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There’s Going To Be A Culling Of The Herd, But That Was Due Anyway

A report from Lancaster Online in Pennsylvania. “Shifting borrowing requirements, sudden job losses and state-ordered restrictions on real estate activity meant to limit the spread of COVID-19 in Pennsylvania have complicated — and in many cases halted — home sales during what is traditionally the busy spring season. And as Lancaster County real estate agents navigate the straitjacket of restrictions, they’re coming to grips with the idea that the booming housing market from just a couple months ago could soon look quite different.”

“‘Will there be buyers out there? Will sellers be able to get the same prices for their homes?’ said Dawn Brill-Cooper, a real estate agent with Berkshire Hathaway. ‘I’m going to try to stay as positive as possible and just hope and pray that our market rebounds.'”

“After years of being renters, William Ojeda and his fiancee, Jeimary Ramos-Malave, began looking for a place of their own last fall. By February, they had decided on a single-family home in a West Lampeter Township neighborhood. As they waited for the April 9 closing date and secured a mortgage for the $300,000 purchase, the global pandemic nearly scuttled their sale as changing mortgage requirements meant they would suddenly need to pay an extra $5,000 to get the interest rate they wanted.”

“‘Same house, same transaction, just more money,’ said the 29-year-old Ojeda, who works as medical underwriter. He said the new settlement date is April 30, the day the lease is up on their rented townhouse in East Lampeter Township. ‘It’s been an uphill battle for the last four weeks now.'”

From North Fulton in Georgia. “Some data already shows the coronavirus pandemic has impacted the residential real estate market in north Metro Atlanta. Mortgage qualification guidelines have also been squeezed. Debt to asset ratios have been capped at 45 percent and credit score requirements have jumped from 580 to 640, depending on the lender, said Donna Murphy of Atlanta Fine Homes. ‘This, unfortunately, can affect the buying power of our clients,’ she said.”

From Bisnow on Florida. “In the long term, KAR Properties CEO Shahab Karmely doesn’t predict too much damage in the real estate market outside of hospitality. ‘There’s going to be a culling of the herd in the condo market,’ he said, but that was due anyway, since Miami has been flooded with new product. He was hopeful that prices wouldn’t drop precipitously. ‘The numbers and the data do not support the extreme action that has been taken,’ he said.”

The Steamboat Pilot in Colorado. “While local real estate experts are trying to keep optimistic that there won’t be a market free fall like the nation witnessed during the 2008 Great Recession, it’s already evident sales have started to dip. Right now is a time for entry-level locals to find a home and potentially not be outbid when submitting an offer. ‘There’s a period of time here where there won’t be as much competition for them,’ said Jon Wade, owner of local real estate firm The Steamboat Group.”

“For buyers, Doug Labor, general manager of Steamboat Sotheby’s International Realty downtown said there are opportunities, and they should remain reactive when properties come onto the market. For sellers, they may have to take a bit of a price drop for their property to stand out. ‘We’ve seen sellers that have decided to pull their property off the market, because they feel they’ll come back in when the timing is a little bit better,’ Labor said.”

The Post Bulletin in Minnesota. “Todd Polifka wonders if he is in the lost year of the housing industry. ‘This is one of the worst possible times for us,’ said Polifka, as he surveyed a house he is building in Inver Grove Heights, Minn. Polifka looked at the lot itself, a standard size for suburbs, about 70 feet wide. He paid $212,000 before the coronavirus struck. ‘How do you put a $350,000 house on that lot?’ he said. ‘Look around. There are no $60,000 lots here.'”

“The slowdown is similar across the state. ‘It could be a lost year, at least for some of us,’ said Howie Zetah, president of the Builders Association of Minnesota. He said that as the stock market sinks and unemployment soars, even customers who can afford new homes get jumpy. He predicted a drop of 15 percent to 25 percent in 2020. ‘I had two homes, all ready to start, and they decided to wait,’ said Zetah, owner of Zetah Construction in Bemidji.”

From Noozhawk in California. “As the community grapples with the impacts of the coronavirus, new residential real estate listings dropped 30 percent, pending sales are down by about 65 percent, and loans for the jumbo market — loans over $625,000 — have chilled. We are seeing buyers and sellers who have lost their income putting homebuying on hold,’ said Staci Caplan, president of the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors.”

