You might want to sing it note for note
Don’t worry be happy
In every life we have some trouble
When you worry you make it double
Don’t worry, be happy……
Ain’t got no place to lay your head
Somebody came and took your bed
Don’t worry, be happy
The land lord say your rent is late
He may have to litigate
Don’t worry, be happy
Look at me I am happy
Don’t worry, be happy
Don’t Worry, Be Happy — Bob Marley / Bobby McFerrin
Whether you are a renter or a homeowner, we all have our problems. Don’t worry, be happy.
Asking Price: $498,900
Income Requirement: $124,725
Downpayment Needed: $99,780
Purchase Price: $509,000
Purchase Date: 8/18/2004
Address: 20 Taquitz #38, Irvine, CA 92602
Beds: 2
Baths: 2
Sq. Ft.: 1,400
$/Sq. Ft.: $356
Lot Size: –
Type: Condominium
Style: Contemporary
Year Built: 2002
Stories: Two Levels
View(s): Mountain
Area: Northpark
County: Orange
MLS#: S501493
Status: Active
On Redfin: 34 days
From Redfin, “MISSION IMPOSSIBLE TO SELL THIS FABULOUS NEWER CONDO IN 5 DAYS! Premier Location. Very Inviting Floor Plan w/ Formal Dining Area, Gourmet Kitchen Open to Entertainers Great Room. Decorator Paint, Lighting, Designer Carpet Throughout!Private Master Retreat w/ Walk-in Closet. Close to Freeways, Irvine Marketplace, New Schools. .Voted Best Neighborhood in Irvine. .. .Fabulous Value!”
THE CAPS LOCK IS BACK, AND MISSION IMPOSSIBLE IS RIGHT.
So are the exclamation points! Yippee!!!
Why the “w/”? A “w/” saves 2 characters over typing “with.”
A gourmet kitchen, of course.
You think we would have embarrassed enough of these realtors to quit doing this.
BTW, I really like that dining room table. Do you think they would throw it in to close the deal? (They can keep that awful painting.) I have never seen pill bottles used as a centerpiece before. Have you? Great staging. That should help is sell in 5 days… Not.
.
.
Another day, another 2004 rollback. Is this making you happy?
If this seller gets their asking price, they stand to lose $40,034 assuming a 6% commission. I have to imagine when this property sells, they will be able to quit worrying and be happy…
On a personal note, I imagine all of you can look back on different periods in your life when you were relatively free of worries and very happy. I am enjoying one of those periods right now. Life is good. My family life is great, and I look forward to coming home each evening. I have no debts and any of the worries that go along with it. I enjoy my work and my other productive hobbies. I have a creative outlet on this blog and the sense of community and social contact that comes with it. What more can anyone ask of life?
And so concludes another week at the Irvine Housing Blog. Come join us next week as we continue to chronicle ‘the seventh circle of real estate hell.’
Have a great weekend. 🙂
Another sad tale from The Consumerist that I thought sounds familiar to readers on this blog…
http://consumerist.com/consumer/foreclosures/the-case-of-the-man-who-should-have-known-better-302170.php
—–
What’s in the cooler on top of the (tiny) refrigerator? Gwenyth Paltrow’s head?
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. Half a million dollars is a lot of money to pay for an average apartment.
test
It’s funny, I never thought about it but things have never been better for me also. No debt, renting a nice house, cars are paid off… it’s the good life when there aren’t continuous money worries.
Here’s something to worry about…
“Gourmet Kitchen Open to Entertainers Great Room…”
LOL…I guess the definition of “Great Room” has changed over the years. Any room can be called a Great Room now.
This isnt a bad place, but it has 200 units in the complex. Talk about sardine-can living. From every window all you see is someone elses window.
This was purchased with your typical 80/20 (100% financed) loans. My guess is that the payments have become unmanageable.
Hmm, that link doesn’t work.
Try this instead. When the gold bugs party like it’s 1999, you know things are going to get very, very bad.
What on the kitco is worrying you homebear?
We still have another $150 per square foot to fall before I would even look at a place like this. Any Realtors(tm) out there want to go make an offer for me…..my offer is $280,000. I will put down $100,000………
Nano – That price puts you in 2002 territory, which is pretty reasonable, I think, and just about what the original owner paid for it.
