Ohh WEll I guess housing isnt soo great.

[NatasNJ]

Originally Posted by Summering

I've just watched many people sell homes in a week. Seems the couples are really wanting that 8 thousand tax credit. They are pushing for end of Nov closings.
I am surprised how many are selling so quickly.
I think we will be ok, but I think lower home prices will be the norm. I have to believe that some went way overboard with pricing in the past. Things should reset now.

Even though your MICRO-vision of many people selling homes in a week seems like sales are UP, they are DOWN from July.

I also think it is funny that Moorsetown spent 3 months in a row (May/June/July) spouting how housing is up and we are in recovery and the bottom is clearly hit then as the seasonal portion of the year comes to and end he makes fun of the less positive people for coming out touting things aren't better. If you go back over the past 3 months most people said "wait till the fall to see where we stand with housing" cause if this fall the numbers held up decently into the winter then a bottom may have shown its head. But if we are already having much higher drop off on sales then that means things will probably get worse going ahead. (minus a possible expiration of buyers credit forcing a few more sales)

[bababua]

Originally Posted by MoorestownResident

Nobody said housing was 'great'. The trend in sales and prices is up, modestly, but up.

Welcome Back Mr. Spinmeister. When exactly was that bottom? Please refresh our memory. Not to mention if history serves me correct, us "Bears" were saying things are seasonal and sales normally do go up during the spring and summer months. It was you who somehow found a way to "try" and call our argument foolish. Stick to your clients and not to this forum because you have to be better at that.

[NatasNJ]

Interesting article abotu Strategic Defaults rising.

Homeowners who 'strategically default' on loans a growing problem -- latimes.com

Nothing new breaking or earth shattering but surely a problem for banks and one that seems to be growing.

[CaptainNJ]

Originally Posted by Lusitan

You always have a choice. Don't kid yourself.

i definitely have a choice, just not much of a choice. just the way my personal situation is, that i have additional benefits to buying that few have. i also have a pregnant wife that wants to settle into a home for the long term.

[Lusitan]

Originally Posted by njerzygrl

I'm in a similar situation...I just sold my condo, and I feel as though I don't have any choice but to buy something else.

To me, paying rent is paying off somebody else's mortgage...maybe an old fashioned way of looking at things.

It's a flat-out wrong way of looking at things. What you should be asking yourself is: what will my housing cost me on a monthly basis, and what will I end up with down the road when it comes time to move?

Quite often you are able to find rental houses (not apartments, thereby removing the "neighbor" factor) where you can rent the house for LESS than you would have to pay for mortgage+taxes+insurance alone (and that's not even counting upkeep on the property).

When you add in the fact that a house bought and today's prices may very well be a losing investment, you really need to consider whether you want to pay MORE each month and end up with LESS after 15 years by buying a house, versus paying LESS each month and ending up with MORE at the end of 15 years (by investing those monthly savings).

It's not as simple as "paying off someone's mortgage" versus "paying off my own mortgage". I would much rather pay off someone else's 100K mortgage by renting than pay off my own 500K mortgage on the same property.

I would have to pay at least $1800 for a decent 2 BR/2BA rental...I'm not sure that's such a great choice.

Yup. And how much would OWNING that same property cost? And what is the prospect for an increase, or decrease, or no change in value over 15 years when you go to sell it? That's the question you need to ask. And you need to think about this in inflation-adjusted terms, not nominal terms.

[AndrewMensch]

Originally Posted by mboy

Anyone who thinks housing, especially in NJ is going to appreciate anytime in the next 5 years (a least) is out of their mind!

It is not likely that prices will zoom up in the next five years... a gradual increase of a % of two is possible.

From 2000-2005, the average sale price of a house in NJ rose 87% while average income rose 16%. You don't have to have a doctorate in economics to tell this was coming... and unless incomes rise quickly homes prices will not have the rapid increase of the early 2000s... especially with the reduction in "creative financing" that fueled the increase in the start of the of the decade.

But part of the improvement in the market is the fact that homes are ACTUALLY SELLING...