to get killed is an IDEAL profit opportunity for this situation.
Here's What to Do ...
First, click here now to sign up for a 6- or 12-month subscription to our Safe Money Report.
Second, download immediately our free reports on the major profit opportunities we see for 2008 and 2009.
Third, Friday, September 5, check your inbox for our complete set of new inverse ETF recommendations and our Safe Money portfolio.
In the meantime, here are the highlights of the special free reports that we think you should download with urgency ...
Free Report Ready for Immediate Download #1Inverse ETF Riches for 2008-2009 (Normally $79)
In this report, you'll discover ...
How anyone can buy inverse ETFs as easily as any other stock or ETF, in any brokerage account ...
How to use these special investments to minimize losses in the stocks you can't afford to sell now ...
How they can hand you up to $2 in profits for every $1 decline in the major indices and the weakest sectors ...
Our proprietary four-step approach to using them to minimize your risk and maximize your profit potential ...
Our comprehensive list of 38 inverse ETFs you should be considering now, including links to the websites that tell you everything you need to know about each one of them ...
And more!
But ETFs that profit from falling stock sectors are just one of the ways to make money in this crisis. That's why we've also prepared for you ...
Free Report Ready for Immediate Download #2Currency Riches for 2008-2009 (Normally $79)
There's only one market in the world which always has a bull market: Currencies. And you can also invest in them purely with ETFs. This free report shows you how. It includes:
A comprehensive list of every foreign currency ETF now available ...
How to buy each one quickly and easily — with a short call to your broker or a click of your mouse online ...
How to spot the currency ETFs that are most likely to give you maximum total returns ...
How to add two extra layers of protection to minimize your risk even when the markets go against you ...
How savvy currency ETF traders profit directly from declines in weak currencies — like the U.S. dollar ...
The four investment vehicles that are available for trading currencies — and the advantages and disadvantages of each ...
And more!
Free Report Ready for Immediate Download #3Resource Riches for 2008-2009 (Normally $79)
The U.S. government is pumping in massive amounts of cash and bail-out money to rescue banks, brokers, giant mortgage lenders and the entire economy.
And despite any temporary setbacks, that money has been driving up the one sector where demand remains strong but supplies are limited: Natural resources. In this free report, we explain ...
Why the latest correction in natural resources is a MAJOR buying opportunity: Three reasons why natural resources could double, even triple from today's high levels — and why this boom will continue to create millionaires ...
Natural resource investing 101: The four investment vehicles available to you for capturing natural resource profits, with the advantages and disadvantages of each ...
Commodity ETFs: How to invest in commodities without touching commodities or futures. Just buy these simple exchange traded funds through any broker, online or offline, just like you would any other ETF or stock ...
World's best natural resource profit plays: The natural resources and companies with the greatest profit potential now — and those you shouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole ...
And much, much more!
All Three Profit Guides: Inverse ETF Riches for 2008-2009,Currency Riches for 2008-2009, and Resource Riches for 2008-2009Are Yours Free With Your Safe Money Report
We'll email you our new recommendations to go for massive profits in this crisis — plus our complete Safe Money model portfolio — this coming Friday, September 5.
In the meantime, you can download all three volumes of our profit guides right now. And they are all yours with a risk-free trial of our Safe Money Report!
Safe Money is much more than just an investment newsletter ...
It's your safety haven — the dangers to avoid, the safest havens for you money.
It's your income compass — pointing you towards the investments with the potential to double or even triple your yields.
It's your self-defense system — designed to help you protect every dollar you've scrimped to save from every major risk you now face.
It's your own, personal B.S. detector — exposing the wealth-threatening lies that Washington and Wall Street often tell you, while delivering the unvarnished truth nobody else will.
It's your personal weather vane — constantly scanning the globe to identify the hottest profit trends and the markets, sectors and investments most likely to grow your nest egg with the least risk.
In each issue, Associate Editor Mike Larson and I give you nitty-gritty, practical, actionable recommendations designed to protect your wealth ... grow your wealth ... multiply your income ... and live richer.
In fact, our Safe Money Report shows you how to create and grow two nest eggs: The first nest egg to provide the income you need to cover your necessities, the second to throw off the additional cash you'll want to cover your favorite extras.
That's why each issue gives you specific "Buy," "Sell" and "Hold" recommendations for every investment in two portfolios: Our safety-obsessed "Mr. Conservative" portfolio for your first nest egg, and our "Mr. Speculator" portfolio for your second nest egg.
To Be on Board for Our New RecommendationsNext Friday, September 5, Plus ...To Get Your 3 Free Reports, Start Safe Money Now
Considering all that it gives you, we feel a 6-month membership in Safe Money Report is a bargain at the regular list price of just $98. But if you join now, we will spot you for HALF, and you can join for just $49.
That's only $1.88 per week ... less than 27 cents a day. While you're waiting for our special flash alert we're releasing later this afternoon, you can download immediately your copies of Inverse ETF Riches for 2008-2009 ... Currency Riches for 2008-2009 ... and Resource Riches for 2008-2009 — all at no cost.
You get six full months of Safe Money. And, as always, to save you time and trouble — and to make sure you never miss a single trading signal — we'll automatically renew your membership until you tell us to stop.
Want an even better value? Join us in Safe Money Report for a full year.
You'll save even more and profit from all the benefits of a full one-year membership for just $98. Plus, you'll receive three additional money-making, money-saving guides — an extra $237 value — at no cost.

