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Confirming The Age-Old Saying: What Goes Up, Must Come Down

A report from Mansion Global. “Q: For those who don’t have context, where was the Greenwich market before the pandemic began in March 2020? Greenwich, Connecticut-based developer Steve Schacter: The market was fairly down, especially the high-end part of the market, with properties sitting. I know somebody who had a $10 million home, and his feeling was that if he could get $5 million or $6 million, that was going to be a lot, and I think that was fairly difficult. The pricing was down easily 30-40%. As fast as they’re going now, they were sitting then.”

“Q: Do you hear a lot of people saying they want to sell? SS: It’s drawing out sellers, in particular empty nesters who felt like before, in their minds, marking to market was not something they were going to want to do. Now, this is their ‘get out of jail free’ card.”

From Habitat Magazine in New York. “It sounded like a good idea at the time: build a bunch of luxury condominium towers in downtown Manhattan so people who work in the booming Financial District could walk to work. The late, lamented boom in luxury-condo construction has saddled the Financial District with the most unsold inventory of any neighborhood in New York City, Crain’s reports. Some of those units haven’t even come to market yet. For anyone seeking a home in the Financial District, there’s plenty to choose from. The neighborhood has 1,433 newly developed, unsold condos, more than half of which haven’t yet been listed for sale, according to Marketproof.”

From ABC 7 in California. “In 2020, a year dominated by the pandemic, California’s population fell by 182,083. It’s the first time in California’s recorded history, that the state’s year-over-year population dropped. Randy White moved his family from Mountain View, CA to Tulsa, Oklahoma five months ago. ‘From my personal experience, actually moving, it was like the wild west, there were U-Hauls everywhere leaving the state.'”

From Socket Site in California. “Having undergone an extensive renovation by The Wiseman Group back in 2006, the nearly 9,000-square-foot mansion at 2590 Green Street, on the border of Cow Hollow and Pacific Heights, returned to the market priced at $32 million in October of 2019. And having been reduced to $28.8 million in mid-2020 and then re-listed for $22.4 million a month ago, the sale of 2590 Green street has just closed escrow with a contract price of $19.5 million (and ‘only 32 days on the market’ according to all industry stats and aggregate market reports).”

The Los Angeles Times in California. “In Brentwood, Tobey Maguire just hauled in $10.75 million for a 1-acre patch of dirt. Maguire barely pulled off a profit after paying $10 million for the property in 2008. Records show he first tried to sell it for $14.25 million in 2018 before eventually trimming the price down to $11 million last summer.”

From Bisnow on Texas. “The 40-story Bryan Tower in Downtown Dallas is up for foreclosure auction a year after its owners first tried to put it up for sale, according to a report from the Dallas Morning News. The paper reported Monday that the skyscraper’s owners defaulted on a $70M debt to lenders and the building is slated for foreclosure auction sale on June 1. The 1.1M SF office tower has a vacancy rate of 55.5%, according to CoStar Group. That is almost double what it was in the first quarter of 2019 when the vacancy rate stood at 26.9%, and the first quarter of last year when it came in at 28.9%, CoStar said.”

The Kansas City Star. “At one point, Westley on Broadway Apartments offered to cut rent by half for six months in an effort to induce people to sign leases at the new Westport complex. The 256-unit Westley now offers the more standard one month free with the signing of a new lease as the wider Kansas City rental market has begun to limit promotions and specials. ‘The big problem on the sale side is the lack of inventory, the lack of supply, whereas on the rental side that’s not a problem,’ said Lisa Parks, an agent with Boveri Realty. ‘There’s plenty of supply. In fact, there’s an oversupply.'”

The Calgary Herald in Canada. “Calgary’s real estate market may appear to be booming once again, but new data on average pricing shows the market continues to recover with lower priced homes leading the way. And the numbers reveal that most areas have yet to surpass prices from five years ago. Lauren Haw, CEO and broker of record at Zoocasa notes higher-price communities have actually seen prices slide recently. Average prices in Britannia and Elboya, for instance, declined two per cent to $736,567 on average, and remain 15 per cent below the average price from five years ago.”

