Bob Georgiou

Nonsense Dan, you're wrong.

Let me tell you about me. At one time I owned 7 homes. I was putting investors into those homes telling them on the way. "Do what the good investment real estate guys do!" Just before the top of the market I sold. I called all my clients. "Sell Now! It's the end of the road!" only to recieve "Realtor, you're just turning commission." or "Why? the market is still going up."

I took my profit, spenit it one a bad investments (a restaurant), taxes and living expenses for 3 years. Still have 3 of the properties that are cash flowing shilghtly.

Many of those same investors, right now are desperately looking for loan mods, in one case walking outright, most are battening down with break even cash flow homes and are going to ride it out.

Today, I am looking at the prices in some neighborhoods and going, give me more cash! With 12 offers on every home priced under 200k in my area how many jobs have to be lost?

Forget about all that for a moment. I'm sick of arguing with pessimists who think that other ordinary people will rent a home in an area for $2000 per month when they can buy similar housing for $1750 before tax benefits. Do you want prices to fall? Rents have to fall first. In areas where there is a housing shortage and renters outnumber owners, what is the likely hood of that. If you owners out there are blessed to live in such an area, you're probably in good shape.

Forget about that too as well. Areas like Detroit, Toledo, and other depressed areas real estate is selling as low as 10k-30k or 50k for a home! How does anyone not make money on this sort of investment? In Las Vegas, Florida and Arizona, retirement areas where prices have cratered and inventory ballooned, boomers with cash are mapping out retirement purchases. Buy low, rent and wait until their current homes and market recovers in 10 years. When cash is earning 1%-2% the 5% cash on cash real estate investment makes sense.

We agree that this market is in distress, the economy is troubled and there is slow/little job creation. 1/3 of the population (92 million) is renting. That number will increase in the short term as real estate distress displaces more people (many of whom want to buy again or wanted loan mods and did not receive them).

There are not 92 million foreclosures in the pipleine. - A few hours ago