It's almost 2010 and it seems an awful lot like 1990, doesn't it? I mean, don't you remember the awe that used to come with "The Year Two Thousand!" Remember, in the year two thousand we'll have flying cars? In the year two thousand, we'll be able to teleport. In the year two thousand, blah blah blah.
Where's my flying car? Where's my teleport booth? Sure, I have a nifty little iPhone. It's cool, I suppose. I can make phone calls...much like we've been able to do since early in the 1900s. I can take pictures...much like we've been able to do sine the 1800s, maybe earlier. I can surf the internet...like we've been able to do since the 1990s. Yeah, it's slick and it's handy, but revolutionary? Not so much.
Right now it actually feels like we're going backwards. Not only do I not own a flying car, but I'm thinking about trading in the car I do own for a Vespa or something else that doesn't take $100 to fill up. Perhaps a horse and buggy? Teleport? Not likely. In fact, it's getting much more difficult to even fly. Airlines are contracting and cutting routes everyday. I don't think I'll be catching a direct flight from Portland to Bali anytime soon, much less instantly arriving there with the push of a button.
The future might end up looking a lot like the past. What would that mean? It might mean that instead of intense globalization, we might end up focusing on being local. Crazy, isn't it? Real estate is showing a similar trend. Close-in homes in most areas (homes with short commutes to the city centers) are appreciating and selling like hot cakes, while homes falling further outside the city bounds are sitting and sitting. One study noted that a house is worth $4700 for every minute it saves in commute time. Wow.
In any case, things are changing...maybe just not the way we thought they were.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
The Sky Is Falling...Should I Buy a House?
Enter the real estate market in 2008. Things are crazy. The subprime fall out helped propel us into a violent spin cycle. The inventory rates hit an all time high. Now the credit crunch threatens to wipe out the available money supply. It's a brave new world!
For the past few years, real estate has been bathed in a white hot spotlight. It made sense, since the market was burning white hot. Open up any magazine or read any news site and you were bound to read about the wonders of real estate investing. Late night TV showed us all how to "get rich...with no money down!" Real estate was definitely the happening thing.
Everyone from savvy real estate investors to first time buyers could quote you their local appreciation rates. They could tell you the current rate for a 5/1 ARM vs a 30/yr Fixed. We all understood how owning a home would help us keep more of our hard-earned money through tax savings. And guess what, it was all true.
However, it's time to forget everything we learned. Or, more accurately, it's time to remember what we forgot. Lost in all the financial thinking and justifications for buying real estate was the personal reasons people buy homes. It's not all about appreciation rates and being able to refi into a HELOC. Those aren't the reasons we buy homes. They're simply financial benefits of doing so.
No, we buy homes, or at least we used to, for personal reasons. We buy homes because we've always wanted to raise our family in our home town. We buy homes because our employer transferred us to Portland, OR. We buy homes so we can paint the walls bright orange. We buy homes so we can stop paying rent to some nameless, faceless landlord. We buy homes for security and comfort. We buy homes because our family grew. We buy homes because of divorce. We buy homes because we sent our kids off to college. We buy homes because we retired. We buy homes to be home owners.
Listen, there are some very sound financial reasons to buy real estate. But there are other reasons, too.
When is a good time to buy a home? Whenever it's the right time for YOU!
For the past few years, real estate has been bathed in a white hot spotlight. It made sense, since the market was burning white hot. Open up any magazine or read any news site and you were bound to read about the wonders of real estate investing. Late night TV showed us all how to "get rich...with no money down!" Real estate was definitely the happening thing.
Everyone from savvy real estate investors to first time buyers could quote you their local appreciation rates. They could tell you the current rate for a 5/1 ARM vs a 30/yr Fixed. We all understood how owning a home would help us keep more of our hard-earned money through tax savings. And guess what, it was all true.
However, it's time to forget everything we learned. Or, more accurately, it's time to remember what we forgot. Lost in all the financial thinking and justifications for buying real estate was the personal reasons people buy homes. It's not all about appreciation rates and being able to refi into a HELOC. Those aren't the reasons we buy homes. They're simply financial benefits of doing so.
No, we buy homes, or at least we used to, for personal reasons. We buy homes because we've always wanted to raise our family in our home town. We buy homes because our employer transferred us to Portland, OR. We buy homes so we can paint the walls bright orange. We buy homes so we can stop paying rent to some nameless, faceless landlord. We buy homes for security and comfort. We buy homes because our family grew. We buy homes because of divorce. We buy homes because we sent our kids off to college. We buy homes because we retired. We buy homes to be home owners.
