Dr. Housing Bubble 07/29/09

[Crewleader]

Real Homes of Genius All-Star Edition: Today we Salute you Compton. Investigating 3 Blocks of Housing Bubble History and Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars Lost.

Much was made on Tuesday that the Case-Shiller Index showed a positive increase for the first time in many years. This of course was for nationwide data and did not take into account seasonal adjustments. However, there is noticeable change going on. Yet the Los Angeles and Orange County data point was still trending lower. Not exactly good news as we look into the exotic mortgage zoo with our Alt-A and option ARM waste. On Monday, the big jump in home sales was led by the median price dropping by $13,000 but the media was spinning this as some kind of sign that housing bubble version 2.0 is around the corner.

I’m surprised how quickly some people are capitulating and thinking that somehow the market has suddenly turned around. Didn’t our Governor just sign a budget to patch up the biggest deficit in the history of California? The disconnect is amazing. One simple question people fail to answer is what jobs are going to replace the 6,500,000 jobs lost since the start of the recession? Keep in mind many of the lost jobs were good paying jobs. Here in California, you had many people especially in the mid to upper priced areas buying overpriced homes with over sized incomes because of the bubble. You had mortgage brokers, agents, bankers, and others connected to the housing industry that believed in the housing bubble and paid top dollar for a bubble home. Unfortunately, they are facing a double-whammy with home prices plummeting and incomes drying up. So if you want a simple question as a litmus test it should center on what industry is going to compensate for the lost housing industry? I have yet to see a good argument about job growth.

Before I move on to the article investigating an interesting story of three homes on three blocks in Compton, I want to say thank you for helping this site reach the 5,000,000 hit mark. Many of you have been reading this blog for years and I sincerely appreciate the long time loyalty. Many of you may recall when we were a small minority in the middle of California bubble mania. As we go forward, I will do my best to continue giving you an honest take on what is going on. If I have learned anything in these last few years, it would be that you as a smart consumer of information should verify data and arrive at your own conclusion no matter who is saying what or where the large crowd is going. I am appreciative of all the e-mails and from all the other dedicated bloggers who have been working so hard to create an alternative outlet for information. With that said, let us now continue to the article.

http://www.doctorhousingbubble.com/real-homes-of-genius-all-star-edition-today-we-salute-you-compton-investigating-3-blocks-of-housing-bubble-history-and-hundreds-of-thousands-of-dollars-lost/