[House4Sale]

Evey? In W. Central FL?

[Racelady88]

Yes. Manatee County. I have seen more 50+ year old houses that have never been updated and sellers are still asking 2004 prices.

I looked at a house last weekend that the owner purchased 10 years ago for $66K. It still has the 1952 kitchen (most of the drawers & cabinets are out of square), the one & only bathroom was too small to walk in frontwards (had to do the side slide), master bedroom not big enough for a bed bigger than a double if you have a dresser, no garage, small yard with no grass, in a so-so neighborhood. Seller is asking a reduced price of $188K for this gem that has no money put into it.

I read in the Bradenton Herald today that there are more than 5,000 homes for sale in Manatee County right now.

[Jammie]

I still feel sorry for the ones who bought recently, BUT something like this HAS to happen. The homeowner's taxes and insurance will be bound to follow once the housing market is corrected.

IMHO it will go back to the levels of around 2002, but will possibly have a 3% to 5% increase. So many people who feel they are losing money on their homes are really doing fine. They just won't get the huge profit they would have gotten two years ago. (Meaning the people who've bought their homes more then two years ago.

Like you said, "What more could there be to say?"

[floridamove2]

We won't see anything change, The price of homes have to fit into the price of living. Florida will have the very rich and the very poor. And taxes pay for the very poor.

[tallrick]

So how many rich people want to live in a 2000 square foot tract home?

[Prichard]

First, this is not the first time that home prices have fallen since the Depression. Look at home prices during the mid-to-late '80's. This was the last national run-up in price due to appraisal-based scams which led to the S&L disaster. Prices retreated, but then started to climb again within about 3 years or so. I recall the wealthiest places, like Winter Park, getting hit the hardest. Average home prices stabalized fairly quickly. Second, in Florida we had a "condo craze" in the late '70's early 80's. Condos lost a lot of value and stayed down for years. But, that didn't impact SF homes all that much. Third, places like Ohio, Michigan, New York, Penn, and other eastern and rust-belt states will be impacted much more than Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and North Carolina and the other southern states.

Also, don't forget that the Fed can easily lower rates if it looks like we will be going into a recession. You Buyer's out there better be careful if the fed starts lowering rates, because before you know it, you might find yourselves in bidding wars again. Well, more likely just a tight market from which to find your "dream" home.

[Iroh]

Originally Posted by Prichard

Third, places like Ohio, Michigan, New York, Penn, and other eastern and rust-belt states will be impacted much more than Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and North Carolina and the other southern states.

Florida is getting hit a lot more than some of the states/regions you mentioned. Not all of them, but it's not a strict North Eastern/South thing. Of course the rust-belt is bad off for sure.

Originally Posted by Prichard

Also, don't forget that the Fed can easily lower rates if it looks like we will be going into a recession. You Buyer's out there better be careful if the fed starts lowering rates, because before you know it, you might find yourselves in bidding wars again. Well, more likely just a tight market from which to find your "dream" home.

Not so fast. It takes low interest rates, investors, and heavy sub-prime lending to make the market do that.

Heavy sub-prime lending is dead for now and will take a long time to happen again because the last run of loans at that level are brutal to manage and the financials fear Fed intervention and regulation so they're being "responsible" lenders right now. In fact, there are reports that they've gone 180 the other way doing things like lowering appraisals and not offering "exotic" financing.

Investors are gone for the foreseeable future. The real investors were the first in and first out, I'm not talking small time individuals that got caught holding the bag. Even many of the real pros didn't expect the drop to happen so fast so they got caught out there too. Wall Street has moved on as has much of the foreign money fueling high end condo purchases.

And even the interest rates aren't that simple because the Fed is scared about inflation. They won't lower rates much because that will shoot inflation up...so they are being very conservative and cautious.

Florida RE is going down more before it stabilizes. Where's the floor is the question if you're a buyer and when's the end is the question if you're an investor. A buyer wants a good value and appreciation over time. An investor does not want to carry a property through a long down trend and then wait for the run up to reach a decent level. You're better off investing in other areas until the RE market shows sign of real life.

[121804]

People need to use common sense now & in the future.

What may be wrong for some may be right for others. If someone wants to buy right now, so be it. If someone wants to sell right now, so be it. Is there an overall consensus of what should be done NATIONWIDE..aka RENT...yep...but again, it's all relative to a person, their income, job status & needs.

It takes research & homework. Then it takes understanding of what one is getting involved in when they do purchase.

I would like someone to figure out what is going to happen to TN & the Carolinas if that is where so many seem to find perfect & desirable right now. Carolinas are basing a lot on banking & tech. Silicone Valley in CA saw its day years ago. IMHO, same thing there. Maybe I am completely wrong. Don't know. All I know is that it is sorta messed up right now & w/ the inventory across the nation, I see it taking awhile to naturally fix itself.

[firemed]

Originally Posted by Prichard

First, this is not the first time that home prices have fallen since the Depression. Look at home prices during the mid-to-late '80's. This was the last national run-up in price due to appraisal-based scams which led to the S&L disaster. Prices retreated, but then started to climb again within about 3 years or so. I recall the wealthiest places, like Winter Park, getting hit the hardest. Average home prices stabalized fairly quickly. Second, in Florida we had a "condo craze" in the late '70's early 80's. Condos lost a lot of value and stayed down for years. But, that didn't impact SF homes all that much. Third, places like Ohio, Michigan, New York, Penn, and other eastern and rust-belt states will be impacted much more than Florida, Georgia, Alabama, and North Carolina and the other southern states.

Also, don't forget that the Fed can easily lower rates if it looks like we will be going into a recession. You Buyer's out there better be careful if the fed starts lowering rates, because before you know it, you might find yourselves in bidding wars again. Well, more likely just a tight market from which to find your "dream" home.

Good save !

[SKB]

Originally Posted by Iroh

Florida is getting hit a lot more than some of the states/regions you mentioned. Not all of them, but it's not a strict North Eastern/South thing. Of course the rust-belt is bad off for sure.



Not so fast. It takes low interest rates, investors, and heavy sub-prime lending to make the market do that.

Heavy sub-prime lending is dead for now and will take a long time to happen again because the last run of loans at that level are brutal to manage and the financials fear Fed intervention and regulation so they're being "responsible" lenders right now. In fact, there are reports that they've gone 180 the other way doing things like lowering appraisals and not offering "exotic" financing.

Investors are gone for the foreseeable future. The real investors were the first in and first out, I'm not talking small time individuals that got caught holding the bag. Even many of the real pros didn't expect the drop to happen so fast so they got caught out there too. Wall Street has moved on as has much of the foreign money fueling high end condo purchases.

And even the interest rates aren't that simple because the Fed is scared about inflation. They won't lower rates much because that will shoot inflation up...so they are being very conservative and cautious.

Florida RE is going down more before it stabilizes. Where's the floor is the question if you're a buyer and when's the end is the question if you're an investor. A buyer wants a good value and appreciation over time. An investor does not want to carry a property through a long down trend and then wait for the run up to reach a decent level. You're better off investing in other areas until the RE market shows sign of real life.

This save was better and made the most sense.