Little off topic for Irvinerenter.
Fed’s 50 basis point rate cut and counting on more cuts in the future, isnt the current issue Credit crunch which results from lack of interest in buying securities on falling assets and that too of a country that is in danger of recession?
If this is the case, doesnt Fed know or at least realize that interest rate cuts will actually discourage potential investments in US securities? I am already hearing about investors asking for higher rates of return on 30-year loans and 10-year securities.
Can someone shed some light into it? I think the next 30 days will show a clear picture of lack of sales and drop in security buying.
“If this is the case, doesnt Fed know or at least realize that interest rate cuts will actually discourage potential investments in US securities?”
I think they know. I also think they didn’t feel they had a choice. The credit markets have totally seized up, and the only way to grease the wheels is to inject money into the system.
Also, I think they see a recession on the horizon, and they know there is a time lag between FED action and the economy’s response, so they are trying to be proactive and head of the recession before it hits or becomes too bad.
I think their policy is going to lead to a period of stagflation, but it appears they have reasoned this is better than a depression, so they have lowered rates.
Happy ending ARM story for a change. See “Living like college students” section.
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/ManageDebt/HugeDebtsPaidOffFast.aspx?page=1
That requires frugality and sacrifice. It would never go over in California.
Question for the board, been reading for a while and love the posts, great job IrvineRenter!
What happens to the homeowner in a case like this, where, assuming they get their asking price, they are upside down ~$40k? I imagine they walk away with a loan to one of the banks for the difference, or have to take out a personal loan to cover the shortfall? Just curious.
How does that work if foreigners currently investing pull their money out because the rate of return went down? Doesn’t that reduce the money supply anyway?
I’m so confused, I have no idea what the economy’s going to do.
Fears of dollar collapse as Saudis take fright
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/09/19/bcnsaudi119.xml
Canadian Dollar Trades Equal to U.S. for First Time Since 1976
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aDBegmV7h0cU&refer=home
I hate it when I have to get up early and there are very few comments yet. Because of course one of the first things I do every day is read this blog. Can’t you all get up a little earlier for my convenience?
Anyone notice that Donald Bren, chairman of the Irvine Co. (doesn’t he own it as well?), is the richest person from OC on the Forbes list of richest Americans? He’s up to #23 overall.
Dang, out bid already. I was thinking $250K. Thanks Nano, you’re already starting the next bubble with outrageous bid-ups. 🙂
Actually, after looking a little closer, maybe only $200K. It comes with 2 common walls, $225 in HOA and $1500 in mello-roos/fees. At $200K, HOA& tax is $500/month off the top.
Nice shot of the “Gourmet Kitchen Open to Entertainers Great Room.” It’s neither. Plus, the TV and junk set-up really highlight how disfunctional is the layout. Sadly, that room would present better empty.
Lots of units for sale over there too.
Thanks for the Info IR. I see it this way:
The only way the credit crunch will ease and money flow will get better is if values of homes start to rise which will build confidence in investors. As 30-year jumbo mortgages and all these mergers and accusations are private investments and are not controlled by Fed, investors have little benefit to invest in declining economy and falling $$. I dont think adding more money into the market will add any grease as eventually the money will need to be returned back to Fed within a time period and these brokers will fail to sell it in the street to pay back Fed. This means, more US debt and brokers dumping stocks to raise cash to pay back.
Here’s the link
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2007/54/richlist07_Donald-Bren_31KV.html
What’s up with all the school portables? You’d think people who shelled out the big bucks for land to this guy could at least get the physical school building they were expecting…
Pill bottles on table…most likely empty bottles of antidepressants, anti-anxiety meds – boy, do they need them!
http://www.donald-bren.com/philanthropy.asp
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070921/bs_nm/greenspan_bubble_dc_1;_ylt=AkQ83cA97nN3Scmw4pms4KcE1vAI
I’m sure most of you have seen this comment by Greenspan that home prices will go much lower. Which is funny since his policies helped to fuel the housing bubble in the first place.
O.C.’s early Sept. home price 3.9% off peak
http://lansner.freedomblogging.com/2007/09/21/ocs-early-sept-home-price-39-off-peak/
Thanks! Great link.
