It’s Almost Like A Crash
The St Petersburg Times reports from Florida. “Liz Seither deftly juggles the two phones that never stop ringing in her kitchen. The Clearwater Realtor’s eyes are puffy below unkempt flaming orange hair. Seither invested in expensive Clearwater waterfront property at the peak of the recent boom. Lenders are after her for millions of dollars in debts.”
“After juggling 15 calls from debtors, creditors and clients, Seither lays the phones aside and delivers a pep talk to herself. ‘I’m not a real estate bum,’ the president of Executive Preferred Properties announces. ‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
“Clearwater Realtor Anthony Marottoli entered the real estate roulette game a bit late. Despite asking almost $700,000 less than his neighbor, Marottoli hasn’t found a buyer for his Mandalay condo. Doubling down, he’s on the hook for another pricey condo at the adjacent Sandpearl Resort for $1.38-million.”
“His real estate business is down to a dribble of employees, from a peak of 20. ‘I’ve been waiting a year and a half, waiting for something to happen. And it’s not happening,’ Marottoli says.”
“These days the waterfront runs red. Properties linger three times as long on the market as they did two years ago. Brokers like Seither and Marottoli have taken it doubly hard: They didn’t just represent buyers and sellers, they dabbled in the investment arena themselves.”
“The housing slump has left the market oversupplied with million-dollar homes relative to demand. Listings on Clearwater area beaches approach 1,000. Sales in July numbered 30. As new condo towers open, the glut grows.”
“Says Virgil Sweet, a 24-year Realtor in Belleair Bluffs: ‘People don’t know you have too many until you have too many.’”
The Tampa Tribune from Florida. “Two years ago, when SkyPoint condominium was just a pile of dirt and a sophisticated plastic concept model, Ann Blank stood in line for hours to buy a one-bedroom unit for $241,000.”
“Blank made the decision based on what city planners and developers said downtown would become. By the time SkyPoint was finished, the city was supposed to be filling up with entertainment and services that haven’t materialized. Blank thought it would make a fine rental apartment for a few years, then she’d sell for a profit.”
“‘It was going to be great,’ said Blank, who is a real estate agent.”
“SkyPoint’s developers forged ahead and already plan two more developments, one of which is under construction. But the market tanked, and now Blank, who is asking $1,500 a month in rent for her approximately 800-square-foot condo, can’t find any takers. She blames the lack of services downtown.”
“Part of the reason for Blank’s trouble may be that many buyers had the same idea. There are 286 condominiums in 15 buildings in downtown Tampa listed for sale on the MLS. An additional 127 downtown condos are advertised for rent on craigslist.”
“Of three projects that are substantially complete, plus Trump Tower Tampa, which hasn’t broken ground, 180 of 1,046 units, or 17 percent, are listed for sale or rent.”
“Some buyers are bailing because they no longer can afford their investments. Blank said another agent in her office represented a buyer who walked away from two downtown condominiums he had contracts to purchase. He lost about $100,000 in down payments rather than risk foreclosure or bankruptcy, she said.”
“‘People are losing big money,’ she said. ‘It’s almost like a crash.’”
From WALB.com in Georgia. “As the housing market slumps, foreclosures are way up. Georgia has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the nation and some real estate agents are having a hard time getting people into homes.”
“For the past 18 years, people looking for a new home simply called real estate agent Edgar McConnell for help. Nowadays, things are different. ‘I have not had a good year,’ said McConnell.”
“It’s been a slow change. Calls have been reduced and fewer homes have been sold. ‘We have a lot of houses on the market,’ said McConnell.”
“On one street in Albany, we found three For Sale signs within a few feet of the other. They’ve all been up for a while. ‘It’s been slow. You don’t get calls. It just seems like there isn’t any interest in houses like it used to be,’ said McConnell.”
From the Sun News in South Carolina. “Construction has slowed way down on the Grand Strand since last year, and slowed slightly since last quarter.”
‘”The building permit data certainly show that builders around the Grand Strand remain cautious - and with what seems to be a growing sense of uncertainty nationwide about the housing market - this caution is probably well-placed,’ said Don Schunk, research economist at Coastal Carolina University.”
“Permits in Horry County dropped to 167 for condos from 724 in the second quarter, according to a real estate research firm. Single family home permits are down to 891 from 1,533 and townhomes are down to 162 from 341.”
“Lot prices are dropping, a sign that the market is correcting itself and finding the bottom, analysts say. The median price of single-family lots in Horry County dropped 25 percent over last year’s second quarter. Lot prices went to $52,000 from $69,000 last year.”
“‘Lot [price] reduction is a good sign,’ said real estate analyst Carl Van Horn. The fact that land prices are now being affected means that the market is at least closer to the bottom, he said.”
“Craig Dierksheide, who sells land for Coldwell Banker Chicora, said he’s seeing price drops on land now, a reaction that took a while to happen after home prices dropped. ‘A lot of people I know wish they would have sold at the peak. A lot of people wish they hadn’t bought at the peak. That’s just the cycle,’ he said.”
“Large builders have dropped out of many of their major projects and put them on hold, Dierksheide said. ‘That’s created a lot of inventory for land,’ he said.”
‘Trouble in the credit markets has halted plans to build an upscale marina and yacht club on the site of two boat yards near Palm Beach Gardens. Atlantic Marina Holdings says its deal to buy E & H Boat Works and The Ways, two adjacent repair yards on Idlewilde Road, is “on hold” because its lender backed out.’
‘They didn’t slam the door on it. But they just wouldn’t say yes,’ Powell said. ‘… It’s just a lot of panic out there right now, and a lot of people are being ultraconservative. No one’s funding a speculative development project right now with the turmoil in the capital markets.’
‘Most Treasure Coast households collected more cash in 2006 than the year before, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics released Tuesday, but local economists and business leaders aren’t excited by the news. ‘All three counties have relatively weak economies,’ said William Fruth, a Treasure Coast economist. ‘The nature of the jobs that have been created are low-wage jobs, and they’ve created a bunch of them.’
‘You can’t survive on just one kind of industry. We rely very heavily on the construction industry and we’re feeling that hurt right now,’ said Linda Cox, Chamber of Commerce executive director.’
‘Key girders of strength, including employment, population growth and competitive demand for properties from overseas investors, remain in place, said Bill Owen, president of Real Estate Research Consultants Inc. Both Owen and Sean Snaith, a University of Central Florida economics professor, said they were a bit surprised by recent indications that the housing downturn and troubles in the mortgage market will take longer than expected to resolve.’
‘UCF’s Snaith likened the slowdown in home sales and home prices to an airplane coming in for a landing. The plane is now billowing some smoke, and there’s a whiff of panic in the air, he said, as a result of the collapse of the subprime-mortgage market. But while the landing will take longer than expected, delaying the next takeoff as well, the plane will not crash and ‘we will see the flames extinguished,’ he added.’
‘How much longer will the soft landing last? It could stretch through 2008 and clear into 2009, Snaith said — assuming nothing more serious surfaces to delay the recovery even more, such as a catastrophic surge in energy costs.’
‘All three counties have relatively weak economies,’ said William Fruth, a Treasure Coast economist. ‘The nature of the jobs that have been created are low-wage jobs, and they’ve created a bunch of them.’
‘You can’t survive on just one kind of industry. We rely very heavily on the construction industry and we’re feeling that hurt right now,’
This post sounds like So Cal … plenty of jobs (low paying service type). We were totally dependent on construction jobs.
“(low paying service type)”
That’s the kind of work that used to keep the FL economy moving! You could earn $9 an hour and the wife could work for $8 and easily afford a nice, modest $80,000 home.
Today you can’t work at those wages and afford your modest $200,000 home. That’s the real problem.
Andy:
You said:
“That’s the kind of work that used to keep the FL economy moving! You could earn $9 an hour and the wife could work for $8 and easily afford a nice, modest $80,000 home.”
You hit the nail on the head. The median income cannot buy the median house.
“The median income cannot buy the median house.”
Very well said. This line captures the whole essence of RE problems.
I agree. Florida is the center of the universe for the housing bust and it will also be the center of the universe for the recession…
Everybody thinks they’re the “center of the universe” in the housing decline. Phoenix, the Inland Empire, San Diego, Boston, most of Florida…
Today you can’t work at those wages and afford your modest $200,000 home. That’s the real problem.
Bad Andy:
You are right on the money. The problem in the Tampa area was what I posted about the realtors. Nobody in this group ever looked at the funamentals of the area and that is why inventory is climbing. I even had a Hillsborough County commisioner tell me last year that the Tampa Bay area was the next California. My reply was, no, because there is no wage structure in place to support the high housing costs. One large employer in the area is only giving wage increases of less than 3%. That alone on a 60K plus wage woul barly cover the cost of the increase in gas prices. That is why the consumer is cutting back and I doubt a short term interest cut will spark much activity in areas such as the Tampa Bay area.
