0
0

What if we are hitting bottom?


 invite response                
2009 Sep 14, 11:35am   24,174 views  128 comments

by EastCoastBubbleBoy   ➕follow (2)   💰tip   ignore  

I keep coming back to the idea that maybe the housing market is bottoming out. Granted it depends on where you live, but I'm starting to think that on a national scale, the bottom may be far closer than we'd care to admit to. I'm going to dig up some data, and I will post it a bit later.

OK... I took 10 Random Zip Codes, ball-parked the current house values (using Zillow) and then compared it with historic data (via the 1999 US census. and the 2007 ASC community survey). I have incomplete income data for 2007, but am working on getting it. For now, I have adjusted 1999 census data to approximate 2007 income until better data can be found.

The results of this unscientific back of the envelope analysis is this:

In 1999 90% of these random zip codes were "affordable";that is the Median Price / Median HH Income. Now, 50% are "affordable" not great, but certainly not as bad as I had expected. Even in my own area, prices have come down somewhat.

#housing

« First        Comments 7 - 46 of 128       Last »     Search these comments

7   nosf41   2009 Sep 15, 7:23am  

pinnacle says

Even with the tax credit home sales in Southern California fell by 11 percent in August.
The average “price increase” is less than the 8,000 dollar tax credit so it is really a price decrease and means nothing.
It should be interesting to see what happens after the tax credit goes away and the
“prime sales season” is over. Hopefully they won’t create another tax credit for a while so we can see what
prices ought to be like.
I am seeing more “bank repo” open house signs on the weekends so I get the feeling that banks are worried about the tax credit ending. They apparently are taking back about 80 percent of foreclosed properties even though “investors” are supposed to be buying up everything. Sooner or later they will have to unload it all.

Tax credit program will not be allowed to expire. When housing sales figure decline in the coming months - NAR will lobby Congress for program extension/expansion. I think that Congress will increase the amount from $8000 to at least $10,000.

It is interesting that they came up with 8,000 in the first place. If they wanted to stimulate sales, the five figure tax credit sounds much more lucrative.

8   StillLooking   2009 Sep 15, 8:13am  

The tax credit is not the big government intervention. Private banks are practically not backing mortgages. The government is backing something like 80% of all mortgages, and there still is the 3.5% downpayment nonsense.

The government is the only one with any skin in the housing game.

9   youngniceeyes   2009 Sep 15, 8:45am  

I agree with Tude. The government needs to get their grubby hands out of the market and the chips just need to fall where they may. We are prolonging the decrease in house prices. Lets just get it over and done with. When China stops lending the US money, then all h*ll will break lose. Then the government can't do anything!! We need to go back to reality. We are living in a fake economy.

10   mdovell   2009 Sep 15, 12:26pm  

I doubt we have hit bottom due to a few things.

1) we still have 19 or so million EMPTY houses in the USA. That's quite a number. Yes it isn't exactly a natural market but still. On my daily commute first I noticed an abandoned house...then I noticed one in foreclosure. Now I see one living in combination truck and tent!

2) Where will the baby boomers retire to? This has serious ramifications. How can everyone downsize? When people get older they buy fewer things not more. If they can't climb stairs how much sense does it make to have a bathroom or shower on the 2nd floor? etc

11   grywlfbg   2009 Sep 15, 2:29pm  

Tell me what could possibly cause prices to rise? Wages are still dropping, unemployment is still rising. People have lost a lot of their savings in the stock market. Banks are being more conservative in their lending. And even if the govt is still lending liberally, it's downright stingy compared to what the Countrywide's were doing during the boom. Credit is contracting. So someone please tell me what possible justification they have for house prices going up anytime soon. Stabilizing, maybe. But I think unemployment will keep going up and housing will keep going down. If interest rates jump for whatever reason house prices will crash even harder as people won't be able to qualify for as large of a loan.

12   nope   2009 Sep 15, 3:37pm  

If you think we've hit bottom, go buy a house?

13   d3   2009 Sep 16, 1:55am  

Kevin says

If you think we’ve hit bottom, go buy a house?

Do you go out and buy everything that is a good price? If I put a good price on a pump will you go out and buy it?

14   EastCoastBubbleBoy   2009 Oct 12, 12:12am  

I'm looking for value for my money. I probably could go out a buy a house tomorrow, but most of the stuff in my area is still, IMO, overpriced. That said, I am cognizant of my bias towards lower prices, and am trying to stay as objective as possible.