“Haw says higher priced homes typically experience the most downward price pressure in difficult markets and take longer to recover in upswings, while the most affordable segments slide less in price and recover more quickly, as the figures illustrate. ‘The overall story is the city’s market is recovering,’ Haw adds. ‘It’s just not fully back yet.'”

The Standard Freeholder in Canada. “Cornwall’s skyward housing prices may be confirming the age-old saying: what goes up, must come down, according to a local real estate salesman. March’s continuation of the month-over-month gains seen almost continuously throughout 2020-21 seemed to cement the idea the City of Cornwall was in for huge change. While that change has happened, there are new signs it may not continue. ‘We’ve been starting to see some early signs of it for a little bit, and I was on call with 200 or 300 other agents and they’re seeing it slow down a little,’ said Derek Bissonnette, a sales representative from Royal LePage.”

“Royal LePage analyzes market trends each month, and Bissonnette said all the signals point to a coming cool-down period. In the last two weeks of April, there were 33 sales in Cornwall, with over half selling at or below asking price. This is in stark contrast to the almost-daily stories of homes selling well above asking prices across the country. Three of Bissonnette’s properties sold for $4,000 to $30,000 less than what the owners had listed.”

“In addition to the lower offers, buyers are have resumed adding conditions to their purchases, which were uncommon in the hot market. ‘For a while it was a cash-or-nothing type thing,’ said Bissonnette. People are now adding finance options or inspection conditions to their contracts. ‘Before it was ‘there are this many offers, you’re buying it as-is, no inspection, nothing,’ said Bissonnette.”

“There were 39 new properties for sale in Cornwall in October, 40 in November, and 58 in December. ‘In April we had 77 new properties, and in March we had 90, to compare that to January, we had 27,’ said Bissonnette. The increases in the last two months have paved the way for more options, better prices, and more bargaining power for buyers. ‘We’re seeing almost double the number of properties come on the market than we were seeing before,’ he said.”

From ABC News in Australia. “If you are trying to enter the Canberra property market and feel it is getting much harder, much quicker — you are right. Disappointed buyers will find little solace in holding off on a purchase, with fewer rental properties on the market as investors sell up. Real Estate Institute ACT director, Craig Bright said 75 per cent of investors were ‘mum and dad investors’ who were barely making their payments as it was — and the ‘seller’s market’ had given them a chance to get out.”

From Bloomberg on India. “Sunteck Realty Ltd. was the first to spot a business opportunity a decade ago, when it snapped up land in Mumbai’s upcoming financial district and built homes for wealthy bankers. Now, as a fallout of a prolonged cash squeeze and the pandemic, it sees a bargain brewing once again. Land is selling at 20% to 30% discounts in India’s most expensive property market, according to the homebuilder. It acquired about 9 million square feet last year, and is in talks to purchase more in 2021.”

“‘Bargain deals have been available during the pandemic; we did three major acquisitions which were among the largest in the last seven years,’ Chairman Kamal Khetan said in a phone interview. ‘Landowners are desperate now, they are chasing developers. This is a buyer’s market.'”

“Rapid development in Mumbai — such as BKC — fueled prices together with easy access to cash from shadow lenders. Since a couple of years though, these financiers have been in crisis and the pandemic worsened the blow to the real estate market, offering an opportunity for companies with low debt, strong cashflows and a proven project-completion record to consolidate.”

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This Post Has 104 Comments

  2. ‘returned to the market priced at $32 million in October of 2019…just closed escrow with a contract price of $19.5 million (and ‘only 32 days on the market’ according to all industry stats and aggregate market reports)’

    Open market manipulation – check!

    ‘hauled in $10.75 million for a 1-acre patch of dirt. Maguire barely pulled off a profit after paying $10 million for the property in 2008’

    What, no taxes and insurance? He took an a$$ pounding. That’s 13 years now, some red hotcakes!

    1. “…What, no taxes and insurance? He took an a$$ pounding. That’s 13 years now, some red hotcakes!…”

      It’s only Tuesday, and yet another (see HBB yesterday) showbiz type can’t pass the 3rd grade math test.

      There must be something about all the imaginary glitter and glam of Hollywood that causes people to toss aside common sense.

