WaPo: The American Dream shatters-in Prince Georges County (Bowie, North Beach: short sale, foreclosures)
Washington, DC suburbs in MarylandCalvert County, Charles County, Montgomery County, and Prince George's County
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No way am I spending $550k+ to live in PG County particularly Bowie where a bunch of these new neighborhoods are springing up. There is nothing in the city that warrants those prices. Premium shopping? No. Fine dining with cultural diversity? Forget about it. Panera Bread and Chipotle doesn't wow me. Great public school systems? Yeah right.
Then you have the typical cost cutting cookie cutter builders such as DR Horton and Ryan Homes building all around Bowie and PG county and the homes aren't even worth half the price of their cost. The poor quality construction appears in about 5 years with these homes and they start falling apart, however the "black man" is living the American Dream with an ARM interest only loan no money down payment on a 500,000 house with a household income of 80k.
Just look at all of the foreclosures and short sales in developments like Fairwood to this day where the homes were 800k new now those folks are 400k underwater and still have to pay ridiculous hoa fees and high county taxes. And I guarantee most of these homes for sale or foreclosed in the county don't even have any updates done to them, they all still have outdated builder grade materials and white painted walls because the folks who bought the homes could barely afford them let alone maintain them. So if you buy one, just account for throwing in an extra 100k repairing and updating the home. With that hassle, I would take my 600k to Anne Arundel or Howard county and I would get more diversity, cleaner neighborhoods, better schools, better quality and well maintained homes with stabilized home values, lower taxes and car insurance rates and a plethora of dining options with much better customer service.
So typical. Half of what you say is subjective and that is why you are on CD with your hillbilly ramblings as opposed to working in the financial field.
So, PG homes which are already half of what neighboring, comparable, area home prices are should be even lower? Every city and county in this area benefits from Washington, DC proper - even your aforementioned Arundel and Howard counties and definitely Northern VA.
The "black man", as you put it, was not the only one under the illusion that they were living the "American Dream". I've read countless stories on Money, Forbes and WSJ showing whites who CHOSE to walk away from their homes, without being behind on payments, and go and either have their parents buy them a home, or rent from a relative until the 3 year period is over. But, you won't comment on those folks who skipped out on their obligation to pay their debts, you'll praise them for being financially savvy and creating a work-around. However, if it was the "black man" who did this, you'd call him shiftless, irresponsible and typical.
And, Fairwood is not some dirty neighborhood that you think an entire county (Arundel or Howard) is cleaner than. It just goes to show your perception of blacks.
You and EdwardA are perfect for each other. A union forged by the anonymity of the Internet.
I question the 170k household median income listed in the article for Fairwood. Sad state of affairs for that development. Such a shame because the land and surroundings are beautiful. Values are starting to creep up slowly again but once they top out some folks will still be at least 150k underwater. I would feel deceived. The shopping center is dead with nothing but a Safeway, Golds Gym and overpriced liquor store. You're paying high hoa fees while your fellow financially responsible neighbors decides not to and bails on the property leaving it to rot while you're living next to a squatter or some section 8 renter who steals the appliances and couldn't care less about maintaining property values. The most financially responsible folks in there are the deer who live and graze in the community rent free and are not underwater!
Nothing that hasn't been discussed here before but it's always good to see how the county is being portrayed in the media...
PG's boom was fueled on easy credit, its bust started because of tightening credit. Its lack of increased value is now based on the fundamentals, poor schools and frankly race.
Okay...and so was the rest of America. So, what's your message to the good white folk in SC, FL and NV and pockets of AZ?
Lack of increased value can be attributed to a lot of data points, but "frankly race" - which is saying essentially it was because they are black that it continues to fail - is totally unconscionable. But, being as though it is coming from you - who continually interjects on a PG thread for someone who loathes blacks and PG county, is really not astounding. So, I guess if "frankly race" is the reason PG cannot get out of its housing rut - or not as fast as other nearby areas - I guess "frankly whites" do not have the financial dexterity to manage the lending process or wall street. Let's not make racially-ignorant statements.
Unfortunately, some people get access to a computer, stumble upon websites of unregulated opinions (C-D), and they become a virtual nuisance to society.
I just finished Part 2. What struck, and this will insult some on here, is that the education achievement and sophistication of some of the people profiled. So the reason brought up earlier of people not knowing how to manage these economic decisions shouldn't fly. I would say an attorney would be smart enough to read the documents he was about to sign and figure them out.
And, as someone pointed out, this attack of simpleness cut across all racial lines. People bought houses which they could not really afford using mortgage products that were just barely ethical.
I just finished Part 2. What struck, and this will insult some on here, is that the education achievement and sophistication of some of the people profiled. So the reason brought up earlier of people not knowing how to manage these economic decisions shouldn't fly. I would say an attorney would be smart enough to read the documents he was about to sign and figure them out.
And, as someone pointed out, this attack of simpleness cut across all racial lines. People bought houses which they could not really afford using mortgage products that were just barely ethical.
You would be surprised. Education or getting advanced degrees doesn't mean you are capable of handling finances. Some people are just savants. I know it seems crazy, how did you get this far in life and don't understand the basic of financial decisions? You see it all the time in this country where people make poor decisions about what to invest their money into. That is why I mentioned the cultural aspect of this too. I do believe this can be an issue across racial lines, but do all cultures teach their children about being financially savvy, investing your money, spending less money on things that depreciate (cars, clothes,etc.). I am not really sure how often those things go across racial lines. Is that an excuse for them? Absolutely not, but I don't think the values we are taught are the same across racial lines. I am sure NBP given your profession you have dealt with people from all different backgrounds, do you believe all these individuals were taught the same values?