Prices in the county I live in have returned to 2004 levels. In the school district I had hoped to buy into, I have seen some home seelin for close to what they sold to in 2002 in some instances, but these typically are neglected (foreclosures) and need some work.

What it comes down to is, as much as I think that prices still need to come down more, given the income of the area, I don't think that they will come down as much as logic dictates they should, given the amount of government intervention going on.

Is this as good as it gets? or is this a false bottom. I can make the argument for the latter, but I fear it is the former. As much as I tell myself that most of the sales in the past six to twelve months have been to first time home-buyers, that many of these have been financed using FHA + the tax credit, and that it stands to reason that as much as 10% of these transactions may default in the next year (winter is setting in, and I doubt that all of the first time buyers had the foresight to consider heating costs when they were house hunting this spring)...

It could just be that spending 38 to 40% of one's gross income on housing is the new normal, and I can either keep up (and be house poor) or shut-up. (and keep renting where I am at).

Given that I need to make a decision on renewing my lease in the next few weeks, the decision (To by or not to buy, that is the question) has been weighing heavily on my mind.

At the very least I don't expect prices to go up sharply in the near future, but that urge to simply "get this overwith" and take the plunge into ownership is real, and it is hard to ignore.

15   bubblesitter   2009 Oct 12, 12:32am  

EastCoastBubbleBoy says

I’m looking for value for my money. I probably could go out a buy a house tomorrow, but most of the stuff in my area is still, IMO, overpriced. That said, I am cognizant of my bias towards lower prices, and am trying to stay as objective as possible.
Prices in the county I live in have returned to 2004 levels. In the school district I had hoped to buy into, I have seen some home seelin for close to what they sold to in 2002 in some instances, but these typically are neglected (foreclosures) and need some work.
What it comes down to is, as much as I think that prices still need to come down more, given the income of the area, I don’t think that they will come down as much as logic dictates they should, given the amount of government intervention going on.
Is this as good as it gets? or is this a false bottom. I can make the argument for the latter, but I fear it is the former. As much as I tell myself that most of the sales in the past six to twelve months have been to first time home-buyers, that many of these have been financed using FHA + the tax credit, and that it stands to reason that as much as 10% of these transactions may default in the next year (winter is setting in, and I doubt that all of the first time buyers had the foresight to consider heating costs when they were house hunting this spring)…
It could just be that spending 38 to 40% of one’s gross income on housing is the new normal, and I can either keep up (and be house poor) or shut-up. (and keep renting where I am at).
Given that I need to make a decision on renewing my lease in the next few weeks, the decision (To by or not to buy, that is the question) has been weighing heavily on my mind.
At the very least I don’t expect prices to go up sharply in the near future, but that urge to simply “get this overwith” and take the plunge into ownership is real, and it is hard to ignore.

It is still regional my friend. IMO some parts of the country have already bottomed out(mostly low end houses where cash is enough) but correction is far from over from areas like in Bay area and Socal(High end is still few years to go due to no move up and very low jumbo loan availibility)

16   EastCoastBubbleBoy   2009 Oct 12, 12:35am  

True, very true. I do my best not to disclose my location for privacy's sake, but needless to say, it's on the East Coast... and in an area that is still (somewhat) overpriced.

17   zzyzzx   2009 Oct 12, 4:15am  

We are no where near bottom, at least in the Baltimore - Washington DC area.

18   KurtS   2009 Oct 12, 10:22am  

I think it's premature to call a bottom because we don't know the direction of the economy--our retail economy?
No doubt realtors and Wall St. cheerleaders would lead you to believe the worst is passed--so buy, buy, buy! Damn.
I don't buy it for a second. We haven't quantified the downside on the biggest bubble of all: the credit bubble.
Has the credit contraction backwashed over corporate salaries and relevant to SFBA--venture capital? Not yet?
I'll buy we're at bottom when the BS fog clears and we finally see the total sum of damages--not before then.
But that's just me.

19   MarkInSF   2009 Oct 12, 1:06pm  

What Tude said. The incentives the goverment is giving are completely distorting the market. Barney Frank just sayed it was *policy* to write bad FHA loans to keep prices from falling too fast. And just like cash-for-clunkers the policies are pulling forward demand. Once that pull is gone, the market will be weak again.

Still, I think some markets are indeed close to the scraping bottom phase, and won't fall much more. That's assuming we don't go into a double dip recession, which is a big if.

