[poorgradstudent]

I agree that it probably propped up the low end more than the high end. 8k is a much bigger deal for a 200k house than a 800k house. I don’t think $20k is reasonable. A buyer who is considering a home worth 400k before the tax credit isn’t going to pay 420k + 8k cash. The average buyer probably wants to feel like they are getting something out of the deal beyond time value of money.

I’m guessing the high end saw about a $6-8k boost, and the low end $8-10k. It’s tough, because you almost have to assume all buyers are rational, and the bubble taught us that the opposite is often true in real estate.

[poorgradstudent]

I agree that it probably propped up the low end more than the high end. 8k is a much bigger deal for a 200k house than a 800k house. I don’t think $20k is reasonable. A buyer who is considering a home worth 400k before the tax credit isn’t going to pay 420k + 8k cash. The average buyer probably wants to feel like they are getting something out of the deal beyond time value of money.

I’m guessing the high end saw about a $6-8k boost, and the low end $8-10k. It’s tough, because you almost have to assume all buyers are rational, and the bubble taught us that the opposite is often true in real estate.

[poorgradstudent]

I agree that it probably propped up the low end more than the high end. 8k is a much bigger deal for a 200k house than a 800k house. I don’t think $20k is reasonable. A buyer who is considering a home worth 400k before the tax credit isn’t going to pay 420k + 8k cash. The average buyer probably wants to feel like they are getting something out of the deal beyond time value of money.

I’m guessing the high end saw about a $6-8k boost, and the low end $8-10k. It’s tough, because you almost have to assume all buyers are rational, and the bubble taught us that the opposite is often true in real estate.

[poorgradstudent]

There is no one real source of blame for the housing bubble and financial crisis. There were people who could have done something to stop it (Clinton and Bush administrations, Congress (either party at various points in time), Greenspan). There were regulatory agencies with no teeth that set policies in place that encouraged banks to make risky loans. There were homebuyers that stated more income than they made, and banks that didn’t bother checking those claims. There were some very smart math nerds at banks that made a very fatal error when averaging out risk, ignoring the possibility of systemic risk.

This is what makes it so frustrating for the average american. There’s no easy scapegoat. It’s easy to paint your own personal politics onto it. Republicans can blame Fannie, Freddie, the Democrats and poor people. Democrats can blame Bush, the Big Banks, Republicans, and individual greed. The truth is a lot of people screwed up.

[poorgradstudent]

There is no one real source of blame for the housing bubble and financial crisis. There were people who could have done something to stop it (Clinton and Bush administrations, Congress (either party at various points in time), Greenspan). There were regulatory agencies with no teeth that set policies in place that encouraged banks to make risky loans. There were homebuyers that stated more income than they made, and banks that didn’t bother checking those claims. There were some very smart math nerds at banks that made a very fatal error when averaging out risk, ignoring the possibility of systemic risk.

This is what makes it so frustrating for the average american. There’s no easy scapegoat. It’s easy to paint your own personal politics onto it. Republicans can blame Fannie, Freddie, the Democrats and poor people. Democrats can blame Bush, the Big Banks, Republicans, and individual greed. The truth is a lot of people screwed up.

[poorgradstudent]

There is no one real source of blame for the housing bubble and financial crisis. There were people who could have done something to stop it (Clinton and Bush administrations, Congress (either party at various points in time), Greenspan). There were regulatory agencies with no teeth that set policies in place that encouraged banks to make risky loans. There were homebuyers that stated more income than they made, and banks that didn’t bother checking those claims. There were some very smart math nerds at banks that made a very fatal error when averaging out risk, ignoring the possibility of systemic risk.

This is what makes it so frustrating for the average american. There’s no easy scapegoat. It’s easy to paint your own personal politics onto it. Republicans can blame Fannie, Freddie, the Democrats and poor people. Democrats can blame Bush, the Big Banks, Republicans, and individual greed. The truth is a lot of people screwed up.

[poorgradstudent]

There is no one real source of blame for the housing bubble and financial crisis. There were people who could have done something to stop it (Clinton and Bush administrations, Congress (either party at various points in time), Greenspan). There were regulatory agencies with no teeth that set policies in place that encouraged banks to make risky loans. There were homebuyers that stated more income than they made, and banks that didn’t bother checking those claims. There were some very smart math nerds at banks that made a very fatal error when averaging out risk, ignoring the possibility of systemic risk.

This is what makes it so frustrating for the average american. There’s no easy scapegoat. It’s easy to paint your own personal politics onto it. Republicans can blame Fannie, Freddie, the Democrats and poor people. Democrats can blame Bush, the Big Banks, Republicans, and individual greed. The truth is a lot of people screwed up.

[poorgradstudent]

There is no one real source of blame for the housing bubble and financial crisis. There were people who could have done something to stop it (Clinton and Bush administrations, Congress (either party at various points in time), Greenspan). There were regulatory agencies with no teeth that set policies in place that encouraged banks to make risky loans. There were homebuyers that stated more income than they made, and banks that didn’t bother checking those claims. There were some very smart math nerds at banks that made a very fatal error when averaging out risk, ignoring the possibility of systemic risk.