That comment in Kris’ link below doesn’t make me feel any better either. If the US & European central banks couldn’t control things on the way up, how much control do they have on the way down?
From Kris link below http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070921/bs_nm/greenspan_bubble_dc_1;_ylt=AkQ83cA97nN3Scmw4pms4KcE1vAI
“There is no doubt about the fact that low interest rates for long-term government bonds have caused the real estate bubble in the United States,” he said.
“The Federal Reserve began a series of interest rate increases in 2004. We were hoping to bring the speculative excesses in the real estate sector under control. We failed. We tried it again in 2005. Failure,” he said.
“Nobody could do anything about it, neither us nor the European Central Bank. We were powerless,” he said.
When this property was purchased in 2004, it was just 2 years old. I’m wondering if since it was a newer property in 2004 (now its 5 years old), it was worth a much higher price than a comparable property 5 years old in 2004.. just a theory..
The Invasion of the Renters
Housing Slump Spurs Rentals and Complaints; Bikes on the Balcony
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119033237399734594.html?mod=hpp_us_personal_journal
Home ownership in the U.S. has declined slightly since 2004, when a record 69.2% of households owned their homes, to 68.2% in the second quarter of 2007, according to the Census Bureau. More people who stretched to buy homes have returned to the rental ranks, while others, limited by tightening credit, have delayed jumping into the ownership pool. At the same time, after years of existing apartment buildings being converted into condominiums, the trend is reversing; according to Real Capital Analytics, a New York-based research company, “reversions” — condo buildings that were turned back into rentals — outstripped condo conversions in the second quarter of 2007, the first time that has happened since the 1980s. In Baltimore, for example, there have been 1,430 reversions since January, 2006, while only 430 rental units have been converted to condos.
In another shift, builders are refocusing their energy on constructing rental properties. Michael Cohen of Boston-based Property and Portfolio Research predicts that in the 54 markets they track around the country, this year will see the largest number of new rental units on the market since 2004, while the number of new condo projects will continue to drop. “Certainly, there is going to be a migration back toward rental,” Mr. Cohen says.
The uptick in rentals is greatest where the real-estate boom was strongest: Miami, Phoenix, Las Vegas and other areas where people bought up many of the new homes and condos as investment properties.
For consumers, the increase in the number of rental units has not led to a corresponding drop in rents in most markets. That’s because demand for rental units is also growing. Nationally, rents have risen 4% in the past year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In cities such as Portland, Ore., and San Francisco, where new construction was more restrained during the boom, a flood of new renters has pushed rental prices higher.
But in areas with a glut of new buildings, such as in much of Florida, vacancies are up and rents are down. In West Palm Beach, for example, the average rent was $1,057 in June, down 5% compared to a year earlier, according to M/PF YieldStar, a research firm. Rents also dropped elsewhere in the state, and were essentially flat in other fast-growing cities such as Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Irvinerenter, I just stumbled upon a story where another guy explains why he’s renting instead of buying. Good graphic included, maybe you’ll find this interesting:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ypbfvb
Go to redfin.com and look at various areas. Some have the sales history on them. You can see on the sales history, some of the 2004 prices are close to the current asking prices…
Oops, I now notice that you probably already know that site.
Because of that other story they run:
“Irvine, CA Housing Market: Interview With Irvine Housing Blog”
http://preview.tinyurl.com/25233f
Hehe, good joob, folks!
Maybe my view on housing is not realistic but I’m having a hard time understanding why anone would take on the multiple financial obligations for the “privileage” of living in an Apt with common walls sitting in the middle of a parking lot amongst 200 other apts. Maybe it will never happen for me in CA but if I’m going to take on the financial burden of home ownership in CA it will only be for an SFH. If I can’t afford an SFH I’ll just rent a really nice APT or house. I assume I’m in the minority view here. To me buying a condo is just like renting except it costs 2x as much and if you want to move you need to go through the incredible hassle of selling it. Anyone else here feel the same way?
You may be right. The scenario you describe is exactly what the FED is trying to avoid.
If someone is upside down, i.e. more mortgage balances than the funds that will clear/accrue to them on the sale transaction, escrow is going to ask them to bring extra funds to close the deal. A seller would have to obtain some funds but wouldn’t be able to collaterize any loan with the home of course.