High end markets like the city of San Francisco? We're just getting started. My friend who's been in the market for 2 years told me a few days ago that 10% down has evaporated (Used to be 80% first, 10% second, 10% down for many first time buyers on standard loans), and now the only deals getting done are 80/20. The bottom just dropped out of the market, and the foreclosures on options ARM borrowers isn't even underway yet.

20   BrotherBrian   2009 Oct 12, 1:49pm  

Gosh, I better rush out and buy right now! If the bottom is in it will only be a matter of weeks before the market is back to it's bubble valuations!

With all the unemployed suddenly employed again there's sure to be a mad scramble for all this oversold housing.

Can someone recommend a good realtor to help me?

21   Bap33   2009 Oct 12, 1:58pm  

lmao ....... welcome to the club BrotherBrian

22   pkowen   2009 Oct 13, 3:33am  

BrotherBrian says

Gosh, I better rush out and buy right now! If the bottom is in it will only be a matter of weeks before the market is back to it’s bubble valuations!
With all the unemployed suddenly employed again there’s sure to be a mad scramble for all this oversold housing.
Can someone recommend a good realtor to help me?

I know a RE guy, but I think he is buried in mortgage troubles and is busy trying to rent out his garage to someone.

23   pkennedy   2009 Oct 13, 4:04am  

To look at it another way, what are the pros and cons of buying now vs later.

If you buy now and prices go up, they will likely go up at a more normal rate, probably in the 4-7% range that we have seen over the 20 years or so (minus the bubble times) If you buy now and prices go down, the bottom is unknown, and losses could be fairly large.

Your losses likely out weigh buying now, vs locking in a years worth of gains. Don't try and catch the bottom, catch on the way up, when you are sure things are stable and going to return to a stable uptick. You'll lose the absolute bottom, but hopefully won't take a large loss. On the flip side you add a year to your mortgage and you retire it one year later in life.

The complaint about housing prices jumping in the bay area, different people moving in and people moving here en mass is just a city growing up. Instead of a single neighbourhood changing, it's an entire city. If people don't like what the majority have "done' to the bay area they can obviously leave and go somewhere else and find a city with demographics that they enjoy. But it's the masses who decide the values on homes and what they're willing to pay or give up.

24   pinnacle   2009 Oct 13, 4:41am  

So far only about 3 percent of mortgage modifications have been made permanent so it it does not look like
the flood of foreclosures is going to stop any time soon.
This does not even include the Alt-A and Option Arm loan problems coming in the next year.
Also 20 percent of California workers will be unable to get loans due to unemployment and
wage cuts that will make them "bad credit risks" for several years.

25   tatupu70   2009 Oct 13, 4:54am  

Others had said it, but it's useful to remember that all real estate markets are local. A "bottom" in Akron, OH will occur at a different time than in Stockon, CA. It seems that this board is dominated by northern CA people, which isn't unusual because that's one of the places where the bubble hit hard. The best way, IMO, to know if a bottom is near in the area you are looking at is to look at the historical ave. price or historical price/rent ratio. Those charts have been posted on here several times on different forums... Keeping in mind that after a bubble and recession, you usually end up below the mean.

26   raginggg   2009 Oct 13, 6:19am  

HISTORY HAS SHOWN A LONG CYCLE GOING FROM INFLATION TO DEFLATION CLEAR BACK TO THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. IN TERMS OF ECONOMIC THEORY, JAPAN ADOPTED MONETARISM FIRST, & WAS CITED IN FRIEDMANS BOOK ABOUT HOW TO CURE INFLATION: "FREE TO CHOOSE", WRITTEN BACK IN THE 1980'S. WHAT FRIEDMAN'S THEORIES OF MONETARISM NEVER FORSAW WERE THE LONGER TERM CONSEQUENCES OF MONETARISM: DEFLATION IN JAPAN. AT THE FED, WE USE THE SAME BASIC MONETARISTIC MODEL AS JAPAN. THUS, ITS HARD TO SEE HOW WE ARE GOING TO GET DIFFERENT RESULTS USING THE SAME APPROACH. MAYBE HISTORY, JAPAN, & HUMAN NATURE HAVE ALL CHANGED--SO "THIS TIME ITS DIFFERENT", BUT AGAIN, THAT IS HARD TO SEE OR BELIEVE....GIVEN THE CONTINUING CONSEQUENCES WE SEE ON A DAILY BASIS TO OUR ECONOMY SINCE THE BUBBLE HAS POPPED................ERIC WALTON

27   4X   2009 Oct 13, 6:26am  

Raginggg:

How long would you suspect this current cycle of downturn will last? My estimates are 4-6 years

Lorenzo

28   EastCoastBubbleBoy   2009 Oct 13, 1:54pm  

I have been reading many of the comments on this stie for years now. In times of frustration, they give me hope that equilibrium will one day be restored, and reassure me that renting isn't all that bad.

