Why is this allowed to occur? (Maricopa: bank owned, lender, home builders)

[jimj]

We've been looking at houses for about a month now. We just went to several new home builders and looked at a couple of inventory houses that were priced $50k higher than the EXACT same bank owned house down the street that was 5 years old but in real nice shape. Now what perplexes me is why are any of these builders still building when there's 3-5 years of inventory still out there?
Why are the counties not freezing permits or raising fees to discourage building until current inventories come back to normal?

[Zathras]

Originally Posted by jimj

We've been looking at houses for about a month now. We just went to several new home builders and looked at a couple of inventory houses that were priced $50k higher than the EXACT same bank owned house down the street that was 5 years old but in real nice shape. Now what perplexes me is why are any of these builders still building when there's 3-5 years of inventory still out there?
Why are the counties not freezing permits or raising fees to discourage building until current inventories come back to normal?

I think the government should interfere as little as possible- let's allow the free market forces of supply and demand to influence how many new houses are being built, and what the prices are. Government interference is what got us into this housing mess to begin with.

IMHO.

[algia]

No, the Gov didn't get us in this mess...GREEDY builders/Realtors and Lenders is what did this...

[Greatday]

Ah, last I heard, without the buyers buying, the builders would not have been able to build.

I'm with the others - the government should stay out of it.

[Greatday]

Originally Posted by jimj

We've been looking at houses for about a month now. We just went to several new home builders and looked at a couple of inventory houses that were priced $50k higher than the EXACT same bank owned house down the street that was 5 years old but in real nice shape. Now what perplexes me is why are any of these builders still building when there's 3-5 years of inventory still out there?
Why are the counties not freezing permits or raising fees to discourage building until current inventories come back to normal?

BEFORE buying that bank REO, make sure, make VERY damn sure, that you pay whatever it takes, to have a COMPLETE inspection done.

The REO market is replete with genuine, legitimate stories of these REO's becoming NIGHTMARES - waste disposal lines filled with concrete. Electric lines in attics cut .... "just a little"., etc

And no, the lender does NOT have to give you all the same disclosures that a "normal" seller does.

[rational1]

There was an article about this. People who want to buy a house want a new house. And they are apparently willing to pay for it.

Also- as remarked- an REO is a crap shoot. You don't know if it has problems, and you don't know if the deal will go through.

[slackjaw]

Builder might have gotten the permits and zoning before the housing crash, and restarted anticipating an upswing.

I'm with others though, overregulating causes more problems than it solves. People will vote with their feet, as you apparently have done.

[asufan]

Wow. The builders are in the business of building new homes. It's what they do to make money. And they provide jobs to people. You stop construction, and you take jobs away from not only the home builder personnel, but also the concrete guy, framer, roofer, plumber, electrician, drywallers, landscapers, inspectors, etc., etc., etc. Do you really think it's a good idea for the Government to shut down these businesses and put more people out of work for the foreseeable future? Or is it maybe OK for buyers to make an educated decision about the home they purchase, and have the option of getting a new home if they want one? The market takes care of itself. The demand for new homes goes away, and either the prices go lower, or the construction stops, not because of some governmental force.

[Howard Roark]

I agree. We've gone the European way too much in the last eighteen months - socialism. Is it no wonder we have European-style unemployment? To think Maricopa county should use heavy handed bureacrats to determine how many permits should be available - that's asking for even more corruption. It is corrupt to begin with. Get government out of our wallets, out of our bedrooms, and off our backs.

Originally Posted by Zathras

I think the government should interfere as little as possible- let's allow the free market forces of supply and demand to influence how many new houses are being built, and what the prices are. Government interference is what got us into this housing mess to begin with.

IMHO.

[acrylic]

Originally Posted by Howard Roark

We've gone the European way too much in the last eighteen months - socialism. Is it no wonder we have European-style unemployment?

Okay, "socialism" isn't what got us into this mess. Remember, the recession started with George Dubya in office.

And my experience when I was in Montenegro (which had a 30-40% unemployment rate, if I do recall correctly) - people really don't need to work much! They usually work minimally or just seasonally or have goods that they can trade consistently. (People own goats, sheep, chicken, etc etc.) That type of lifestyle is a lot less stressful.