  3. ‘I know somebody who had a $10 million home, and his feeling was that if he could get $5 million or $6 million, that was going to be a lot, and I think that was fairly difficult. The pricing was down easily 30-40%’

    Where oh where’s the crater? Given the lions, who knows what’s going on in Greenwich. But by all means, give these FB’s yer get out of jail card.

    Does anyone remember when New Canaan outlawed for sale signs cuz they were “depressing”?

  4. “Over the last thirty years, the United States has been taken over by an amoral financial oligarchy, and the American dream of opportunity, education, and upward mobility is now largely confined to the top few percent of the population.

    Federal policy is increasingly dictated by the wealthy, by the financial sector, and by powerful (though sometimes badly mismanaged) industries such as telecommunications, health care, automobiles, and energy. These policies are implemented and praised by these groups’ willing servants, namely the increasingly bought-and-paid-for leadership of America’s political parties, academia, and lobbying industry.

    If allowed to continue, this process will turn the United States into a declining, unfair society with an impoverished, angry, uneducated population under the control of a small, ultrawealthy elite. Such a society would be not only immoral but also eventually unstable, dangerously ripe for religious and political extremism.”

    Charles Ferguson, Predator Nation

    https://jessescrossroadscafe.blogspot.com

    1. These Entities that want to control populations rigged the elections, they control the news, they are forcing this Medical fraud, and they are making their moves to take all freedoms populations had.

      Tucker last night had a piece that Fauci funded the Chinese lab that was the probable source of the release of the Covid 19 . So the head Government Spokesman for this Pandemic was funding a Chinese lab working on bio weapons that was banned in the United States. Isn’t this evidence of a conspiracy with a foreign Country? Does anybody think that the conflict of interest here is outrageous.
      And add to this all the evidence of Foreign Countries in collusion with Big Monopolies to undermine the Constitutional Government of the US in favor of some kind of Top down rule by Entities that are anti freedom anti humanity.

      So , everyone is at the mercy of this insurrection , so why engage in the rigged markets or real estate where some say they are sitting up a crash for more destruction , so the Great Reset can be done for total control of all resources. Obvious this destruction of small business , than next will be a taking away of private property rights. They are going after gun rights and free speech is already under assault. How do you like Big Government now , and Government Agencies that have been corrupted by these power mongers . Some Governors are fighting back in their States, and the Federal Government is totally with the Globalist agenda. Federal Government is a traitor to a One World Order of Private Industry Monopoly Communist rule , where they are using Medical police state to overtake the US.
      Vaccine passports forced by private industry is the new device to take freedom and force untested vaccines on the people that don’t want to comply with this take the jab and shut up , and don’t ask questions. Don’t comply .

      1. Tucker last night had a piece that Fauci funded the Chinese lab that was the probable source of the release of the Covid 19

        This isn’t news. Some of us have known it for more than a year.

  5. ‘there were 33 sales in Cornwall, with over half selling at or below asking price. This is in stark contrast to the almost-daily stories of homes selling well above asking prices across the country. Three of Bissonnette’s properties sold for $4,000 to $30,000 less than what the owners had listed’

    Gosh, I hope everybody put 20% down.

    ‘In addition to the lower offers, buyers are have resumed adding conditions to their purchases, which were uncommon in the hot market’

    It really didn’t take long for this REIC hype to burn off. Now we get to read the long sob stories of termites and UHS fraud, etc.

    2. buyers are have resumed adding conditions to their purchases

      A faint glimmer of sanity, but Ontario has a long way to go. The article says prices increased 45% in the last year.

  8. The Age-Old Saying: What Goes Up, Must Come Down

    Blood, Sweat & Tears “Spinning Wheel” Lyrics (almost)

    What goes up, must come down
    Spinning wheel got to go round
    Talkin’ ’bout your troubles, it’s a cryin’ sin
    Ride a painted donkey, let the spinning wheel spin

