The housing market has lost its roof (and walls)
Surprise, surprise -- the housing market has swooned. It really shouldn't shock anybody because plenty of experts warned that this would happen. I do wonder, though, how all those people with zero-down mortgages and similar products and investors who were speculating on property -- particularly on condos -- will survive. I remember going to dinner parties a couple of years ago when the talk was all about real estate. It reminded me of the stock market bubble, when everybody -- everybody except me, that is -- was making a killing trading Sun Microsystems and Intel.
When the talk turned to housing, once again I felt left out. I've lived in the same place for a while and I don't have money just lying around to gamble. Well, sometimes it's better to just sit it out.
When the talk turned to housing, once again I felt left out. I've lived in the same place for a while and I don't have money just lying around to gamble. Well, sometimes it's better to just sit it out.
posted by Ana Veciana-Suarez at 9:21 AM
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During the "boom", I wondered when the bubble would burst - it made no sense to keep on going. Housing in South Florida became too expensive -- so much so, that young couples starting out (even with good salaries) cannot afford to buy a single family home. All the young professional couples that I know have had to settle for condos (converted apartments) and townhouses (a little better - but not much).
Now what? So there is all this new construction -- who is going to buy? Thousands of new condos -- everywhere.
I saw in the news yesterday that the number of foreclosures is higher than ever before -- people who bit at the "new" interest only mortgages and were sucked in with promises of an easy road to home ownership. The bill has come due and many of them cannot afford to hang on to the properties. These houses will also be hitting the market. Flooding the market - more like it.
It is now a buyers market - and I think it will be that way for a while. Until the prices correct themselves to a more realistic realm.
What do you think of that?
It really doesn't affect anyone unless you are buying or selling. It is at the point where everyone but a select few will live in multi
family housing of some type. There is no more land here and people keep coming. The market will remain
relatively strong down here for the
average person. If the prices go down 10% what does that mean after
so drastic increases.
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