[UCGal]

[quote=Allan from Fallbrook]peterb: I mentioned something similar to this on another thread when I said I thought we’d see a return to 1930s style WPA-type projects (i.e. infrastructure related goverment spending on a very large scale).

The US infrastructure is in a dire state, and it will probably take massive amounts of government spending (a la what occurred during FDR’s reconstruction programs, WWII, or the Japanese government programs of the 1990s) to turn things around.[/quote]

At least we’d see some tangible improvement to our infrastructure for the money spent… unlike the direct handouts along the lines of the Bear Stearns/JP Morgan deal. I’d rather see any “economic stimulus package” result in new roads and bridges and the jobs that would create. I’d rather see a WPA project than the ridiculous stimulus checks or a gas tax holiday.

[UCGal]

[quote=Allan from Fallbrook]peterb: I mentioned something similar to this on another thread when I said I thought we’d see a return to 1930s style WPA-type projects (i.e. infrastructure related goverment spending on a very large scale).

The US infrastructure is in a dire state, and it will probably take massive amounts of government spending (a la what occurred during FDR’s reconstruction programs, WWII, or the Japanese government programs of the 1990s) to turn things around.[/quote]

At least we’d see some tangible improvement to our infrastructure for the money spent… unlike the direct handouts along the lines of the Bear Stearns/JP Morgan deal. I’d rather see any “economic stimulus package” result in new roads and bridges and the jobs that would create. I’d rather see a WPA project than the ridiculous stimulus checks or a gas tax holiday.

[UCGal]

[quote=Allan from Fallbrook]peterb: I mentioned something similar to this on another thread when I said I thought we’d see a return to 1930s style WPA-type projects (i.e. infrastructure related goverment spending on a very large scale).

The US infrastructure is in a dire state, and it will probably take massive amounts of government spending (a la what occurred during FDR’s reconstruction programs, WWII, or the Japanese government programs of the 1990s) to turn things around.[/quote]

At least we’d see some tangible improvement to our infrastructure for the money spent… unlike the direct handouts along the lines of the Bear Stearns/JP Morgan deal. I’d rather see any “economic stimulus package” result in new roads and bridges and the jobs that would create. I’d rather see a WPA project than the ridiculous stimulus checks or a gas tax holiday.

[UCGal]

[quote=FormerSanDiegan] I’d like to ask Where would you put your cash well above $100k? Stock market is too volatile for certain people. Bonds have a high risk of loosing value if inflation gets on a high gear. Dollar may be bottoming so foreigh currencies are also risky at the moment. Only gold/silver look relative safe. who do you guys think?

Believe it or not, in this type of environment I think it actually makes sense to think about real estate, in addition to gold, oil and holdings in foreign currencies as a hedge against inflation and dollar declines. [/quote]

But what if you want a tad more liquidity than real estate offers?

Does anyone know if cash or money market funds owned through a brokerage covered by SIPC?

[UCGal]

[quote=FormerSanDiegan] I’d like to ask Where would you put your cash well above $100k? Stock market is too volatile for certain people. Bonds have a high risk of loosing value if inflation gets on a high gear. Dollar may be bottoming so foreigh currencies are also risky at the moment. Only gold/silver look relative safe. who do you guys think?

Believe it or not, in this type of environment I think it actually makes sense to think about real estate, in addition to gold, oil and holdings in foreign currencies as a hedge against inflation and dollar declines. [/quote]

But what if you want a tad more liquidity than real estate offers?

Does anyone know if cash or money market funds owned through a brokerage covered by SIPC?

[UCGal]

[quote=FormerSanDiegan] I’d like to ask Where would you put your cash well above $100k? Stock market is too volatile for certain people. Bonds have a high risk of loosing value if inflation gets on a high gear. Dollar may be bottoming so foreigh currencies are also risky at the moment. Only gold/silver look relative safe. who do you guys think?

Believe it or not, in this type of environment I think it actually makes sense to think about real estate, in addition to gold, oil and holdings in foreign currencies as a hedge against inflation and dollar declines. [/quote]

But what if you want a tad more liquidity than real estate offers?

Does anyone know if cash or money market funds owned through a brokerage covered by SIPC?

[UCGal]

[quote=FormerSanDiegan] I’d like to ask Where would you put your cash well above $100k? Stock market is too volatile for certain people. Bonds have a high risk of loosing value if inflation gets on a high gear. Dollar may be bottoming so foreigh currencies are also risky at the moment. Only gold/silver look relative safe. who do you guys think?

Believe it or not, in this type of environment I think it actually makes sense to think about real estate, in addition to gold, oil and holdings in foreign currencies as a hedge against inflation and dollar declines. [/quote]

But what if you want a tad more liquidity than real estate offers?

Does anyone know if cash or money market funds owned through a brokerage covered by SIPC?

[UCGal]

[quote=FormerSanDiegan] I’d like to ask Where would you put your cash well above $100k? Stock market is too volatile for certain people. Bonds have a high risk of loosing value if inflation gets on a high gear. Dollar may be bottoming so foreigh currencies are also risky at the moment. Only gold/silver look relative safe. who do you guys think?