    You got no money and you, you got no home
    Spinning wheel, all alone
    Talkin’ ’bout your troubles and you, you never learn
    Ride a painted donkey, let the spinning wheel turn

    https://youtu.be/SFEewD4EVwU

    1. Blood, Sweat & Tears “Spinning Wheel” Lyrics

      That song always brings a humorous memory to mind:
      late 60’s. Air Force father stationed at Moron AB Spain w/young family. wife & kids. eating at the base chow hall saving money/pretty good food when the airmen fed the jukebox & played new hit “Spinning Wheel.”
      Over.
      And Over.
      and . .. at least I dunno, 10 times in row!
      By the 5th time my parents were annoyed. After about 7-8 they were turning red. After 10 they finally just started laughing hysterically like ClockWork Orange torture!

      it is so true music makes memories

    1. The economy will be wrecked for decades. All growth, fake and real, brought ahead.

    2. Makes you wonder if the debt to GDP ratio can grow without bound indefinitely.

    3. This chart represents a true work of art. Only a completely dumbed-down population of ignorant borrowers could allow this to happen.

      Think of all the commission’s and fees worthy middlemen such as myself were able to extract from the unwashed toiling masses over the period of time represented by this chart.

      I fully expect a continuation of this chart as I fully expect a continuation of the very successful dumbing-down process inflicted upon not only on our youth but also huge segments of the adult population who should know better.

      Some people spend their lives toiling and then willingly send huge chunks of the proceeds of this toil to strangers who do nothing but go to the beach every day so as to enjoy their places in the sun.

      Borrowers are destined to serve lenders. God’s Plan.

      1. God’s Plan

        The borrower is a slave to the lender. God warns against this actually.

          1. Renting from the bank at twice the market rate is never an enviable position to be in.

    1. I am reminded of the military’s incompetence during the Carter years, which culminated with the failed hostage rescue mission (Operation Eagle Claw).

      History doesn’t always repeat itself; but it often rhymes.

      1. I don’t think there’s a Honda shortage. From what I’ve read about the trucks, they are waiting for the touchscreen infotainment modules to become available.

        That said, my local Ford dealer has plenty of F-150’s in stock.

  16. Real journalists always conveniently ignore inflation when blowing smoke up some wealthy investor’s arse. After inflation, $10.75 million in 2021 is worth less in real terms than $10 million was in 2008, unless you are shopping for luxury real estate that nobody wants.

    1. This just in: The Fed plans to let inflation run above its target level over the foreseeable future planning horizon.

      The Wall Street Journal
      U.S. Markets
      Stocks Keep Falling, Led by Tech
      Technology stocks among the worst performers
      By Will Horner and Xie Yu
      Updated May 11, 2021
      10:34 am ET

      U.S. stocks and global indexes fell Tuesday after concerns about rising inflation resurfaced, prompting a selloff in highflying technology stocks.

      The S&P 500 dropped 1.6% in morning trading, a day after the broad market index declined 1% from its record closing level. The Nasdaq Composite also tumbled 1.6%, extending its losses for the week to about 4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell about 545 points, or 1.6%.

      Investors are betting that inflation is likely to climb steeply in coming months, driven by pent-up spending as well as supply bottlenecks and a leap in commodity prices. A sharp and sustained jump in inflation would erode returns on fixed-income assets and stocks whose valuations rely on future earnings. Some money managers are concerned that it may also prompt the Federal Reserve to pare back its easy money policies sooner than anticipated.

      “Inflation is an issue that is on everyone’s minds right now, and it is injecting a lot of uncertainty,” said Peter Langas, chief portfolio strategist at Bessemer Trust. “The question is, how does the Fed react to that?”
      …
      https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-stock-markets-dow-update-05-11-2021-11620708764

    2. MarketWatch
      Investors are ignoring a ticking-time-bomb stock market, says this money manager
      Barbara Kollmeyer
      4 hrs ago
      NEED TO KNOW
      John Malkovich wearing a suit and tie: Tick-tock. © Summit Entertainment/Courtesy Everett Collection Tick-tock.
      Video: Too early to buy the dip in growth stocks, says chief investment strategist (CNBC)