If the seller can’t bring the addition funds to close, the lenders will have to approve a sale at lesss than the payoff amounts on the mortgage – a short sale.
I am looking at moving down to a condo/townhouse from a SFR. I’ve owned a house for the last 25 years and I am ready to give up the yard work and maintenance. Plus the kids are all gone so who needs some big house. All I need is a couch and a flat screen TV!!
Dingdingdingding… We have an escrow sighting. Repeat, we have an escrow sighting. Looks like something something might get sold in Oak Creek:
http://www.redfin.com/stingray/do/printable-listing?listing-id=1035094
This place has been on and off MLS. I think it is one of only 4 places (2,250+ sf, bult after 1980, Irvine and Tustin) that has entered escrow in the last 3-4 weeks.
Here is a truly amazing WTF:
http://www.redfin.com/stingray/do/printable-listing?listing-id=1151041
$1.2M for a place 2,700 sf 4/2.5 that was purchased around a year ago for $900K. Yes, it’s nicely upgraded, and you will need that waterfall in the backyard to help mitigate the roar of the 405 just on the other side of your backyard wall…
Oh and one more thing. Now that we have returned to traditional lending rules I need to take money that I would otherwise invest and insert it into my house in the form a 20% down payment where its sits not earning me any money. All this for the privileage of owning an apt.
This realtor, Bryn Debeikes, is a good piece of work. She did the same Mission Impossible bit on another listing for a place I checked out last night – 29 Rhode Island in Harvard Square. Staging is definitely not her strong suit.
I notice a big drywall patch in the ceiling in the kitched, not textured or anything, probably almost 1.5 to 2 sf in size. My realtor calls and he is told it’s from a light fixture they took down – we are suspicious as there is already can lighting in the kitchen that obviously came with the home when it was built and bought back in 1997. Why would there be a fixture AND can lighting we wonder?…
Owners show up as we are leaving the place and we ask them about it. Toilet leaked overnight, flooded master bathroom, saturated ceiling drywall in kitchen, hence the need for the patch… Hum, wouldn’t such information have been pertinent to share with a potential buyer Ms. Debeikes? I suppose the little holes in the wood trim at Taquitz are probably a distressing technique, not our friends the termite.
I think the thing that bugs me the most about aptcondo living is the fact that you are part of a large community who’s members are on the other side of common walls and slightly beyond. I find the lack of privacy and noise a real turn off. One of my primary concerns with buying a condo is one day you could have nice quiet considerate neighbors and the next you could be surrounded by noisy inconsiderate people. Of course this somewhat true with an SFH. But with an SFH you don’t have common walls and you have the physical separation that an SFH affords.
agree, I thought my mattress was old as I could’nt sleep(have you been tossing and turning 🙂 , It turns out that No Debt= Good night sleep 😉 .
Just to clarify, there are not 200 units in this project, but 112.
The seller on Blackbird is going to freak out when they realize the house is actually worth less than the $700K the 2005 buyer paid. This might sell at $600K, but not at $1.2M.
Did anyone see the jobs numbers?
Construction -2400 YOY. Every sector in construction saw losses.
Finance and Insurance sector -5300 YOY.
Health Care and Social Assistance +4000 YOY. These are not doctors and I would like to know how many ambulatory services employees it would take to buy a median priced home in OC.
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services +1600 YOY. Uh this sector was supposed to be our big growth sector.
Retail is a very good economic indicator and it was down for the third straight month on a YOY basis. The last and only time that has happened was 1992. I do not care how bullish you are this is not a good sign.
Full-service restaurants were down YOY and for the month.
Overall job growth was 0.2% and with only four months left for the year it doesn’t look like we will see that awesome 1% growth so many predicted.
Unemployment grew by 17.6% YOY.
The seller has a duty to disclose such latent material defects (although this defect may be patent/easily observable).
What’s with the whole Mission Impossible mention
Why on earth would someone include that, nice self-fulfilling prophecy
Sorry, forgot to mention the pill bottle centerpiece
Nice touch, this one should go fast.
