when it comes to real

[ceagle]

THIS is more 'real' in real estate than the charade of what's been happening around some listings the last few years. Snap it up! Probably could go for 65k (from comps in the area). This might be good too, but heh... "1 car garage in basement"? lol ^v^

The point is, you don't have to believe the smoke screens of real estate right now... that's a large portion of the reason we got into this housing mess! One agent actually told me, when I looked at a hovel she was selling for $600k, and I had remarked that "don't ya think it's a bit high?", she said "the market is adjusting down, and no, because it's hit bottom"). The place couldn't have been worth more than 150k or so. They'll stare you in the face and lie, causing their clients to wait and wait forever until their house sells (or go into default first), IF it sells.. all the while financially raping buyers left and right. >:|

So just look around a bit, and remember to use REAL scales and historical graphs. One wise ole fart tole me that over all his years, he's observed that housing goes up about 5 or 6 % a year, and that is the fair projection. If it's more, you're getting fleeced... if it's less, you're getting a deal. Don't get stuck in a property where you've artificially set the tax rate too high with an inflated purchase price.

Here are some examples showing a few charts of insanity..

One can clearly see that something WACKY has been going on since around 2001, and REALLY NUTS from 2003 to 2006. The trend on these graphs during those periods should be disregarded. It's practically the entire reason we're in a housing mess.
When a person (for instance) pays Highway Robbery Prices for something, it sets up a house of cards which will eventually fall somehow. If enough people fall for it, the collapse extends much further (as it has) into the overall market/economy. I took both macro and micro economics, so I can tell ya, this is REAL. Any amount of Economics is a blend of speculation and fact though, so opinions may differ from circle to circle, but the real effects do not vary far from where the furthest deductions meet in the middle ground.

This is a graph of how things worked out for my neighbor...

As ya can see, they did rather well :} They are good folks, and I'm glad for them, ...they sold about halfway up the insanity chart. At that point, noone was really sure what was going on, and as you can also see on the chart, we all actually lost value in the 1990s, more than shown because the chart doesn't go back that far.
They had a good profit, and the buyers did not get fleeced as badly as if they had bought at the top of the line graph. They probably paid a bit more than they should have, but in a few years, it will be worth what they paid, so it's not too bad of damage, and in this case, at least a small bit of luck prevailed... the buyers are happy and not in dire straits, and the sellers did alright without having to bear a huge burden of guilt.

BUT... I put this example here to show that a house worth 112k in 1990, is NOT worth 423k just 15 years later. Nor (as in the top example) is a house valued at $122 in 1995 worth $681k just a dozen years later. And it's Phony if you are told it is.

So my friends, just do a bit of research, and like they say in Missouri, be skeptical when spending THAT much money, and have them "show you" if ever claims are made of exorbitant exponential worth.
We can fix this market :> It's a bit like the 1960s and 1970s though... we have to fuse and be a movement of the People, not a passive population that flows willingly with the schemes of overscaling profiteers.

Comments

birdy brains are pretty darn good, actually! ;D

[c-eagle.livejournal.com]

Wow.. thank you!! I forgot to include that! *hugs*

It could even be made an entire topic unto itself!... In 1975, people were making about $3/hr minimum. In 1980, about $4. This was a correcting effect (and some legislation) from a lag in growth in that area from the previous several years.
But by 2000, it's only about $7, and has stagnated.

This compared to other prices going through the roof in many realms. Some have gone down (like tech items) which has softened the blow of other product inflation, thankfully, or it'd be even worse.

1980 - wage $4, meal $1, rent $150
2005 - wage $6, meal $4, rent $600

i.e. Costs just about quadrupling, while income only up 50% ... isn't that 800% relative inflation over 25 years? 8|

PLUS the fact that we have other relatively standard expenses now... cable, cel phones, internet, housing association fees, higher proportional costs of health insurance... one of the scariest trends is that MORE people have to live in smaller spaces just to pay for the rising chunk of expense from the stagnating income levels! :/

Re: birdy brains are pretty darn good, actually! ;D

[orv.livejournal.com]

...MORE people have to live in smaller spaces just to pay for the rising chunk of expense from the stagnating income levels!

And yet the social pressure has been to live in bigger spaces. I think that's changing, though. Lately the hottest real estate developments here aren't the subdivisions of huge McMansions, they're the mixed housing/retail developments. People like the idea of being within walking distance of stores and restaurants.

[c-eagle.livejournal.com]

Ah yesh!... Our town is doing a lotta that too... building mixed use stuff close to town. It looks pretty nice!
Only quandary with new construction though is that it does cost a bit more, for the construction itself, and for the overall purchase (relative to older/existing construction), and it's unclear that ya get all that much more. I have friends who have bought places built in the last 20 years, and the nails regularly peel out from the walls, or the sink and tub basins lose their coatings prematurely, etc...
As a concept, the close-to-stuff housing is neat tho! *waggles* ... :}

[orv.livejournal.com]

Yeah, there's no doubt that they don't build 'em like they used to.

Re: birdy brains are pretty darn good, actually! ;D

[telbert.livejournal.com]

You're right, C! People have extra "standard" expenses that they didn't have before. The other change is that unlike their predecessors, many of the current potential homebuyers of today are under the yoke of large student loans, which further limits their ability to safely get a home loan. It's hard to swallow the idea or borrowing $100,000 for a house when you already owe $40,000 to $80,000 in student loans, plus another $15,000 to $20,000 for a vehicle.

To buy a house or condo, I'm thinking of saving up a large down payment (50%) in order to minimize the amount of money I have to borrow. This way, whatever the market does, the chances of my owing more than the property is worth are greatly reduced. It may take years to save up the down payment, but the security is worth the wait.

Re: birdy brains are pretty darn good, actually! ;D

[aldi.livejournal.com]

I'm thinking of saving up a large down payment (50%) in order to minimize the amount of money I have to borrow. This way, whatever the market does, the chances of my owing more than the property is worth are greatly reduced. It may take years to save up the down payment, but the security is worth the wait.

I used to think that way too, when I had 40K in the bank and the bungalow of my dreams was 100K. Now I'm down to 14K and the same house is 225K. I'll never forgive myself for being too careful. :(