      Tuesday is looking dicey for stocks, notably the technology space, as inflation jitters continue to ripple across markets. The sector has been bearing the brunt of concerns that higher inflation may prompt an early end to the Federal Reserve’s COVID-19 pandemic-driven accommodative stance.
      …
      What would bring that down to earth is the return of natural-risk perceptions among investors — severely lacking right now. “They have been given free money by the government, stimulus programs are in full effect, and investors don’t perceive any risk at all. That is the most dangerous thing!” Kee said.
      …
      https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/topstocks/investors-are-ignoring-a-ticking-time-bomb-stock-market-says-this-money-manager/ar-BB1gBwXN

    3. The Financial Times
      Markets Briefing Equities
      Wall Street stocks join global sell-off as inflation worries flare up
      Key measure of US inflation expectations reaches highest level since 2006 as economy rebounds
      Investors are looking ahead to when the Federal Reserve might be forced to change its stance Naomi Rovnick an hour ago

      Wall Street stocks joined a global equities slide as concerns mounted that rising inflation will prompt central banks to tighten monetary policy.

      The Nasdaq Composite index, whose largest constituents include big tech companies Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Tesla, dropped 2.1 per cent in early dealings before recouping some of those losses to trade 1.6 per cent lower. The broader-based S&P 500 index fell 1.6 per cent, with all of its industry sectors falling into the red.

      Concerns have flared that sustained high inflation could force the Federal Reserve to reduce its $120bn of monthly bond purchases that have boosted financial assets since last March.

      The US five-year break-even rate, an important measure of market expectations for price growth, hit 2.733 per cent on Tuesday, heading for its highest closing level since 2006, Bloomberg data show.

      The S&P rose to an all-time high on May 7, but a move by the Fed could mark the end of the equities rally, analysts say.

      “Inflation is creating a lot of fear among investors because of the possibility that the central banks are not ready to deal with it,” said Aneeka Gupta, research director at WisdomTree.
      …

    4. What should worry the dips buyers?

      A paradigm shift:
      1) No, the stock market does not always go up.
      2) Yes, there is a substantial risk of loss in playing the market.
      3) You could lose alot of money.

    5. Breaking
      May 11, 2021, 12:40pm EDT
      Billionaire Investor Druckenmiller Blasts Fed’s ‘Radical’ Stimulus Policy, Warns It Risks Stock ‘Bubble Blowing Up’
      Jonathan Ponciano
      Forbes Staff
      Investing

      As inflation fears rattle the market, billionaire hedge fund manager Stanley Druckenmiller is placing the blame on the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented efforts to bolster the economy, blasting the central bank’s ongoing pandemic stimulus efforts as “the most radical policy” since World War 2—one that could ultimately destabilize the U.S. dollar and tank asset values across the board.
      …

      https://www.forbes.com/sites/jonathanponciano/2021/05/11/billionaire-investor-druckenmiller-blasts-feds-radical-stimulus-policy-warns-it-risks-stock-bubble-blowing-up/?sh=7349afcd2fe8

    6. Dow down less than 2% and the NASDAQ barely at all, despite a supposed tech stock selloff. Tis a mere flesh wound.

      The Fed has the market’s back, so you can back up the truck without any worries…

      1. Have the bulls so fully convinced themselves that the stock market can only go up that even an itsy-bitsy baby bear market booboo strikes fear aand trembling in their hearts and minds?

        1. The Financial Times
          Markets Briefing Equities
          Wall Street ends lower as inflation debate intensifies
          Fed governor Lael Brainard and investor Cathie Wood weigh in on volatile day for markets
          Colby Smith and Michael Mackenzie in New York and Naomi Rovnick in London
          8 hours ago

          Technology stocks stabilised on Tuesday despite sharp declines more broadly across Wall Street, as investors weighed whether resurgent inflation could prompt central bankers to rethink current loose monetary policy.

          The blue-chip S&P 500 index closed lower by 0.9 per cent. The Nasdaq Composite — whose largest constitute includes big tech groups Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Tesla — initially dropped 2 per cent before paring back most of those losses to end down 0.1 per cent as “buy the dip” investors re-emerged.

          Asset manager Cathie Wood dismissed the prospect of a deeper bear market in technology shares at a monthly webinar with investors held on Tuesday. She said funds run by her firm, Ark Investment, which has become a bellwether for speculative tech stocks, had endured many big drops over the past five years.

          “Our long-term performance is determined by what we do in downturns,” she said. “We average down and it has been a successful strategy.”