‘You can’t survive on just one kind of industry. We rely very heavily on the construction industry and we’re feeling that hurt right now,’ said Linda Cox, Chamber of Commerce executive director.’
I’d have to imagine Easter Islanders in the early 1700s relied heavily on the tree cutting, stone statute carving, and stone moving industries, probably right up to the end too. LOL
Oh, add the rest, BadAndy—and then they started eating each other. Literally.
Maybe we’ll get to that stage here!
They ain’t building any more giant stone heads.
Snaith may be the last person in Florida using the “soft landing” figure of speech. Anyone who drives around here for fifteen minutes can tell that the plane already has crashed and burned. I bet his retirement fund is mostly cash. Yun’s too.
“Soft Landing”? I thought Lereah owned the rights to that phrase. That brings back memories of the old days when the NAR could make the numbers dance. I guess old Dave handed Yun the turd.
“We might see a little smoke…but no fire”…what’d that guy say? I have a migrain. Did anyone decipher that metafore?
Florida sales are at record lows, foreclosures, people simply walking away from properties, school enrollments going down, Realtors (r) going back to the shoe factory, oh wait we don’t have any industry. Realtors going back to picking fruit or driving trucks or taking tickets at Disney. It is no where near over.
But there are still people in Clearwater that expect to get 3 times what they paid.
I have a UCF diploma and feel completly ripped off
‘But while the landing will take longer than expected, delaying the next takeoff as well, the plane will not crash and ‘we will see the flames extinguished,’ he added.’
Did he mention anything about the body counting process?
I like the plane comparison. I dread to think about Liz Seither’s black box.
Anyone from the West Palm Beach area? Hows the scene there for TH and SFH’s?
Bad Andy and I are both from there; also DAP (although I have not seen him is a bit) lives in the area.
TH’s are cooked, and cooked badly. It depends on where exactly you are looking; the downtown market (WPB) is a nightmare; there are condos everywhere, most are empty (and when I say most, I mean 50%+) and they are still building. I used to live in CityPlace; it was a ghosttown even 2 years ago (when I moved in).
SFH are bad; very bad, but look like a gem compared to the condo/TH market. The development where I currently live (Evergrene in Palm Beach Gardens) is seeing some sales approching 1/2 the previous sale; these people are catching falling knives, much of this area is likely to go below 100/sq/ft including the land; they are currently paying almost 200 sq/ft (and were paying 300 at the peak).
If you are looking in a specific area just let us know; there are plenty of WPB area people on here that can probably give you the details!
“SFH are bad; very bad, but look like a gem compared to the condo/TH market.”
Agreed. If you know what’s good for you don’t buy a condo or a townhouse. The single family market is all over the place. Right now you can buy from the upper $100’s on up…it just depends on the area and what you’re looking for.
I’m not anti-homeownership. In fact, if you look hard…very very hard…you can find homes selling at pre-boom prices. Those are the kind that MAY not be a bad investment. Let us know and we’ll be happy to guide you.
Tampa RE Agent:
“It’s almost like a crash.”
Titanic Captain:
“It’s almost like we’re sinking.”
In Florida, even $100/sq ft for SFH may be too much, unless the house is in a very attractive, stable (few if any foreclosures) neighborhood.
Similar theme, in southern PBC (Boca Raton, Delray Beach), SFH and TH prices vary widely, with a relatively small percentage showing relatively aggressive asking prices, around $140-$150 per square foot, a good number around $170-$175, and quite a few still in bubble land area up around $200.
Among those more aggressively priced, I noticed a few months ago price reductions of up to $80k from peak bubble asking prices, now a few months later reductions even up to $100k.
I think a good selection at around $125 per square foot is within reach within the next 6-8 months.
What do the blog members think, is $100 per square foot in southern PBC possible within the next 6-12 months or so?
‘I’m not a real estate bum,’ the president of Executive Preferred Properties announces. ‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
That’s a joke, right?
Be sure and read the whole article.
Wow. Just, wow…great stuff. I gotta commend that reporter and the St. Pete Times with finding that woman.
Say what you want about the MSM. But I love reading the Times. It’s non-profit and isn’t as beholden to the housing industry as other papers are.
Oh god. That may be the best clown of this whole bubble so far!
Don’t forget Jeff
“She rented her private residence to a guy who fell $15,000 behind in rent. The guy arranged to pay Seither. But when she arrived he had vamoosed with her high-end washer, dryer and refrigerator.”
I love the visualization of a 67 year-old woman with that stupid looking orange-dyed hair, covered in flea bites. Thanks to the article, the banks foreclosing on 6 of her investment properties now know she has lots of diamonds and Rolexes to pursue for her debts.
and this is a “classy” realtor?…
“She dials a prospect, a movie theater owner from Alabama who’s been hunting for beach deals. His voice mail picks up. Seither leaves a message:
“Hey you bottom feeder you. Call Liz. Call Liz. I’m still your best Florida friend!”
Agree with txchick. This is one for the hall of fame of bubblehead quotes.
Ben, you’re killing me. This stuff is classic:
“She begs your pardon for not looking like one of Pinellas County’s top home sellers, but her allergies flared up when her dog’s fleas bit her.”
“She rented her private residence to a guy who fell $15,000 behind in rent. The guy arranged to pay Seither. But when she arrived he had vamoosed with her high-end washer, dryer and refrigerator.”
“At the end of another hectic 12-hour day, she’s heading off to dinner. It won’t be seafood on the beach, but $7 all-you-can-eat meatloaf next to Kmart.”
MMMMM meatloaf!
Probably more like loafmeat. I’m guessing there’s some sort of filler in there.
Back in the high life again!
heading off to dinner ….
no matter if she spends $70 or $7, whats laughable is the fact that staying HOME & preparing a meal for herself is just so far beyond her capability to even IMAGINE as a possibility.
She reminds me of my spouse to that degree: harp about a broadband connection fee for $40 measly bucks but will go out to dinner every single night if I agreed, and drop $40 as a tip without a moments hesitation. What IS IT with women & dining out? I mean, it seems to signify some sense of importance to have a wait staff catering to you …?! Like a facial ???!
Beyond eating at a place that makes food that I cant handle, find restaurants to be a time consuming money pit. WAIT for the waiter, WAIT for the menu, WAIT for the cutlery, and on, and on. There goes 2hrs I’ll never get back. Heh heh !
Sorry but I dont like to be held hostage for food.
I’m all for enjoying life but if yer gonna watch yer spending to cut costs dont trade one savings for anothers indulgence. It’s just a wash. And I’m not impressed by her so-called frugal dinner, in fact I’d be laughing at her in a Lubys all gussied up in diamonds !!!!
hilarious, actually
Holy smokes, you might be my brother in-law, or else we are married to a polygamist!
I see the McDonalds value menu in her future, if they will hire her. She has the hair already.
What IS IT with women & dining out?
*sigh* An what is it with this board and men thinking their wives and/or significant others represent an entire gender??
For the record, this woman agrees with you 100%. My husband and I recently agreed to stop eating out except for very special occasions exactly for the reasons stated above. Take out is way more fun, cheaper, and much faster if you are looking to not actually cook anything.
I love dining out.
So many good restaurants, so little time.
What IS IT with women & dining out?
Can only speak for myself:
Someone else doing the cooking, cleaning up dishes, etc.
And BF is required to wear something besides:
(1) T-shirt and (1) pair of jeans.
Oh yeah, he has to wear shoes, too.
Shoes? No thanks. Not in Florida.
Dizzy Lizzy needs to quit her whining. I don’t imagine those fleas are much fun for the dog either. Pawn the bling-bling and buy the dog some Frontline.
“She begs your pardon for not looking like one of Pinellas County’s top home sellers, but her allergies flared up when her dog’s fleas bit her.”
This is a great example of her overall understanding of common things.
“She rented her private residence to a guy who fell $15,000 behind in rent. The guy arranged to pay Seither. But when she arrived he had vamoosed with her high-end washer, dryer and refrigerator.”
This statement clearly demonstrates her level of business smarts.
“At the end of another hectic 12-hour day, she’s heading off to dinner. It won’t be seafood on the beach, but $7 all-you-can-eat meatloaf next to Kmart.”
This statement clearly demonstrates her lack of understanding on how to cut back on spending when in financial trouble!!
Ben,
Do you know how to remove coffee from a keyboard?
he 67-year-old Clearwater Realtor’s eyes are puffy below unkempt flaming orange hair.
Maybe if she changed her hair color to ocean blue she’d start selling again.
We’ve moved from the real estate section to the financial pages to fin de siècle novels in just a few months!
Great post.
Mein Gott! This stuff is *awesome*! Realtwhores eating $7 meatloaf, after having a tenant steal her stupid stainless steel appliances! Bu-wa-ha-ha-ha-ha! An HBB blogger couldn’t have written anything funnier!
Is her H2 Hummer on the verge of getting repo-ed? I got so sick of seeing those REtards driving around in those d@mn things ….. (You can get a bus schedule online — maybe they’ll stop close to K-Mart and your $7 meatloaf.)
Who knew that the market clearing excess supply could be soooooo entertaining! Economics seems so much more fun nowadays! Thanks, Ben!
Ben, congratulations! This has gotta be in the top 5 posts in the history of this blog.
Friggin Priceless!
I think it is about time that we hear from those people like realtors, mortgage brokers, appraisers and lenders who are now suffering for their sins..Had no problem suckering people into properties they couldn’t afford…
That’s got to be a bubble classic. Right up there with the Shuffield quote about South Florida working off a totally different economic model.
A watch? That’s so 20th Century. Realtor Lady, meet the new boss: My diamonds are bigger than your diamonds, I rent, and I’m in cash and waiting for that 50% discount. Geeze I was sick of these people.
” I’m a classy Realtor.”
The IRS gang are going to LOVE that line !
“I wear diamonds, Rolexes, and necklaces. I’m a classy realtor.”
My name is Elmer J. Fudd, millionaire. I own a mansion and a yacht.
That is definitely one of the looney tunes classics.
The IRS gang are going to LOVE that line !
The mortage holder will also end up owning the diamonds and rolex watch after they sue her for non payment.
Jeez. How would you like to be married to someone with those values. If she’s over 40 I bet she has that plastic surgeon, Beverely Hills wind tunnel look as well. Ugh!
http://www.clearwaterbeachfl.com/Agents.htm
Here she is! You were dead on! I couldn’t resist getting a visual on this moron!
Ok Hands up, I want to know how many HBBer’s have just emailed and told her what they think?
I suppose that having possession of something is 2/3rds of the law, but possession is not the same as owning something. Most of us could have all those things, but we chose to be RESPONSIBLE!
I thought possession was 9/10ths of the law.
- Ahem - A clue to pretentious upscale wannbes: A Rolex is just a watch. Mobile time measuring has been cheap for at least a century. Sell your Rolex to the next pretentious upscale wannbe and buy a $20 timex. Or use that tiny cell phone you’ve always got with you for *free*.
Please don’t thank me. I know I’ve helped enough.
Sad thing is replicas have become so good that a $200-250 rep can fool a jeweler until he opens the caseback to reveal an ETA movement (I collect replicas).
They’ve gotten so sophisticated in the past 3 years that my first thought when seeing ANY Rolex is “fake”. Besides, genuine Omega’s cost 1/10th the price and are 3x the quality and style IMO.
Whatever happened to no diamonds before 6 p.m. unless you received them accompanied by the words “I do”? Maybe the recession will bring back class. I missed it.
This really makes me laugh. I had a conversation with a friend of mine a few weeks ago. Her and her husband are worth millions and she said why would anyone go to a jewelry store and buy some expensive watch, just to tell time. She says her Walmart Timex works just fine. They saved up cash and bought an old farmhouse 30 years ago, they remodeled over the years and put on five additions, all paid for with cash. They bought their cars with cash. They have a paid for gorgeous house on 20 acres, a brand new $40k vehicle, a condo on an island near Charleston, and they now own their own drugstore. All paid for by saving and buying with cash at the right time. The thing is, their everyday stuff is bought at discount stores and money was saved the the big stuff. They didn’t worry about keeping up with the Joneses.
That’s what I do, use by cell phone for the time. I haven’t worn a watch in years.
If you read the article, you’ll find this:
Clearwater Realtor Anthony Marottoli’s voice betrays a touch of envy when he recalls his 30-something neighbor who made the big score.
He recites the exact dollar amount the guy paid for his Mandalay Beach Club condominium - $475,000 - and how much he sold it for two years later - $1.65-million.
I have an idea! Let’s let those people that made out like bandits during the real estate bubble pay for the bailout!
Oddly enough, that idea has precedence. Right here in Alaska we were the ‘hosts’ of one of the bigger Ponzi schemes, ever- the World Plus scam. The lawyer who was appointed by the court to clean up (in more ways than one…) actually went back to all of the investors who got out early with a profit and confiscated their money. It was later divvied up among all the losers (with a hefty cut staying with the lawyer, of course). Truly a case of ’send in the lawyers to bayonet the wounded’
http://classaction.findlaw.com/cases/securities/sec/sec1/files/1997/lr15589.html
I read that article in the paper and all i can is…
Hell, i can’t currently think of anything rated g…
Chris
All I can picture is Carrot Top’s Mom.
I used to wonder about the comments of realtors buying properties on the side was a bit of an exaggeration for comic relief on this board . .. .
No longer!
I can’t either. But thank you, Ben, for causing so much laughter before 8:00 a.m. in the morning (Tucson time).
So do pimps and hookers!
here’s a link where you can see a pic of the ol’ broad in all her trashy glory: http://www.clearwaterbeachfl.com/Agents.htm
love it, just love it!
I was going to suggest that Liz lose the diamonds, slip on the G-string and the grab the pole but after look at her phot she’ got no chance. Maybe its just me but the way she clutches the cell in the picture screams “Callgirl madam”.
Maybe should create money generating brothels in her properties. She’ll just need beds. No stainless steel appliances required.
Maybe she should create money generating brothels in her properties? She’ll just need beds. No stainless steel appliances required.
Don’t laugh. We had a realtor in our area that handled all the repos for one bank. He used to take his 14 year old girlfriend, who was the daughter of a couple they (he & his wife) were friends with to these vacant houses and have sex. When she tried to break it off, he wouldn’t so she turned him in. He went to court, lost his license, and was splashed all over the papers. Don’t know if he did jail time, but he should have. Now his wife sells real estate. He’s probably working thru her license. Sleeze, sleeze, sleeze.
I ran the wrong kind of business, but I did it with integrity.
Sydney Biddle Barrows, in ”Mayflower Madam’ Tells All”
Her only chance is if she has false teeth, knee pads and a nearby shipping wharf. She isn’t going to make the cut otherwise.
It’d take her 3 days to take off all the metal on her to go thru a scanner at the airport.
Check out the million dollar fixer uppers in the “featured Listings”.
Here she is:
http://www.clearwaterbeachfl.com/Agents.htm
Here she is:
http://www.clearwaterbeachfl.com/Agents.htm
I like the composition of the photo…cell phone glued to her ear and a handful of jewelry.
that’s one totally hosed retarded looking moron
I noticed a minor typo on her website and dropped her a line letting her know. One more thing for her to worry about!
Pretty funny..
Look down the page a little further. I think Karin Lauer needs an exorcism. Scary!
lmao!
Now why didn’t she take all that money she made and invest it in a retirement package at her age..amazing the risks some people will take!
No wonder she can’t sell anything. The prices she has on properties are outrageous, rentals included.
Classic picture. Reminded me of that scene in Midnight Cowboy, where Joe Buck ends up in bed with a 60-ish woman Park Avenue richie, thinking he’s finally going to get paid for being a stud. She’s garish–overweight, flaming hair, walks a couple of tiny poodles, speaks in a very grating voice. They finish having sex and he mentions payment. She is offended and hurt, saying “hey, I’m a classy chick!”.
EXCELLENT analogy Wine Dude !! Right on the money.
“I’m a classy Realtor.”
An oxymoron from a Real Moron..
RE: Lenders are after her for millions of dollars in debts.”
Woof, woof…the collection Hounds from Hell have arrived.
She must be new at this collection thing. Most people who are seasoned have unlisted numbers. A lot of the subprime borrowers already know this, because they’ve been living this way for years. Collection calls daily.
Would you like some Suffering Succotash with your meatloaf Miss?
This is THE very best story about realtor comeuppance yet. Can the article be archived for access by historians when the next RE bubble hits?
“‘People are losing big money,’ she said. ‘It’s almost like a crash.’”
This is what some HBBers have been saying for some time…the pain hasn’t even begun.
Where are we - bottom of second - or top of third?
I’m not even sure the national anthem has been played yet.
Agreed. More like the grounds crew is still getting the field of play ready.
“Agreed. More like the grounds crew is still getting the field of play ready.”
HA! I just had a flashback to the Japanese grounds-crew in the movie “Major League” : “they’re still sh!tty”
Oh the anthem has played. Just like the mariners game last night, the home team got 5 runs in the bottom of the first (and everyone thought we were off to the races).
Then the A’s bats chipped away and our bats went silent - 5 singles and 1 double the rest of the game. It was a slow painful train wreck that many saw, but were wishing did not happen
Or maybe like the Detroit Tigers last night…they got 16 hits vs. KC’s (I think that’s who they played) 6. Great night for the English D, yes??
Um, no… KC 6, Detroit 3.
Arrrgh! Don’t remind me.
Or how about that 30-3 game that was played earlier this month? (Yes, folks, that was the final score of a baseball game.)
Hey…you missed the best part—she’s 67. OMG. Stupid comes in all size, color and age. GAWD.
Losing everything at that age has just gotta suck.
Did she ever have anything? Or has it been borrowed from the bank via mortgage and credit cards.
Good point. “Had” it, just didn’t “own” it. A renter??
“‘People are losing big money,’ she said. ‘It’s almost like a crash.’”
If this is almost like a crash I sure as heck don’t want to be around for the real thing! I think the first article confirmed what many of us here on the board thought; during the run-up realtors stopped being interested third parties and became directly involved as buyers and sellers. At least the inexperienced stupid ones did….
“‘People are losing big money,’ she said. ‘It’s almost like a crash.’”
I agree. If its “almost like a crash”, than please define “crash”. Wouldn’t that be when “People are losing big money?”
God, what a stupid statement!!!
“realtors stopped being interested third parties and became directly involved as buyers and sellers”
Another story line that hasn’t yet hit the media. Hard to imagine these realtor folks helping a customer drive a bargain that will set the price for their 10 flips. Oh but I’m sure they fully maintain an “ethical curtain.” No conflict here.
“Don’t worry, Liz, you’re the only one making money,” the woman reassured her.
Seither hated to disappoint her.
“My heart was beating 100 miles per hour,” Seither recalls. “It was hard to tell her I’m suffering like everyone else.”
Don’t worry cupcake, it’ll be apparent soon enough.
Uh-oh. The cupcakes are back.
NEW YORK (AP) — The subprime mortgage crisis is spreading to a somewhat unexpected place: homes costing more than $500,000.
gosh, really
I thought the cutoff was $417,000?
Now that buyers have to put down 20%, that’ll get them below 417. Man, the next 2 years will be like watching the mother of all car wrecks. But I can’t - avert - my -eyes…
Stucco, you’ve been so quiet recently. Was your computer broken like mine?
somewhat unexpected? thats every fracking house in nothern va.
not for long though.
Are these the same 500k homes that people with 12k salaries were buying?
Editor’s notes (mine) in brackets
“Says Virgil Sweet, a 24-year Realtor in Belleair Bluffs: ‘[STUPID]People don’t know you have too many until you have too many.’”
One thing that’s interesting is the idea that a turnaround may just around the corner, despite all the signs to the contrary:
‘Marottoli pulls up at developer Uday Lele’s office. Lele labors to get his Enchantment luxury condo project off the ground and displays a giant model of his horseshoe-shaped wedding cake of a building. Exuding confidence, he denies the existence of a slump when it comes to his project.’
‘Bobilin said he understands why some economists think Tampa is experiencing a condo glut, but he said his company’s three projects will do well because they target an underserved market: buyers 25 to 34 who want to live in an urban atmosphere but can’t afford to spend $500,000 or more on a condo. What appears to be a glut may just be a natural evolution of a slow real estate market, some experts say.’
‘Eric Sayers loves the two-bedroom, two-bath condo he purchased in Grand Central at Kennedy. But when he bought two years ago, he didn’t have a baby. He’s tried to sell but had no luck, and now he is looking for a renter willing to pay $2,400 a month. He’s holding out hope that the condo will turn out to be a good investment. ‘I still have faith in the whole area,’ Sayers said. ‘A few years down the road, it could be a blessing in disguise.’
‘Dierksheide says there are still folks buying land, especially those deciding that once they complete all the permitting and zoning, they will be prepared to build in about two years and the market may be better. ‘The risk of being a developer is nobody knows what’s going to happen,’ Dierksheide said. ‘The market may have turned [in two years], and they will look like geniuses.’
Boggles the mind. Moreover, it won’t be a slow-mo train wreck. That’s not how events unfold. They evolve at a relatively constant pace punctuated by periods of rapid change. The big money is cascading toward a tipping point that is exponentially catastrophic. We won’t be waiting for any lag on foreclosures working off the Credit Suisse ARM schedule. Ain’t gonna be quite that stately a meltdown. Think neutron bomb.
I dunno! I feel like I am running down the highway with a gigantic boulder bearing down on me.
Good thing I have my ACME rocket shoes with me.
Yep, and the ants around here worry about flickers. They never see my foot coming down the sidewalk.
Here’s another quote from the Tampa Tribune article:
“Urban renewal and reviving downtowns was a great marketing pitch for condos in Florida downtowns,” said Larson, who tracks real estate trends in Florida. “What we’re seeing now is that the promise was a little more hype than substance.” Still, he predicts, downtown restaurants and shops plus renewed demand for condos will catch up to the inventory. “People expected a gold rush, and it’s more of a trickle.”
Twist that a bit, and you get a very apt metaphor. This area used to be a great place to live, if a bit lowbrow. Then developers, realtors, and speculators essentially urinated on it. We’ve got our pot of gold, all right. Now it’s time to flush.
When a place is not desirable, there needs to be a reason to move there. A downtown that rolls up the sidewalk at 6:00 is not a desirable place to live. People who move to such places are pioneers. They move there because it’s cheap to buy, not because there are granite counter tops.
I’ve felt for a long time that the downtown condo craze was ill considered from the start. It’s the dot.com boom coupled with Field of Dreams. If you build it they will buy it, regardless of human nature.
There will be a turnaround “just around the corner” for the next five years…
Wasn’t there a saying during the Great Depression that prosperity is just around the corner? That turned out to be one big, long-a$$ corner.
With a World War around the bend.
Don’t think this isn’t what is being spread around either. My buddy who works in SW FL, and is underwater in the seven figure range, made that exact comment to me a couple of months back. My reply was “who said this and are these folks the same ones that told you that RE was a great investment”? I asked if these same “gurus” called the decline? You should have seen his face. The lightbulb came on at about 1,000,000 candle power and he was just crestfallen. He “gets it”, but unfortunately too late to help. Their loss will easily exceed a million maybe even 2 mill. I sat down with them in FEB 05 and told them what was going to happen (at the insistence of my wife because normally I stay out of peoples business). They were already heavy into the RE market but subsequent to that conversation they purchased another 2.5 million in RE. I’m glad I at least tried to help because I would feel really bad right now if I hadn’t.
well at least you tried.
I’m bracing myself for all my friends insisting I buy now because “next spring prices will bounce back up”.
If prices in my area were anywhere near an acceptable metric of affordability, I would buy. But homes are still listed at last year’s wishing prices - unless the seller truly is motivated. Those sales are setting comps lower, but it seems that current sellers are just ignoring the new figures.
Tell them when you see them bouncing then so shall you. Until then, don’t make a move!
Hey Philly, If you haven’t seen the second chart in this article then you should check it out. It shows the authors idea of how this unwind plays out. So far it seems to be tracking but who knows?
http://www.itulip.com/forums/showthread.php?p=15004#post15004
thanks for the chart, a-i, that’s an eye-opener.
I’m starting to get that “nesting” feeling, yes I am…but doubtful that any sellers around here will go for a lowball bid. Ten percent off what they’re currently asking is not enough of a discount, especially in light of the chart you linked.
Damn. I better stock up on a lot of popcorn. Sounds like we’re looking at 2011-2015 for the bottom. Not 2009.
Auger-inn
That’s not their forecast of house prices, that’s their forecast of equity repayments (0 is just above the left side trend line). It would be interesting to see change in home prices in a few cities overlaid on that chart, I suspect there is a lagging relationship.
That’s fine with me. Let them hold on until it drags them to the bottom of the abyss. They deserve it.
“Clearwater Realtor Anthony Marottoli entered the real estate roulette game a bit late. Despite asking almost $700,000 less than his neighbor, Marottoli hasn’t found a buyer for his Mandalay condo. Doubling down, he’s on the hook for another pricey condo at the adjacent Sandpearl Resort for $1.38-million.”
“His real estate business is down to a dribble of employees, from a peak of 20. ‘I’ve been waiting a year and a half, waiting for something to happen. And it’s not happening,’ Marottoli says.”
Oh yes it is, Anthony. Just not what you hoped for.
Dog;
Correct. Whats happening is “Nothing happening”.
And nothing will continue to happen until something happens. The pain is here. Time to pay up for the excesses, easy commissions and quick flips of the past few years.
If the “Good times” lasted from say 2003 thru the beginning of 2006, how long will the “bad times last”.
–
“After juggling 15 calls from debtors, creditors and clients, Seither lays the phones aside and delivers a pep talk to herself. ‘I’m not a real estate bum,’ the president of Executive Preferred Properties announces. ‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
It is disgusting that such people have no compunction, or shame. I think that THB has already unleashed the biggest blame game in financial history and would continue for decades thru the Greater Depression.
Jas
It is disgusting that such people have no compunction, or shame
Yeh, would any of you want to do an interview like that when you’ve so royally screwed up. Plus, who, from now on would want to use her as a realtor, when she can’t even manage her own investments in properties.
To some people, any press is good press.
I think many of those people wear Rolexes & diamonds before 6:00 and are self-described as classy (or would if they could)
What she is - is broke.
Reality won’t kick in until the Lexus gets towed.
ROFL. 1500/mo for a 1BR in Tampa?? Bwahahaha.
I can rent a 1BR in SOBE (beachfront) for that much. Tampa has NO kind of job base to support rents like that, especially not for a 1BR condo. I was renting a 1BR condo in the most desireable section of WPB for less then that, and, by the time I left, I was overpaying!
Bwahaha… 1500/mo in Tampa for a 1BR?? My az*.
I would like to rent my house to the fool that would be willing to pay $1,500 for a 1BR in Tampa. 3BR 2.5 baths with a pool in Palm Beach county would be worth $3500 to them.
Mike…on a side note…what the heck happened on the Post this weekend?
Andy,
I would have to say anger, mixed with fear and self-loathing happened on the PB post this weekend. Even the SunSentinel does not have the cheerleaders like the Post does anymore; it is truly amazing, there are some incredibly misguided people on that blog, that’s for sure.
The only reason that I continue to post there is to prevent them (who I imagine are almost all RE agents) from getting anymore people pulled into their trap. If they have free run of the blog it will look like everything is really fine in PB RE, and the post is just playing it up as a crash. Frankly, the Post still does not have any clue as to how bad it is, and how bad it is going to get.
That’s the most assinine price I have seen in a long time; especially given that location. Tampa has it’s charms, but certainly not ANYWHERE NEAR that price range. Frankly, a 1BR in downtown Tampa is overpriced at 1K a month, let alone 50% more then that. The economy, once again, just will not support it in that area.
BTW, for anyone who lives near Abacoa in PB county, I suggest you head over to Christene Lees, a nice little chinese place in the middle of the manufactured community there. I say that because the place is definately going out of business; I have been going there for a long time and never seen traffic as slow as it has been in the past 4-5 months. I was in there last night and the ONLY TABLE in the entire place at 8PM.
These manufactured communities are so, so toast. There was never a demand for them, they are massively overbuilt, and even more overpriced (if that’s actually possible). Hopefully when the dust clears, the “correct” age group will get a chance to move back into these developments (20-35 year old singles, primarily and in some communties, college kids). I only call that the “correct” group because 90% of all the “activites” in these areas are focued at that age range; bars, clubs, etc.
Such an incredibly stupid idea… It boggles the mind, it truly does.
Mike F
I prefer the east coast to the west coast of FL for 2 reasons:
1) the weather is much less humid
2) you can actually SEE & even GET TO the beaches in a lot of areas.
Aquis;
I always preferered the Gulf to the Atlantic until I experienced a few red tides.
I still don’t think you can quite beat those white beaches in the Panhandle.
““These days the waterfront runs red. Properties linger three times as long on the market as they did two years ago. Brokers like Seither and Marottoli have taken it doubly hard: They didn’t just represent buyers and sellers, they dabbled in the investment arena themselves.”
I am sure when they saw buyers they represented made out like bandits, they thought to themselves, ‘There is a lot of easy money to be made here. Why not get into the game: buy & sell, buy & sell. I could make a lot of money doing practically nothing!’
They were too dumb to realize that they were getting into a Ponzi scheme initiated by Alan Grrenspan.
How can you “represent” anyone if you are also acting as a market maker? You can’t freakin’ be both. Ask wall street.
‘You can’t survive on just one kind of industry. We rely very heavily on the construction industry and we’re feeling that hurt right now,’ said Linda Cox, Chamber of Commerce executive director.’
This is something I’ve been trying so hard to put through to acquaintances who think the market is going to “come back” here in Florida. Of course, I agree with them, but not the way they think. I agree it is going to “come back” to pre-2000 prices.
Really, Florida has completely shot itself in the foot by relying on real estate and construction, instead of developing or incentivizing other businesses and industries compatible with what the state IS, not what it wants to be. In fact, right about now, I’ll bet Florida could use some of that lower end tourist money people used to drop at the mom and pop motels, fishing camps and marinas along some coastline area. Except they are gone in the face of the outrageous “best use” tax assessments. Sure, go ahead and make fun of “early bird specials”, that crowd is thinning out, too. Gone to the Carolinas. And what’s left? Hordes of anchor babies of illegal construction workers, clamoring to be educated and receive health care on the taxpayer dime. Squatting and drug dealing gangs, sucking up law enforcement dollars. Taxpayer money being spent on foreclosures, etc. Note to Gov. Crist: Good luck, Chucklecluck!
I do give him props for one thing, though, and that is his idea to generate energy from the ocean. Developed properly, it could impact Florida in a positive way.
Given that insurance rates are beginning to approach their true cost, the whole notion of Floriday collapses, doesn’t it?
I read something, perhaps on this blog, where an insurance executive said Florida generated 10% of his company’s premiums and over 40% of its exposure. In what direction does anyone think premiums will go, presuming insurance is offered at all? Today’s Tampa Tribune had another story about Nationwide dropping tens of thousands of policyholders.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20070829/BUSINESS/708290307
Nationwide Insurance said Tuesday it will not renew 39,000 homeowners policies, shedding about 18 percent of its personal property exposure in Florida.
“In what direction does anyone think premiums will go, presuming insurance is offered at all?”
If we continue to have quiet storm seasons, companies tend to enter the market. The small ones of course…and as that happens the prices seem to go down or hold steady. As long as the state has cheap reinsurance there will always be small companies willing to gamble. So as far as that goes, I’ll say prices are likely to level off for the time being.
That being said, you can’t beat up on insurance companies, tell them what they should charge, and then expect them to continue to do business. You will not see the major carriers writing new policies or even keeping what they’ve got in that type of environment. The storms of 2004 and 2005 wiped out 20 years of premiums.
Stop blaming the insurance companies. Mandate that they offer coverage, but don’t mandate the price they charge. Competition will drive prices to where they need to be. If you still can’t afford it, don’t live in hurricane prone areas.
Can’t see any reason why they shouldn’t charge based on what it costs them to cover you. It’s crazy to expect otherwise.
“It’s crazy to expect otherwise.”
Somebody better tell Charlie that.
I have a big problem with the ” dont beat up on on insurance companies ” comment.
Since insurance companies own the politicians, who passed laws MAKING the public buy insurance for everything from driving cars to owning homes, then yeah, I WILL gripe about the perfect monopoly insurance companies have on us.
We can go back & forth about free market, responsibility, yadda yadda, but to all that I just say this: Look at the size of insurance company buildings. Yeah, G’head Mr Kotter, take another look. Oh wow, pretty fugggin BIG AZZ impressive expensive building there,,, and whoaaa all the luxo cars inthe parking lot ,,, my my … why, those people must do pretty good in salary!? Ok so WHO THE HELL PAYS for that?? Why, the public does … thru laws MAKING us pay.
So yessirree I will always have a problem with companies making money by the wheelbarrow then crying poverty if they cant KEEP making it by the wheelbarrow.
(PS most people on this blog are responsible & support mandatory insurance laws to make the not-so-responsible pay their fair share ,,, and I say good idea in theory ,,, buyt like any mandated payment it only goes up. and up. and up.
and whattya gonna do about it? stop driving? stop buying houses? get real. In humid hellhole Florida yer yer gonna take the bus?/ yeah, I tried that .. the bus sysyem in Tampa does not any further north of downtown that about 12 miles, but hmmm the majority of the pop lives north of downtown. Another behind the scenes move by big oil/insurance/ auto industry to keep us chained to cars. Yeah I covered a lot of territory here, it’s a complex subject. If you cant keep up, go look at some pretty pictures in PEOPLE MAGAZINE )
hilarious, actually
All . required. by . law.
Today’s Tampa Tribune had another story about Nationwide dropping tens of thousands of policyholders.
Did you read the article on the property tax reduction. It amounted to about $100. People are complaining that their taxes doubled, but only get a $100 reduction and it is not fair.
Well, if you only live in the equivalent of a $2,000 12 x 16 Amish shed, then is shouldn’t be a problem. Wait, that’s what they were doing before. LOL
I have a friend that traveled to Florida to work on property loss claims for his employer a few years back after the hurricanes. When he and other property adjusters from all over the country arrived, they were called into a meeting with the local claims manager. The first thing the manager tells the out of state adjusters is that its different in Florida (due to the aggressive insurance department) - don’t question any potentially inflated claims unless what is being claimed is way, way out of the ball park. He spent weeks just writing checks with very little documentation to support claimed losses. He said the fraud was off the charts. It appears that you can only beat up on property insurance companies so long before the costs are passed on to the remaining policy holders. So Florida property holders are now reaping what their pit bull insurance department has sowed.
Palmetto, you just did a very good job of describing Arizona’s economy. Much dependence on real estate and construction, hordes of illegal construction workers and their anchor babies, drug dealing, gangs. Need I go on?
Anchor babies?
Illegal immigrants give birth to children in US hospitals, thereby granting said children citizenship, which “anchors” illegal parents in the USA.
“‘People are losing big money,’ she said. ‘It’s almost like a crash.’”
Just wait until the post-credit-crunch data hits the MSM. Then it will really be almost like a crash.
If it smells like a crash, talks like a crash, and acts like a crash … IT’S A CRASH.
“I love the smell of napalm in the morning.”
“‘People are losing big money,’ she said. ‘It’s almost like a crash.’”
Why Ann…that’s quite descriptive…I’d say almost: Point Blank!
A. Blank…like between the ears?
I live here in Polk County, FL, just outside of Tampa.
I have lived in Winter Haven for years and know many of the local “Chamber of Commerce” and “Realtor” types……and I can tell you they are hurtin bad.
Bike Nights, where the “rolex wearers” get to dress down and get dirty with the scooter people, are sparsley attended nowadays. A couple of the local watering bars, where many of the Realtor(tm) class come to water, wager and bluff, aren’t as busy at Friday Happy Hour as they used to be.
My girlfriends sister is a bartender at one of the more popular lakeside watering holes and told me the other day she has had several of the regular “rolex wearers” get credit cards denied when they went to ring out their tabs…..She said that some of the Realtors(tm) and car salesmen that frequent her establishment have been getting turned down on $ 50.00 bar tabs and have had to come back later and pay up. Last night she said she was still holding 2-3 drivers licenses from last weekend on unpaid tabs. Never before has she seen this stuff.
Many scooters, boats and trucks are starting to pepper the local lawns. About 1 in 12 or so houses are for sale. Desperation is in the air.
The two Lowes stores here in Winter Haven are way down in terms of activity. Went in last Saturday to by some silicone sealer for my boat ( recently bought from a Realtor(tm) no doubt ) and I was in-and-out in a manner of minutes. Just a year ago, a Saturday morning trip to Lowes was accompanied by pushy crowds and a dreadful wait in line at the registers.
Central Florida is going down and going down hard. I see no soft landing in sight. All we are seeing down here are stress cracks starting to form in the local economy; and it is getting worse by the week.
I am glad I didn’t buy and will probably keep renting ( lakeside 2bdr/ 2ba apt = $ 600/mo ) for a couple of more years. I have money saved and am now looking for a nice used Harley. I am sure that I will be able to pounce, “like a predator”, on a good deal this spring. And I will pay some nervous, underwater “rolex wearer” some desperately needed cash, no doubt.
$600 for a 2br/2bth
dang
I sometimes go to business-related luncheons here in Tucson. Used to see a lot of REIC types at them. But after the middle of last year, they up and vanished. That, to me, was a sign that these luncheons, which cost upwards of $50, had become too expensive for them.
As for Yours Truly, I usually guard Fortress Checkbook like the military guards Fort Knox. But these luncheons are good places to find valuable contacts. So, that’s why I splurge and go — now and then.
Same here in San Diego - I go to a lot of lunch meetings around town, and two years ago, they were full of RE agents. . .because I was new in town, they flocked all over me like locusts. . .now, they can’t afford to “smooze” at these $50 lunches. . .or they have just quietly “left the room”
I am with you for the ride..I have a used car dealership near me and I am waiting a few more months to pick up a nice little convertible for the weekends for cheap..I am sure they will be filling up the lot soon with all of last year’s “toys.”
Ditto for Orlando
Darth,
Give us a good picture of the Orlando area housing and economy.
Ghost;
You can pretty much take any report from any Florida City and that’s Orlando too, minus the oceanfront segment.
If you do the math we have aprrox.22 months of inventory at the present sales level. I’m not talking about the NAR crap numbers but the residential listings divided by monthly sales. Commercial listings are at a record high and moving a little better than residential but commercial typically lags.
Same Condo Story. Projects unsold, most proposed will not get built, a lot were half built before funding was cut. Lawsuits, yada yada. Condos are overbuilt but not like South Fla.
Our economy is based on tourism which puts us on the leading edge of vulnerability. We’ve never had much industry. The median wage here will not buy the median house. The median household income is somewhere around $41K. Times 3 means the median house should be 125K or so. Not to long ago that was the price.
Also, we seem to be loosing population. School enrolments are stagnant or down. Retail, food, even Disney is down. It doesn’t look pretty for us. We have no real solid economic foundation. The family from Ohio will fix the roof before they come to Disney
Florida in general was attractive because of the weather and it was cheap to live here. Not now. Again, indictors are that we are loosing population to N. Carolina, Tenn, Northern Georgia. The average guy can make a decent living and actually buy a house there.
The attitude of people in general here is ridicules: “Everyone wants to come to Florida.” I’m not so sure. I like it here, but I’m in a different situation.
Florida, from Orlando North definitly participated in the Bubble and will pay dearly, but South Florida, both coasts, including Tampa and south is worse shape. It will be a bloodbath.
The state as a whole is in bad shape and we cannot see the bottom. Florida was on of the hotspots, The higher it went he farther it will fall.
It’s possible we can have a recession worse than the rest of the country.
I have money saved and am now looking for a nice used Harley.
Les Pendens:
The Harleys are popping up all over the place in Tampa. Be very cautious when buying a used Rolex. I buy and sell used Rolexes for a hobby and have seen some excellent fake ones that the majority of people would think were real.
It now the “Humvee / Jet Ski” effect.
Walk down any street and it’s like a toy store!!
Harley’s will be a dime a dozen, if they’re not already.
Harley retail sales have been down in Central Florida since Jan.
It appears the credit mess created by Mr. Magoo was along the lines of the Iraq war. There was absolutely no planning for any “eventuality” such as events taking a turn nobody anticipated. From either Republians or Democrats. And the “eventuality” factor arrived in spades. Doesn’t say much for our current political system OR our financial system and it says even less for those running those systems. Seeing as the financial system and the political system IS the future of the USA, they sure paints a picture full of concern.
At one point in US military history, the US never engaged in a major war UNLESS they had the money. In the European 1914-1918 war, the USA never entered until 1917. Only one year before the was over and several generations of young Europeans had been killed. Those who were the future of Europe. The USA made enough money off that war by selling needed equipment to Europe which created enough money to finance the US entry 3 years after it started. Shortly before it ended. Not exactly a noble thing to do despite the crap we read in history books but when you think about it…..Then in the 1939-1945 war, the USA didn’t enter until 1941. Had the Japanese NOT attacked Pearl Harbor the US probably wouldn’t have entered that war for a couple of more years. By 1941 the British had been at war for two years and was drained of it’s once ample financial resources. In fact, the British were so broke the US President sent 2 US destroyers to South Africa to empty British banks of all their gold to make sure, if the Germans invaded England, that the US got paid for the war material it had sold to the UK. Again, not very noble but not stupid either. Credit crunches were rare because there was something backing up paper money in US bank vaults. In this case it was gold. $1 dollar in paper = $1 in gold. Now, we have a bunch of bums in government who spend like drunken sailors and print paper currency as if it were toilet paper when there’s no money in the bank and the value of the US currency (it seems anyway) is now tied to property. If they value of property drops - they print money. Our whole financial system is controlled by the Financial Gangsters of Wall Street and giant corporations who skim, commit fraud, manipulate without fear because they have the majority of politicians on their payroll. Crazy times…..
“From either Republians or Democrats”
But, but…I thought that…
The Party of ole’ Abe for the last 7 years
controlled the FED
controlled the Congress
controlled the Senate
controlled the White House
controlled the Supreme Court
And put “Our” Nation where it is today…in the shitter, chalk filled with diarrhea and blood filled pasty crap…and just now we’re finding out that the toilet looks like it may be plugged with a huge amount of green stuff courtesy of: “Mr. Greenspent’s Put” …Wall Street has placed a handwritten sign: “Do Not Flush”
If you want to fix this problem: Vote Republican in 2008…”they” have ALL the answers… to what ails US.
‘I’m not a real estate bum,’ the president of Executive Preferred Properties announces. ‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
You’re going back wearing your former gear. High heels, garter belts and an IUD.
Gawd. Check out her pic. I need to bleach my eyeballs after that visual.
lmao…. ok…. so she doesn’t need the IUD.
I’m not a real estate bum,’ the president of Executive Preferred Properties announces. ‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
What is a real estate bum? Someone who just barely makes a living. Someone who actually works for their clients instead of seeing how many commissions they can collect to buy diamonds and rolexes. I’ve found a lot of top producers are the worst agents in the world. They’re only out there to see their names everywhere, see how many transactions they can amass, see how much they can collect in commissions, and how many top producer awards they can collect. Just try to call them with a question.
Ghost, I used to have to work for those Top Producers. IMO they were a bunch of whining middle-aged primadonnas who believed their own press.
It was my job to produce the marketing materials that displayed their botoxed and sandblasted mugs. Sometimes our artists had to retouch the so-called glamour shots they sent us because their photographer didn’t see the flyaway hairs - that become huge when the image is blown up to 2′ x 3′. I’ll never forget the day we got a pic of the one biatch, she insisted her mug appear on the sign directly in front of the house she was shilling. (These were million dollar+ properties).
Picture if you will: Victoria Blueblood, seventh generation Main Line resident, wakes up to Screaming Honking Realtress in all her airbrushed glory leering from the brand new builder sign on the property across the way.
I have to laugh evertime I get a business card from a realtor with a picture of this hot chick on it.
Whe you meet them they look like my grandmother, only old and ugly.
–
“It’s Almost Like A Crash”
When the roof caves in three houses down the street. And it is a crash when the roof caves in your house and fall on your no-good head.
Ben, is the book of THB quotes in the working? It would become an instant best seller.
Jas
Ben, is the book of THB quotes in the working? It would become an instant best seller.
I was just thinking the same thing about 20 minutes ago, as I’m reading these quotes. It could be like the book of George Bush quotes.
A 4% drop in one week represents an 88% annualized rate of decline.
You can check this in google by entering the following formula in the search line:
((1-0.04)^52-1)*100
Week-to-week mortgage applications off 4.0%
By Amy Hoak, MarketWatch
Last Update: 7:00 AM ET Aug 29, 2007
CHICAGO (MarketWatch) — The number of mortgage applications filed last week slipped 4.0% from the previous week, while the average interest rate on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages shot up, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Wednesday.
Also on a seasonally adjusted basis, applications for mortgages to purchase homes were down 4.0% on a week-to-week basis, according to the group’s latest survey. And applications for loans to refinance existing mortgages were down 4.2% in the week ended Aug. 24.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/mortgage-applications-fell-40-last/story.aspx?guid=%7B21595143%2D14D5%2D460F%2DA67E%2D7BBEB2386581%7D
It only goes to prove that the glut of homes on the market ,especially in Fl and Ca are going to remain for many years to come. All these homes new and used are for buyers who use to get “easy money.” Those days are gone, so again, who is going to buy all these homes? The loans have disappeared overnight and funding is only available if you can prove your income.
–
In Tehachapi, CA there are already manny homes that have been on the market for 2 years. I don’t know the % but it could be 15-20%, which would only grow.
Jas
Those days are gone, so again, who is going to buy all these homes?
We all can. 25 cents on the dollar.
That St. Pete Times article is a classic. It’s amazing how many delusional kool aid drinkers are walking around here like zombies. At least the beach is nice and quiet again like the good old days.
Wow!..I better not wear my Rolex Submariner if I want catfish, beer, service and a table in Lakeland this Fall as I look like a Realtor bum in jeans and a T-shirt.
Ooops!…I do have plenty of CASH and tip well !
‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
You know, straight lines like this make it way too easy…
“Classy realtor”….Oximoron.
Talon…you could almost subsitute Blonde for “classy Realtor” and retell a million of those silly politically incorrect jokes before this is all over.
Hey! NO blonde jokes! Stick with the deserving REtards, they are fodder enough.
necklaces make her classy?
Wait, let me guess, it’s an 18k gold overlook
Maybe they’re KMart Black Hills gold. That’s klassy with a “k”
“almost like a crash”? if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck…
spending the weekend near ft myers, always fun, they seem to be about 6 mos further along in the unraveling… just got back from Burbank, did not see as many for sale signs as I expected, anyone on the board from that area?
Within 2 years, the people you know that depend on residential real estate for a living will either be BK, divorced, indicted, or will move to chase the next “easy money” (or any combination thereof).
Or maybe they will have been captured and eaten and their heads left perched on sticks. You left that possibility out.
I also forgot victims of suicide.
That’s a start. Then maybe we can move on to the politicians, the idiot judges who let out child molesters, and then move onto the child molesters, etc.
“After juggling 15 calls from debtors, creditors and clients, Seither lays the phones aside and delivers a pep talk to herself. ‘I’m not a real estate bum,’ the president of Executive Preferred Properties announces. ‘I wear diamonds, Rolexes and necklaces. I’m a classy Realtor.’”
Famous last words.
Its kinda sad to see an old broad be so dim. We’ve always heard that years give you experience and wisdom… but every rule has exceptions.
I almost feel sorry for her… nahhhh, let her rot!
I know I’m gonna get flamed for this, but in a weird way I do feel kinda sorry for the realtor in Florida. Maybe it’s because she’s the exact same age as my Mom. I know it’s completely her own fault, no one else to blame, and she is the epitome of why were in the mess we’re in, but still I feel for her. Like someone once said, you can’t fix stupid.
Every time I see something like this, I can’t help but thank the universe for the mother I have; one who’s sensible with her money, down to earth and one of the kindest people I know. We call her the rough, tough cream puff. Even if the economy goes completely south, and she losses everything she’s worked so hard for, at least she still has kids and grandkids there to step in.
At 67 you don’t have many chances to start over. I just hope the woman in Florida has family who loves her in spite of the monumental mess she’s made of her life, and who will care for her when she needs it.
I know I’m gonna get flamed for this, but in a weird way I do feel kinda sorry for the realtor in Florida. Maybe it’s because she’s the exact same age as my Mom.
I do have a friend who is a realtor and she’s 67 years old. She has bought properties over the years, but always with cash. So now when she retires she has rentals coming in from various houses and commercial properties. If she didn’t have the cash, she passed on the property.
The fact is that this woman has a date with a bottle of sleeping pills in the not too distant future. She will not be able to admit to herself that she is not what she wants to be. Sort of sad but such is life.
Oh, add the rest, BadAndy—and then they started eating each other. Literally.
Maybe we’ll get to that stage here!
Got ketchup?
Brokers like Seither and Marottoli have taken it doubly hard: They didn’t just represent buyers and sellers, they dabbled in the investment arena themselves.”
You might get away with dealing crack and make some money. Once you start smoking it you’re going down.
People with real money weare classier understated watches like Pateks etc..
If it costs more than a Timex, you’re throwing your money away.
IF you have million in cash assets, it is okay to treat yourself to a Patek. You cannot be buried with the money when you die.
Next time try anonymously donating about half of what you would have spent on a fancy watch to a charity that helps sick children. You will be amazed at how much better it will make you feel than another expensive bauble. And then spend the other half on a nice watch if that’s what you want.
Better yet, buy an $8-10 watch and wear it until the battery goes, then throw it away.
Oh yes sir a 3.2% decline in houses prices, just think now you can buy a 1 million dollar house for 970k? Watch the hordes of people who will venture out to buy this labor day wekend????
Sorry, but all I could think of when I read about the airplane billowing smoke and the “soft landing” in Ben’s comments was:
RealtorDude: No, man, nothing is f**ked here.
Mr. F.B. Lebowski: Nothing is f**cked!? The goddamned plane has crashed into the mountain!!!
…
RealtorDude: I’ve got certain information, certain things have come to light, and uh, has it ever occurred to you, man, that given the nature of all this new shit, that, uh, instead of running around blaming me, that this whole thing might just be, not, you know, not just such a simple, but uh–you know? It’s different here.
They’re a bunch of F**king Amateurs!
“A lot of people I know wish they would have sold at the peak. A lot of people wish they hadn’t bought at the peak. That’s just the cycle,’ he said.”
Hmmm…so it wasn’t different this time after all. It’s just the cycle? It’s so not just the cycle this time around. Not with millions of FB’s out there.
Lenders are after her for millions of dollars in debts.”
There were so many RE courses in Florida on how to flip property and how realitors could corner the market and profit from it by buying up supply and then inflating the price. The realtors would then sell the properties to non realtors or “investors” at the inflated prices using the gimmicks that prices would never fall, Florida is running out of land and hundreds of people are moving to the Tampa Bay area daily. The majority of the so called subprime loans were the realtor investors in the Tampa Bay area and their customers. The good news is these people are stuck with their investments and toxic loans and they will pay the price for their greed. It does not matterif the Fed lowers the short term rate. These people will fail, te properties will not sell at the inflated prices and the realtors caught up in this mess will have their credit ruined and unable to get a loan to purchase property for at least 7-10 years. My personal take, the fed should not lower the short term rate and the greedy realtors should pay the price for the mess they helped create!
Amen. Let these blood suckers live in the filthy bed they made.
This brings to mind a spate of appraisals I did back 3-4 years ago for a number of people in the mortgage industry. I always took an associate so I could explain the property and give them the benefit of my 30+ years in the business.
On one occasssion we were sent to a very high end neighborhood and I had the application and saw that the owner was with Ivanhoe Financial. They were a pwerhouse group back in the day(IMploded 3 months ago) and they seemed on top of the world. This lady was the head chicky and made a ton. We walked through the house and did our thing and once outside the associate said , “my God the creams and lotions she had all over the place were super expensive.” Of course I had no idea about such things and had not even noticed.
As we got in the car I said, ” take a good look at this place cause this is the type who will leave a huge hole in the ground once this craziness is over.” I prophetically stated,” all of these people are going to go broke. I have seen it over and over again. When Realtors, mortgage brokers, appraisers and the like live lives of extrvagance, watch out. It is about over.”
That associate looked at me with astonishment. Too bad she missed it as she is also a casualty of this exuberance due to the fact that I had to lay her off.
Question for Bad Andy, Mike Fink, or Palmetto??????????????????????
I have had my eye on this house http://www.mirasolproperty.com/listing_sheet/R2791236
in Mirasol. It originally cost $773,000 and is the current asking price is $699,000 which I believe is way to much, the house is about to be foreclosed. The current mortgage rate is 10 3/8%.
There are 9 identical models (2974 square feet) for sale priced from $689,000 to $850,000 in Mirasol.
I am in no hurry to buy, do any of you at “ground zero” in Palm Beach Gardens think that if I wait 12-18 months I will be able to pick up this or a similar house for under $135 a square foot which would bring the house to around $400,000.
Thanks. Michael
Sorry, I did not see this thread until later in the day, hopefully I can still answer your question.
699K is WAY, WAY too much to pay for this home. First off, you need to go out to Mirasol to see if you like it there (assuming you have not done it yet). I hate that community, it’s too far out west; there is nothing to do without coming back to 95, and there is no ocean breeze once you get west of the TPKE (IMHO). However, some people do like it, I concede that fact.
10 3/8ths MTG note? Are you FING kidding me? How subprime to do you have to be to get a MTG rate like that? This idiot must have had a FICO in the single digits. I have an unsecured line of credit from a bank that is FAR cheaper then that (jeeze, almost 400 basis points). WTF is anyone thinking buying a home like that with a MTG note at that……. Oh my god, I just blew a stupidity fuse.
I don’t know how long you will have to wait. But, yes, I fully expect you will be able to pick up homes like this for 100-150/sq/ft after this bubble pops. Frankly, with the way things are going now, you may be able to pick it up for under that. I would not even CONSIDER spending over 400K for this home, even at that level I would be worried about possible loss.
Gawd, 200+ per sq/ft out there for a home of that size? You must be kidding me.
Sir sorry to chime in i not any of those people, but i have been in the real estate game for a good part of my life and i can assure you that you won’t be able to buy that house or any like it for 400k, the bank will board them up rather then have that kinda fire sale?
Well I know it will not sell for $699,000, how low do you think it will go. I still think it is at least 30% over valued if not more. Depending on the neighborhood in Mirasol you may have to also join the Country Club which costs another $9,0000 a year.
The bank will want to get the property off the books. REO requires much more capital than a single family loan plus they have to mark the REO to market and recognize the loss and then the REO is a non earning asset.
12 to 18 months is a long time and it all depends how bad you want this area are you a investor with a short flip in mind (not good idea btw) or a long timer at (5 yrs) or better yet you want a good deal in a nice area for a long long time? If the market doesn’t have a bounce at all in 18 months the whole country will be in not a recession but a depression, the banks will shut down good areas and developments and wait, this scenario we are in won’t see a 40 to 50% drop they can’t , the powers to be have investments in RE and their own homes they won’t risk themselves be sure of it. I feel that you should wait till you see what is happening in regards to a bad winter in the Northern states first of all, then of course watch the area when the snowbirds come down about Nov 1st and hang around to see what kinda of action is at the models.
If things continue very slow and you are in position to make a offer with a clean credit history and nice down payment or better yet cash then i would offer $545 for the $699 property some where about Dec 15th. They will most likeky concede upgrades rather then a steep discount but a strong buying position means you can make a good deal as to price and upgrades. My take , in a continue slow winter selling season in Fla this house can be yours for $575 and a some very good upgrades.
B..B..But shadow7, THIS real estate GAME is DIFFERENT, Suzzane, Flippers and the Subprime Gang…researched IT !
you heard it here first
commercial is staring to tank
wow, signs up everywhere in 22151 S of Central Soviet
I emailed Liz and asked her, “Whats the difference between a “classy realtor” and a pole dancer?”
The dancer can pay her bills…
The article about Clearwater beach Florida was very interesting. A 30 month supply of condos !
I’ve ben tracking the average condo asking price on the MLS for Clearwater Beach (33767) . In 12 months it’s dropped from $735K
to $585K, or about 20 % ! Similarly, the 25% asking price (25% asking
less) has dropped from $490K to 409K. About a 16% drop.
The amazing thing is that asking prices are still at least 25% over what few recent sales there have been. Also, asking prices are still at or ABOVE peak bubble prices from 2005. People are listing and hoping and almost nothing is selling.
Occasionally a real “bargain” comes along, like an estate sale, and it
is usually snapped up in days.
I have many other observations about Clearwater Beach if anyone is interested. However, I’ve tried to post before and nothing ever showed up on the blog, so I don’t plan to waste any more time on this post right now !
Mike, it truly unfair to make these blanket comparisons of people who do their best to promote an age old industry that is one of the lynchpins of what made this country what it is today. I, for one, will not tolerate you besmirching the names of honest poll dancers.
I see the post showed up. Hurray !
To correct, I meant MEDIAN asking price, not average.
Continuing, I leased a 1400 square foot condo on the sand at
Clearwater Beach for $800 per month in 1994. At the time, the
owner told me it was worth $120K. So 150 time monthly rent.
About right for prime real estate.
Today, that condo is selling for about $480K , yet similar, or
better condos are renting for $1200 per month. So, rent is up
by 1.5, but prices are up by a factor of 4 !
In a nutshell, anyone buying on Clearwater Beach at these prices
is a fool, especially with prices dropping like a rock.
This is really a no-brainer. The prices have to come way down.
The only question is how many years this will take.
A little update on high end properties in Naples. Most are still in denial with around a 15-20% decline from 2005. In the last three weeks the high end has just stopped… One property I am aware of in Aqualaine shores was priced to sell for 4.6 million in 05. The price has been dropped to 3.6 million and then 2.9 million which probably means they would take 2.6. That is a good decline for waterfront. The property should go for 1.5 million.
The typical Naples seller is truly an idiot. Like Pavlov’s dog they assume they can just keep raising prices. Now you hear that they are pricing to break even as if the market gives a damn about their ego and agenda.
Dime Dropped–you’re right–I apologize to the “Dancers of America”…besides, typically a dancers dog doesn’t have fleas…
This really makes me laugh. I had a conversation with a friend of mine a few weeks ago. Her and her husband are worth millions and she said why would anyone go to a jewelry store and buy some expensive watch, just to tell time. She says her Walmart Timex works just fine. They saved up cash and bought an old farmhouse 30 years ago, they remodeled over the years and put on five additions, all paid for with cash. They bought their cars with cash.