Boycott housing? Uh huh...
Saw this on the Inman Blog this morning... Apparently a San Francisco couple is going to do their small part to change the world by starting a housing boycott. I guess their rationale is that if everyone stops buying houses, prices will come down.
Problem is, there are just too many people that will wait in the wings for those little opportunities to buy and who can't really justify NOT buying any longer.
They might have a better shot at a gasoline boycott, IMHO...
And as Jessica said on Inman, "Is it really boycotting though if you really cannot afford to buy a house in the first place? Seems like the natural laws of economics playing out."
More than likely what will happen is you'll have one large party of very bitter people getting together online to bitch about things they cannot change... Then again, maybe I'm wrong...
But as they say in some of their comments, I'm a homeowner, so I'm just 'scared'...
How Much Is That Windmill? [NYT]
posted by Matt Lanning @ 9:55 AM
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And as Jessica said on Inman, "Is it really boycotting though if you really cannot afford to buy a house in the first place? Seems like the natural laws of economics playing out."
Well, yeah its boycotting if you can afford the item and you choose not to buy it. Just as I did. I have over $200,000 as downpayment and I make a nice salary. I can afford to buy, but I signed up because two years ago I found thee prices RIDICULOUS in the Bay Area. I choose not to pay over-inflated prices.
So, yeah, one can boycott. I did. And a number of people at that site stated that they could afford and are boycotting.
Don't lump everyone in the same situation, just because you have been suckered into the herd mentality of "buy now, it doesn't get better than this."
I signed it too. I can buy house right now with our income and saving. But we dont' want to do it in this market. After all, It's "boycott" not "I can't afford"
The truth is that sites like this will help spread the word to couples that "could afford" yet need to understand rationality. The housing market in SF was fueled by fear. Fear that everyone would be priced out "forever" which is ridiculous since the population in SF has been declining, and now as anyone can see, inventory is at record levels. It is now only a matter of time that investors will have to suck it up and start lowering the prices. Game over.
Go to the boycotthousing.com website and check the news stories. None of them are about San Francisco. I've been waiting for the bubble to burst for seven years now, and housing keeps getting more and more expensive. I'm afraid that Matt is right; if housing prices drop, more people will jump in. I wish that it wasn't true, but I have gone to more packed open houses than I can count. It's going to take a good size recession to empty enough pockets to stop the madness. Does anyone know where to get the months of inventory numbers for San Francisco?
The rising home prices in the Bay Area have been largely fueled by two developements - massive cuts in interest rates over the last x number of years by the Fed and people's willingness to take out increasingly exotic mortgages to finance homes they couldn't not have afforded absent those mortgages. The risk folks have taken on in the last couple of years with ARMs, intest-only loans, zero down, stated income loans and other such mortgages could potentially lead to a lot of pain for them in the current interest rate environment. I'm consistently surprised at the mentality of some folks to jump on the latest "bandwagon" investing craze to see if they can make any money at it. Some will win...and the last few years show some have "won" at real estate - either as an investment or as an investment/home. I could afford to buy a home in the Bay Area but I choose not to given the risks currently in the market. However, there are other investment options in the world including buying real estate in markets where one can get more bang for their buck. Real estate agents of course are going to hype up the market as much as they can, their business folks just like any other...buyers beware - they usually work for the seller and don't make a commission if you hold off buying (even if they work for you).
Have you ever heard the term "conflict of interest?"
Youa are a realtor and make your living out of making people buy houses at these ridiculous prices.
No wonder you have this arrogant attitude.
Have you ever heard the term 'spineless coward'? At least I don't run around anonymously attacking people that I've never met. Get a life, already.
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