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Friday Free-for-all!

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195 Comments

The weekend is nearly here so lets do our regular end of the week news round-up and open topic discussion. Here are a few stories I’ve noticed this week:

-BC housing market ‘on pause‘
–Gas and food costs blamed for RE slowdown
-Assignment deals ‘still available‘
–Realtor fired for false statements
-Shaky markets make retirees nervous
–US trouble rains on our parade
-Hundreds indicted in US mortgage fraud
-UK house prices will fall by 30%
-Really, really, really easy credit
-Condo bust draws scams and squatters
-Brace for global stock and credit crash
-Write downs may reach $1.3 trillion

So what are you seeing out there? Post your news, links and anecdotes here and have a great weekend!

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Patiently Waiting

Gregor's ideas are causing reactions (positive and negative) and are leading to debate. Few BC politicians are capable of this anymore.

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Anonymous

Re: MLS#V708346 "100k+ price drop" …

I know that building – it's a co-op requiring 35% down w/ no rentals/pets/etc … no wonder.

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Re-diculous

Here was my morning smile:

Realtors enlisted in crime fight
http://vancouver.24hrs.ca/News/2008/06/23/5957866…

kinda like getting the fox to guard the chickens

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betamax

More demand for lumber upcoming, back to work for the forestry workers.

Keep dreaming. There's cut lumber stacked to the sky already in US lumberyards, as Canadian companies cut & exported like crazy the last couple of years to avoid (a)changes to softwood tariffs and (b)encroaching pine beetles.

Forestry workers are already applying for $11/hr jobs at Home Hardware and Rona, and they'll be lucky to get them or to keep them when the recession/housing crash hits BC next year.

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arbitrage

re: the article in the province – It sure feels like Derek Moscato just surfed the web for a couple hours and cranked that nugget out.

I think he could have done a better explanation of why people (speculators/bulls/and bears) are against the tax – more than enough discussion was done here.

Maybe he wasn't referencing this website.

That 18000 empty condo number is still floating around – did bc hydro ever return with a real answer on that? The reporters are the one's who should really be chasing and referencing such info.

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umdesch4

Good, affordable sushi…I'm just saying…

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patriotz

one that could sully the city’s reputation

Reputation for what exactly? Having the most overpriced real estate? I could do without that.

Frankly IMHO the only positive aspects of Vancouver compared with other Canadian cities are the things neither government nor business have anything to do with – the mountains, sea, and mild weather. What other pluses are there exactly?

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Vansanity

The blog was mentioned in the paper again! Regarding Robertson's tax idea on empty homes. Here's the link:

http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/editorial/…

Excerpt:

"On some real-estate blogs and Internet forums, his plan has been panned by investors as everything from a 'desperate populist campaign promise' to 'one of the dumbest ideas ever.'

While their tone might be unfairly harsh, they are right about one thing: This penalty against speculators represents another blatant tax grab — one that could sully the city's reputation."

Congratulations to all who voiced their opinion on this subject!

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NETCOPS

Ouch comment#185 you were logged on to different forum buddy!

This is vancouvercondo.info-Vancouver,B.C. definitley wrong forum to post,please go and find california wildfireblogs.net or sandiegodestroyedhomes.help

Thanking you in advance

NETCOPS

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patriotz

I’m happy with all the forest fires in California and the flooding in the midwest, all those homes destroyed will need to be rebuilt

There are far more vacant houses in San Diego than were destroyed in the fires. And I don't expect any imminent construction boom in Des Moines, etc, either – there is a lot of excess inventory even in the midwest. Even if every house in those areas was rebuilt, it would still only be a blip.

The US housing market is not going to turn around for 20 years. There are a lot of boomers sitting in big houses that are going to have to be sold over that time, and there is not going to be anyone around able to pay big money for them.

