Did anyone think the collapse would happen so suddenly, so swiftly, so completely and so widely? Seriously, the suddenness of the of the bubble collapse surprised even me...
Here's a good article in today's Wall Street Journal on the explosion in cancellations as potential homedebtors flee from making the biggest financial mistake of their lives.
Buyers back out of home deals in record numbers
A little over a year ago, buyers couldn't wait to sign contracts to purchase homes. Now, many can't wait to get out of them.
With real-estate prices falling around the country and even pro-industry trade groups predicting further declines over the next year, buyers are backing away from deals in droves.
At a semiannual housing forecast conference last week in Washington, D.C., economists reported that contract-cancellation rates for big builders were running around 40 percent -- about twice as high as last year's levels. Anecdotally, real-estate professionals say they are seeing a similar dynamic in existing-home sales.
"There are a whole lot of people running from contracts," says Alexandria, Va., real-estate attorney Beau Brincefield. He is currently representing more than 50 buyers who are seeking to get out of contracts on single-family homes, townhouses and condos, compared with none a year ago.
November 05, 2006
State of America: Home prices falling, buyers backing out of deals, NAR predicting pricing collapse
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21 comments:
Better to lose $30k now than $100K later.
One fellow who bought in '05 complained that they just lost $60K on the price of their condo as one of their neighbors just sold a similar condo for $60k less just last month.
I live in a bubble city and can't wait for the implosion.
We *need* a recession to reset this crazy place.
"State of America: Home prices falling, buyers backing out of deals, NAR predicting pricing collapse."
I read the Post-Gazette article with interest. However, I was unable to find the part about the NAR predicting pricing collapse.
Did you draw that pic Keith?
We *need* a recession to reset this crazy place.
If'n it shows up as a ballot initiative this Tuesday - vote for it.
Short Sells Coming.
I'm sticking with the prediction I made last spring. Total meltdown, Sept. '07.
But all these buyers who are backing out of deals are nothing more than the foundation for the future demand which should pick up sometime next spring. ANd when the excess inventory is worked out of the market, the demand, represented by the normal demand of buyers PLUS all these people who are moving to the sidelines, will increase sharply, driving prices back up.
dl...
Specuvestors not going through deals are not future demand.... Git out there and buy'em before "they" do and sell it to 'em when they all want it again... Simple no brainer dude...
NAR predicting price collapse?
I thought they were saying a 'soft landing' or a leveling off then another rise!
Come on make up your minds!
I am not surprised. Greed and fear move markets. There was a lot of greed, now there is a lot of fear.
In Irvine Ca. there are 1100 homes on the market. only 70 were sold last month. 70 into 1100 = 15 months supply. Gee, do we have a problem here??????
Got to love it!
Yep. Time to flee. Friend in Seattle had the comps drop in his condo building by 50K last week.
As word gets out about this, more and more Americans will smarten up.
Guess what folks, GOOD NEWS! the days of paying 10 X's salary for a POS are winding down.
We're on track to going back to 2-3 X's salary. Wait for it.
Not I...
As someone who went househunting last year, I was told that I qualified for $450K. I rejected it for two reasons:
1. I could only buy an apartment (read condo), which I did not want.
2. The fiance company wanted me to pay $2800/month. After taxes, the total was more than my take-home pay.
thankful said...
Yep. Time to flee. Friend in Seattle had the comps drop in his condo building by 50K last week.
While I can believe this may of happened, I would love to know where in Seattle this occured.
While it appears that inventory has greatly improved for homes for sale in Seattle which helps buyers, I still don't see much evidence that prices have come down at all. They appear to have flatlined since may and have only seen a 5K drop in price at all recently. Is it possible the condo was valued in the very high range, 500K+ to see this kind of drop.
I predict that Seattle is going to take awhile to see any major corrective activity. Probably not till later 2007.
Here's a link for Seattle price/inventory data.
http://www.housing-watch.com/regionview.aspx?city=Seattle&pct=50&g=m
"Did anyone think the collapse would happen so suddenly, so swiftly, so completely and so widely? Seriously, the suddenness of the of the bubble collapse surprised even me..."
You could have knocked me down with a feather!
The expansion of the housing bubble just kept going and going and going...and then it suddenly stopped.
Just like the Energizer Bunny.
I thought the Duracell rabbit peters out first... :)
Housing Collapse mirrors the collapse of the British Empire!
I don't know how or why, but the market surrounding me is still flourishing. The only thing I can contribute it to is white flight. Are the big cities now racially deteriorating at an accelerated rate?
Yes, of course I expected it. NEVER before in history has housing info been available to the general public. Even just 10 years all the information was controlled by the realtors. The internet/blogs/new business models have made information available which was previously hidden. This "freeing of information" helps to make the market more efficient. The internet revolution is an information revolution.
Note though, that prices will always remain sticky on the downside and the housing market will never be liquid like the stock market
A little while later a "Grapes of Wrath" looking pickup pulled up and they started to pile the boxes into the back.
********
Funny Shit. I love it!
Let's cut out the hyperbole. Prices down 5% nationwide is not even close to what I would call a collapse and you lose a lot of credibility when you say it is.
Next year we will probably see a collapse, but it sure hasn't happened yet.
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