You'll get ...
* Poison in Your Portfolio — a $79 value, yours free: This guide lists the companies that will be the most vulnerable as this great housing bust and credit crisis unfolds.
* Better Than Money In The Bank — a $79 value, yours free: There's no reason wealth-building should be limited to your investing portfolio. With the help of this special guide, your checking and savings accounts could be transformed from cumbersome low or no-interest storage bins into convenient accounts that deliver more interest.
* Options Investing 101 — a $79 value, yours free: You'll discover how to find options with the greatest potential and lowest possible risk ... the simple, easy steps for placing options trades with any broker (over the phone and online) ... how to add extra layers of protection to minimize your risk even further ... how to know when to sell ... the seven most dangerous mistakes options investors make ... and more.
Your Total Satisfaction Is Assured By Safe Money's Guarantee!
Just click on the order buttons below — or call toll-free 1-800-236-0407 — now to activate your membership. Then, use your membership to make all the money you want for as long as you want.
And remember, your satisfaction is 100% assured. If you're unhappy for any reason, you can cancel anytime for a full refund. In either case, all the materials you've received are yours to keep, with my compliments.
The number to call is 1-800-236-0407.
Or better yet, simply click below to order now.
You have my word that I will do everything in my power to see you through this crisis.

Good luck and God bless!
Martin

50% OFF SAVINGS CERTIFICATEMembership Guaranteed Free Money-Saving Guides — a $237 Value, Free!
Call 1-800-236-0407 or click on your choice below ...
YES, Dr. Weiss! I want to avoid the dangers of this crisis and turn them into great profit opportunities. I am responding now to be in time for your full set of new recommendations coming out next Friday. Plus, as always, to save me time and trouble — and to make sure I never miss a single trading signal — you'll automatically renew my membership until I tell you to stop. Please accept my membership in Safe Money Report as indicated below.
Best Value: One full year of Safe Money for just $98. I Save Half. Plus I get the following six special reports, worth $474, absolutely free:
#1. Inverse ETF Riches for 2008-2009. Value: $79.#2. Currency Riches for 2008-2009. Value: $79.#3. Resource Riches for 2008-2009. Value: $79.#4. Poison in Your Portfolio. Value: $79.#5. Better Than Money in the Bank. Value: $79.#6. Options Investing 101. Value: $79.

Great Value: Six months of Safe Money for only $49. I Save Half. Plus I receive three special reports, worth $237, absolutely free:
#1. Inverse ETF Riches for 2008-2009.Value: $79.#2. Currency Riches for 2008-2009. Value: $79.#3. Resource Riches for 2008-2009. Value: $79.

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Money and Markets (MaM) is published by Weiss Research, Inc. and written by Martin D. Weiss along with Tony Sagami, Nilus Mattive, Sean Brodrick, Larry Edelson, Michael Larson and Jack Crooks. To avoid conflicts of interest, Weiss Research and its staff do not hold positions in companies recommended in MaM, nor do we accept any compensation for such recommendations. The comments, graphs, forecasts, and indices published in MaM are based upon data whose accuracy is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Performance returns cited are derived from our best estimates but must be considered hypothetical in as much as we do not track the actual prices investors pay or receive. Regular contributors and staff include Kristen Adams, Andrea Baumwald, John Burke, Amber Dakar, Dinesh Kalera, Christina Kern, Red Morgan, Maryellen Murphy, Jennifer Newman-Amos, Adam Shafer, Julie Trudeau and Leslie Underwood.
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