[chuckinca]

Here in Norcal we hear that the housing in the San Joaquin Valley that was hit the hardest is starting to see some upward movement with multiple offers. Prices there are down around 50% from the top of the bubble.

On my street in the East Bay, there were two house empty for over a year and both have sold and are occupied. Another newly empty has gone on the market as "bank owned" and seems to be getting a lot of traffic.

Got our fingers crossed that this 2 will pass.

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[Boomer]

When I saw this thread reappear, I looked back through it. It was weird to see something I had written a year ago on this topic. And the young couple I wrote about who had done everything right with their mortgage and all that. They are still in that Arizona house. But from what they thought was a dream house, they still see empty, neglected houses wherever they look.

This whole thing was vile. Still is. Sure. There were some stupid borrowers. But that is not the reason for the magnitude of this collapse. Unscrupulous lenders. Derivatives. No regulation. The arms and legs are still growing. So many jobs depend upon the housing market.

And then to have the car industry hit at the same time as housing. A hellish scenario.

I have heard that things are picking up a little. Once people begin to feel safer in their jobs, houses will move better. There is a lot of caution out there right now. If the tax credits had been expanded beyond first-time buyers (and I think a 3 years since owning time period) that would have moved some real estate. But nobody ever asks me. Even if I did see it coming. Just like all of you probably did, too. But we sure did not want to be right.

And please pardon another deja vu, but like I kept saying, "Unrestrained greed is not only bad morals, it's bad economics." But I still, to this day, do not know who said that first. And I still have not had the bumper stickers printed. It would be kind of long for a bumper sticker. But it would probably fit on the back end of my GM car.

Boomer

[TrudyM]

Here in the Puget Sound (Seattle) they didn't go as low as they did in alot of the US as we had less subprime lending. I don't know if it was state statues or what but the real wacked out loans that we were offered (and didn't take) in Atlanta in 2003 where not offered when we came here in 2006.

Here the low end ($400,00) of the market is comeing back and the High end (over a mil) of the market is also. But the sales volume is still low. Whats flat or still down here is the middle. But our housing prices have been 130% of the national average since the early 90's so they where and still are high compared to the average salary of the young working families. and there in lies the problem.

A recent appraisal on our house puts it at 2% above what we bought in 2006 but we have done work and have another 50 thousand of impovements left (that with ou doing the work)

[chuckinca]

Being 2% above a 2006 sale price is amazing!

Houses in the SF East Bay are about 33.3% or more less than the early 2006 prices.


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[Yoda]

Originally Posted by Keedy

It was interesting reading through these posts that are a year old. Still, we do not know if prices have bottomed out. I don'y see the bottom yet here in Taxachusetts. Not many houses moving, either.

Our RE attorney says there are a lot of sales. His "business is booming."

Let us pray

Yoda

[TrudyM]

Hold the good thought. When we came back to Seattle in 06 I saw this house come on the market, that had view, was sturdy but needed alot of work. We got carried away with the money to be made and lept in. We (I hope) won't loose money but some of our friends think we are nuts to put more into it, as we could get our money out as a tear down. We just can't give up on the dream so away we go, once more into the breach. This is our 5th remodel and my husband says after this he sells my sawsall. (He has come home from work in the past to find walls torn out. I guess I'm nuts

[GrayGoose]

the whole economy will slow and be sluggish.... I'd say early 2010 at best.........

[TrudyM]

Originally Posted by GrayGoose

the whole economy will slow and be sluggish.... I'd say early 2010 at best.........

I appreciate your professional realtor's opinion. I have that right don't I, you are a realtor? We are planning to sell summer 2011. If the gas prices going up is a given then I need to buy more TS (tenaris they make pipes for oil drilling) stock maybe as a balance.

[GrayGoose]

Originally Posted by TrudyM

I appreciate your professional realtor's opinion. I have that right don't I, you are a Realtor? We are planning to sell summer 2011. If the gas prices going up is a given then I need to buy more TS (tenaris they make pipes for oil drilling) stock maybe as a balance.

Yes, I am a Realtor with REMAX specializing in The Villages ...... business is very slow in The Villages both new and Pre-owned.... Prices are still coming down... There has been a bump in pending...but mostly low end bargain hunters... See The Villages Market Analysis

http://www.lylesellsfla.com/frame.sh...91eb2fe491.pdf

[TrudyM]

Originally Posted by GrayGoose

Yes, I am a Realtor with REMAX specializing in The Villages ...... business is very slow in The Villages both new and Pre-owned.... Prices are still coming down... There has been a bump in pending...but mostly low end bargain hunters... See The Villages Market Analysis

http://www.lylesellsfla.com/frame.sh...91eb2fe491.pdf

I thought that might be you. I used all the statistics from your site for my analysis model and I thank you. My realator here says that if we spend the 50 to 60 thou to update this place I can get an additional 200 thou for it (we have the best schools, shortest commute to the city, and near the new light rail to be completed in 2011(We Hope) if he is half right we will be having you find us a place in 2011, hang in there.

[BobKat1]

Originally Posted by GrayGoose

Yes, I am a Realtor with REMAX specializing in The Villages ...... business is very slow in The Villages both new and Pre-owned.... Prices are still coming down... There has been a bump in pending...but mostly low end bargain hunters... See The Villages Market Analysis

http://www.lylesellsfla.com/frame.sh...91eb2fe491.pdf

GG, do you have an estimate of how many pre-owned homes are for sale in The Villages? The last time I looked on TV website there were over 500 thru them. Add in listings thru realtors and FSBO's there must be a lot. Tks.

[chuckinca]

Interesting that the monthly MLS sales over the past three years have stayed in the 15 - 25/mo range while the active listings has increased from around 100 to around 300/mo.

A lot of people in TV want to sell and can't - pretty much like everywhere else.


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[l2ridehd]

Lets say there are 500 VLS homes for sale. And there must be close to that by realtors. Usually less then VLS, so say 400. And add another 200 FSBO, probably high, but possible. That's 1100 homes for sale. OMG is that a lot? If there are 40,000 homes, that is around 2.5%. My numbers must be way off, lets double it and say 5%. Still one of the lowest resale markets in the country. So stop the doom and gloom and realize that this is still a great market when compared to the rest of the country.

[BobKat1]

I was looking at it not from a gloom and doom perspective, but rather as a good time to buy!

[chuckinca]

Originally Posted by l2ridehd

Lets say there are 500 VLS homes for sale. And there must be close to that by realtors. Usually less then VLS, so say 400. And add another 200 FSBO, probably high, but possible. That's 1100 homes for sale. OMG is that a lot? If there are 40,000 homes, that is around 2.5%. My numbers must be way off, lets double it and say 5%. Still one of the lowest resale markets in the country. So stop the doom and gloom and realize that this is still a great market when compared to the rest of the country.

According to Lyle Gant's website, MLS had about 275 active properties at the end of April 09 (nearly three times what was active in May 06) and monthly sales of about 25 units.

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