This is what makes it so frustrating for the average american. There’s no easy scapegoat. It’s easy to paint your own personal politics onto it. Republicans can blame Fannie, Freddie, the Democrats and poor people. Democrats can blame Bush, the Big Banks, Republicans, and individual greed. The truth is a lot of people screwed up.

[poorgradstudent]

Only been to Orlando once. Like everywhere it has pros and cons. I have to imagine all the tourism keeps a pretty decent local economy. Although it’s a bit of a drive, I’m a big fan of Florida beaches, especially on the Gulf. The water is just so warm and blue there.

The big downside to Orlando is it really is built on a swamp. It gets ridiculously humid in the summer and the mosquitos can be a real pain. The lack of mosquitos is part of what sold me on San Diego, coming from Minneapolis where the mosquito is sometimes called the state bird.

Also my understanding is outside of tourist season Orlando can be a sleepy town, for better or worse.

[poorgradstudent]

Only been to Orlando once. Like everywhere it has pros and cons. I have to imagine all the tourism keeps a pretty decent local economy. Although it’s a bit of a drive, I’m a big fan of Florida beaches, especially on the Gulf. The water is just so warm and blue there.

The big downside to Orlando is it really is built on a swamp. It gets ridiculously humid in the summer and the mosquitos can be a real pain. The lack of mosquitos is part of what sold me on San Diego, coming from Minneapolis where the mosquito is sometimes called the state bird.

Also my understanding is outside of tourist season Orlando can be a sleepy town, for better or worse.

[poorgradstudent]

Only been to Orlando once. Like everywhere it has pros and cons. I have to imagine all the tourism keeps a pretty decent local economy. Although it’s a bit of a drive, I’m a big fan of Florida beaches, especially on the Gulf. The water is just so warm and blue there.

The big downside to Orlando is it really is built on a swamp. It gets ridiculously humid in the summer and the mosquitos can be a real pain. The lack of mosquitos is part of what sold me on San Diego, coming from Minneapolis where the mosquito is sometimes called the state bird.

Also my understanding is outside of tourist season Orlando can be a sleepy town, for better or worse.

[poorgradstudent]

Only been to Orlando once. Like everywhere it has pros and cons. I have to imagine all the tourism keeps a pretty decent local economy. Although it’s a bit of a drive, I’m a big fan of Florida beaches, especially on the Gulf. The water is just so warm and blue there.

The big downside to Orlando is it really is built on a swamp. It gets ridiculously humid in the summer and the mosquitos can be a real pain. The lack of mosquitos is part of what sold me on San Diego, coming from Minneapolis where the mosquito is sometimes called the state bird.

Also my understanding is outside of tourist season Orlando can be a sleepy town, for better or worse.

[poorgradstudent]

Only been to Orlando once. Like everywhere it has pros and cons. I have to imagine all the tourism keeps a pretty decent local economy. Although it’s a bit of a drive, I’m a big fan of Florida beaches, especially on the Gulf. The water is just so warm and blue there.

The big downside to Orlando is it really is built on a swamp. It gets ridiculously humid in the summer and the mosquitos can be a real pain. The lack of mosquitos is part of what sold me on San Diego, coming from Minneapolis where the mosquito is sometimes called the state bird.

Also my understanding is outside of tourist season Orlando can be a sleepy town, for better or worse.

[poorgradstudent]

I’ve seen $20 per room advertised. Really I think it depends on the quality of work and how generous/penny-pinching you want to be. I’d say $20/hr is extremely generous, $10/hr may not be worth their while and you may get a lot of “sick days” and shoddy work. Surface cleaning probably isn’t as valuable as stuff like windows and oven cleaning, and if they really get behind appliances, etc.

I also imagine like most entrepreneurs, cleaners would generally prefer more work than less.

Also, as others have pointed out, I do strongly urge those who hire cleaners to hire those who can work here legally. Employers create the demand that fuels the illegal immigration problem. Especially in an environment like this, there should be plenty of legal immigrants and citizens willing to work that hiring illegals isn’t necessary.

[poorgradstudent]

I’ve seen $20 per room advertised. Really I think it depends on the quality of work and how generous/penny-pinching you want to be. I’d say $20/hr is extremely generous, $10/hr may not be worth their while and you may get a lot of “sick days” and shoddy work. Surface cleaning probably isn’t as valuable as stuff like windows and oven cleaning, and if they really get behind appliances, etc.

I also imagine like most entrepreneurs, cleaners would generally prefer more work than less.

Also, as others have pointed out, I do strongly urge those who hire cleaners to hire those who can work here legally. Employers create the demand that fuels the illegal immigration problem. Especially in an environment like this, there should be plenty of legal immigrants and citizens willing to work that hiring illegals isn’t necessary.

[Author]

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