“Renee Grubb, owner of Village Properties, said many of her clients have either withdrawn their properties from the market or buyers are not interested in looking at the moment. She said sales are off by about 50 percent. Grubb said the market has cooled after March was strong. ‘April is definitely off substantially, but again we are listing far less,’ Grubb said. ‘The number of withdrawals is declining as time goes on. We are not seeing substantial declines in prices.'”

“Caplan said property management is also in a tough spot right now. Each jurisdiction has a different set of rules and regulations regarding evictions. ‘There is the quandary of if the tenant doesn’t pay rent, then how does the property owner pay their mortgage, especially since the rollout of the unemployment programs and Small Business Administration loans are not being fully implemented yet,’ Caplan said. ‘It tough for everyone in the rental market right now.'”

The San Francisco Chronicle in California. “With coveted private beach access and panoramic views of the sunset over the bay, it’s no wonder the owners of 49 Terrace Avenue in Bolinas have had trouble letting go. The home has only been on the market a handful of times since it was built in 1935. Its current owner moved out of state about seven years ago, yet she held on to the property. She originally purchased it in 2006 to use as a vacation home, according to sales agent Cristina di Grazia.”

“The home came on the market just over a year ago asking $4,855,000. Despite several price cuts, including a $150,000 drop at the end of February, the now $4,100,000 four-bedroom, three-bath home has not yet found a buyer. But di Grazia said the property has had a constant stream of interested parties, mostly from San Francisco, over the past year. She is not concerned that downward pressure from the COVID crisis will cause the price to drop even lower or that the seller will decide to remove the home from the market altogether.”

“‘It is a place out of another era for one special buyer. There will never be another like it,’ she said. ‘The transfer of ownership really isn’t that much about market conditions. We feel the price reflects honest value. There’s no reason to go off the market. Like the house itself, it can stand the test of time.'”

From KMOV in Missouri. “Selling a house during a worldwide pandemic takes some creativity and masks and gloves, but if you thought the coronavirus had hurt the housing market, you’d be wrong. A couple is trying to see a four-bedroom house in Wildwood is for $329,000. ‘It’s a little bit unnerving to invite people to your house at this time,’ said homeowner Yuri Rechtman. Rechmtman and his wife know that potential buyers may want to tour their home that just went on the market Thursday. But they’re retired and bought a house in Florida before the coronavirus situation got bad. ‘When we planned to move we didn’t realize that something like this would happen. So the timing is not the best but life continues,’ said Rechtman.”

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This Post Has 114 Comments

  1. ‘Debt to asset ratios have been capped at 45 percent and credit score requirements have jumped from 580 to 640, depending on the lender…‘This, unfortunately, can affect the buying power of our clients’

    Don’t worry Donna, it’ll be worser this time tomorrow.

    1. That’s 45 percent for debt, more to taxes, and if you don’t save 25 percent of your income, it will be your fault if you starve and die early because you won’t be getting Social Security and Medicare.

      Suck it up, you entitled snowflakes!

      My advice? Don’t buy unless and until it just kills the seller to sell it to you. I wonder how many houses the federal government and the financial sector will destroy this time to create artificial scarcity to benefit Generation Greed?

      1. Generation Greed

        It is always ironic to have some guy in a million dollar house poke me with that “greed” accusation. Raising my kids and getting out of debt are my only financial feats. The cannibalization of our society and its economy is a behavioral thing, spanning all our generations.

      2. Don’t buy unless and until it just kills the seller to sell it to you.

        I assume that by the time I buy (if ever) it will have already killed the seller and I’ll never meet them.

      1. None here. But I do have some contempt for people who don’t care how dangerous or overpriced the market is, they jump in headfirst if they think they can unload it to a greater fool when they’re ready. Sometimes those are the same people.

        I’m currently raising a child in a rental home. She’ll be in her last year of elementary school next year and I’m hoping to take advantage of the flexibility of being a renter to be wherever I want to be for middle school at the end of next year whether that’s buying or renting. According to my current lease I’ll be month to month in a few more months and I’ll start looking around. Best of all the current location is also fine for middle school if that works out the best for all parties involved.