          Since its February peak, the value of Wood’s flagship Ark Innovation fund has tumbled by about a third, as the value of its shares in companies such as Tesla have fallen sharply. The prospect of higher interest rates, should inflation be sustained, threatens to undermine the valuations of fast-growing tech companies in particular, since more of their forecast profits lie further in the future.

          On Tuesday, Wood predicted that the recent surge in many commodities prices, which has jangled investors’ nerves for its impact on inflation, would give way to a “very serious correction”.

          Fed officials, meanwhile, have reassured investors that they would pursue a “patient” approach to adjusting their monetary policy in the face of higher inflation and job gains, a message echoed by Fed governor Lael Brainard on Tuesday, who said a “transitory surge” in inflation would abate when imbalances in the supply chain and labour market resolve themselves.

          Data to be published on Wednesday are expected to show headline consumer prices in the US rose 3.6 per cent in April from the same month last year.

          “Inflation is creating a lot of fear among investors because of the possibility that the central banks are not ready to deal with it,” said Aneeka Gupta, research director at WisdomTree.
          …

          1. Tesla: Beware Of The Unwinding Of The Gamma Squeeze

            Summary

            Tesla and other EV shares have been under some selling pressure in the last three months, the EV bubble is slowly deflating.

            Adverse publicity in China and increasing concern about the safety of Tesla’s FSD option is adding to the downdraft.

            Intense competition in key markets and construction delay at the German factory do not help.

            Selling pressure could intensify in the second half of the year as call options expire, reversing last year’s gamma squeeze.

            Summary and Conclusion

            There is a large volume of deep-in-the-money call options purchased during Tesla’s share price run-up last year that will expire June 18th. This option expiry may precipitate selling as the option positions are closed and market makers remove their delta hedges. This will put downward pressure on the share price as the options expire. Further downward pressure is likely as the September and January options move towards expiry.

            Options trading is not the only factor that determines share prices but combined with other factors that appear to be pressuring Tesla’s share price at present, I think this would be a good time to take profits if you hold a long position, and don’t be tempted to buy the dip if the share price drops over the next few weeks.

    1. 11-month-old naked and crawling. Another one initially thought to be dead because she was so dehydrated.

    2. Pfizer brought in $3.5 billion from COVID-19 vaccine sales in the first 3 months of 2021.

      2. The day before yesterday my son received his 2nd Pfizer vaccination in the late afternoon. The following morning, yesterday, he had a headache and slight fever before heading off to work at 07:00. He returned home a couple of hours later around 10:00, didn’t say a word, removed his work boots and climbed into bed fully clothed with the cold shakes. He awoke around 14:00 feeling really hungry, the shock had passed; his clothes and bedding were damp from perspiration. He’s twenty-two and in great shape, a former varsity cross country runner.

        1. The Office of Personnel Management just gave fegovs up to 16 hours of administrative leave just for reactions to vaccines, i.e. they can take time off without eating into sick leave or vacation days. That’s how many people are getting slammed.

    3. If there is a yearly booster its not a vaccine. All it is is a Flu shot guess shot in the dark each year with EUA attached to it. Those who got the shot were had.

  20. They’re coming for your stove, water heater and furnace:

    https://coloradosun.com/2021/05/11/building-electrification-gas-homes/

    Denver, for example, is in charge of the largest and often most influential set of building codes in the state. The city is developing a plan to require all-electric basic appliances in new-home construction within three years. A follow-up plan to accelerate electrification in existing homes — largely through incentives to replace aging appliances — will be ready by this summer, Denver officials said.

    Of course, not a peep about where the electricity to power these new electrical appliances will come from. Solar panels might become a must have, given the rolling black outs that will be the inevitable outcome.

    I know people who have electric baseboard heating in their homes. They freeze every winter because the can’t afford to heat their homes to a comfortable temperature, in large part because their utility has a tiered pricing plan.

    What gets to me is that even though they will be freezing in their homes, idiots will still pull the D lever every election.

    1. Missoula same only shooting for 2030 implem.

      I got rid of baseboards and put in gas FA 20 years ago and now I shoulda kept the baseboards? I like them actually bc they don’t make so much noise.

