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Ok..Ok...I can see that for the areas that are oversaturated with condos. But those areas are the exception rather than the rule. SM

Hey, an honest bear! I like the "want it to crash" comment. In my neck of the woods, it is the upper end houses that are feeling the pinch. As it gets harder to buy a house because interest rates are rising, more folks settle for smaller houses. Also, at the same time, rents rise, which also...

Yes, but many of them are waiting, because the longer they wait, the more they will save toward the refinancing cost. Its rational behavior, but most just look at the number of ARMS on the bank's balance sheet and think it will lead to some kind of disaster. If I did have an ARM right now...

LOL. Gated community? Why on earth would I want to share my estate with others? :) If your Fico is that high, then you're doing something wrong. Turn that couple of million into 10 million by borrowing money while its cheap and letting it work for you... SM

The part where people advertise to sell loan products for profit or the part where folks who have made mistakes or had bad things happen to them get a second chance? :) In the 1970's, my folks literally fled to Florida because my Dad had a trucking company that went belly up. A major factor in...

I agree with you. Everyone wants alot of things, a boat, a big car, etc., but they shouldn't buy it if they can't afford it or they don't understand the potential pitfalls of their purchase contract. And if they lose their ass, they shouldn't expect a bail out. The way to live the *BIG*...

A $1600 on a $170,000 house isn't too bad if his insurance and taxes are escrowed into the payement. With good credit, in my neck of the woods, the payment would probably be $1400 including taxes and insurance on a 30 year fixed note. WTF is a guy making $500 a week buying a $170,000 house...

Eventually...thats another way to think of the mechanism they use to slow the economy. This implies that right now, they think there is just enough money out there circulating. Interesting...

Yeah, and they don't cound certain investments as savings. Most folks I know keep only enough money in the bank to tide them over until they could sell investments in times of emergency. Is the typical savings account even keeping up with inflation? SM

BGP, This could go on forever. Since you're a friend, I'm willing to give you a discount on the amount that you should can me to take your house off your hands. Just throw out a reasonable offer and we can dicker from there. :) SM

This is just another example of "the man" trying to keep the little guy down. Seriously, both of them depreciate in REAL terms. But when you compare the structures, the mobile homes depreciate faster than inflation can offset it. SM

Excerpt from an article on today's Fed Statement: In its statement explaining its actions, the Fed said, "Recent indicators have suggested somewhat firmer economic growth and some tentative signs of stabilization have appeared in the housing market." SM

Heh. I try to read between the lines and filter out the recompilation of old data and look at only the newest. I also do my own studies by watching neighborhoods locally. So, I really think its more than a gut feel, its the tapestry that stray threads are starting to form. You can make a...

Sounds like you did make the right choice. And I have to admit that I wouldn't have done that. I prefer to look at the national market because it is my market. My market mirrors it, but in an exaggerated fashion. SM

Because the people here don't live in your area. Most live in the U.S. and some live abroad. Makes more sense to talk about the national market than what is happening on your street.

OK...read this from the Motely Fool. The discounting can only continue until inventory levels get low enough. And homebuilders are more savvy about holding inventory than they used to be... Homebuilders Hit Bottom? By David Lee Smith January 26, 2007 Bob Toll seems to have found a...

You doom and gloomers kill me. You think trees grow to the sky and roots grow to the center of the earth. OK, check out the attached spreadsheet to see what I'm saying. I never really needed graphs, but some folks do. This is the same national sales data previously posted in graphical format...

So early in the year, sales of existing homes were decreasing at a rate of 200,000 to 300,000 a month. Now they are dropping at a rate of 60,000 a month. So the rate at which sales are decreasing is itself decreasing to 20% of what it used to be. Thats deceleration. If you remember your...

Ok, I did go to Chippy Chapel College in Tucson and I'd appreciate you all not running it down. :) Ok, seriously, the only way that mortgage rates would go up to 9% is if long term rates were up. The only way that would happen is if the economy was going great guns and folks needed to borrow...

How does that compare with...say...three summers ago? I had some of my rental properties jump 50% in two years, then slide back 8%. Not bad if you ask me... SM