      2. Remember…. Mortgage fraud is an epidemic and California is the epicenter.

        San Diego, CA Housing Prices Crater 12% YOY As Housing Demand Plummets And Inventory Backs Up

        https://www.zillow.com/san-diego-ca-92128/home-values/

        *Select price from dropdown menu on first chart

        As a noted economist stated, “If you have to borrow for 15 or 30 years, you can’t afford it nor is it affordable.”

      3. raise their kids in a home??

        I spent most of my growing up in a rented home. Does that make it not a home?

      4. want . . . a home

        Not need. A home is what you make of whatever your living situation.

        2. Renting a home is not the same as having it in your name. When renting, you are at the mercy of the landlords who can end your lease at will and then you have to pack up and find other living arrangements.

          Also, I have fond memories of the home (s) I grew up in. Most people develop an emotional attachment to a home as it holds many memories.

          However, all that was destroyed about 20 yrs ago. Buying a house now is similar to gambling. And I can’t fault families for wanting to have a home in their name to raise their children.

      5. I was raised in a stable household, i.e., both parents living together married, house paid in full, steady employment, honorable military service and no obesity. I couldn’t afford California, but I provided an identical example for my children.

      6. Hey Realtor!

        Been renting for 15 years now, generally at below 20% of household income. Thanks to that decision, we were able to raise our kids in “affordable” housing (no 6% commissions paid at crazy bubble prices) and always had money available along the way to feed them and keep them in shoes.

        A “home” describes the relationships between the inhabitants of a house, not the physical structure they inhabit nor the financing thereof.

        1. Not a realtor – but have a family member who is one. She’s an incredibly hard worker and is highly regarded by her clients.
          Not all realtors are like her, but then no profession is without its bad apples.
          Have been reading this site for years, but am a bit turned off by the hostility and think it is often misplaced.

          2. highly regarded by her clients.

            It is worth remembering that these same “clients” are the people who have foolishly surrendered 30 years of their working lives to buy rotting wooden vanity boxes that in the end will be worth 1/5 or less than what they have paid over the years. Yeah, those geniuses.

  2. ‘Todd Polifka wonders if he is in the lost year of the housing industry. ‘This is one of the worst possible times for us,’ said Polifka, as he surveyed a house he is building in Inver Grove Heights, Minn. Polifka looked at the lot itself, a standard size for suburbs, about 70 feet wide. He paid $212,000 before the coronavirus struck. ‘How do you put a $350,000 house on that lot?’

    It works like this Todd. You walk away and the vulture snaps it up in foreclosure.

    ‘Look around. There are no $60,000 lots here’

    You are standing on it Todd, and you are fooked.

    1. “He looked at the lot itself, a standard size for suburbs, about 70 feet wide. He paid $212,000.”

      Seems like residential land that expensive would be closer to a metropolis or modern transportation hub, but Inver Grove Heights, MN is neither.

  3. ‘The home came on the market just over a year ago asking $4,855,000. Despite several price cuts, including a $150,000 drop at the end of February, the now $4,100,000 four-bedroom, three-bath home has not yet found a buyer….she is not concerned that downward pressure from the COVID crisis will cause the price to drop even lower or that the seller will decide to remove the home from the market altogether’

    ‘It is a place out of another era for one special buyer. There will never be another like it…The transfer of ownership really isn’t that much about market conditions. We feel the price reflects honest value. There’s no reason to go off the market. Like the house itself, it can stand the test of time’

    Hold your ground Cristina di, don’t give it away.

  5. ‘We are not seeing substantial declines in prices’

    Santa Barbara was sinking like a turd in a well before the CCP virus Renee.

    ‘There is the quandary of if the tenant doesn’t pay rent, then how does the property owner pay their mortgage, especially since the rollout of the unemployment programs and Small Business Administration loans are not being fully implemented yet…It tough for everyone in the rental market right now’

    Loans? It’s just been weeks. How are those 5% cap rates looking now?

  6. I just got this email:

    ‘To our Clients, Friends, and Colleagues,

    ‘It appears that we might be at the top of the COVID-19 “curve” in Los Angeles, but we must remember that this peak is the halfway point. We need to get the spread of the virus down to a manageable level and be able to test everyone and check contact history. I have been told that next week, doctors will have a finger prick antibody test to determine if you’ve had or have not had COVID-19. I recommend checking with your primary care physician to see if they will be receiving these tests, as it will bring great peace of mind to have this information.’

