Where did you read about these sideline buyers? Is there a statistic on mortgage preapproval inquiries? Or are these cash buyers? I see plenty of people still jumping in, even though they know prices are dropping. RightSide comes to mind. I have a friend who’s moving to San Francisco; they sold their Carlsbad house in 2003 to get out of the housing bubble, they see prices dropping, and the wife is tired of renting is going to buy a house this summer. I’m fascinated by the thinking of people who believe in a price correction, yet buy anyway.
They could buy a house twice as nice in 3-5 years.
