US real estate

tyrant · May 25, 2011

I have read that some of the residential homes have fallen 50% to 60% from their peak in 2007. Is this the norm? Are these properties in the rural or suburbs? How about high end condos/residentials right in the middle of big cities like in New York? Do they fall as much?

Thanks a lot for your input.

Bob111 · May 25, 2011

talk to your real estate agent. they can pull out all the sales and you can see and compare it YOURSELF.

zillow,realtor.com both have sales history. city data is also good.

tomdavis · May 25, 2011

Here in California it's 30-60% depending on the location. Closer to the ocean it's more like 30%. Inland, some areas are over 50%.

peilthetraveler · May 26, 2011

There are some luxury condos by my house that fell in value over 80%. They were originally $287k and now can be had for about $50k. The reason though that they went so low is because more than half went into forclosure and after that happens because there are condo HOA fees, banks will no longer lend on those properties so only cash buyers can buy them now. The place hasnt been run down yet and still looks nice. I suppose if someone came along with about $5 million dollars, they could buy up all the forclosures, pay the HOA fees and then sell the properties at market prices which I would say $90-$120k is fair.

Unfortunately Hard money lenders have also gotten stricter so raising that type of money isnt easy anymore.

tyrant · May 26, 2011

Bob- I am not from the USA.

tomdavis & peilthetraveller - I am having a hard time believing how can these condos lose 50% or 80% of its value? I mean, can't they be rented out at all? How much has rental fallen? Are these totally new condos? Were they ever occupied?

I have also read that in England, real estate prices also went down but in London city itself, prices hardly fell and some went up? Is it the same scenario in US? What happen to those condos in prime area like manhattan new york, chicago etc?

Thanks

zdreg · May 26, 2011

these numbers are usually useless because there is little activity at the tops or bottoms of real estate markets. %s may be skewed
by one desperate seller.

dumb_mother · May 26, 2011

technicals would say maybe all of those except boston look like they are in a downtrend still- but i think boston as well as the rest have a long way to go til they truly bottom out. just wait til mortgages are 13% loans, and few young people are building the work foundation needed to be able to afford expensive housing (although detroit may have bottomed out)

Bob111 · May 26, 2011

Quote from tyrant:

Bob- I am not from the USA.

tomdavis & peilthetraveller - I am having a hard time believing how can these condos lose 50% or 80% of its value? I mean, can't they be rented out at all? How much has rental fallen? Are these totally new condos? Were they ever occupied?

I have also read that in England, real estate prices also went down but in London city itself, prices hardly fell and some went up? Is it the same scenario in US? What happen to those condos in prime area like manhattan new york, chicago etc?

Thanks

then what's the point? are planning to buy? if not, then imo this conversation is pointless. real estate is very local with a lot of very specific variables that may affect the value of the house. why do you have problem to believe that some properties can drop 50%? they are OVER PRICED from the beginning. add over supply. check out vegas..it's a f**g desert. there is no jobs, nothing. same for florida.
even if you not from US, the websites i mentioned above will provide you all the numbers.why not to try? or it's too hard?

here is the palm coast, fl for example, zip 32137

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/32137

http://www.zillow.com/homes/32137_rb/

http://www.city-data.com/zips/32137.html

Ghost of Cutten · May 26, 2011

Quote from peilthetraveler:

There are some luxury condos by my house that fell in value over 80%. They were originally $287k and now can be had for about $50k. The reason though that they went so low is because more than half went into forclosure and after that happens because there are condo HOA fees, banks will no longer lend on those properties so only cash buyers can buy them now. The place hasnt been run down yet and still looks nice. I suppose if someone came along with about $5 million dollars, they could buy up all the forclosures, pay the HOA fees and then sell the properties at market prices which I would say $90-$120k is fair.

Unfortunately Hard money lenders have also gotten stricter so raising that type of money isnt easy anymore.

Which area is this in?

Problem with condos is if half the building is in default, your HOA fees will be double.

Ghost of Cutten · May 26, 2011

Quote from tyrant:

Bob- I am not from the USA.

tomdavis & peilthetraveller - I am having a hard time believing how can these condos lose 50% or 80% of its value? I mean, can't they be rented out at all? How much has rental fallen? Are these totally new condos? Were they ever occupied?

It's simple. At the peak, some condos were selling at a rental yield of 2-3%. If the rental yield goes up to 6-8%, then the price has to fall 50-75% - assuming the rent stayed the same. If the rent fell somewhat, the price can fall even more. Basic arithmetic.