    ‘As for the real estate market, we have seen several prominent sales take place, albeit at substantial discounts. When these sales occur, it gives confidence to others that it’s okay to buy. However, both sellers and buyers need to be realistic. Sellers can’t expect to achieve aspirational prices and buyers cannot expect to get a steal of a deal. As always, we remain available to speak with you about all of your real estate questions and needs.’

    ‘buyers cannot expect to get a steal of a deal’

    Good to know. I’ll check back when you guys are a little hungrier.

  8. From the Florida article:

    ‘As we navigate through the coronavirus crisis, KAR Properties CEO Shahab Karmely cautions people about one thing: being too cautious.’

    “Some of the great real estate fortunes of today were built right after the global financial crisis,” he said on a Bisnow webinar Thursday. “I was like a deer in headlights in 2008, 2009, asking my mommy where my safety blanket was.”

    ‘In conversations with investors or bankers, he’s spending about 20% of his time putting out feelers for potential acquisitions or partnerships, he said. “If there’s a special situation, a deal to be made, if you would like to offload at an attractive price, we’re there. We’re buying,” he said. “It’s not Chicken Little here, the sky is falling, let’s go in the bunker … Not to make money off someone else’s misfortune, but if there’s a good opportunity.”

    1. It seems like the asymptomatic case rate might be quite high, making the plan to wait until the virus disappears a nonstarter.

      CDC reviewing ‘stunning’ universal testing results from Boston homeless shelter
      The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now “actively looking into” results from universal COVID-19 testing at Pine Street Inn homeless shelter.
      By: Drew Karedes
      Updated: April 15, 2020 – 11:06 PM
      BOSTON — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now “actively looking into” results from universal COVID-19 testing at Pine Street Inn homeless shelter.

      The broad-scale testing took place at the shelter in Boston’s South End a week and a half ago because of a small cluster of cases there.

      Of the 397 people tested, 146 people tested positive. Not a single one had any symptoms.
      …

          4. It just multiplies the sample and whether you test positive or not depends on how many cycles you run

            You can’t multiply something that doesn’t exist into existence. Nucleic acid amplification diagnostic tests multiply a unique disease-specific sequence to a level that can be detected. I am very familiar with all the foundational PCR patents and had a supervisor who worked in Mullis’ lab.

          5. So, you bet i$ ha$ nothing to do with age? or current health conditions? Or, current housing sit.u.a.$huns?

            Just genetics?

            Interesting hypothesis.

          6. On further thought, I think agplasma may be expressing a concern about conflation of virus detection (HIV or SARS-CoV-2) and disease (AIDS or COVID-19, respectively) when a clear causal link hasn’t been established. In which case, the issue stems from use of the technology rather than the technology itself.

          8. “So, you bet i$ ha$ nothing to do with age? or current health conditions? Or, current housing sit.u.a.$huns?”

            I didn’t mean to suggest that genetics alone explains risk variation. But rather that there is a large random factor resulting in wide variation in outcomes over people who appear to be at similar risk in terms of age, health status, and life circumstances. My hunch is that genetics explains the considerable variation in unexplained risk, but who really knows?

          9. life isn’t long enough to waste time

            I was trying to make sense of the comment in view of the linked article having worked in the industry.

            https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/molecular-diagnostics-market

            “PCR dominated the overall market for molecular diagnostics in 2019. PCR is the most widely used technology in molecular diagnostics. Increased usage and advancements in PCR techniques, e.g., multiplex PCR, are some of the highest impact rendering drivers of this segment.”

          1. I saw that yesterday and posted it here. It was met with disbelief.

            Interesting that none of our trusty news outlets have even whispered a hint of it.

      2. Are you inferring that concentrated “testing” reveals useful & accurate data?

        Out of 340 million Americans, how many have been tested?

        Does being above the age 60+ have any deleterious effects?

        Does being confined to a “facility”/home that has dozens & dozens of strangers coming & going 24/7 create any adverse effects?

        “Not a single one had any symptoms”

        (Wonder if that would bee the same iffin’ we put the homeless on a x2 week cruise ship to Japan)?