Believe it or not, in this type of environment I think it actually makes sense to think about real estate, in addition to gold, oil and holdings in foreign currencies as a hedge against inflation and dollar declines. [/quote]

But what if you want a tad more liquidity than real estate offers?

Does anyone know if cash or money market funds owned through a brokerage covered by SIPC?

[UCGal]

Good article. And it fits San Diego’s past markets – declines in home values when General Dynamics shut down, when the defense industry contracted in the late 80’s, early 90’s.

I suspect we’ll see some more job loss here in San Diego… The cell phone industry is getting hit hard – which effects several local employers: Qualcomm, Sony, Nokia, Kyocera, Motorola. The bio-tech is facing some stress. The real estate market decline and financial crunch doesn’t just hit banks and realtors – it hits financial planners, architects, strip mall developers, etc. The high end jobs are getting tighter here in sunny San Diego.

[UCGal]

Good article. And it fits San Diego’s past markets – declines in home values when General Dynamics shut down, when the defense industry contracted in the late 80’s, early 90’s.

I suspect we’ll see some more job loss here in San Diego… The cell phone industry is getting hit hard – which effects several local employers: Qualcomm, Sony, Nokia, Kyocera, Motorola. The bio-tech is facing some stress. The real estate market decline and financial crunch doesn’t just hit banks and realtors – it hits financial planners, architects, strip mall developers, etc. The high end jobs are getting tighter here in sunny San Diego.

[UCGal]

Good article. And it fits San Diego’s past markets – declines in home values when General Dynamics shut down, when the defense industry contracted in the late 80’s, early 90’s.

I suspect we’ll see some more job loss here in San Diego… The cell phone industry is getting hit hard – which effects several local employers: Qualcomm, Sony, Nokia, Kyocera, Motorola. The bio-tech is facing some stress. The real estate market decline and financial crunch doesn’t just hit banks and realtors – it hits financial planners, architects, strip mall developers, etc. The high end jobs are getting tighter here in sunny San Diego.

[UCGal]

Good article. And it fits San Diego’s past markets – declines in home values when General Dynamics shut down, when the defense industry contracted in the late 80’s, early 90’s.

I suspect we’ll see some more job loss here in San Diego… The cell phone industry is getting hit hard – which effects several local employers: Qualcomm, Sony, Nokia, Kyocera, Motorola. The bio-tech is facing some stress. The real estate market decline and financial crunch doesn’t just hit banks and realtors – it hits financial planners, architects, strip mall developers, etc. The high end jobs are getting tighter here in sunny San Diego.

[UCGal]

Good article. And it fits San Diego’s past markets – declines in home values when General Dynamics shut down, when the defense industry contracted in the late 80’s, early 90’s.

I suspect we’ll see some more job loss here in San Diego… The cell phone industry is getting hit hard – which effects several local employers: Qualcomm, Sony, Nokia, Kyocera, Motorola. The bio-tech is facing some stress. The real estate market decline and financial crunch doesn’t just hit banks and realtors – it hits financial planners, architects, strip mall developers, etc. The high end jobs are getting tighter here in sunny San Diego.

[UCGal]

Construction is more expensive than you’d think – depending on finishes…

We are finishing building a detached companion unit. The first contractor did most of the grading before abandoning the job. (That was a nightmare!) The second contractor came in to a site that already had the slab poured and the bulk of the expensive grading done – so it’s comparable to a semi-tear down. We shopped contractors (trust me – I’ve talked to or gotten bids from over 30 contractors.)

The square footage price with the 2nd contractor was high – $275-300/sf. And, as I said, we shopped contractors!!!

It might be *slightly* lower for the scenario you describe since, theoretically, you would not have any utility trenching, or sewer/water connections. But that’s such a small part of a project.

A friend recently did what you describe – bought a lot that had already demolished the house, then built a custom home. They paid close to $300/sf.

I naively thought we’d get bids for $200/sf when we started this project. Our first round of bids (5 contractors) were closer to $400-450/sf. These were big name folks that you hear on the radio.

[UCGal]

Construction is more expensive than you’d think – depending on finishes…

We are finishing building a detached companion unit. The first contractor did most of the grading before abandoning the job. (That was a nightmare!) The second contractor came in to a site that already had the slab poured and the bulk of the expensive grading done – so it’s comparable to a semi-tear down. We shopped contractors (trust me – I’ve talked to or gotten bids from over 30 contractors.)

The square footage price with the 2nd contractor was high – $275-300/sf. And, as I said, we shopped contractors!!!

It might be *slightly* lower for the scenario you describe since, theoretically, you would not have any utility trenching, or sewer/water connections. But that’s such a small part of a project.

A friend recently did what you describe – bought a lot that had already demolished the house, then built a custom home. They paid close to $300/sf.

I naively thought we’d get bids for $200/sf when we started this project. Our first round of bids (5 contractors) were closer to $400-450/sf. These were big name folks that you hear on the radio.

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