What Happens when Chicken Little Goes Shopping for a House?
Posted by Ellen Jaffe | Visited 622 times, 1 so far today | Leave A Comment »
When I was a little girl, I used to watch my grandfather as he walked down the street. He always had his head down; that is, he was looking at the ground. Why was he staring so intently at the concrete? Well, the answer is, he was looking for loose change or perhaps some other lost treasure. He came from an era that was very traumatic. This was the “Great Depression”. In the aftermath and during the depression, people found themselves trying to cope and be more frugal and saving money was a necessity and a way to prepare for a rainy day.
We are seeing much of the same behavior and attitudes today. As my Grandfather stared at the ground, so many of us are looking down. We’re looking for the proverbial bottom of the Real Estate market. Some say we’ve hit it already and others say, not quite yet. So, there are a lot of people who are still waiting. They’re waiting for the all clear from the all powerful news media. We want to come full circle. A few years ago, we read and watched our local and national gurus who told us, just as Chicken little spread the news, that the sky was falling. However, in Chicken Little’s case, it was only an acorn. In our case, it was the housing market falling right out of the stratosphere. So Chicken little told Henny Penny and Henny Penny told Ducky Lucky until the word had spread far and wide.
Where are we now? According to a May 6th New York Times article, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke, said ” that the economy appeared to be stabilizing on many fronts but cautioned that a recovery was still months away and that ” further sizable job losses” will continue even after an upturn begins”. So, what does this mean. Whereas, a short time ago, there were no optimistic predictions, now it looks as though there may be a light at the end of this long, dark tunnel. Aren’t we all ready for a little sunshine?
Another article which appeared in the May 5th issue of the New York Times, also shared some optimism. The Headline shouted “Where Home Prices Crashed Early, Signs of a Rebound”. The subject of this article was Sacramento and it said “Is this what a bottom looks like”? The article proclaimed that Sacramento, which was the first city in the country to “fall victim to the Real Estate collapse”, seems to be in the very early stages of recovery. First time buyers and investors are said to be out in force. They are competing for bargains. Inventory has dropped and prices seem to be stabilizing. Even the Stock Market has shown shaky signs of improvement.
Can San Diego be far behind? According to what I’m hearing, we are also showing some very early signs of improvement as well.
As a Realtor, I like to keep abreast of the news, both locally and nationally. As always, I am optimistic and I will be prepared for the upswing which is coming, if not very soon, then in the not too distant future.
If my grandfather were still here, he would adjust his gaze upward and Chicken Little would say, looking up at the sky, “oh what a lovely day it is”.