As a non-homeowner, it's in my own best interest to want prices to fall as much as possible, particularity if interest rates stay low due to government pressure on the underlying market forces that drive the interest rates. The reality is, I could buy now. It would be very tight, but I could. If this is as good as it gets, if the market starts its slow recovery, then I may buy sooner (within the next six months to a year) rather than later (a few years from now). Let me be clear, I am not trying to catch the bottom, but I am trying to time the market.

With many so bearish on housing here (not that I would expect anything different) I can't hep but wonder if there is an almost amusing parallel between our "it has to come down more" to the bubble mentality that "real estate only goes up"

29   4X   2009 Oct 14, 4:32pm  

the market needs a reset....thats what a recession is all about.

30   Austinhousingbubble   2009 Oct 14, 5:05pm  

MAYBE HISTORY, JAPAN, & HUMAN NATURE HAVE ALL CHANGED–SO “THIS TIME ITS DIFFERENT”, BUT AGAIN, THAT IS HARD TO SEE OR BELIEVE….

Japan didn't enter it's economic hinterland with as many monkeys on it's back as Uncle Sam did - especially the loss of our industrial base - and this makes quite a difference.

31   crash-olah   2009 Oct 15, 4:01am  

I seriously question daily, whether or not the US will be able to recover from this HUGE MESS, that was created and popped in a couple years time....

I'd like to hear some input from those who know a little more about real estate...

"wish i was lucky" had some excellent points... how does it make ANY SENSE at all-that "starter houses" in the bay area, are 350,000-500,000. IF, (and I don't know why anyone would)...you DO buy a starter home, IN THIS ECONOMY-what are the chances that you will be a move-up buyer in a couple year, when say your family expands in the next few years and you cannot live in your 3 bed, 1 bath house... HOW will you have enough equity to make your money back??? esp, if we are talking about in the next 5 years....

my mom bought her house when she was like 20 years old, I believe it was around 50,000$ (I'm not exactly sure--)... she put 20% down (like a normal person should) and still has it today as a rental... By purchasing that house, she was able to make enough equity and finance our "move-up" house, and then so on and so forth...

Prices for a house like her first one, are in the range of 300,000$ (6 TIMES AS MUCH) however, my salary today--is VERY comprable to hers back then... so please tell me how on earth would I buy a house 6 times as much, making the same salary....

NOT TO MENTION--- IF (and thats a big if) people stick to buying a house within their limits (aka-3x annual income)..how many "first time home buyers" are making 100,000$ to buy that 300,000$ starter home??? I'm 24, and NONE-literally none of my friends make 100,000$ a year... so please tell me who these first time buyers are, and why they are still purchasing homes at 400,000$....makes no sense....

32   maxweber1   2009 Oct 15, 4:10am  

I can't speak for everywhere but I've been literally swamped with contract programmer job offers here in the Charlotte area. Maybe its bailout money. Maybe the Great Recession was only for places with housing bubbles. Who knows. The housing here is overpriced for what you get but probably underpriced for any other large city. (CLT is 19th largest in the USA.)

Some houses in my neighborhood sold. E.g. one was $214K. Sold. The one next to it: $265K. Did not sell. So, when all the houses look basically the same, the yards are the same, and the community center the same: price alone sells houses.

I suspect the market for houses/pay/prices is fairly priced. Its a much lower price than 2-3 years ago; but, as someone points out "jobs gone", "pay dropping", and "benefits canceled". So, US government and State of CA must float credit to keep floating themselves above reality. Who would loan to them? I guess those who benefit from the bubble. FWIU, the Basel equity requirement to cover AAA rated government loans is 0.

So, governments can continue to borrow infinite amounts of money as there is 0 cost to the bank to loan it to them. So, they can borrow up and until they cannot service the loans. Hmmm, does that not sound like the LIAR loans of yesteryear?

33   tatupu70   2009 Oct 15, 11:01am  

lil--

Any chance you could move somewhere outside of the bay area? That is one of the most expensive places in the country to live. I can assure you that it doesn't take $300K for a starter home in most of the US... I think most of the people there have to have 2 incomes to afford their house.