      But I seem to recall a big problem with the electric prices back then.

    2. Maybe a home sized natural gas generator is a good response. Globalists won’t notice the irony for a long time, if ever.

    3. “where the electricity to power these new electrical appliances will come from”

      Where does it come from? It comes out of the wall.

      Slap a COEXIST sticker on that electric car and walk away a winner!

  21. Mortgage delinquency rates ticked up slightly in February, the first increase since August 2020. CoreLogic said the national delinquency rate at the end of the reporting period was 5.7 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from January. The rate indicates the percentage of all mortgages that were 30 or more days past due including those in foreclosure. The rate in February 2020, one month before the COVID-19 virus shut down much of the country, was 3.6 percent. It peaked at 4.3 percent in August 2020.

    1. Honestly I’m getting bored with the mansion stuff. Looking forward to some real blood in the water at the median price level.

      1. Speaking of blood in the water.

        RIP Marine

        Edgar Harrell (1924–2021), last surviving Marine from the USS Indianapolis

        By Linnea Crowther May 11, 2021

        Harrell was stationed aboard the USS Indianapolis in 1945, guarding components of the atomic bomb it was carrying. In one of the most notorious stories of the war, the ship was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine and sank, leaving its crew fighting for their lives in shark-infested waters. Of the crew of 1195 men, Harrell was one of only 316 to survive. He later returned to the U.S. and owned and operated the Pella Window Company in Rock Island, Illinois, for 35 years until his retirement in 1985. Along with his son, David Harrell, he wrote the book “Out of the Depths,” relating his experience in the USS Indianapolis disaster. In 2018, Harrell and the other remaining survivors of the USS Indianapolis were honored with the Congressional Gold Medal. His death leaves only five survivors of the disaster still living.

    2. “…Mortgage delinquency rates ticked up slightly..”

      I wonder if comparable stats exist for those delinquent for government taxes, most notoriously property taxes?

      I can’t help but think that many loan owners that get so watery eyed after hypnosis by their REIConplex relator to toss $4mm towards a tract home completely forget about holding costs.

      In these parts, (South Orange County) a $4mm crap shack will delight you with a property tax bill of about $45K.

      Factor in other fixed holding cost expenses and I simply question the number of households that can actually afford this sort of expense.

      I just do not believe there are that many. It defies common sense, logic and public statistics (ie. census data)

  22. My little burg is getting $9.5M in bailout money from the “Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds”/ Never mind that there wasn’t a dent in local tax revenues. Fort Collins is getting $28M.

    I’m sure city council already has a laundry list of things to burn the money on.

  24. Well looky here – patriotic elements in the French military put the globalist Quisings on notice: they’re fed up with open borders and multiculturalism that is setting the stage for a civil war.

    Le Pen Tells Macron He Risks ‘Civil War’ After Military Letter
    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-11/le-pen-tells-macron-he-risks-civil-war-after-military-warning?sref=ibr3A0ff

    Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said France is at risk of a “civil war” as she prepares to tackle President Emmanuel Macron in the 2022 election.

    There are no signs of a coming conflict, but stoking tensions surrounding issues like economic inequality and a feeling the country is becoming less safe serve Le Pen. She’s been campaigning for office since the start of the year, trying to frame herself as the law-and-order candidate.

    1. When did he buy it? The article says it was built in 1994, but doesn’t specify if he is the original owner.

      How much did he pay for it?

      1. Celebritynetworth has a real estate section for most of its celebrities. They don’t list an exact date, but they do say “For the last few decades, Sylvester’s primary residence has been an opulent mansion in the tony gated community at the top of Beverly Hills called Beverly Park.”

        So Sly has been there a long time, possibly even the original owner.

        1. So Sly has been there a long time, possibly even the original owner.

          If that is so, then he paid a LOT less than $85M

    2. They’re right about that view! Awesome!!

      But that office with figurines, paintings and statues of himself is egotistical. WTF?

      Just wondering where, and how, they get water up there for all that wonderful foliage and trees. It’s so dry around there that Chaparral will hardly that root.

      1. where, and how, they get water up there

        Are you familiar with Villa d’Este in Tivoli, Italy?

