|
|
|
|
|
|
Bay Area Housing Market Not as Bleak as Morning Paper Might Have Us Believe
Exceprted from Broker/Agent Magazine
November 2007
Buyer demand has slowed as consumers try to determine market direction and while this inertia continues, it will be savvy buyers who benefit: They understand that there are great values out there and sellers are more willing to negotiate. And they also know that over the long term, real estate in California has offered tremendous returns. Over the past 40 years, the median price in the Golden State has dropped only six times. . . only to return within a year or so. The current market is nothing like the recessionary markets of the late 80s and early 90s, and home prices recovered even from those dips in prices as is indicated by the chart below indicating prices from 1965 through 2006.
News accounts are overblown and media fuels the hysteria by playing up bad news and ignoring positive news, like the fact that the economy and job market continue to grow: Economist Gary Watts said that "the media and the financial markets have greatly overreacted to the real problems that have been revealed in the lending marketplace." "Foreclosures are reported to be at a record high," Watts said. That translates to a rate that is up only 1.5 percent over last year. The media also reported 53,942 notices of default for the 2nd quarter as "nearly" a record high. They were comparing it to the 1st quarter of 1996 when 61,541 notices were filed, but failed to mention that two million more homes have been built in California since then.
|
|
|
|
|