Californians not optimistic about economy, poll finds
LEVEL OF GLOOM MATCHES MOOD BACK IN 2003
http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_6957438?nclick_check=1
Economic pessimism jumped by 20 percentage points since the beginning of the year, the poll found, with 59 percent of residents saying they expected bad economic times in the coming year. Among “likely voters,” 62 percent were pessimists.
Worriers outnumbered optimists in every region of the state, every income bracket and among homeowners and renters alike. That is unlike typical responses during this stage of an economic downturn, said Mark Baldassare, PPIC president and the survey’s director.
“The anxiety is coming from the insecurity created by housing and credit market turbulence and the impact that has on homeowners and would-be homeowners,” Baldassare said.
The findings hint that there may be bumps ahead in consumer spending, just when retailers are gearing up for the holiday season.
In 2003, when PPIC reported the last steep dip in consumer confidence, the invasion of Iraq was on people’s minds. Yet homeowners dug into their equity lines and low interest rates made spending on credit easy, and the economy continued improving.
“What has people a little bit worried now is not just what their homes are worth, but what it is going to mean to borrow,” Baldassare said.
Harney: Why appraisal values exceed sale prices
http://www.mercurynews.com/realestatenews/ci_6949690
They were using the word “Mission Impossible” to copy cat recent builder advertizing of Standard Pacific’s that they did over the weekend, this Realtor is such a dum ass that he didn’t read the ad carefully, Standard Pacific actually advertized it as “mission possible”
“test”
No, I think the price is for real
There are some banks still originating loans based on their deposits. They are burning through capital, but can keep it up a while until the secondary market picks up again. The rate decrease makes this more profitable for them to do – i.e. they’ll do more of it.
Thanks for the clarification and context on the MI wording
Funny how they couldn’t even copycat it correctly.
Way to hit the target, instead they end up screwing the pooch with it
Nice!
Still pulling equity out Q2, 2007 …
Q2 Mortgage Equity Withdrawal: $140.3 Billion
http://calculatedrisk.blogspot.com/2007/09/q2-mortgage-equity-withdrawal-1403.html
Remarks of John M Reich, Director
Office of Thrift Supervision
http://www.ots.gov/docs/8/87146.pdf
What More Can Be Done?
So far, I have discussed only one of the two themes I mentioned at the beginning of my remarks: transparency. The second theme is ensuring a level playing field for all participants in the mortgage marketplace.
I have heard comments from executives at federally regulated financial institutions that a level playing field does not currently exist and I have to agree with them. Many of the abuses in home lending have come from a side of the mortgage market that is outside the reach of federal regulators, and in many cases also outside the reach of the states. Current supervisory structure provides minimal accountability—and
represents a continuing force for tipping the competitive balance in the home mortgage marketplace in favor of entities that play by less stringent sets of rules.
The activities of mortgage brokers and nonbank lenders have filled stories in the press and caught the attention of lawmakers in recent months. As noted in a recent Time magazine article on the mortgage industry, “the farther away from the prying eyes of federal bank examiners a transaction occurs, the more likely it is to cause trouble.” We have suggested to Capitol Hill that the time has come for a more structured regulatory regime to apply to these corners of the home mortgage market. We must find a way to provide that level playing field and to eliminate or significantly reduce competitive pressures to engage in practices that are misleading and otherwise not consumer friendly. CSBS is a strong advocate of uniform licensing standards and
national registration of mortgage brokers and loan originators. We support CSBS’s efforts in conjunction with the American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators to establish a national licensing system for mortgage brokers and originators.
The OTS and other federal regulators currently have tenuous authority to provide meaningful nationwide protection for mortgage originations conducted outside the entities that we regulate. Our ability to regulate activities of brokers and others in the mortgage origination process is constrained by the scope of our jurisdiction. However, Congress has the power to act to curtail abuses by requiring national registration and
oversight of mortgage brokers and loan originators that operate outside of existing federal oversight and supervision
The other area of concern has been the funding of mortgages that were poorly underwritten and/or that had predatory pricing and lending terms. Again, Congress has the ability to address funding abuses by imposing much needed oversight and accountability for mortgage banks. The OTS has extensive expertise in the oversight and supervision of mortgage banking operations that I believe would benefit the currently unregulated mortgage banking market. As I have said in the past, the OTS is not asking for expanded regulatory authority, but if Congress determined that our agency could provide the best solution, we would rise to the challenge.
