[Ash Housewares]

SDR, I have no doubt you are a great Realtor, and I would contact you if I were looking to buy in San Diego. It was just the implication of the statement that irked me- it seemed to imply that all a buyer had to do was get a Realtor and then sit back feeling that they are being looked after. I just meant to point out that with sales as slow as they are, the horde of new Realtors who have not yet established client bases are getting desperate, and people should watch their own backs rather than simply trusting the Realtor 100%.

[Ash Housewares]

SDR, I have no doubt you are a great Realtor, and I would contact you if I were looking to buy in San Diego. It was just the implication of the statement that irked me- it seemed to imply that all a buyer had to do was get a Realtor and then sit back feeling that they are being looked after. I just meant to point out that with sales as slow as they are, the horde of new Realtors who have not yet established client bases are getting desperate, and people should watch their own backs rather than simply trusting the Realtor 100%.

[Ash Housewares]

I agree with Rustico that SD Realtor is a valuable contributer, and I have learned a lot from him (her?). However, I also think his ulterior motives show through from time to time. This passage in the original post made me cringe:

“I always advise to get a Realtor to help represent you. No the price of your home does not go up. It stays the same. Try to get a rebate from your realtor but if you cannot it still will help to have someone who is looking out for YOUR interest, not for the builders.”

We have a slow sales market overrun by new Realtors…they are hurting right now and will do what it takes to get paid. I don’t think you can ever make the statement with a straight face that a Realtor has your interest solely in mind, even in a good market. They don’t get paid unless there is a sale, and it is human nature to respond to incentives. I know several great Realtors, and I like the two on this blog. But I do think it is a bit misleading to make statements like the one above.

[Ash Housewares]

I agree with Rustico that SD Realtor is a valuable contributer, and I have learned a lot from him (her?). However, I also think his ulterior motives show through from time to time. This passage in the original post made me cringe:

“I always advise to get a Realtor to help represent you. No the price of your home does not go up. It stays the same. Try to get a rebate from your realtor but if you cannot it still will help to have someone who is looking out for YOUR interest, not for the builders.”

We have a slow sales market overrun by new Realtors…they are hurting right now and will do what it takes to get paid. I don’t think you can ever make the statement with a straight face that a Realtor has your interest solely in mind, even in a good market. They don’t get paid unless there is a sale, and it is human nature to respond to incentives. I know several great Realtors, and I like the two on this blog. But I do think it is a bit misleading to make statements like the one above.

[Ash Housewares]

No meadandale, I don’t own a house (finished college in 2004, too late to catch the ride). But my personal situation doesn’t have anything to do with the impact of Prop 13. I stand by my statement that Prop 13 is a hindrance on the housing market. It slows turnover since people don’t want to lose their low basis.

Just one of the many reasons I am in the long slow decline camp.

[Ash Housewares]

No meadandale, I don’t own a house (finished college in 2004, too late to catch the ride). But my personal situation doesn’t have anything to do with the impact of Prop 13. I stand by my statement that Prop 13 is a hindrance on the housing market. It slows turnover since people don’t want to lose their low basis.

Just one of the many reasons I am in the long slow decline camp.

[Ash Housewares]

Prop 13 limits fluidity in the marketplace and is bad for all of us. It’s like rent control- it may seem like a good idea at first glance, but it results in people who can’t afford to move and landlords who charge higher rent to everyone else to make up for the ultra low rent a few tenants enjoy. Similarly, Cities charge very high taxes to some people to make up for the pittance others pay.

We need to get rid of these artificial barriers to a truly free market in housing. Without these barriers, people would be freer to adjust to changes in their income or family situation, rather than being “locked in”. The bubble would pop sooner if it weren’t for market hinderences like Prop 13.

[Ash Housewares]

Prop 13 limits fluidity in the marketplace and is bad for all of us. It’s like rent control- it may seem like a good idea at first glance, but it results in people who can’t afford to move and landlords who charge higher rent to everyone else to make up for the ultra low rent a few tenants enjoy. Similarly, Cities charge very high taxes to some people to make up for the pittance others pay.

We need to get rid of these artificial barriers to a truly free market in housing. Without these barriers, people would be freer to adjust to changes in their income or family situation, rather than being “locked in”. The bubble would pop sooner if it weren’t for market hinderences like Prop 13.

[Ash Housewares]

I love the lady who says “they promised us they wouldn’t sell them for less than market”. Well duh, but “market” is not what it used to be. A room full of hundreds of bidders means they did sell for market. What idiots.

[Ash Housewares]

I love the lady who says “they promised us they wouldn’t sell them for less than market”. Well duh, but “market” is not what it used to be. A room full of hundreds of bidders means they did sell for market. What idiots.

[Ash Housewares]

I agree with sdrealtor about presidents getting too much credit/blame for the economy. However, if you still insist on digging into this further, here are a couple of items to get you started:

Chart of National debt under Dems and GOP:
http://home.comcast.net/~markthoma/Graphics/federal-debt-GDP.jpg

Stock market performance under Dems and GOP:
http://www.forbes.com/strategies/2004/07/21/cx_da_0721presidents.html

Job gain/loss under various Presidents:
http://www.dailykos.net/images/want_jobs_big.gif

I haven’t been able to find any housing charts. However, the jobs and stock market performance above may be a reasonable surrogate.

[Ash Housewares]

I agree with sdrealtor about presidents getting too much credit/blame for the economy. However, if you still insist on digging into this further, here are a couple of items to get you started:

Chart of National debt under Dems and GOP:
http://home.comcast.net/~markthoma/Graphics/federal-debt-GDP.jpg

Stock market performance under Dems and GOP:
http://www.forbes.com/strategies/2004/07/21/cx_da_0721presidents.html

Job gain/loss under various Presidents:
http://www.dailykos.net/images/want_jobs_big.gif

I haven’t been able to find any housing charts. However, the jobs and stock market performance above may be a reasonable surrogate.

[Ash Housewares]

I vote for “leave me the hell alone.” Don’t force your beliefs on me, don’t start wars in my name, don’t tell me who I can/can’t marry, and don’t tax me any more than a bare minimum. So I’m a libertarian, but there’s never a libertarian to vote for on election day. In the last two elections I supported the democrats- like others have said, it was a choice between my wallet and my social beliefs. Since I was a poor student, it was an easy choice- I had no money for them to take.

[Ash Housewares]

I vote for “leave me the hell alone.” Don’t force your beliefs on me, don’t start wars in my name, don’t tell me who I can/can’t marry, and don’t tax me any more than a bare minimum. So I’m a libertarian, but there’s never a libertarian to vote for on election day. In the last two elections I supported the democrats- like others have said, it was a choice between my wallet and my social beliefs. Since I was a poor student, it was an easy choice- I had no money for them to take.

[Ash Housewares]

Damn, that article was a downer. The thing I don’t understand is where all the money goes when the markets crash. They say other countries have been running their printing presses just as much as we have, to keep their money from appreciating against the dollar. With all that money in circulation, from all over the world, aren’t asset prices permanently inflated to reflect all the new money? The money can’t just disappear of the face of the earth- it has to go somewhere- so there should be some sort of support for asset prices. Can someone explain this?

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