34   EastCoastBubbleBoy   2009 Oct 15, 11:53am  

lil - I travel throughout the northeast, and most "stater homes" within commuting distance to the major urban centers are priced such that the HH income would need to be at our near $100k if one were to apply the 3x income rule, so I know what you mean.

I was having this conversation with a friend of mine, and the conclusion we came to is that perhaps there are more $100k+ households than we though there were. For a young couple who is college educated in an "employable" field, working a professional job, they would only have to make $50k each, and a salary of $50k is not unreasonable for urban areas. The same can be said for tradespeople and skilled laborers. Granted, the guy or gal who serves your your coffee at the local coffee shop dosen't earn anywhere near $50k, but that's probably their second (or third) job.

So, as much as I hear what your saying... if you need to earn $100k to buy a starter house, then things are out of whack, there may be more $100k+ households (not individuals, but households) than we realize.

35   Leigh   2009 Oct 15, 2:47pm  

That median household income chart always set me off. We are in the top 35% (60-70K) yet feel like we are in the bottom 35%. Are there that many people living off of such few $'s!?!?! Man, compare this to our home buying frenzy over the past 7 years and it is just unbelievable!

I strongly believe that people are NOT contributing to 401K's etc but instead are trying to support their lifestyle. Are folks that hopeless? Or that optimistic?

36   Eliza   2009 Oct 15, 3:30pm  

While I do agree that people are neglecting factors such as retirement in order to support their lifestyles, there are other things to consider.

As income declines, eligibility for government services does increase, and that makes it possible to live on an income at the lower end of the spectrum. Which probably does not make it fun. But various levels of government do provide housing assistance, preschool tuition, school lunches, reduced price community college tuition, health insurance, and food stamps. And of course taxes are lower in the lower brackets. Also, there are a number of lower-income second jobs which can happen under the table--child care and yard care come to mind, and while they do not pay much, they do pay cash. Additionally, a number of lower income people come from cultures that allow for closer living situations, making group purchases of homes--and of course all of the things you might need to furnish a home--possible and reasonable. I used to work with a Russian sysadmin who bought a home with a bunch of roommates as soon as he landed his first job. They sold the place, as agreed, after a few years, then split the profits and kept moving up. There are lots of ways to make the most of a little.

There is also established or inherited wealth, which may not show as income but certainly matters when you consider security and purchasing power. That could mean anything from an inheritance from dear Great-Uncle Stan to a good severance to years of prudent saving. I know another guy who works as an engineer for about two years at a time, then takes a year off to travel and make art. On the off years, his income is close to zero, but he is never broke. Just prudent. Similarly, at any given time, some percentage of two-income households become one-income households so that someone can stay home with the babies. Some people are even wise enough to save for that possibility.

Finally, I doubt that median income includes standard roommate situations, or unmarried couples living together and sharing expenses while filing separate tax returns. Again, ways to make a lot from a little.

So while I can't quite see the possibility of surviving on 15K per year or even quite a bit more than that in the Bay Area, I also think that median income is not necessarily representative of purchasing power. Poorer people get perks. Some people save a lot during the good years, or throw in with others to make the most of what they have.

I guess I don't see these numbers as having absolute meaning.

37   thomas.wong87   2009 Oct 15, 3:41pm  

Eliza says

Finally, I doubt that median income includes standard roommate situations, or unmarried couples living together and sharing expenses while filing separate tax returns. Again, ways to make a lot from a little.

The US Census factors the above.

38   Eliza   2009 Oct 15, 3:43pm  

Cool. That is useful to know.

39   thomas.wong87   2009 Oct 15, 4:14pm  

"the market needs a reset….thats what a recession is all about."

Market corrections already began prior to recession some 2 years back.

http://www.housingbubblebust.com/OFHEO/Major/NorCal.html

40   cara   2009 Oct 15, 11:26pm  

You need to compare the local income distribution to your local price distribution, not the national one. In the suburbs of DC, the median household income ranges from ~90-110k, thus at today's interest rates ... if everyone holds onto the collective delusion that the housing ladder is a good idea, and buys $300k THs, then house prices might be supported.

Problem of course being that if there's no one left to buy the $400-500k starter-sized SFHs... eventually they will come down in price and pull demand away from the THs.

41   disgusted.again   2009 Oct 15, 11:56pm  

I can only tell of my family's experience as of late in the real estate market. We are looking to buy a small home in So Cal. Prices have consistently gone up over the last 3-4 months. It is as if we have actually missed bottom! We have placed bids on at least 9 houses, and the number of bids we have placed is extremely small compared to the many others out there looking for a home right now.