More Americans Say Value Of Their Home Has Fallen
http://www.cnbc.com/id/20905126
A record 26% of U.S. homeowners say the value of their homes has fallen during the past year, above the previous peak of 24% seen in 1992, a survey released Friday showed.
Reflecting the extent of the prolonged housing slump, 21% of homeowners polled in September expect the value of their home to decline in the year ahead, up from 18% in August, according to the data from Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers.
“Overall, the data indicate no let-up in the slump in home prices,” said Richard Curtin, director of the consumer surveys, in a statement.
No happy ending yet
http://www.boston.com/business/markets/articles/2007/09/20/no_happy_ending_yet/
If you think 465 was an impressive number, and you should, here’s another one to chew on: 2.6 million.
That’s roughly the number of empty houses in America, Swanson said. It’s not the number of homes for sale. These are places where nobody’s home. That’s in the neighborhood of 3 percent of the country’s housing inventory.
“We’ve never seen numbers like that, and the Fed move doesn’t change that,” Swanson said.
It’s interesting that some of these comments are calling out the realtors for deceptive, lazy, misleading or incompetent listings. I totally agree. One of things about this site I enjoy the most is IR’s editorial comments on the hyberbole, typos, all caps and run-on exclamation points used by realtors in their listings. All of that is indicative of something — that the real estate profession has been too easy for too long and is populated by many people who have no business handling million dollar transactions. For the better part of the last ten years, you could hang out a shingle as a realtor and make six figures. I’ve been in the market as a potential buyer for 18 months now (content to wait out the market until the right property is available at the right price). We’ve looked at a lot of houses in that time and are consistently appalled by the listing agents. Every house is an “estate.” Every family room is a “great room.” Bedroooms are double-counted as offices, dens and libraries. Square footage is misleadingly described as “living area” to include the patio, excluse me, loggia. Lot sizes are misrepresented with hidden remarks about “buyer to verify.” The pictures are poor quality, taken from misleading angles and photoshopped. The listing agents know nothing about the houses, neighborhoods or school districts. And most importantly, most of the realtors are completely incompetent in the financial, legal and regulatory aspects of real estsate transactions. They only know how to cut and paste into the supplied forms but add no substantive value. It’s as if the act of submitting a poorly worded listing to the MLS entitles them to $20-50k. In what other industry could these folks get away with such blatant incompetence? Yet, they think that the market should pay them 2-3% per transaction. In addition to the housing price declines, I have two additional predictions, obvious as they may be: (1) discount brokers, including some of the online companies, will start to decimate all but the most established and professional real estate agents as people realize that the internet does 90% of the work for you anyway, and (2) the fact that housing prices have increased at a rate five times median income means that the realtor compensation model will have to adjust downward as a percentage of sales — 2-3% total (for both listing and selling agent) should be the new norm. As a result, there will be a significant number of real estate professionals leaving the industry and looking for new work as the market continues to shake out. But hey, I hear Starbucks is hiring. Or, in realtor-speak: “WOW!!!! STARBUKCS IS HIRING!!! THIS JOB WON’T LAST!!!!”
The house on Blackbird is worth a lot more because it’s closer to the 405 and thus has better freeway access.
They could park the car on the freeway side of the wall and put a rope ladder.. How convenient given how hosed the traffic lights in Irvine are.
Seriously only when the 01 and earlier buyers who didn’t HELOC to death enter the fray, you will have a true bottom.
When you buy skek, use an agent and have them share a majority of the commission with you. The cost and time for agents is mostly on the selling side… The days of them presenting listings to you and driving around with you all day long should be over. I have found they are willing to rep on the buy side for .5-1.0%, especially so if you are selling a place with them, or if you are doing a bunch of the legwork (amounts to searching web sites mostly) for them.
If the seller is offering 3% (smart ones are going to 3.5%) to the buying agent, you can get back a couple of percent to get your net purchase price down. This correction will help squeeze out slacker and incompetent agents… They’ve got to work much harder for their commissions now. The system is F’ed up but you can use it to your advantage if you get creative.
Thanks ipoplaya — my thoughts exactly. My agent is doing it for 1% and refunding me the rest.
