Unclear On The Concept
Making money through arbitrage (e.g. flipping) is dependent on an inefficient market. Condo Flip™ is attempting to create a marketplace for builders, buyers, and sellers, in order to make transactions…
Yes! Yes! No.
The title naturally caught our eye (Why You Can’t Afford a House in San Francisco), and we think the author’s analysis gets off to a strong start. But then he…
Trade School Versus Academia
Yes, once again it’s the academics squaring off against the Realtors®. Not too surprisingly, they offer two wildly different views. Play along and see if you can match the forecast…
It’s A Seller’s Squirrel’s Market
Within a month of putting her two-bedroom house in San Francisco on the market recently, homeowner Linda Gao had five offers, each one above her asking price of $699,000. So…
Freakonomics Freaks NAR
Freakonomics just moved to the top of our summertime reading list. Pointing to data that suggests that “full-service” “realtors get 3-4% more for their own houses and leave their own…
QuickLinks: Let’s Be Careful Out There
“Usually (housing) cycles last for seven or eight years…Now we’re in year nine or 10.” (DataQuick analyst John Karevoll) · Pace of appreciation slows, signaling possible cooling in market ·…
A Good Handyman Is Hard To Find
Trying to find a good handyman? Give No Job Too Puny a read. Yes, it was written about New York but get over it, it’s still relevant, informative, and contains…
Remodeling For Profit
Looking for an excuse to install that Sub-Zero fridge and Viking range? The RealEstateJournal provides a couple of tips: First, you should not increase the value of your house to…
You Are Here (A)
Eric Jansen of Trident Capital waxes poetic on his “Seven Steps” in the boom-bust cycle of housing (not to be confused with the deadly sins or highly effective habits). Although…
Mixed Messages
A reader just forwarded a newsletter from her local Realtor®: Sales are up!…blah, blah, blah…supply is tight!…blah, blah, blah…the market is strong!…blah, blah, blah…but “t may be a good time…