We are cash buyers, and we are consistently being asked to bid way over asking price. We walk away as soon as they ask for our "best and highest". I refuse to get into a bidding war on an already overpriced crap shack.

We are now getting priced out of the market yet again because each new listing that comes on the market is priced higher than the last. We are looking for a foreclosure, and the condition of these homes is going way down as the prices are going up.

I just cannot understand this at all! It is the most insane thing I have ever seen in my life! The multiple offer scenarios are not just games the realtards are playing - it is true - we have lost out on 9 homes to people who were willing to offer much more over list price.

We have pretty much decided that we will never be able to buy a home in So Cal with these rising prices. We refuse to take out a mortgage because we are not going to rent from the bank (plus we are already past middle age and do not want to be paying on a mortgage into our late 80's!).

Where are all these foreclosures? They sure as heck are not listed! It is such a scam!

42   Tude   2009 Oct 16, 12:49am  

If you are out shopping and bidding you are part of the problem.

43   bubblesitter   2009 Oct 16, 12:53am  

disgusted.again says

I can only tell of my family’s experience as of late in the real estate market. We are looking to buy a small home in So Cal. Prices have consistently gone up over the last 3-4 months. It is as if we have actually missed bottom! We have placed bids on at least 9 houses, and the number of bids we have placed is extremely small compared to the many others out there looking for a home right now.
We are cash buyers, and we are consistently being asked to bid way over asking price. We walk away as soon as they ask for our “best and highest”. I refuse to get into a bidding war on an already overpriced crap shack.
We are now getting priced out of the market yet again because each new listing that comes on the market is priced higher than the last. We are looking for a foreclosure, and the condition of these homes is going way down as the prices are going up.
I just cannot understand this at all! It is the most insane thing I have ever seen in my life! The multiple offer scenarios are not just games the realtards are playing - it is true - we have lost out on 9 homes to people who were willing to offer much more over list price.
We have pretty much decided that we will never be able to buy a home in So Cal with these rising prices. We refuse to take out a mortgage because we are not going to rent from the bank (plus we are already past middle age and do not want to be paying on a mortgage into our late 80’s!).
Where are all these foreclosures? They sure as heck are not listed! It is such a scam!

I truly understand your frustration but ask yourself a question will these bidding wars last forever? There were bidding wars at height of the bubble. Now there are bidding wars on REO/foreclosure. Once these bidding wars are over that is the time to buy. Unfortunately nobody can tell when will be the end to the bidding wars.

44   disgusted.again   2009 Oct 16, 12:58am  

I have waited 7 years, and it is no longer an option for us to continue renting. The attitude that everyone must wait is ridiculous. Everyone has different situations and needs at any given time.

If you are not out shopping in this market, how can you comment on it? You have no clue what is going on if you are not experiencing it first hand. You are just guessing and assuming.

I have been reading Patrick.net daily for many years. I was not dumb to buy into the bubble. At some point though, some people just really need to find a home. I am sorry you are so stubborn that you think we all should fit into your cookie cutter view of life.

Edit - this comment was directed at tude, not the previous poster

45   Eliza   2009 Oct 16, 1:00am  

People with young kids seem to be a big part of the problem, too. Maybe they had enough sense to sit in the sidelines and save, but now, with a kid or two, they really really want to have a house of their own. Right now. Yesterday. Sigh. The real estate bubble has really impacted the expected flow of young people's lives. They wanted to find a partner, get a house or condo, have a couple of kids. Having been made to wait, and wait, and wait, on the house part, they went on with their lives, but once there are a couple of kids in the picture, they get frustrated. They want to provide their kids with the stability of one set home, the stability of being in the same neighborhood elementary school without the constant risk of having to move (both home and school) at a landlord's whim. At least, that's what I see around here--both among my friends and whenever there is a house for sale on my street. It is very reasonable and also very sad. I really hate to see people stretching their finances so much just to get the sort of basic stability that families took for granted when I was growing up.

46   bubblesitter   2009 Oct 16, 1:10am  

I saw that coming for Tude. I have waited for 5 years now and I am happy that I did not buy it then although most of co-workers did. All I can say is, if you are really in need of a house you have to bid way over asking and get price gauged. I don't see any way out it. Good luck.

« First        Comments 7 - 46 of 128       Last »     Search these comments

Please register to comment:

api   best comments   contact   latest images   memes   one year ago   random   suggestions   gaiste