Listen, there are some very sound financial reasons to buy real estate. But there are other reasons, too.
When is a good time to buy a home? Whenever it's the right time for YOU!
Friday, March 7, 2008
Real Estate and the Internet: Technology Kicks Down the Door of the Housing Market
For years we all heard, "It's coming!" Technology is coming and it will forever change real estate as we know it. Guess what, Realtors, technology has BEEN here for years and it will continue changing the market as we know it. I, for one, think that's great.
The market is changing, we all know that. Baby Boomers are being replaced by Generation X and Y-ers as the new consumers. So why is it that all the new tech "tips and tricks" geared for Realtors have been focused on Baby Boomer agents? This industry has long been dominated by a slightly older demographic. To hear that an agent has 20+ years of experience is not an uncommon thing. However, with the changing landscape of both the real estate market and the American consumer, isn't it time for an industry face lift?
Again, it's happening already. There will always be a place of the 20+ year agent. They, obviously, have a ton of experience and an be valuable resources. However, I personally know that MY clients are looking for someone a little younger, a little more hip, and much, much more technology savvy. Someone who not only does business mobiley via email and text, but can't think of another way you would do business. In fact, the term "Internet savvy" or "tech savvy" is really just a moniker for Baby Boomers who "get it." What self-respecting Gen Y'er would ever utter the lame words, "I'm extremely Internet savvy!" Of course, they're Internet savvy. It's all they've ever known. Gen X-ers, though we loathe the title...and, honestly, all titles, were the first to truly adopt the Internet and other new media devices. We grew up with video game consoles, portable music players and the earlier versions of the cell phone. The brand new options, whether an iPod, iPhone, tablet PC, or PlayStation Portable (PSP), are really just improvements on those humble beginnings. To upgrade from a walkman to a discman to an iPod isn't just logical, it's seamless. There is no learning curve.
Gen Y is beyond that. They never knew a life without all our current toys. There is no adaptation or adoption time, a new media device comes out and Gen Y just has to have it...and intuitively understands it.
My point is, technology has already changed the face of the real estate consumer. Isn't it time our industry recognizes this and catches up? Nothing's worse than an industry that lags behind it's target audience.
In the meantime, I guess I'll just have to sit back and reap the benefits of not only understanding, but BELONGING to the "new generation".
So next time you send me a message needing to know the square footage of that home you drove by, don't be surprised when 5 minutes later I text you the answer.
The market is changing, we all know that. Baby Boomers are being replaced by Generation X and Y-ers as the new consumers. So why is it that all the new tech "tips and tricks" geared for Realtors have been focused on Baby Boomer agents? This industry has long been dominated by a slightly older demographic. To hear that an agent has 20+ years of experience is not an uncommon thing. However, with the changing landscape of both the real estate market and the American consumer, isn't it time for an industry face lift?
Again, it's happening already. There will always be a place of the 20+ year agent. They, obviously, have a ton of experience and an be valuable resources. However, I personally know that MY clients are looking for someone a little younger, a little more hip, and much, much more technology savvy. Someone who not only does business mobiley via email and text, but can't think of another way you would do business. In fact, the term "Internet savvy" or "tech savvy" is really just a moniker for Baby Boomers who "get it." What self-respecting Gen Y'er would ever utter the lame words, "I'm extremely Internet savvy!" Of course, they're Internet savvy. It's all they've ever known. Gen X-ers, though we loathe the title...and, honestly, all titles, were the first to truly adopt the Internet and other new media devices. We grew up with video game consoles, portable music players and the earlier versions of the cell phone. The brand new options, whether an iPod, iPhone, tablet PC, or PlayStation Portable (PSP), are really just improvements on those humble beginnings. To upgrade from a walkman to a discman to an iPod isn't just logical, it's seamless. There is no learning curve.
Gen Y is beyond that. They never knew a life without all our current toys. There is no adaptation or adoption time, a new media device comes out and Gen Y just has to have it...and intuitively understands it.
My point is, technology has already changed the face of the real estate consumer. Isn't it time our industry recognizes this and catches up? Nothing's worse than an industry that lags behind it's target audience.
In the meantime, I guess I'll just have to sit back and reap the benefits of not only understanding, but BELONGING to the "new generation".
So next time you send me a message needing to know the square footage of that home you drove by, don't be surprised when 5 minutes later I text you the answer.
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