I found this little gem over at Seattle Bubble Blog that is pretty sad in so many ways. I encourage you to listen. This is the type of situation I have hoped to help people avoid by having this blog and by working hard at my job. Finances can dramatically affect one's personal life.
Some more news to chew on over the weekend:
1) Subprime Spillover affects Canadian Mortgage Market
2) Vancouver 6th Most Overpriced City in the Whole Wide World!
9 comments:
I think Alan Greenspan needs to call Angelo Mozilo at Countrywide, tell him that the interest rate decisions after the dotbomb were wrong, the Fed caused all this stress, and that the G-man apologizes...
At least that's what Dr. Laura says to do.
BTW, here is something AG actually said a while back: "The true measure of a career is to be able to be content, even proud, that you succeeded through your own endeavors without leaving a trail of casualties in your wake."
The ultimate real-estate deal? Look south
Ah, the "bargain" hunters are picking over the bones south of the 49th already.
Don't miss the idiotic comments by Sherry Cooper at the end.
But of course that will have no effect on the recreational property market in BC, right?
Condo Troubles Further Squeeze Property Lenders
"Already plagued by rising home-loan defaults and foreclosures among overstretched consumers, major markets across the country -- including parts of Florida, California and Washington, D.C. -- are seeing rising foreclosures and bankruptcies of entire condo projects."
Where were you in '82?
I wonder how many times the caller's scenario has played out in this RE market? Where one spouse wants to buy a home, no matter what the cost, while the other thinks that the costs are too high. If that couple doesn't get back together, that precious house will just end up on the market with all the rest of the homes being sold due to divorce. What good is it to wreck your marriage, just so you can go deeply in to debt and make believe that you own that house?
Good find mohican.
My wife walked in just as I was listening, and I was filled with gratitude that she wasn't like the whiner on the radio. As she left the room, she apologized for being bratty and whiny (with a big grin). Life is good!...
...for the rational, and people like the ones on the radio will soon be selling. I can't help but wonder how long people can bear mortgage servitude. Once the trend reverses, it will be with the same frenzy as we saw on the way up.
I can't tell you the number of times my wife's so-called friends have badgered her with "when are you going to buy?" and "prices only go up". These creatures are wicked, and especially so because they don't say it around me. They wait until they have her alone and then they work her over with stories of how much their houses are worth, how much they've made, the second property they're going to buy, etc., etc.
Hopefully a few of them will read this posting.
I have to tell you I might be that person. Luckily my husband has more financial smarts than I do.
We have 4 young kids and our house is way too small (we are in Victoria). We have a good budget and are property owners but just can't find a sizeable house within that budget. I am home with them all and everyne on top of each other can make you crazy. I have said to him - Oh lets just get a bigger house.
This is not only affecting people that are first time buyers but also people that need to "move up" so to speak.
I think most people in BC honestly think that property is going to keep going up and up and they will all be real estate millionaires.
I had one guy in Vancouver tell me that property in Vancouver is undervalued. He compared Vancouver to London. My husband having lived in London just laughed.
I think ti is making people crazy.
I just wonder when this will all end.
My girlfriend went temporarily insane a few weeks ago and tried to convince me that we should try and buy a house because we'll be priced out forever.
She was influenced by some idiot friends of ours who just sold their townhouse (for good profit because they bought in 2001) and promptly put the money right back into the market, because real estate never goes down! That made me laugh. If they had half a brain they could have kept the cash and waited a few years for prices to come down.
vanbaker,
I do think that there is irrational exuberance in the Vancouver market, but that does not mean every real estate purchase is a bad one. Perhaps your wife's friends have taken advantage of price compression in the market by moving up from their overprices townhouse into a slightly less overpriced house??
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