The Housing Bubble Has Burst

A timely lesson for California homebuyers: don't factor an illegal bribe into your bid:

WASHINGTON -- A defense contractor with ties to Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham took a $700,000 loss on the purchase of the congressman's Del Mar house while the congressman, a member of the influential defense appropriations subcommittee, was supporting the contractor's efforts to get tens of millions of dollars in contracts from the Pentagon.

Mitchell Wade bought the San Diego Republican's house for $1,675,000 in November 2003 and put it back on the market almost immediately for roughly the same price. But the Del Mar house languished unsold and vacant for 261 days before selling for $975,000.

In his defense, the corrupt politican stated, "My whole life I've lived aboveboard. I've never even smoked a marijuana cigarette. The Lindburgh baby ... never met him. I couldn't mail anthrax to anyone if my life depended on it."