when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

We bought a house in an inner-ring suburb of Cleveland. When it's time to move again (in other words: as soon as this fellowship is over) we'll probably have to write a check like JennP did.

I know it's bad there Heidi - but your area has a few things going for it that ours did not. We were in a VERY odd neighborhood, and not in a quirky, cute way. Hopefully you won't run into the same nightmare that we did. If you do - find a resident to rent to. We were so worried about having to manage that from afar, that we just kept shelling out our mortgage every month w/o a cent coming in.

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

We were so worried about having to manage that from afar, that we just kept shelling out our mortgage every month w/o a cent coming in.

I'm trying to predict the worst-case scenario, and that would be it! I agree with you, that would be a nightmare to manage considering how many things dh has to tweak around here regularly. I'm prepared to write that check when the time comes just to have a clean break.

Hopefully we can make up for some of the loss as homebuyers buying in a depressed market. In the area we're looking at post-fellowship, home values are much lower now b/c homeowners and buyers are having a hard time getting reasonably priced hurricane or flood insurance.

None of this sounds particularly hopeful. :|

Right now on my short little street there are 5-6 houses for sale, 2 of those are sitting empty, 2 more are for rent and sitting empty, and the duplex across the street is sitting empty. As far as I know we haven't had any problems with crime yet (knock on wood!)

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

I know your short little street - that's a lot of houses! When dh and I drove by our old place in December, there were 7 houses on the market on our street. The one across from ours had been boarded up (happened sometime after we left but before we sold ... HUGE help . And the guy that bought our house isn't taking very good care of it (he's a resident somewhere, too -- I swear he found the post I made on SDN). Your street and mine are less than 5 miles apart (we lived on Bainbridge, off of S. Taylor between Cedar & Mayfield). That whole area has just gotten so depressed ... it makes me very sad.

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

I remembered that you lived on Bainbridge from when I first found this website. I think of you every time I pass that street - which isn't often since the only thing that way is Severance and I rarely go there. Ever since the beggar on the motorized wheelchair accosted me before I could even get out of the car... ...and I've been asked for money just about every time I go there. I just don't feel safe there, especially when I have the kiddos with me. Seriously sad.

[Cumberland]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

Actually Julia, I think anyone looking to buy anything is probably good. Better than no one buying no matter what the price is.

[poky]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

(we lived on Bainbridge, off of S. Taylor between Cedar & Mayfield). That whole area has just gotten so depressed ... it makes me very sad.

We looked at renting a house either on Bainbridge or Blanche - from an IM fellow at CCF who was headed for some grant work in DC. If that house had a second bathroom (as opposed to a toilet in the basement), we probably would be there now. Seemed like a pretty nice neighborhood when we saw it in May.

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?


We looked at a house near the CH library on Lee that had a toilet in the basement. Unfinished basement with no walls surrounding the toilet...

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

...and it was attached to plumbing as opposed to just being stored in the basement.

OK, we've totally hijacked this thread. Sorry! From toilets back to the housing market...

[poky]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

We looked at a house near the CH library on Lee that had a toilet in the basement. Unfinished basement with no walls surrounding the toilet...

Ha! I think we looked at that same house! I love how they advertise those as "1.5 baths". Yeah, right.

Sorry for the hijack, I'll shut up about toilets now.

[Phoebe]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

Our old house in CH had one of those toilets in the basement. The end of our old street has now been overtaken by a community of dental students.

Jennifer

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

I think it depends on the market. Here in downtown San Antonio, we haven't seen much of a drop off except for the ginormous Victorians- the ones that are over 1 mil. and the prices aren't going down, they're just taking a while to sell. (which they probably would anyway, since my neighborhood has houses that are well under 75k to those that are 2mil+)

In DC, the market is going to turn around quickly- there will be a new administration in town and people need to leave and to come. I plan on putting our house back on the market right around election day. Prices in DC are also still pretty high. Nothing has dropped in price in our immediate neighborhood.

Now, in both places, the suburbs are feeling the hit, especially in the outermost DC suburbs. They overbuilt, there is no infrastructure and people were already turning away from them because of commute times.

My aunt lost her house in Ohio (Cleveland) to foreclosure and my other aunt/uncle came close to foreclosure (Columbus) and sold at a HUGE loss.

Jenn

We live in the suburbs- but not too far out. Not like those poor souls who bought houses in Pennsylvania. That's a commute. Anyway, our neighborhood is down a bit, but we are close in enough that the change of administration will affect up positively, too. There are staffers who want to send their kids to "good public schools" and stuff like that- they probably aren't looking to buy in DC!

[weeniegeniewife]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

That is interesting about the copper.

Portland real estate seems ok. It has slowed down but nothing like other parts of the country. I'd say that sellers are holding off in they can but I'm not certain. It seems like there are fewer homes on the market.

I moved in with DH a month before we got married last year. I put my townhouse on the market (here in Portland), and it took SIX MONTHS to sell. We only had to lower the price once, and came out a little ahead, but it was still stressful that it took that long. It's a very nice townhouse in a snazzy part of town, and I was just shocked at how long it took to finally sell it! Given what's happening in the rest of the country, it doesn't sound so bad. I'm very glad that DH and I are not going ANYWHERE. How stressful.

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

We sold just in time. We had two viewings and two offers on our house the first week of June and got our asking price. We closed on the old and new houses mid-July before the mortgage problems. I feel lucky! Still, a house in our neighborhood was under contract the first day on the market in October or so. That might have been an anomaly.

We sold my MILs house in Wisconsin about a year and a half ago. We considered ourselves extremely lucky to sell in 4 months -- and that was over $10k less than she had paid for it. I know the market is much worse there now.

[GreyhoundsRUs]

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

I am so glad that we decided to rent! Knowing that we could be anywhere in 2 years and that we'd only have a couple months (from Match Day until June or so) to move made our minds up!

Good luck to those of you who are trying to sell! We have noticed an increase in rentals as people are having trouble selling...

Re: when is the real estate market supposed to improve?

I have my fingers crossed for you, Cumberland. I hope things pick up once March rolls around and the new residents start househunting.