When the housing market nears the bottom, despair dominates. Prices have fallen for five straight years and hover at 10-year lows, and real estate is out of favor as an investment class. Evidence of the market’s despair crops up in articles extolling the virtues of renting. Articles about renting were common from 1994 to 1996, and at the time, renting was a good idea; prices had been falling, and there was little reason to believe they would be going up [Read More...]
A new study shows a strong correlation between house prices and birth rates. When the housing bubble inflated, so did… well, birth rates. When housing went flaccid, so did… birth rates. When housing began to inch up in 2009, so did… birth rates. The correlation is so strong, studies postulate a cause and effect. So I ask you, did loan owners stop having sex due to the housing bust? Housing Bust, Baby Bust Fertility falling: And baby makes three. The [Read More...]
When house prices were going up, everyone wanted to own to capture appreciation. When house prices started going down, those who recognized the trend wisely chose to rent instead. As the bust drags on even the most kool aid intoxicated are beginning to see the wisdom in renting. Better to throw your money away on rent than to throw it away on interest to support a depreciating asset. 6 Reasons Why Buying A Home Is Like Throwing Away Money Girls [Read More...]
Hope springs eternal. People are prone to believe what they want to believe, and with a little bullshit from the the National Association of realtors buyer sentiment toward housing has barely declined at all since the housing bubble catastrophically burst six years ago. Take a careful look at the chart below, and marvel over the foolish optimism of potential homebuyers. Most homebuyers over the last 10 years are currently either underwater or the value of their home is worth less [Read More...]
So many buyers were so certain prices would rise 10% or more per year forever. Those same kool aid intoxicated fools are now underwater, trapped behind their over-improved walls, eating off their priceless granite tops, wondering how did it come to this? The hope of a recovery is dissipating with the double dip in home prices, and pessimism about the future is pervading the land. Those are exactly the sentiments one finds at the bottom of the real estate cycle. [Read More...]
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