        1. I’ve been around Italy, found Milano and Roma too crowded, but enjoyed a quiet week at Lago di Garda. Predictably I’m not much of a Renaissance man, so Villa d’Este escapes me, but I find Roman era hydraulics fascinating.

          Fortunately it would be several centuries before the centrifugal pump was invented allowing mankind to permanently alter (scar?) the environment.

          1. I find Roman era hydraulics fascinating

            Then you should find Villa d’Este interesting.

            “The fame and glory of the Villa d’Este was above all established by its extraordinary system of fountains; fifty-one fountains and nymphaeums, 398 spouts, 364 water jets, 64 waterfalls, and 220 basins, fed by 875 metres of canals, channels and cascades, and all working entirely by the force of gravity, without pumps.”

        1. “…and he has it pumped up there?”

          Or maybe it’s municipal water, so the little people offset the pumping costs?

  27. Why are the Keynesian fraudsters at the Fed still buying $40 billion a month in mortgage backed securities when we’re already in an epic housing bubble?

  28. Fuqing Tucker

    From Tucker Carlson Tonight and I paraphrase.

    Lumber has gone up 280%

    In the real world prices are driven by supply and demand, if something is in high demand and there is not enough of it it costs more.

    Are there less spruce trees than a year ago?

    Are they growing more slowly?

    Has there been a 280% increase in building?

    The answers to all three of those questions is No, No and No!

    The price of everything is rising because of our our government’s policy and it is intentional.

        1. canada-lumber-intensifying-trade-fight

          Bloomberg
          APR 24, 2017

          Even after the Covid building shutdown and restart bullsh#t the most 5/8 CDX plywood ever cost me during the Trump years was $28 a sheet, after implant Joe and vice president ho along with trillions and trillions of pork and “infrastructure” it’s over $60 a sheet, I paid $30 more to fill up my tank yesterday than in November (not to mention the other tanks I have to fill every week) and for some reason my grocery bill has gone way up.

          Sorry fessor but I gotta go with Tucker on this one.

    2. The Financial Times
      Chinese economy
      Signs of inflation emerge as Chinese producer prices leap
      Huge demand for raw materials and hopes of a global recovery have stoked a commodity price rally
      The price of raw materials and goods leaving Chinese factories rose 6.8% in April year on year, its fastest pace in more than three years
      Thomas Hale in Hong Kong
      3 hours ago

      For investors and governments eager to spot any sign of inflation as the global economy recovers from the coronavirus pandemic, Chinese factories are a good place to look.

      The country this week released figures showing that the price of raw materials and goods leaving its factories rose 6.8 per cent year on year in April, its fastest pace of growth in more than three years.

      For almost all of 2020, China’s producer price index was in negative territory as Covid-19 suppressed demand. The recent and sudden rise was partly driven by the comparison with a year earlier and, with consumer price rises still below 1 per cent, the overall inflation picture remained mixed.

      But the data was nonetheless a sign of pockets of price increases emerging across China’s rapid recovery, where higher overall inflation is expected this year. It also reflected a global rally in commodity prices that has been supported by China’s voracious demand as well as hopes that other big economies will bounce back, too.

      “A combination of China and external factors led to this PPI surge,” said Robin Xing, chief China economist at Morgan Stanley. “It’s like a perfect storm.”
      …

  29. what is real Neo , you think that’s air your breathing , MMT modern monetary theory , Money printing in perpetuity , by by miss American pie

  31. As a distinguished economist stated so eloquently, There is no crisis…. in rapidly falling housing prices.”

  32. Oh dear….

    Number of vacant homes in Hong Kong may surge to 18-year-high as families head to UK under BN(O) visa scheme, Bloomberg forecasts

    https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3130301/number-vacant-homes-hong-kong-may-surge-18-year-high-families-head-uk

    The number of homes standing empty in Hong Kong may climb to an 18-year high in 2021 as thousands of families flee to the UK, according to a Bloomberg estimate.

    The proportion of vacant units could surge to 5.4 per cent according to a Bloomberg Intelligence forecast based on a scenario in which 1 per cent of households vacate their private dwellings and head overseas.

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