Browsing all posts in "housing bubble".
Feel-Good Policies that Wreak Havoc in the Long Run
Recent calls to bail out homeowners who got in over their heads have raised not only red flags, but anger, among fiscally responsible Americans. Although politicians will use “feel-good” speeches to show they care about the poor person who is losing their home “through no fault of their own,” anyone who has been following the housing crisis for the last few years knows that most of this was preventable, and most of it motivated by greed and an irrational belief that house prices would just continue to go up. Continue reading →
Countrywide REO Listings
REO = real estate owned. In other words, homes the bank was forced to “buy” when the owners defaulted on the loan. Often the houses go to auction upon foreclosure, but with prices slipping, the banks will bid if they aren’t getting back the outstanding loan balance. They hope to get a better price selling it themselves. Continue reading →
You Can’t Close the Barn Door After the Barn Has Burned Down
Nevermind after the horses have run away. I posted last week that I thought the suggestion that Countrywide might weather the storm might be wishful thinking. It’s amazing how the “story” can change so much from one week to the next in this perfect storm. I italicize story because most of what you hear is a “story” – but eventually the truth comes out (you can’t pretend forever you are solvent when you are not). Continue reading →
More Signs of Weakness, continued
As an update to my post earlier about signs of weakness in the Culver City housing market:
5105 Summertime Lane has dropped its asking price another 10K to 369K, bringing it 1K lower than what the current owner paid in 2005. 143 days on the market and counting. I think they will need to drop the price another 15K to get any interest. They should try to get out before October – when record resets of liar and other assorted junk loans reset in record numbers across the region.
Roll-Back to 2005 Price in Culver City?
This house on Higuera, a narrow, busy road that is often used as a cut-through from Washington Blvd to get into the back areas of the South of Culver neighborhoods (SoCul), is for sale now for $760K. Continue reading →
Are We Seeing a Financial Debacle Like Never Before?
As non-bank mortgage lenders find no one is buying their ridiculous no doc, income state, liar’s loans any more, they are going down with breathtaking speed. Implode-o-Meter now stands at 109 lenders that have imploded since December. It has really been shocking to watch that number go up month after month. Continue reading →
What Happens to a House during Bubble Cycles?
Great illustration using the sales data for a house that just sold in Culver City for an inflated $709 a square foot (don’t miss the earlier entry on the McMansion that went in the same zip for $200 a square foot!). Continue reading →
Spectacular Spec House Failure
I’m posting this for my friend George, who did a walk through this house when it was getting ready to go to auction. He said it was pretty spectacular inside.
The Little House that – Signs of Weakness in 90232
I profiled this butt-ugly house on Huron Ave a while back. They had been trying to sell it off-and-on for more than 5 years.
The highest asking price was 947K as far as I can tell. It finally sold recently for 774K. Still insanely overpriced, but certainly more in line with 2004 prices on this street. I know this because I lived in a house on this street back in 2004 that sold for 805K – and it was smaller. Granted, it had more curb appeal, but it was definitely smaller in terms of square footage. Continue reading →