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

To: Elroy Jetson who wrote (26308)	12/29/2004 9:49:46 AM
From: rrufff	Respond to of 306849

Thanks and unfortunately you are right. This is not an area that many understand. IF more people realize that it affects them, they will call their Congressman, email them, etc., and tell them to compromise. I believe my proposals would actually MAKE money for the govt, because it would trap those billionaires who have the money to set up these foundations and layers of trusts. I know because I see it first hand. What happens is that you get the middle class fighting the middle class because of the rhetoric of the vested interests. As I posted, the Republicans say "get rid of estate tax, it's unfair to tax people when they die, already taxed on income, etc." The Democrats say, "giving breaks to estate tax payers is a break for the rich." RESULT - nothing gets done and the richest of the rich continue to use the loopholes. WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMEN - ESTATE TAX EXEMPTION BECOMES $10 MILLION NOW - Eliminate the deductions after that, except possibly for outright gifts to charity. Coordinate the gift tax with the $10 million and allow outright transfers between spouses, so that only 1 spouse is taxed. No more trust, discounted shares and charitable foundations. It's a simple elegant solution, would reduce the code to a few sections. But you're right - it makes too much sense to ever get a lot of support.

To: Elroy Jetson who wrote (26308)	12/29/2004 12:21:28 PM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 306849

I am sure you have seen today’s numbers. Record highs. Existing home sales sure is in contrast to this post: ============================================================= US New-Home Sales Plunge in Nov Sales of new homes unexpectedly plunged in November at the sharpest rate in more than a decade, falling 12 percent to the weakest annual rate since July, the Commerce Department said on Thursday. The November sales tumble, which was well below Wall Street forecasts for a 1.20 million unit rate, followed a revised 4.2 percent increase in October to a rate of 1.278 million. Previously, the October rate had been reported as 1.226 million. November's 12 percent drop was the sharpest since a 23.8 percent plummet in January 1994, while the sales rate was the slowest since 1.095 million in July. Sales last month faltered in every region except the South - the largest regional market -- where they were up 13.6 percent. By contrast, sales fell 7.1 percent in the Northeast, 27.9 percent in the West and by a whopping 39.4 percent in the Midwest. Home sales have been a bulwark of the U.S. economic expansion, helped by relatively low mortgage rates that have enabled homebuyers to take out bigger loans. But prices also have escalated in much of the country, possibly to levels that keep would-be buyers from qualifying for mortgages in some parts of the country. The supply of new homes for sale also climbed significantly in November, up to 4.5 months' worth at last month's sales rate compared with 3.9 months in October. The November supply was the highest since a matching 4.5 months' worth seen close to two years ago, in February 2003. ==================================================================== OK New starts plunge New sales plunge Existing homes hit new highs Care to interpret that data? Mish

To: Elroy Jetson who wrote (26308)	12/29/2004 12:23:18 PM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 306849

U.S. existing home sales set new record in November - Wednesday, December 29, 2004 4:15:21 PM afxpress.com WASHINGTON (AFX) -- Sales of U.S. existing homes rose 2.7 percent in November to a record seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.94 million, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. The median sales price of an existing home rose 10.4 percent on a year-over-year basis to $188,200, marking the highest price appreciation seen in 17 years. November's sales outpaced the 6.68 million-unit pace that Wall Street economists had been anticipating. Meanwhile, the NAR also revised higher October's sales, from 6.75 million existing homes to 6.76 million. November sales were up 13.2 percent from November 2003 The inventory of homes for sale rose 2.1 percent to 2.48 million, equating to a 4.3-month supply at the November sales rate. "The figures are unbelievable," said David Lereah, chief economist for the realtors. He noted that sales in the first 11 months of the year have already broken the annual sales record The realtors expect another banner season in 2005, although projected sales won't be quite at 2004's pace. "Fundamentals are still excellent," Lereah said Once again, Lereah discounted any suggestion that housing prices are rising at an unsustainable and dangerous clip. "There is not price bubble in housing," he said. "If there's a problem, it's supply ... supply is very tight." Sales increased in three of four regions as tracked by the NAR in November, with only the Northeast showing a slight pullback. Median sales prices have risen the most along the coasts, with prices up 17.3 percent in the Northeast to $226,700 and prices gaining 13.3 percent in the West to $274,000. Also in the past year, prices have risen by 10.1 percent in the South to a median $170,000 and by 6.6 percent in the Midwest to $151,200