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Strategies & Market Trends : The Residential Real Estate Crash Index -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: J. P. who wrote (1617)	2/19/2002 11:18:44 AM
From: TheStockFairy	Respond to of 306849

Something you didn't explicitly mention about those markets is that there are huge lakes and Oceans that prevent growth in one direction. Take a look around Chicago though. It's quicker to go from Naperville (40 miles West) to the Loop than it is to go from Rogers Park (10 miles north) due to the express train schedules vs. taking the EL. At the worst, you are looking at about the same amount of time except the train from Naperville doesn't smell like urine, so there's that perk. Also, if you look at Lake Zurich, they just built an office building that could probably hold 5,000 to 7500 workers. So, you are starting to get two options....you can move further west and commute downtown with a good train station or you might get lucky enough to get a job in the burbs where the commute isn't that bad. For us, maybe even Elgin is a possiblity if they put in a good express train, maybe even Indiana.

To: J. P. who wrote (1617)	2/19/2002 12:01:31 PM
From: SouthFloridaGuy	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 306849

So maybe those who are loudest like me in calling this a bubble live in Chicago, New York, San Francisco, D.C, where the price of housing is about double or triple or 4 times the cost elsewhere. Yup. What the country-folk on these boards don't realize is that a great number of people in this country come from a handful of urban areas. They are the determinants of the national economy, not somebody in hicktown, USA.

To: J. P. who wrote (1617)	2/19/2002 12:07:16 PM
From: JoanP	Respond to of 306849

Regret-free zones in R.E. Chicago is one of them: Why Chicago? Because real estate values will shoot up 6% in 2002, second most among U.S. cities studied by Case Shiller Weiss. Boeing just moved its HQ here, which should give the city a $4.5 billion boost. Chicago has the nation's largest tech economy (347,000 jobs), and it's the No. 1 business-traveler destination. Chicago has produced some of the most consistent price gains in the country.

To: J. P. who wrote (1617)	2/19/2002 12:34:26 PM
From: Tradelite	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 306849

<<you need to make mid six figures just to live in an average home....Those that bought 5-10 years ago or more are doing OK because they bought when housing prices were more aligned with incomes.>> No, you don't have to make mid-six figures to own a home--and I don't care where you live. One thing that is essential, however, is to adopt a savings plan very early in life and save up for a down payment....even if it means not driving a new Jag or Mercedes or even a Ford every three years and even if it means not going to movies or dinner. People who say they can't afford a home are often those who insist on having other things in life first--and they see nothing wrong with buying those things with a credit card and paying the credit card company major bucks in interest every month. Not easy to save much under those circumstances. Just an observation from someone who has worked with a lot of people who want to buy a home. Sometimes I've had to tell them to go back to the drawing board and think about where the down payment is coming from first, before they start applying their champagne tastes to buying a new home. Sounds like common sense, but some people don't have it.