        1. “Out of 340 million Americans, how many have been tested?”

          Not only that, but have the handful of tests so far been conducted in a manner that enables inferring the infection rates in untested subpopulations?

  10. ‘As we all adjust to the new realities the COVID-19 pandemic has created, many may want to return to the way things were.’

    ‘In Calgary and across Alberta, the “way things were” is not a solid foundation to rebuild upon. It includes years of anemic economic growth, limited access to global markets for oil and gas, one-quarter of downtown office space vacant and, particularly painful, unacceptably high levels of unemployment.’

    ‘The COVID-19 outbreak and unprecedented collapse of commodity prices threaten to push the province into a historic recession. Our economy is forecast to shrink to levels not seen since the Great Depression. Premier Jason Kenney has warned unemployment could exceed 25 per cent.’

    https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-calgary-will-not-go-back-to-the-way-things-were/

    1. Jim.may “boo.yah” says : “Repre$$ion!”

      Cole.”theeman” says: “Dece$$ion!”

      Place yer bet$, the ball i$ dropped!

    1. History will probably blame the homebuilder recession on COVID-19, even though the ball was already dropping in 2019.

      Real Estate News
      San Diego County homebuilding continues to weaken
      Residential construction has slowed in San Diego County. Pictured: The trolley station on Broadway and Park Boulevard in downtown in early December.
      (Nelvin C. Cepeda/The San Diego Union-Tribune)
      San Diego County built around 6,491 homes so far in 2019, down 24 percent from the same time the last few years
      By Phillip Molnar
      Dec. 11, 2019
      3:21 PM

      Residential building is down in San Diego County and it is increasingly likely 2019 will produce the fewest homes in years.

      There were 6,491 building permits issued in the first nine months of the year, said the Real Estate Research Council of Southern California, down 24 percent from the same time last year.

      Homebuilding is down throughout much of Southern California, but San Diego had the second-biggest year-over-year drop behind Santa Barbara County, which is down 32 percent.

      Experts give a variety of reasons for the slowdown: Increasing costs of construction, concern over a slowing economy and public opposition to new projects.

      San Diego real estate analyst Gary London, who has sounded the alarm on slow home production for years, said the recent figures show a trend that could increase rent prices and cause other housing woes. He said the county should at least be producing 15,000 to 20,000 housing units a year to keep up a growing population.

      There were 9,975 building permits issued in 2015, 9,972 in 2016, 9,580 in 2017 and 9,579 in 2018. The permit numbers have mostly stayed the same despite pressure from Sacramento and some local leaders to encourage building.

      “These numbers are deplorable” London said of 2019’s building permits. “We’re delivering far fewer units than we need to ever get in a position of supply and demand balance.”
      …

    2. The ball was already half way down the hill before the COVID-19 quarantine put a cruciatus curse on the San Diego housing market.

      Real Estate News
      San Diego homebuilding tanked 16% in 2019, the biggest drop in SoCal
      Framers work at the Enclave Otay Ranch Apartments in Chula Vista earlier this year.
      (K.C. Alfred/The San Diego Union-Tribune)
      San Diego County had a 16 percent drop in homebuilding last year
      By Phillip Molnar
      March 12, 2020
      5:30 AM
      …

      1. The Cruciatus Curse (also known as the Torture Curse) is one of the three Unforgivable Curses of the wizarding world. It is a curse of torture, inflicting excruciating pain on a victim.
        …

      1. $700,000
        3 bd4 ba3,348 sqft
        2190 S Toledo Ave, Palm Springs, CA 92264
        Foreclosure

        4/1/2020 Listed by bank $700,000

        ‘The lender assumed this property during foreclosure proceedings and now owns it.’

        https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2190-S-Toledo-Ave-Palm-Springs-CA-92264/17739970_zpid/

        It’s funny when the listing uses property preservation photos. (The date stamp at the bottom). Looks like they broke in a week after the first exterior photos were taken.

        1. $216,100
          4 bd2 ba1,748 sqft
          11765 Birchwood Ave, Victorville, CA 92392
          Foreclosure

          ‘The auction ends 04-24-2020 at 03:00 PM ET. Why wait? Bid on this property now. Built in 1985, this charming ranch style single family residence features four bedrooms and two baths with an attached two car garage. Rear covered porch. Living room entrance with brick fireplace. Separate laundry room. Roof damage’

          https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/11765-Birchwood-Ave-Victorville-CA-92392/17630829_zpid/

          I’m always amazed that they expect so many thousands, but they won’t even clean the carpets.

          $434,000
          4 bd3 ba2,147 sqft
          3587 Peter Island Rd, West Sacramento, CA 95691
          Foreclosure

          https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3587-Peter-Island-Rd-West-Sacramento-CA-95691/59249913_zpid/

          Nice choice on the red paint.

          $1,453,900
          3 bd3 ba2,159 sqft
          4166 Horizon Ct, San Jose, CA 95148
          Foreclosure

          https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/4166-Horizon-Ct-San-Jose-CA-95148/61323269_zpid/

          Zillow says 1.4M, but opening bid is just over 1M. Again, filthy carpets. You guys can do better than that!

          2. but they won’t even clean the carpets

            Why spend the money when someone will most likely replace them.

          3. Lots of reasons. Dirty carpets stink. (It’s usually from pets.) You’ll get more money and cleaning doesn’t take long nor cost much.

            There’s no airflow, so the stench can build up. You walk in there after a few days and it’ll knock you down. Rip them out at least, and clean up the slab.

          6. it’ll knock you down

            Just seeing the pictures makes me want to take a shower. I’d want a hazmat suit before going into one of those.

      2. in the entryway

        I think that’s half the floor area of the entire house. Love the open concept of the kitchen, especially under the sink.

    2. What’s the advantage to a bankster of HODLing homes until they are full of mold and uninhabitable? Wouldn’t it be better for them and a future owner to offload sooner?

      1. Could it be that they are holding out for the Fed to announce QE5 to reflate housing prices, much like Charlie Brown waiting for The Great Pumpkin to appear?

        2. That would be Linus, not Charlie Brown. Charlie Brown is waiting for Lucy to not pull the football away.

          1. Another apt metaphor to describe HODLers who expect higher future prices, if only they HODL for long enough!

    3. “I’ll give you three-fiddy!”

      I’ll up that. A five dollar bill, two quarters, a dime and a nickel……. And you’ll like it!

  13. Facebook Ad

    “Who Says Size Doesn’t Matter?
    Social distancing friendly 😷
    2484 Louella Ave | 90291
    60×130 ~ 7798 sq. ft lot | Offered at $1,777,000
    Link in Profile
    DM me for details 💪”

  14. Is anyone tracking the spread of the virus due to city peops escaping from urban hotspots to rural getaways?

    1. Do wealthy second homeowners really need bailouts?

      The Financial Times
      UK property
      Second homeowners accused of exploiting loophole to claim virus cash
      Politicians say properties are being classed as holiday lets to be eligible for grants
      According to a number of local councillors, normally-vacant holiday lets, in resorts such as Looe, Cornwall, have been filling up in recent weeks, as their owners seek refuge from cities during the nationwide lockdown
      © Chris Harris/Alamy
      George Hammond in London April 18 2020

      Politicians in some of England’s most popular seaside towns are calling on ministers to close a loophole which allows second homeowners to access grants designed to help small businesses weather the coronavirus crisis.

      Owners of more than 55,000 holiday properties in England are eligible for a £10,000 payout through the government’s emergency small business grants fund, according to property adviser Altus Group.

      But local councillors estimate thousands of those are second homes which have had their designation flipped by owners from residential to commercial in order to avoid paying property taxes. Now the same homeowners are in line for a payout, they complain.

      In order to qualify for the government coronavirus support grant, properties must have a ratable value — the amount it could be rented for annually — of a maximum of £15,000 and be available to rent for 140 days.

      The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said: “These strict criteria will ensure that government funding is directed to those who genuinely need it.” The government has said it will prosecute anyone caught falsifying their records to gain additional grant money.
      …

    1. Ebola will be back.

      It’s still circulating throughout West Africa and waiting for a future Democrat Party president and congress to invite it here.

  16. ‘I’m going to try to stay as positive as possible and just hope and pray that our market rebounds.’”

    Let us know how that works out for you, Dawn. Meanwhile, I’m going to stay positive and hope the speculators and FBs who overpaid and made housing unaffordable for those of modest means end up walking away from their underwater shacks en masse. Too much speculative excesses need to be flushed from the system.

  17. ‘This, unfortunately, can affect the buying power of our clients,’ she said.”

    Gosh, it would be tragic if your marks, er, clients, were unable to sign on Mr. Banker’s dotted line for overpriced shacks they clearly can’t afford.

  18. ‘There’s going to be a culling of the herd in the condo market,’ he said, but that was due anyway, since Miami has been flooded with new product.

    I’m guessing Miami realtors probably didn’t shake the hands of their clients at closing and inform them they’d just joined the herd waiting to be culled.

  19. Right now is a time for entry-level locals to find a home and potentially not be outbid when submitting an offer.

    Nice try, REIC shills.

  20. ‘We’ve seen sellers that have decided to pull their property off the market, because they feel they’ll come back in when the timing is a little bit better,’ Labor said.”

    We’ll keep the light on for you, greedheads.

  21. “As the community grapples with the impacts of the coronavirus, new residential real estate listings dropped 30 percent, pending sales are down by about 65 percent, and loans for the jumbo market — loans over $625,000 — have chilled.

    Is that a lot?

  22. ‘How do you put a $350,000 house on that lot?’ he said. ‘Look around. There are no $60,000 lots here.’”

    Check back in about six months, Todd.

  23. ‘It tough for everyone in the rental market right now.’”

    Not me, and not my landlord. He gave me a fair price, and I’ve been living in the same place for over six years. He holds up his end of the bargain, and I hold up mine. That’s the way transactions are supposed to work, not gouging or stiffing people because you can.

  24. “‘It is a place out of another era for one special buyer. There will never be another like it,’ she said. ‘The transfer of ownership really isn’t that much about market conditions. We feel the price reflects honest value. There’s no reason to go off the market. Like the house itself, it can stand the test of time.’”

    Whatever, Boomer greedhead. You be sure to let us know as soon as that special buyer makes a full-price offer, you hear?

  25. A silver lining: ‘Cartels are scrambling’: Virus snarls global drug trade

    Coronavirus is dealing a gut punch to the illegal drug trade, paralyzing economies, closing borders and severing supply chains in China that traffickers rely on for the chemicals to make such profitable drugs as methamphetamine and fentanyl.

    One of the main suppliers that shut down is in Wuhan, the epicenter of the global outbreak.

    1. You know it’s a bad economic situation when even black market industries are facing a recession.

    2. Eye’m trouble, who should eye consider $ympathizin’ with their hard $uffering pain$?

      Poi$ionou$ Ru$$ian.Putain?
      $audi “$lash$&dice$” mB$
      Drug Cartel’$ …

      $ad. Thee.🍊.jesus. would say: there’$ “good.people$” on both $ides!

  26. I wonder how long it will take California to implement antibody tests?

    The Financial Times
    Matthew Rocco 4 hours ago
    New York to launch antibody testing this week
    Joshua Chaffin in New York

    New York will launch a ramped-up testing effort next week that Governor Andrew Cuomo described as a prerequisite for reopening the state’s economy.

    In addition to the standard diagnostic tests, New York will embark on widespread antibody tests to try to understand how widely coronavirus has spread and how many people may now have some degree of immunity.

    “Any plan that is going to reopen the economy has to be based on data and that means it has to be based on testing,” the governor said.

    The redoubled testing effort comes amid further signs the pandemic is easing in New York, with the number of hospitalisations steadily declining. The number of deaths over the last 24 hours — 507 — was the lowest in recent days.

    “We are on the other side of the plateau and the numbers are coming down,” the governor said. Still, Mr Cuomo warned: “The beast is still alive. We did not kill the beast. And the beast can rise up again.”

    Mr Cuomo continued his complicated relationship with President Donald Trump, praising his leadership but also pleading for more resources from the federal government.
    …

    1. https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/Immunization/nCOV2019.aspx:
      California has partnered with Verily’s Project Baseline to launch a community COVID-19 testing program to expand screening and testing for high-risk individuals in certain areas of the state. High-risk individuals located in Santa Clara or San Mateo counties, or within 50 miles of the cities of Riverside or Sacramento, can complete the screener to see if they qualify for testing through this program. Potential participants need internet access and a Google account.

      1. Right. Only 1/6 the number of deaths of the 9/11/2001 attacks per day due to COVID-19.

        1. It was of course frightful. It’s over in NYC. It peaked two weeks ago. Their deaths are now within the low double digits. This is good news. At least for us.

          1. “It was of course frightful. It’s over in NYC. It peaked two weeks ago. Their deaths are now within the low double digits. This is good news. At least for us.

            Frightful?, peaked,? Deeths?

            “Why all the excitement” over something that is simply:

            “📣🎙it’s just the common.cold!”?

          2. “Why all the excitement”

            We prepared for the worst and hoped for the best. I think we’re getting a better outcome here than feared. This is important to me mostly because it might restrict boating season. Now not so much! The NY marinas are open again!

          3. :This is important to me mostly because it might restrict boating season.”

            Have yous ever beens “a fearin’!” over kids with runny noses & snots before ye decided you could have a boating season?

            Something about yer “fears” seems, untruthful.

          4. untruthful

            I don’t know what you mean.

            I raised four snotty kids and they made me sick every year.

          1. Experts agree

            One thing is clear, the total number of deaths has not gone up one iota in the NYC stats. No matter how they wonk around with cause of death, I expect there will be little wiggle room on reporting actual death rates.

            I’ve got a friend with a six months to live diagnosis who has had to wait for his “elective” surgery so far. I don’t think it will take long now for our NY government to ease up on shutting the hospitals down. I hope anyway.

          3. About a month ago the answer was easy to find, in fact I posted it here and it would come up with 470 NYC deaths a day 365 days a year. The sites are now gone from my google search now (big surprise) and this was all I could find.

            Anyway the numbers don’t seem to work out.

            How many people die in New York every day?

            Lee Zevy, lives in New York City
            Answered Jan 18, 2018 ·

            In 2015 there were 153,623 That comes to 420.88 a day with heart disease and cancer as leading causes.

            https://www.quora.com/How-many-people-die-in-New-York-every-day

            Deaths in New York City Are More Than Double the Usual Total

            By Josh Katz and Margot Sanger-KatzApril 10, 2020

            Over the 31 days ending April 4, more than twice the typical number of New Yorkers died.

            But even if the current count is perfect, roughly 9,780 people have died of all causes over the past month in New York City, about 5,000 more than is typical.

            https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/10/upshot/coronavirus-deaths-new-york-city.html

        1. “Eye thoughts is was just a common.cold?”

          “But even if the current count is perfect, roughly 9,780 people have died of all causes over the past month in New York City, about 5,000 more than is typical.”

          Before COVID19 420 people died in NYC a day

          420 x 30 = 12,600

          1. 420 people died in NYC a day

            A possible reason for logical disconnect is that NYC only has 10M residents. So you would expect 1% to die every year. That would be 250/day. NYC hospitals serve the greater NYC area though so 20M. The number I saw somewhere was 470/day average.

            If the actual number of deaths during this outbreak is less than normal, the whole hysterical episode will not be statistically significant.

    1. No worrie$, once “thee.truth”.is.reported.on.faux.new$:

      “They were all suffering from: “the common.cold. beforehand!”

      Random discharges of bullets only accelerated their unfortunate demise. $ad.

      On the cheerful side:

      There was “good.peoples” on both sides!

      Go Canada!

  29. Trumpy just told a CNN reporter “You don’t have the brains you were born with” 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣😂

  30. “(Wonder if that would bee the same iffin’ we put the homeless on a x2 week cruise ship to Japan)?”

    In a way, the cruise ship experience is the closest thing we have to a randomized trial for the propagation of the virus in a closed population, as the people on the boats had no way out and were intensely monitored. However, the age distribution is skewed to select for a high rate of unfavorable outcomes, as it is in a retirement care center.

    “Not a single one had any symptoms”

    Of further note: The testing selection process among the homeless population may be skewed in favor of mild cases, as the worst cases among them may end quickly without any contact with the medical establishment. By contrast, selection for testing in the housed population is biased in favor of the worst cases.

    I’m thinking about a paper I once read, which might shed light on all of this confusion:

    Statistical Models and Shoe Leather. Author: David A. Freedman. Source: Sociological Methodology, Vol. 21 (1991), pp. 291-313.

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