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Thums up2

"I never would have predicted–that we would have 4% unemployment, rising inflation and STILL have low interest rates. So that’s now lasted for 3 or 4 years" That's mean you were wrong for four consecutive years that's good enough to make atleast 80,000 buyers and sellers sit outside the market or send some of them out of city or gift them rental life forever because since than affordability eroded and market appreciated by almost 90%. Now if some one followed your recomendation in the past they must pay 90% extra to get in the market plus the commission they had to pay to realtors. "If we do see inflation high enough to deflate the real value of mortage debt, then we will see mortgage rates north of 8%. We’ll see what 8% mortgage rates do to the ‘building equity’ schtick."… Read more »

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romeojordan

the bubble popped april 26th, 2008.

i cannot think of one RATIONAL reason to purchase residential real estate TODAY.

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Just saying

My opinion is that it is always a good time to buy if you: a.are rich; b. have so much money you don't care about depreciating assets ; c. are so rich you can weather any economic storm; d. like the place.

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Drachen

FW

"…the demand for american cars isn’t there."

The problem with your point is that "American" cars in Europe (for example) are made in europe!

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Hillary

No one is Hillary except me. I only lost because I'm a woman, and everyone felt it was time for a black man to have a turn.

I'm not bitter though, I'm still worth millions, and have homes in multiple states. Unlike the bitter bears on here.

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Anonymous

Dave is Hillary. All of his methods and debate points were completely and utterly refuted and yet he keeps banging on long after he’s lost the debate he intentionally uses lies, misleading statistics and his methods of data interpretation are considered, “Voodoo Economics” by the economics community. I thought Hillary was an appropriate nickname at that point.

Pretty sad. You guys are getting paranoid and looking weak. Sandbox too small?

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FW

Only in things that have demand and are priced competitively, if there's isn't demand then their new reduced price doesn't matter.

If you need to rebuild a home you need lumber, that demand is real and will be meet on the open market.

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-A-

FW are you trolling or, are you actually that stupid?

US exports have in fact got a lift since their currency has gone down the tube.

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FW

Guess the world is out buying american cars since their dollar is 30% down from a couple of years ago. Ummm nope not the case as the demand for american cars isn't there.

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Anonymous

"The companies are just no longer being subsidized by the low dollar." Which is why our mills shut down, where do you think the 20 % differance in cost to produce lumber comes from? The companies profit obviously thus only a 20% rollback in wages would brinfg it back to marketable. (Based on an 80 cent Canadian dollar which is the area that lumber companies could at least break even)

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FW

Canadian lumber has always been exported in US dollars, the high Canadian dollar doesn't increase the price we sell it for, the price is controlled by the market. The companies are just no longer being subsidized by the low dollar. WE have the most efficient mills in NA so they can still compete. The problem was a lack of demand, it's about to rebound very quickly. Watch.

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-A-

"More demand for lumber upcoming, back to work for the forestry workers."

No, it doen't workt that way, the high demand for Canadian lumber was because we had a 65 cent dollar.

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FW

I'm happy with all the forest fires in California and the flooding in the midwest, all those homes destroyed will need to be rebuilt. More demand for lumber upcoming, back to work for the forestry workers. This will be almost as good for the industry as the New Orleans hurricane was a couple of years ago. Hurricane season is still coming too so it can be a very good year after all.

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blueskies

We’ll see what 8% mortgage rates do to the ‘building equity’ schtick.

this is the disconnect that i see in dave's argument…..

how to "build equity' after paying too

much for a depreciating asset with borrowed money…..

every month you lose $5000 while you are struggling to buy down your mortgage by $500…

the only winners are the RE agent and the mortgage broker who 'snookered" you into the deal

"now is good time to buy" indeed

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Drachen

"Who’s Hillary?"

Dave is Hillary. All of his methods and debate points were completely and utterly refuted and yet he keeps banging on long after he's lost the debate he intentionally uses lies, misleading statistics and his methods of data interpretation are considered, "Voodoo Economics" by the economics community. I thought Hillary was an appropriate nickname at that point.

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