This week marks the one year anniversary of the Average Buyer blog. Over the year traffic has grown quite a bit. According to Google, there are many daily visitors.
As a favor, I would appreciate it, if everyone would take a moment to fill out the survey I have posted on the sidebar. It doesn't require a sign on. Please mark all categories that apply (i.e. we are both Renting 1-2 years, and move-up buyers).
I would like to get a better idea of who reads the blog and why. It will help me know what type of content is most appropriate going forward. Thanks in advance.
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A blog dedicated to my obsession with buying in the Sacramento housing market
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Posts
14 comments:
For all those renters out there....did you see this proposal? While I don't favor a taxpayer bailout of the housing market.....of the ideas out there, I do like this propsal the best (selfishly speaking of course). Up to 25k credit for buying a home!
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/14/opinion/14leamer.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin
Interesting idea.
Yeah, this proposal is a lot easier to deal with morally, but has the same net result as a direct bailout in that our children will end up paying the cost for such a rebate since it will just add to our existing debt.
The government should not be in the business of manipulating home prices at all, which is basically what this is.
I hate it. The tax break isn't really that big and all it will do is jack up the prices by 25k.
To play devils advocate....at least the money would go to those prudent enough to stay out of the bubble housing market, or who have enough equity to sell their current home and purchase a new one.
The idea of helping folks who put no money down, HELOCed the hell out of their home, and then cry foul just kills me.
As far as government bailout evils go....the buyer credit is the lesser of the two.
This proposal is just as bad as any other. There are already plenty of tax incentives to purchase a home.
BT -
It is BS - We've been prudent, lived off less than a 1/3 of our income for years and are now in our last home. And now I should pay even more taxes to help first time buyers? No thank you.
As far as government bailouts go, I 'd rather see this money focused on things that will make the US more competitive in the long run:
- Credit for Science and Engineering degrees.
- Infrastructure improvements
- Credit for payroll taxes for smaller tech companies to encourage innovation.
- Credit for interest paid by banks to encourage Americans to start saving again.
- Spend money teaching the next generation how to be better with money.
Lower cost housing is good long term, just really painful to the majority of the citizens. I don't wish bad on anyone - but I really wish people would quit bitching and remember all the fun they had spending the HELOC money - you can't be a victim of your own decision.
Sactia -
I completely agree...there are WAY better things the government could be spending our hard earned dollars on. I don't like anything that will keep home prices artificially higher. Affordable housing is my mantra after all.
Just saying, if anyone is going to get money out of this debacle...I want it to be me ;)
Whoa Nellie! I don't want to burst everyone's bubble, but this is an opinion piece by an econ professor - not actual proposed legislation...at least not that I am aware of, and I try to stay really on top of this stuff.
There is on the other hand, lumped into the "Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008" a proposed $7k tax credit for buyers who purchase homes that have been foreclosed (REO) or that are in foreclosure (have a notice of default). Not sure if that element of the bigger legislation proposal will remain in there, but that is the only current incentive of that nature that I am aware of.
http://banking.senate.gov/_files/040208_ForeclosurePreventionActSummary.pdf
http://sacramentorealestateblog.blogspot.com/2008/04/purchase-foreclosure-tax-credit.html
Sorry - the end of the first link got cut;
http://banking.senate.gov/_files/040208_ForeclosurePreventionActSummary.pdf
Ok...I don't know why the link keeps being cut off when I cut and paste it in there...
The last part of the first link is - eventionActSummary.pdf
First-Time buyers. After 3 years of renting, I'd like to be considered as one (again).
$.02 worth ... If the gub-mint hands out $25k to buyers, sellers will jack up the prices by $25k, or not lower their prices (as the market softens) counting on the $25k for the buyer. Thus, the money actually goes to the seller, not the buyer. As admitted by the sponsors, the idea is to use gub-mint money to prop up falling home prices and the only ones helped by propping up falling home prices, are sellers and banks. Buyers are hurt by any gub-mint intervention that stands in the way of the real estate market falling to its "natural level," whatever that is.
Plus you get to pay property taxes on tht $25k forever. Lower prices are better for me. Plus they will probably dissallow it if you are in AMT anyway.
I'm renting now. Hoping to buu in 2009 or 2010. Waiting to see how the resets for this year go. No spring bounch really so hopefully prices will really start to tank.
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