A house in my developement is on the market for $500,000

[Postman]

Who in their right mind would buy a house now for that much money considering that it won't be worth that much in 6 months??

Has there been another time when real estate has actually devalued over time instead of increased in value?

[KoKo]

1. Is it NEW? Granite Counter Tops and See Through Shower Stalls?

Silver or granite metal Faucets and Light Fixtures?

Is it 3,200. or over in square footage?

[DemBones DemBones]

3. You house-hunting, KoKo?

:hi:

[KoKo]

24. Us Real Estate Watchers look for the "bells & Whistles"...

:hi: I was being sarcastic...and think you got that...but I never know these day...:D

[Peregrine Took]

13. Sub zero appliances, cherrywood kitchen cabinets???

[KoKo]

23. Brazillian (stripped from Rain Forest) Floors...or maybe Bamboo (striped from China)?

or maybe "Cheap Mexican Tile)?

[Rockholm]

34. Why do you mock?

[eleny]

2. Here in Colorado it's happened

We didn't have intentions of moving but it was a crappy feeling. Back when the bottom fell out of the oil industry (shale and wells) and before the state reinvented itself it was pretty horrible. There were pieces on the local news showing how people wrecked the inside of their homes before leaving them. All out of frustration. Losing jobs and being foreclosed on drove people nuts. That was over about 25 years ago. Deja vu.

[Cleita]

4. Some people don't believe there is a recession like my

neighbor who is trying to sell a raw 2 1/2 acres next to us for $600,000. It's on a slope, with an inadequate water supply from a well and poor soil. All it has is a distant and mediocre view of the ocean that she thinks guarantees the price.

[TahitiNut]

Yes ... they're called "Real Estate Agents"

:rofl: At times like this, they can worse than used car salesmen have the guts to be.

[mmonk]

15. Actually, real estate agents go by sales within the last six months

in determining the value of a home and its worth. A homeowner is less likely to take a decline in worth into account because of what they paid for it. If a person is a REALTOR, they must go by a code of ethics and most real estate commissions put regulations into place to protect the consumer. Real estate agents can be liable.

[Rockholm]

28. There are plenty of recession-proof markets.

There are some very slow markets and some very busy markets right now. Things are slower than in the past couple of years, but I see plenty of homes selling here in Massachusetts. The Boston market is still doing OK. New York, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago...places where people actually WANT to be, markets are holding there own.
It's just the natural ebb and flow. Stock market is the same.

[lapislzi]

31. Here in the NYC suburbs

I can tell you that properties are on the market for longer periods and are not bringing in the prices they brought in 18 months or 2 yrs ago. Yes, real estate around here is still desirable, and it's also still very expensive. But you're not seeing the turnover that was common earlier this decade. A reasonably priced home would turn around in under 30 days. No more.

[Rockholm]

33. That is a good observation.

Pretty much the same here. Prices are not as strong as they were, in general, in the last 12-18 months. The Boston metro area is very desirable, just like North Jersey. Houses are staying on the market longer but are STILL SELLING. And if priced well, they can sell quickly. One of the funny comparisons between the stock market and real estate is that we all need housing. We don't need corporate stocks.
One upside to people not moving as much as before....People are staying in their homes and investing in their neighborhoods more than before.

[Catchawave]

5. Waterfront?

We paid 200k for ours in '97 and worth about 600k now. There's always a buyer for waterfront.

[sakabatou]

6. Houses in my area can fetch over 1 MILLION

[TahitiNut]

7. But can they sit and roll over?

:dunce:

[stevedeshazer]

9. I'm dying here

:rofl:

heehee

[TomInTib]

12. They can here.

Sit on the hill, roll into the Bay.

And a mil will barely buy a kitchen and a bedroom (actually, it won't).

[SoCalDem]

16. Nope they just lay there and play dead

[Bluerthanblue]

19. can they shake?

:P

[Desertrose]

8. 30 year old pre-builts are going for almost that much in my area....

but then around here, its the land.

Builders were doing million dollar spec homes and selling them like hotcakes, but they have slowed quite a bit I noticed...along with the other overpriced real estate. I think the big homes are still selling since many are second or third homes.

Me...I have to struggle to make the rent.....sigh.

[EFerrari]

10. My condo cost nearly that much and it's not even 700 sq ft.

:shrug:

[xchrom]

11. if you're not in the bay area -- well you would plotz.

the economy is so diverse here -- after the internet collapse in the 90's -- we keep chugging along.

[bbinacan]

14. Yes.

In the early 80s in many areas. Especially Texas.

[Bluerthanblue]

18. same thing here in N.H. in the '80's

:hi:

[bbinacan]

20. And the NC coast. n/t

[KoKo]

25. Tell me about it... a MIL is common....after the 2005 Implosion in

prices. I'm wondering about all those folks from '05 through '07 that supposedly were getting those JUMBO's witn no money down and cash at closing. When their mortgages reset what happens if they used their Home Equity from their house in Charlotte or Raleigh to use to fund the Mansion at the Beach...

Not gonna be pretty....:-(

[seriousstan]

17. I am in the market for another rental property. This is a buyer's market and an opportunity.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

21. This is the slowest month in housing sales I've seen

since I started working for a termite company 7 years ago. The problem here is financing. We've had some rather pricey homes sell, though--usually they are purchased by out of state people attracted to the low taxes and relatively low prices. New homes on acreage with outbuildings are going for around 100K, and if you want an older home in town, you can get one for 30K.

[ribrepin]

26. WOW Where do you live?

I live in in exurbs of seattle. You couldn't touch a tumble-down shack for $100,000. You couldn't even touch the a plot of land for that.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

27. Arkansas

Our low taxes and land prices are attracting a lot of out of state buyers, like I said. Many are buying for investment-you know, getting older places, having locals fix them up and then managing them as rental properties, which is good, because locals are not being able to afford to buy houses now. In fact, a couple of the real estate agencies in town have switched over almost entirely to rental property management.

[Gman]

22. If someone buys that house for $500K, that's what it is worth

If no one does, it isn't worth that much. Anything is only worth as much as someone is willing to pay for it.

[DangerDave921]

30. Watch out

I've argued that exact same point before and been dressed down viciously! :)

Although my argument was in the context of "overpaid" sports stars and celebrities. Hey, if someone is willing to pay it, that's what the guy is worth.

And yes, there have been periods when real estate values have gone down. Not fun to be upside down in your mortgage!

[KharmaTrain]

29. 500ks Still A Bargain In Some Areas

I haven't checked lately but there still was a pretty good market for upscale homes in some areas...places where those with money still have it. When the market started to go down, it wasn't all bad for those who took their big profits and now have them sitting in a money fund...or in some real estate.

Its strange to see two worlds here...I can drive to a mostly middle and upper middle class area and the For Sale signs are on every block...the local MLS and papers are exploding with properties. Then you drive across the tollway and it's another world...construction still is going on and those inside the gated communities quietly count their profits. As my mother once said, for every person who loses a dollar, another one gains one.

I recall a time in the 80s when Real Estate was losing value due to a combination of high interest rates and low demand. The older towns and cities were hit the hardest...and in the end led to some of the first rehabbing...as some of these properties were gobbled up and turned into condos that led the transformation of some neighborhoods from poor and decrepit to upscale yuppie.

[lonestarnot]

32. Richies who have stolen more money than they can fit in a rr car may think it's a

basement bargain. :shrug: