Today’s Dazed And Confused Borrowers
The Santa Fe New Mexican. “When my wife and I sold our Santa Fe townhouse in 2006 and moved to Austria to spend some time with her family, we didn’t think we’d be able to afford to live in Santa Fe again. The price of housing was just too high for us. Then, in November 2007, we took a peek at the SFAR Web site. Bingo! There were 93 residential listings for less than $300,000. Granted, many of those were gussied-up apartments — er, I mean ‘luxury condos’ — but there were several really nice looking homes.”
“So, what’s happened to the Santa Fe housing market that allows two cheapskates like us to buy a house in the city we love with a mortgage under $800 per month — and still have money left in our savings?”
“‘Santa Fe is such an isolated place that it took a while for the housing troubles in places like California and Texas to trickle down to us. But it did, and our market dropped,’ said our Realtor, Christine Wiltshire.”
“Overall, home sales in the city declined 36 percent over last year, according to the Santa Fe Association of Realtors 2007 Fourth Quarter Market Report. The median house price fell $25,000 to $350,000. The median price in southwest Santa Fe (the most affordable section of the city) dropped to $284,000.”
“And nowhere are Santa Fe’s market woes (and opportunities) more apparent than in the under-$300,000 range. Sales have fallen in this category 42 percent over last year, resulting in a glut of lower-priced homes. ‘The demand is not there, because buyers in that price range are not qualifying,’ Wiltshire said.”
“According to Bob Chernock of Santa Fe Realty Partners, marginally qualified borrowers who mortgaged their homes with money from subprime lenders are now struggling to keep those homes.”
“‘The sound of keys dropping on tables is astounding,’ Chernock said.”
“People in some areas of Santa Fe, who bought their homes two or three years ago have lost 25 percent of their value, but now I think the values are pretty firm,’ Chernock said.”
The Arizona Republic. “Paul Joray and his wife listed their house in Maricopa for sale in December for less than they paid for it in 2006. The couple, retired university administrators, bought a $719,000 house in Chandler’s Ocotillo Lakes in January to be closer to their daughters.”
“‘We bought there because we knew this is the time to buy, but it’s not a terrific time to sell,’ Joray said.”
“They listed their Maricopa house for $359,000, despite spending about $20,000 in landscaping. ‘I guess I’m bummed because I’d like to sell my house for what I paid for it,’ Joray said.”
“But the town’s median home value dropped 19.8 percent in 2007 compared with a year ago, according to Information Market. ‘I’m an economist so we understood that it’s a great market to buy a house but not a great market to sell a house. We’ve sort of resigned ourselves to this,’ he said.”
“Drew Hackney, who lives in Ahwatukee, buys homes and remodels them to ‘flip,’ or resell them for a profit. Hackney recently bought a 3,500-square-foot home in Ahwatukee for $950,000 and spent $150,000 to renovate it.”
“Hackney, who recently appeared on an episode of TLC’s Flip That House, initially listed the home at $1.45 million. But after three months of not selling, he dropped the price to $1.385 million.”
“‘I know I’m setting a new market precedent,’ he said, adding that he ignored ‘comps’ because the house is unlike others in the area. It’s a gamble. The house is in the 85044 ZIP code, which saw the median home value fall by 6 percent in 2007 compared with a year ago.”
“Buyers like Dan and Joey Bolster like the decline. The couple recently bought a 2,500-square-foot home in southeastern Gilbert for $283,000 that had been foreclosed on by the bank.”
“‘One man’s pain is another man’s pleasure,’ Dan said. ‘This house that we are buying, it’s like we skipped that whole first-home step and moved to the whole nice big old mamma jamma. We were able to jump five years ahead. I don’t care if it drops (in value). I won’t lose a wink.’”
“Bolster said he and his wife have friends who say they are ‘upside down’ in their house, meaning they owe more than it’s worth. ‘I want to tell them they should have rented or leased or just hung out for a while,’ he said. ‘It was just common sense that (values) were going to decline.’”
“While shopping for a new home, Bolster said he and his wife found several houses they wanted but that other buyers had already bid on. ‘Right about now, we thought we should do something,’ he said. ‘I had a feeling that this thing (downturn) isn’t going to last.’”
“Quick-flip deals on new homes are long gone. It’s the Valley’s growing number of foreclosures that has caught investors’ attention now. Last month, Ray and Elaine Balderas bought two foreclosed homes in south Phoenix. The couple paid about $100,000 each.”
“‘If you buy a home for $100,000 in the Valley, you can make money on it,’ said Elaine, who used an equity line of credit off the couple’s Laveen home to buy the properties.”
“The Balderases know investing is tricky because they have lost money on it before. The couple paid $199,000 for a south Phoenix property in 2007, put $50,000 into renovating it and sold it for only $203,000 in January.”
“‘The main thing about investing now is to not buy expensive homes because there aren’t as many buyers for them,’ said Elaine, who teaches and works as a cosmetologist.”
“Margie O’Campo de Castillo of Arizona Dream Realty said homes priced below $200,000 are selling much faster now than higher priced houses: ‘Foreclosure properties can be a good investment, as long as there aren’t too many of them in one neighborhood.’”
“Last month, 2,250 homes in the Valley were foreclosed on. That is 200 more than in January. A year ago, there were only 365 foreclosures in metro Phoenix. New-home communities in the West Valley that led the local housing boom for sales are now plagued with the Valley’s highest foreclosure rates.”
“Eight of metro Phoenix’s top 10 areas for foreclosure rates are on the Valley’s west side, according to an Arizona Republic analysis of data for the past 13 months from the Information Market. Tolleson topped the list.”
“‘The West Valley communities had some of the most affordable new homes during big price run-ups of ‘04 and ‘05,’ said Jay Butler, at Arizona State University Polytechnic. ‘But still, a lot of buyers in those suburbs had to stretch to buy during the boom, and many ended up with subprime loans.’”
“Data released by the Mortgage Bankers Association of America last week show the number of Arizona homeowners behind on subprime-mortgage payments hit 16.2 percent at the end of 2007, which is an almost 3-percentage-point increase in three months.”
“Margie O’Campo De Castillo of Arizona Dream Realty said there are neighborhoods in newer West Valley suburbs where there are multiple foreclosures on one street.”
“‘There are new homes in the West Valley bought by investors that were never even lived in and are now in foreclosure,’ she said. ‘It’s very sad and so hard on the homeowners in those areas trying to hold on.’”
The Review Journal from Nevada. “An increasing number of renters in Las Vegas (are) caught up in the foreclosure mess. They’re losing security deposits and rent money because, unbeknownst to them, landlords failed to make mortgage payments and the homes have entered foreclosure.”
“Nevada led the nation last year, RealtyTrac reported. The state had 66,316 foreclosures, a 215 percent increase from 2006.”
“Clark County had the top seven foreclosure ZIP codes in the country. ZIP code 89131 in northwest Las Vegas, led with 627 foreclosed homes sold last year, Las Vegas-based SalesTraq reported. The median price was $333,000. ZIP code 89031 in North Las Vegas had 502 foreclosure sales at a median of $240,166.”
“The situation is not improving. Foreclosures account for a growing percentage of home sales in Las Vegas. Nearly 40 percent of the 983 existing home sales in January were bank-owned properties, Patty Kelley of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors said.”
“Jenell and Christopher Chow were renting a four-bedroom home in North Las Vegas from an unlicensed business that advertised ‘rent to own’ homes. They had plunked down $5,200 and were paying close to $1,900 a month on a two-year lease option.”
“One November evening, after just six months of living in the house, the Chows got a knock on the door. It was someone from the constable’s office serving a five-day eviction notice to Scott McCabe and occupants. McCabe had rented them the house.”
“‘We were kind of baffled,’ Christopher Chow said. ‘Why were we getting an eviction notice in his name? We called him and he said, ‘You’re out of luck. You’ve got to talk to the owner.’ ‘We thought you were the owner. What about the payments I’ve been sending you?’ ‘If you have any problem, talk to the owner.’”
“About half of the 22,000 homes for sale in Las Vegas are sitting empty, most of them purchased by investors during the boom years of 2004 and 2005. Now that home values have dropped and adjustable-rate mortgages have reset, the owners can’t afford the mortgage, can’t sell the house and can’t refinance.”
“Homes are being rented for $1,000 to $1,200 a month, undercutting the apartment market and driving vacancy rates to 9 percent.”
“‘You’ve just got a situation perfect for the landlord to milk out every rental payment and at the same time not make mortgage payments until the bank forecloses,’ said real estate attorney Charles Clawson. ‘It’s not the mortgage company’s fault. They have a right to their collateral. It’s just a tough situation for the renter if they haven’t protected themselves by having a real estate record search.’”
“Mortgage fraud and associated predatory lending practices have become the focus of criminal investigations in Las Vegas, which is quickly emerging as the mortgage fraud capital of America.”
“‘The FBI has come to Las Vegas in droves,’ said Debra March, director of the Lied Institute for Real Estate Studies at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. ‘I’ve never seen this many FBI people here.’”
“‘I think this is only the tip of the iceberg, not just in Las Vegas but all around the country,’ FBI special agent Scott Hunter said in February on National Public Radio. ‘One of the local detectives I work with said he used to get a complaint a month. Now they get several a day.’”
“Many are at fault in predatory lending, said Cory Frey, senior loan officer for Southern Fidelity Mortgage in Las Vegas. There’s the mortgage bank that employed the originator to place a certain loan with a borrower, a loan that was ‘doomed should the market miss one step, let alone trip and fall on its face as it just did,’ he said.”
“There’s the borrower playing the market who had to buy, despite his or her ability to pay back the obligation, just so they could realize a future return. And there’s the loan officer who, with no hesitation, would do anything to make a buck and not explain certain parameters, Frey said.”
“‘Much of what I encounter among today’s dazed and confused borrowers is that many were simply not aware or did not understand their loan’s features, such as negative amortization or its adjustable terms,’ Frey said. ‘Somewhere along the line…these borrowers were either not explained or did not care to understand the exact features relating to their loan’s low payment.’”
The Deseret News from Utah. “Utah’s high-end housing market is out of balance, with simply too many houses for sale that are priced $500,000 and above, local economists and real estate analysts say.”
“Along the Wasatch Front, more than 1,500 homes priced over $500,000 are currently for sale, according to the MLS.”
“About 36 percent of new single-family homes for sale in the greater Salt Lake area were listed at $400,000 and above in the fourth quarter of 2007, and 22 percent are priced $500,000 or more, according to Metrostudy. In 2003, just 7 percent of the local housing inventory was priced $400,000 or more.”
“‘With the upper-end market, here’s the glut of inventory,’ said Jason Eldredge, executive VP of sales for a Salt Lake-based real estate research firm. ‘If you’re a buyer, you love to hear this, but if you’re builder, you’ll hate it.’”
“‘The exacerbation of the whole issue was that builders were building to these $450,000 price points on average, and buyers were affording it,’ said Curtis Dowdle, executive officer with the Salt Lake Home Builders Association. ‘Then all of a sudden, we have the subprime meltdown and those loans ceased, and affordability became a real issue.’”
“In Salt Lake County, from the fourth quarter of 2006 to the fourth quarter of 2007, the total number of new homes priced over $430,000 jumped 217 percent, according to NewReach. The number of new homes priced $500,000 or more increased 244 percent.”
“Utah County saw a 449 percent jump in new homes over $430,000 and a 400 percent increase in new homes over $500,000. Weber County had a whopping 1,500 percent hike in new homes priced greater than $430,000 and 225 percent in new houses more than $500,000.”
“In Davis County during the same period, the number of new homes above $430,000 climbed 725 percent, and those above $500,000 jumped 925 percent.”
“The absorption of speculator homes will likely begin to occur soon, because investors will seek to avoid paying ongoing carrying costs as they sit on their unsold properties, Dowdle said.”
“‘There’s going to be some adjustment in pricing,’ he said. ‘There is no magic formula. A builder has to make monthly payments on every house they own, and that’s no fun for anybody.’”
“Matt Ure, co-owner of Lake City Custom Homes in Herriman, currently has five finished houses ranging in price from $500,000 to $1.5 million that are currently unsold. Ure said most builders like himself have already cut prices as much as they can without falling in the red. ‘I have already lowered many of my homes almost $100,000 since last summer,’ he said.”
“But if someone were to offer him $520,000 for a $700,000 house that he’s listing for $600,000, he says he would rather bide his time. ‘I’ll say, ‘No,’ because I can wait, maybe rent it to cover some of the costs, then sell it for what it’s worth when the market is comfortable again,’ he said.”
The Spectrum from Utah. “From a five-year period, land value has increased considerably in St. George. Since 2002, price appreciation has increased 77.85 percent, according to the OFHEO report.”
“‘You have to keep these things in perspective,’ said Carol Sapp, executive officer for Southern Utah Homebuilders Association. She said the five-year appreciation rates give residents a better idea of their home’s values.”
“Sapp said northern Utah is about a year behind Washington County in terms of the market. ‘I don’t have a crystal ball, but I would expect the Wasatch Front to drop off a bit,’ she said.”
“Michael Dinsmore, of Encore Mortgage, said while 2005 is long gone, both buyers and sellers are seeing more realistic prices for homes in Washington County. ‘In 2005, the value of properties was less than the selling price,’ Dinsmore said. ‘Now, the housing is where it’s supposed to be.’”
Looks like we are in a serious knife-catching phase in this bubble.
‘For condos and townhomes, the median sales price fell to $150,000 in February, a 7.4 percent decline from the previous month and 26.5 percent decline from a year ago. Bargains abound with some homes selling for less than what it would cost to build them today, Kelley said.’
‘Foreclosure properties present a great buying opportunity, Kelley said, but buyers can’t expect similar prices for all homes. ‘We get calls from all over the country because everyone wants to know what’s going on in Las Vegas,’ she said. ‘Everybody wants to come here.’
What’s the sound of one knife falling?
PLOP.
As the bloodied severed hand hits the floor.
There’s knife catchers all over America. Some of them don’t even care if prices drop more, they delude themselves into saying they can afford it and don’t plan to relocate again.
The idea that Utah County (Provo and environs for the uninitiated) should have more than a handful of $500K homes is just crazy. The transient families make about 1/2 of what they did before they moved away from California. The ones that have been there longer have no income and about 7 kids each on average. It boggles the mind that the builders thought that places like Provo-stan could support more than a few dozen such properties.
Provo-stan - good one!
Utah’s not doing too well these days. As I posted elsewhere, my landlady sent me a letter yesterday telling me she’s in bankruptcy. She’s working 7 days a week and still can’t pay her bills. She assures me the house is safe and I can continue renting (it’s her only house, she’s renting in Colorado). The house is for sale, one showing in the 5 + months I’ve been here. It’s overpriced by 40 to 50% at 150k. Ouch.
That house is “safe” only if she signs a reaffirmation agreement with the lender and she continue making the payments as called for in said agreement assuming of course that she does not own the place outright. This also assumes that she has equity in the property that is within the exemption allowed by UT law. She may not be allowed to claim a homestead exemption since she is (obviously) not using your place as her principal residence. If the trustee in your landlady’s BK sees that there is some chance of getting money form the sale to distribute among her creditors, the trustee can sell the place if no honmestead exemption exists. Your landlord’s case is even trickier if the case was filed in CO and the property is located in UT. She may have no homestead exemption to claim under CO law if the property is (a) out of state and (b) not used by her as a residence.
More than a few alarm bells are going off in my mind, Lost, and I do a fair amount of work in this area for my day job albeit not in your state. Be careful about relying on a letter that simply says “all is well”. You might want to rent out a local attorney for an hour who has some knowledge of current BK (quite a bit changed in 2005) and how her case affects your status.
Hey, thanks a LOT - good stuff to know. I don’t have a lease or even a deposit, and now I know why she was so anxious to have me (and my pets) - she’s in dire straights. No attorneys here, but even if it went to the bank, they’d probably let me stay, as there’s no market here for renters or buyers, none. But, I’m thinking of going back to Colorado for the summer anyway. Thanks again for the heads up, very much appreciated. This blog is unbelievable for the quality of information and posters.
No problem; you’re welcome. I’ve learned a lot more from the posters here than I have contributed so it’s a way of paying it forward. Here’s another thought if you can’t get someone to look at this: You might want to contact the trustee who oversees her case and tell him/her that you’d like to stay. While that won’t necessarily guarantee that you can continue there, especially if the trustee has to sell off the place, but if nothing else the trustee could keep you apprised of what is going on in the case so you won’t have to rely exclusively on what your landlady chooses to tell you.
If the bank forecloses, you can live rent free for several months. How big is that house? Is it in a rural area? If so, it should be as cheap as NW PA
I lived in Utah for over a decade. I would move back to Salt Lake in a heartbeat if I could even half of what I’m making in LA. People on the coasts have no idea of how ridiculously low salaries are in places like Provo. Houses in Utah are absurd now. I talked my folks out of selling their huge and mostly empty, but paid off suburban house for something smaller and tonier in a resort area consistent with the “empty nest” syndrome. Not to brag, but this might have saved their retirement. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of reminding them of this.
1. A builder has to make monthly payments on every house they own, and that’s no fun for anybody.
…except for us bitter renters who are throwing cash in the trash as we wait on the sidelines and sit on the fence, observing the trainwreck.
2. Is it just me, or is going from a $359K house to a $719K house pretty steep for a trade-up? Especially for a pair of empty nesters who should paying off their mortgage instead of taking on a new one?
3. And seriously, what is it with all these F.Borrowers and F.Bulders (and 5-year teaser-freezer politicians who shall remain nameless) who think the “market is going to get comfortable again?” This market sucked up 5 years of future demand. That means: no significant buying for at least 5 years — and that’s with loose lending standards, not a credit crunch, recession and job losses! It could be 15-20 years before we see 2005 prices again, if that. And I predict these McTyvek subdivisions themselves will fall down before then.
“Drew Hackney, who lives in Ahwatukee, buys homes and remodels them to ‘flip,’ or resell them for a profit. Hackney recently bought a 3,500-square-foot home in Ahwatukee for $950,000 and spent $150,000 to renovate it.”
That’s 85044, the zip code of my Arizona address. Egad! Over $1.2 million for 3500 s.f. My rent on 1,000 S.F. is $1003 per month. My rent in Baltimore is $1,480 per month on 650 s.f. I’m getting a very good tax deal (mucho better than a mortgage interest deduction) on working on the east coast and maintaining my residence out in 85044. It’s far more worth it and I don’t have to worry about maintenance.
I feel well off by not being in a “stuck”-o box.
The couple, retired university administrators, bought a $719,000 house in Chandler’s Ocotillo Lakes in January to be closer to their daughters.”
“‘We bought there because we knew this is the time to buy, but it’s not a terrific time to sell,’ Joray said.”
Bwah ha ha, chortle chortle, snort, guffaw, spit popcorn and cashews, coffee through nose spray, ha.
I liked ‘I’m an economist so we understood that it’s a great market to buy a house but not a great market to sell a house’ even better.
Me to, my dear g/f’s husband is an economist and up until lately he thought his finances were in order. I remember when he said “his neighborhood” was different and that the investment properties he bought in Ft Pierce and Lauderdale by the Sea were safe bets. Now he is stressed and worried that his “investments” are not doing so well and asked his wife to cut out the dance lessons she was enjoying.
He got nailed with 50,000 worth of assessments and is underwater on all three of his homes, total mortgages over 1 million.
67 years old, going to half pay next month as part of his company retirement agreement he made for himself.
I feel sorry for his wife, they are really in trouble, she is looking for work for the first time in over 20 years.
Like cutting those dance lessons are going to help him.
“Now he is stressed and worried that his “investments” are not doing so well and asked his wife to cut out the dance lessons she was enjoying.”
Another one of the side effects that we long ago predicted. The stress this would put on families will be amazing. I would not ask my wife to cut out her dance lessons while I held on to “investments” without sleeping with one eye open. That wife should chop his balls off and feed them to the neighbor’s Dachsund. Maybe then he would learn his lesson.
I like your anger
That wife should chop his balls off and feed them to the neighbor’s Dachsund.
That’s a huge mess to clean up and potentially bad for the Dachsund.
No, the correct solution is find a guy who will work nights to pay for the dance lessons except for the nights he coming to take them with you.
Mr. Economist can then sleep with his “investments”. If she works it right, she can get alimony, too.
She should go ahead and castrate(cut balls) him. He won’t be spreading his genes anymore
too late… he’s 67… probably has grandkids
I would keep those dancing lessons. lol.
This guy agreed to half pay/half retirement?
If he can just let go of his pay, he can let go of his ‘investment vehicles’.
Yeah, he worked at IU, apparently.
Your tax dollars at work employing Grade A morons!
I just had to smack myself on the forehead. I can’t believe people waited out the market because they thought prices were too high. Yet, in less than nine month of prices minimally declining they’re willing to rush out and purchase a house because they believe they’re getting the deal of a lifetime. Why the rush? And, why make dumbarse statements that they don’t care about the price decline because they love their new residence? I prefer having (declining) $ in my pocket and mobility than being stuck with an asset that would be difficult to dispose of in this market, should I have an emergency. But I’m bipolar so it could just be the irrational side of me thinking out loud.
‘why make dumbarse statements that they don’t care about the price decline because they love their new residence?’
Well, but then he says this:
‘Right about now, we thought we should do something,’ he said. ‘I had a feeling that this thing (downturn) isn’t going to last.’
He’s speculating pure and simple. No matter how much he goes on about not caring if prices fall, he plainly expects the opposite.
“People in some areas of Santa Fe, who bought their homes two or three years ago have lost 25 percent of their value, but now I think the values are pretty firm,’ Chernock said.”
As “firm” as quicksand?
“While shopping for a new home, Bolster said he and his wife found several houses they wanted but that other buyers had already bid on. ‘Right about now, we thought we should do something,’ he said. ‘I had a feeling that this thing (downturn) isn’t going to last.’”
That feeling to be followed in a few years by sharp pain as the downturn continues?
“Feelings” are so much so comforting than mathematics.
OT…Jingle..Are you out there ?? I would like to chat with you via email…If you are interested, advise Ben and he may be able to help us swap email address…
“Paul Joray and his wife listed their house in Maricopa for sale in December for less than they paid for it in 2006.
“They listed their Maricopa house for $359,000, despite spending about $20,000 in landscaping. ‘I guess I’m bummed because I’d like to sell my house for what I paid for it,’ Joray said.”
‘I’m an economist so we understood that it’s a great market to buy a house but not a great market to sell a house. We’ve sort of resigned ourselves to this,’ he said.”
——————————————
University administrator/economist bought at the peak of the bubble, and despite the loss is moving up big time buying a 2x more expensive house.
Is ‘overpaid idiot’ too harsh?
Your anger needs work.
So does mine. It’s a total welfare queen.
‘I’m an economist so we understood that it’s a great market to buy a house but not a great market to sell a house. We’ve sort of resigned ourselves to this,’ he said.”
In my spare time I study proctology, so I know an a$$hole when I see one. And you, buddy, are a really big a$$hole. I’ve resigned myself to this.
LMAO.
“Hackney, who recently appeared on an episode of TLC’s Flip That House, initially listed the home at $1.45 million. But after three months of not selling, he dropped the price to $1.385 million.”
“‘I know I’m setting a new market precedent,’ he said, adding that he ignored ‘comps’ because the house is unlike others in the area.
hahahahahahaha…too funny!
No need for him to worry. I’m sure that the 4.5% drop in asking price will do the trick.
I saw that episode of Flip That House with the Hankney’s….best comedy show on tv. They thought high end homes wouldn’t be affected by the downturn. They take pride in “Hackney Up” a property “upgrading enough to make a house unique in the community” Their DAUGHTER ,a realtywhore, did the appraisal and came up with the listing price of 1.4 Mil.
…What a family of dips**ts!!
Today’s Dazed And Confused Borrowers…
It’s been a month since I checked in to see what condition my condition was in, and now i’m properly dazed and confused about it.
Lad, it’s all conditional, so not to worry, unless you’ve been conditioned to.
I hear you. I’ve been dazed and confused, w-ohhhh baby, for so long.
“Utah County saw a 449 percent jump in new homes over $430,000 and a 400 percent increase in new homes over $500,000. Weber County had a whopping 1,500 percent hike in new homes priced greater than $430,000 and 225 percent in new houses more than $500,000.”
Utah home prices held up reasonably well in the early 1990s compared to CA. It’s different this time — a hard landing is on the way, as easy money has dried up, and the building glut is much worse. There are no more new California flippers, who are dealing with their own underwater loan issues. The credit crunch coupled with a reversion to historical lending standards (the kind that require a reasonable hope for loan repayment) have tethered future home sales prices to household incomes. There are not enough high income households living along the Wasatch front to keep luxury home market values propped up at unaffordable price levels.
I love the huge boxes sitting on the ridges above Salt Lake - supposedly high prestige places that look like they’re going to slide down the hill - and they will, when the big one hits. Geologists say that the Salt Lake region has major earthquakes every 300 or so years and the last one was 600 years ago…
If earthquakes don’t get these, fire will eventually suffice.
Read a great book last month…
Ghosts of Vesuvius, by Charles Pellegrino
It’s a tour de force, a volcano of a book.
We went to the Pompeii exhibit at the SD Natural History museum last month — highly recommended! Will have to add the Pellegrino book to my future reading list.
Peter Schiff says we crash tomorrow:
http://www.europac.net/Schiff-FBN-3-14-08_lg.asp
Had to add this from another poster to this. PeterSchiff is one right On dude.He didn’t parse words re: Bush and the economy.
Thanks to original poster for the link.
Did he say the U.S. economy / stock market will crash on March 17? Or did he mean that over the period of the rest of this year the U.S. economy will crash? I listened to him on Cavuto’s show and also on this video replay and did not hear the date of the crash. I do think he’s right though.
“you have a bullseye on your back”
“Bernanke is shooting at you”
Wow, Peter Shiff has taken off the gloves.
Spook
Cavuto is a dick.
Fox Business News or, as the anchor calls it, FBN. A propos.
“‘The sound of keys dropping on tables is astounding,’ Chernock said.”
Jingle Key Rock
“‘Santa Fe is such an isolated place that it took a while for the housing troubles in places like California and Texas to trickle down to us.
Ho ho ho. Trouble in Texas? Someone didn’t give this person the memo. There is no bubble in Texas.
Double double, oil and bubble. Inflation burns, housing’s in trouble.
I love Santa Fe and I saw this coming from a mile away. Wonder what all those “artistic” types will be doing after they’re foreclosed on? Gets cold down at the Plaza come October and there are already too many people selling twisted welding rod Kokopelli’s to make a living off of it. Oooh, ooohh, maybe one of those hip shiatsu spas will be hiring cleaning help!
Yep, and probably off 25% already and the keys are hitting the table. Not very different.
I had no idea that market was cratering. I will be all over it.
Would be interesting to know if tourism is down there - any feet on the street reports?
I was there in November. Seemed pretty packed to me on the weekend in the plaza, but I don’t have any reference point. This was a last second deal for us, and the one hotel near the plaza we stayed at gave us a discount for about 50 bucks off the usual price. So not sure if that’s just because they wanted to be “full” (and I think they were close to it), or if they were desperate for dough.
It was an anniversary trip so we ate at the Inn of the Anasazi restaurant–we called last second and they told us that we could only eat at 6 pm or 8. So we got there at 6 and there was no one there. At 730 when we left there were about 8 tables full. Maybe short staffed?
As quickly as things are changing, I wouldn’t be surprised if things are much different now.
This probably should be on tripadvisor rather than Ben’s blog, but I’d like to give Lost in Utah what he wants…
I don’t think the “dazed and confused” people realize that the buyers are gone.
They just aren’t making the funny money loans like they used to. The sellers are competing for people with large down payments or enough cash to purchase without a loan, at that, only those who’ve decided that prices won’t crash much more. The make-up-an income, teaser rate, 100%ers are gone.
According to Bob Chernock of Santa Fe Realty Partners, marginally qualified borrowers who mortgaged their homes with money from subprime lenders are now struggling to keep those homes.
“The sound of keys dropping on tables is astounding,” Chernock said.
Actually the sound of keys dropping is the melody to the top-ten hit:
“I’m semi successful and I DESERVE to live in Santa Fe with the other pretend rich folk” sung by Johnny Jackelope and the 30K Millionaire Band.
Been dazed and confused
for so long, its not true,
Wanted a condo,
never bargained for you.
(I need a little help)
Lots of people talk and few of them know,
Soul of a real-estater was created below.
They hurt and abuse tellin’ all of their lies.
Run around sweet baby, Lord how they hypnotize.
Take it easy baby, let them sign what they will
Helocs and refi’s will send them down hill.
““Matt Ure, co-owner of Lake City Custom Homes in Herriman, currently has five finished houses ranging in price from $500,000 to $1.5 million that are currently unsold. Ure said most builders like himself have already cut prices as much as they can without falling in the red. ‘I have already lowered many of my homes almost $100,000 since last summer,’ he said.””
He is going to have to walk away from the rest of the houses. Then the bank will sell it far cheaper.
Jingle Mail?
Forget that! Its so 2007.
For 2008, let’s try a little reverse financial engineering: Squatting in $3 million dollar waterfront mansion in Florida and paying nothing
http://bigpicture.typepad.com/comments/2008/03/foreclosure-pro.html