One thing that I kept thinking about reading that article is how much people were overspending. It sounds like the stories in the article are of people who had one or two unexpected things happening to them and it cost them either their homes or their financial stability. One thing I would wonder is how many of these individuals got close to what their maximum qualification was. You should never go on what the banks tell you, you can buy. You should understand your own expenses. You should always be the ones thinking about the what ifs and maybes.
I know the idea for people, especially black people who grew up in other parts of the country, of living in a luxurious home in a "wealthy" and predominantly black community is enticing, but honestly you have to be wise with your decision making.
You would be surprised. Education or getting advanced degrees doesn't mean you are capable of handling finances. Some people are just savants. I know it seems crazy, how did you get this far in life and don't understand the basic of financial decisions? You see it all the time in this country where people make poor decisions about what to invest their money into. That is why I mentioned the cultural aspect of this too. I do believe this can be an issue across racial lines, but do all cultures teach their children about being financially savvy, investing your money, spending less money on things that depreciate (cars, clothes,etc.). I am not really sure how often those things go across racial lines. Is that an excuse for them? Absolutely not, but I don't think the values we are taught are the same across racial lines. I am sure NBP given your profession you have dealt with people from all different backgrounds, do you believe all these individuals were taught the same values?
I don't think in many cases it was a case of education or background. People just had an attack of the stupids. They bought into the hype, and it was everywhere, that the new normal was double digit appreciation for real estate every year. The same thing had happened in the late 1980s (not to the same extent or duration) and blew up in 1991.
Some of the same people here who had gotten burned then repeated the mistake and got burned again, in most cases worse, in 2007. I'm sitting here able to look at two condo complexes with 60% vacancy/not sold rates in an area that has never, ever, been a condo market. The same thing happened in the late 1980s and those buildings took a decade to sell. At the end of my street is a high end TH development where the property was annexed into the Town specifically so the developer could get the density (Critical Areas issues). Those places started out as high end, $550K+, and marketed to empty nesters. That wasn't openly said but the first units had elevators and the price points, as well as the lack of kid amenities, indicated the market segment being aimed for.
The meltdown happened and all of a sudden the prices were down to $250K or less. Which allowed younger families to move in. It was, after all, "exclusive". They're now agitating for kid friendly amenities and have no open space on which to place them. As an aside, many people could afford to buy the units but can't afford to live there. Which I see as the Town liaison to the HOA.
I think Asian cultures, due to the family structure, teach their kids more about finances than we do here in the US. It would be interesting to see 3 generations down the road if that will continue here with the new immigrants.
I just finished Part 2. What struck, and this will insult some on here, is that the education achievement and sophistication of some of the people profiled. So the reason brought up earlier of people not knowing how to manage these economic decisions shouldn't fly. I would say an attorney would be smart enough to read the documents he was about to sign and figure them out.
And, as someone pointed out, this attack of simpleness cut across all racial lines. People bought houses which they could not really afford using mortgage products that were just barely ethical.
What also struck me is that even after the proverbial roof fell in on them, they still insist on keeping a house they can't afford. I mean being so tied up in an inanimate objects can't be healthy.
Okay...and so was the rest of America. So, what's your message to the good white folk in SC, FL and NV and pockets of AZ?
Lack of increased value can be attributed to a lot of data points, but "frankly race" - which is saying essentially it was because they are black that it continues to fail - is totally unconscionable. But, being as though it is coming from you - who continually interjects on a PG thread for someone who loathes blacks and PG county, is really not astounding. So, I guess if "frankly race" is the reason PG cannot get out of its housing rut - or not as fast as other nearby areas - I guess "frankly whites" do not have the financial dexterity to manage the lending process or wall street. Let's not make racially-ignorant statements.
Unfortunately, some people get access to a computer, stumble upon websites of unregulated opinions (C-D), and they become a virtual nuisance to society.
Eracism. Stop the hate.
Your reasoning is off. Saying a problem happens more in one group does not mean it's exclusive to that group. At the end of the day Blacks bring up the rear in this category along with Hispanics. Frankly I think a lot of it has to do with the lack of sophistication and wanting status symbols of achievement. I don't actually fault folks for that.
Also the series and articles explicitly cites race as reason why PG can't get out of it's rut, so rant at the Washington Post.
One thing that I kept thinking about reading that article is how much people were overspending. It sounds like the stories in the article are of people who had one or two unexpected things happening to them and it cost them either their homes or their financial stability. One thing I would wonder is how many of these individuals got close to what their maximum qualification was. You should never go on what the banks tell you, you can buy. You should understand your own expenses. You should always be the ones thinking about the what ifs and maybes.
I know the idea for people, especially black people who grew up in other parts of the country, of living in a luxurious home in a "wealthy" and predominantly black community is enticing, but honestly you have to be wise with your decision making.
Anecdotally I see this a lot in PG and even within the Ghanaian community I belong to. Folks make $70k plus and think they're millionaires. They'll get the most luxurious car, wear the sharpest clothes etc.
What are you going to do?
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