The rate environment will not help sell this home in 5 days. Maybe they will throw in the pain killers on the table for the new buyers?
The FED cut and rates are higher?
http://thegreatlonblog.blogspot.com
S&P/Case-Shiller® Los Angeles Home Price Index
http://www.macromarkets.com/csi_housing/MSA/los_angeles.asp
Hey IR, sounds like your repeating my comments. Congratulations on coming around. Just two weeks ago you were positive the Fed wouldn’y cut rates!
The money that went pouring into equities during this rate cut rally came out of bonds. Money out of bonds means higher yields. Higher yields mean higher mortgage rates…
We need more economic pessimism and flight to quality by investors (i.e. buying in bonds) to drive mortgage rates down. I think the greasing of the wheels a bit in the credit market as a result of the rate cut has enabled jumbo rates to come down a smidge though.
Back in 2005, my wife and I bought our first condo. We live in the Central Coast of California, in San Luis Obispo…
Then, this April, we bought a new house with more room and a yard. We bought it 100% financing zero-down, but FIXED, but also no-doc. (I also was able to get a no-doc loan for my sister’s condo, bringing my mortgage total to $1.4M. Let’s just say, I do ok, but that’s INSANE.)
Just one house might set you back $1.4M total of payments easily. He really must owe about $2.8M, but we’ll humor him and nod our heads. Just where in the central coast can you buy two condos and a house for that much total debt? I think he is not adding the total of payments.
A bona fide death watch…5 days? Who is bringing marshmallows?
I didn’t think they would, and I still don’t agree with their reasoning.
Miami Condos Go For A Song At Auction
http://cbs4.com/topstories/local_story_264095336.html
When it was all over, Pham walked away with a two bedroom unit on the 19th floor. To put the price in perspective, a one bedroom priced at $350,000 sold on average at auction for $176,000, almost half.
A two bedroom unit that sold for about $600,000 last year, sold on average for $295,000.
Greenspan Nailed in Interview w/ John Stewart
http://thegreatloanblog.blogspot.com
I could afford $200k-guess that’s why I’ll never live in Irvine. Maybe I could find a cheap place inland in a few years….
I suspect that was the strategy back in the Nixon/Ford days, leaving that little stagflation AND oil crunch turd for Jimmy Carter. Remember when we were OUTRAGED at $1.00 a gallon gas?
Hey, it’s the Irvine Housing Blog. Pacific time, doncha know.
of course, most houses are pretty close together too. I’ve heard from people in 2-unit townhomes (big duplexes) that they’re much more aware of the neighbors across from their side windows than the ones on the other side of the party wall. Of course, it depends how the pary wall is constructed – traditionally in row houses it was a masonry firewall.
condos are good options for people who want to be able to modify the dwelling and/or want to be protected from rent increases (important for fixed-income folks). My beef is that the HOA fees are often outrageous – also a problem with sfs. also I get tired of lawn-nazi HOAs – here some HOAs have such a bad rap that realtors steer people away.
I went to the linked blog and read the lawyer’s sad personal story.
No excuse for the guy.
He absolutely should have known better, and he can’t blame his broker.
I have not spent quite as many years warming seats in college classrooms as this attorney and I knew better, and you did, too.
We live within our means. I knew I could not afford the places that had doubled in 2 years and should have been in my range and weren’t, and I knew I wasn’t ‘entitled’ to them. I also knew I could not settle for what WAS in my range at bubble prices.
So I’ve sat it out, awaiting the end of this insanity.
This guy’s plea is that, even though he is an attorney, he can’t be equally expert in all areas. Well and good. However, no one, but no one, should let a salesman dictate such a major financial decision, and anyone knows that gains are not guaranteed in any market.
I see whiners and crybabies just like this guy in my stock brokerage firm, and people like him are the reason I no longer practice as a stocbroker or financial advisor, but perform a support function instead. These folks are geniuses on the way up, and when they are hot to get on the latest financial fad, advice to be cautious falls on deaf ears. They’re big boys, they tell you, they can make their own decisions. They are, of course, very smug about their investment abilities when the market moves in their direction.
But when the stock you told them to sell tanks when they are up to their eyeballs on margin, they blame YOU because you didn’t make them sell.