[kshe95girl]

Originally Posted by flburgos

marion county?try the whole united states.things are bad i work for a dealership that's about to go under in the next 3 mths if things don't turn around.i'm afraid they're not anytime soon.very scary!

I feel for you! I have my own businees that I fear is going to go under is things dont change, and am going to have to go back out into the retail/sales world, and I am afraid, too.
I really hoped I would not have to back and do that again, sales is brutal! You really have my heart!

[FHMullane]

It is bad all over. FL is probably more diverse than most places in the country and will be able to stablize more easily. If one is connected with the construction industry then it is going to be tough for a while. That is the whole country. But we do have a bit more going here than JUST construction. The housing thing in FL has really drug everything else down... but that is cyclical and eventually it will turn around... I feel badly for those who are going to have a really tough time waiting this out.

[Magnulus]

I don't know if Florida is really all that diverse. Maybe the best way to put it is Florida's diversity in employment isn't very deep. There are also layers of crap related to the bloated housing market that are highly elastic in demand and definitely prone to economic whims.

[Wild Style]

Originally Posted by FHMullane

It is bad all over. FL is probably more diverse than most places in the country and will be able to stablize more easily. If one is connected with the construction industry then it is going to be tough for a while. That is the whole country. But we do have a bit more going here than JUST construction. The housing thing in FL has really drug everything else down... but that is cyclical and eventually it will turn around... I feel badly for those who are going to have a really tough time waiting this out.

diverse in what way?

[flburgos]

Originally Posted by kshe95girl

I feel for you! I have my own businees that I fear is going to go under is things dont change, and am going to have to go back out into the retail/sales world, and I am afraid, too.
I really hoped I would not have to back and do that again, sales is brutal! You really have my heart!

sales is even tougher now.no traffic in the store and when somebody does walk in to our store you've got eyes all over you and the pressure is enormous.i love the way the guys sitting behind a desk with no clue can make you feel like your not doing your job.even the ones that want a car half of them can't buy one.their credit is so terrible i can't begin to tell you.from foreclosures,repos,chargeoffs,court judgements,tax liens,bankruptcy's not discharged, and now it's not that simple to even file for bankruptcy at least here in mass.they have new bankruptcy laws.

[INeedAChange]

Recession? Or Great Depression 2.0 ?

[Prettygyrl777]

Okay so Im jumping in again-- how do we relate this to real estate (still on topic). I personally haven't felt any effects of the recession and my line of work (nonprofit) is usually the last if at all to feel anything during recessions so Im not too concerned about any major changes. Should I buy a home now or wait until later? I saw the boycott comment earlier but I need a home! LOL. Florida is suffering but do you think this is a buyers market??

[Wild Style]

prettygyrl don't be a scab man!!!

I am kidding.

Okay this is what you do. Go look into the area you want to buy, right? Then you find out what the average household income is. Multiply that by 3 and then you will know around what price the houses in that area should be. Then go around making offers around that price range, regardless of what the asking price is. If no one bites then you go get yourself a foreclosure from auction. That or wait until the end of 2008 when things get even worse and people get even more desperate.

Knowing people and how ill informed they are, I am going to go out on a limb and say, if a bleeding heart President is elected in 2008, home owners will try and get cocky again, then after a few months go by and they realize the messiah wasn't elected, prices will fall sharply again. Be patient. Oh and you don't NEED to "own" a house/condo/townhouse. You WANT to own one.

[macguy]

Originally Posted by Wild Style

prettygyrl don't be a scab man!!!

I am kidding.

Okay this is what you do. Go look into the area you want to buy, right? Then you find out what the average household income is. Multiply that by 3 and then you will know around what price the houses in that area should be. Then go around making offers around that price range, regardless of what the asking price is. If no one bites then you go get yourself a foreclosure from auction. That or wait until the end of 2008 when things get even worse and people get even more desperate.

Knowing people and how ill informed they are, I am going to go out on a limb and say, if a bleeding heart President is elected in 2008, home owners will try and get cocky again, then after a few months go by and they realize the messiah wasn't elected, prices will fall sharply again. Be patient. Oh and you don't NEED to "own" a house/condo/townhouse. You WANT to own one.

How do you determine the average household income?

[Wild Style]

Originally Posted by macguy

How do you determine the average household income?

Try the county websites for information. You could also try the census bureau data BUT, they have been taken to task by several cities for inaccurate data, so I would stick with the county information.