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This Is Not Showing Enthusiasm From Vendors Who Are Capturing Hot Prices, It’s Them Wanting To Get Out Of A Market That’s In A Lot Of Trouble

A report from the Salt Lake Tribune. “Utah’s housing crisis may be more about shrinking paychecks than a shortage of homes. ‘No matter where you go, there is a significant percentage of the population that are having housing insecurities due to housing not being affordable, even though there are a lot of vacant units and excess supply,’ David Fields, housing economist with the state Department of Workforce Services told members of Utah House Political Subdivisions Committee.”

“Fields’ message drew instant skepticism from several members of Republican-dominated Legislature, after years of discussion focused on what researchers say is a gap of 50,000-plus affordable homes in the state’s existing inventories.”

“‘What you’re saying is just not true on the availability of housing stock,’ said Rep. Calvin Musselman, R-West Haven and a real estate sales executive. He noted that home listings were currently being snatched up within five days of going on the market, down from 26 days less than a year ago. ‘In 25 years, that is beyond anything I’ve ever seen, ever,’ Musselman said. ‘The idea that there’s this overflow of vacant houses out there, it’s just nonexistent.'”

From KTAR News. “As Arizona’s housing market continues to boom, it seems as though the average buyer is getting squeezed out. ‘It is 200% a sellers market,’ Bobby Lieb declared to KTAR News 92.3 FM with certainty. Lieb, who has been selling real estate in north central Phoenix for more than 30 years, said this market is unlike any he’s ever seen. ‘I’m in shock,’ Lieb said of the prices he’s seeing people list and buy houses at these days. ‘In central Phoenix, about six months ago, the market was semi-crazy then, now it’s very, very crazy.'”

“According to Zillow, the average home value in Phoenix is $328,883—a 21.6% increase over the past year. But Lieb argues that in this market, the sky’s the limit. ‘There just really is not any reality on what the homes are worth because people are willing to pay whatever they’ve got to pay to get the house,’ Lieb said.”

“He adds that the right realtors, who are experts in your desired areas will, like Cynthia’s agent, know what houses are coming before they even hit the market. Now, Cynthia is the owner of her dream home. ‘Once I got the keys in my hand, I was so ecstatic, it still feels so surreal,’ she beamed with pride. And Lieb has good news for recent buyers like Cynthia. ‘Check back at the end of the year, your home is going to be worth probably 10% more, or 15% more, just because it’s gotten later in the year,’ he said.”

“And while Cynthia’s story has a happy ending, both she and Lieb recognize that in today’s surging market, typical Arizonans are quickly being edged out of home ownership in the state.”

The Dallas Morning News in Texas. “With home prices in Dallas-Fort Worth setting records every month, sellers are getting even bolder with their asks. Even many sellers think people are paying more than their properties are worth. Realtor.com found that 29% of sellers are asking more for their properties than they think they’re worth. And in many cases, they’re getting it.”

“The biggest home marketing website surveyed hundreds of home sellers in March and April. Almost a quarter of the sellers said they decided to peddle their properties to take advantage of inflated prices and make a profit.”

“‘Low mortgage rates and a lack of available homes for sale have created a strong sellers’ market, and these survey results show that homeowners think that they have the upper hand if they list their home soon,’ George Ratiu, senior economist with Realtor.com, said in the new report. ‘However, after a year of challenges which kept homeowners from listing their home, we are seeing sellers coming back, which should help moderate prices and bring more balance to the housing market over the coming months.'”

The Connecticut Post. “For realtors, pricing homes is a challenge in any year, especially when singular features make direct comparisons between properties difficult. But amid the ongoing pandemic flight by New York City residents, some agents are floating trial balloons sky high above the Connecticut properties they are listing — with the confidence they can cut prices if needed to levels still above what homes would have sold for only a few years ago.”

“But in setting a sky-high asking price, sellers run the risk of their property languishing through subsequent price cuts. Just off the Merritt Parkway in Stamford, a house that includes an accompanying indoor hockey rink is now in its eighth month on the market with no takers, after a 23 percent price cut this February to $5.9 million.”

“On the city’s waterfront on Wallacks Drive, a compound with seven buildings totaling 55 rooms absorbed two price cuts during the pandemic to below $10 million; the listing description now mentions the possibility of subdividing the property or leaving it ‘as-is’ to ‘enjoy the room to entertain.'”

From Infotel in Canada. “After dramatic month-over-month increases in both the number of housing sales and prices in Canada for the past few months, sales finally dropped in April. Re/Max Kelowna realtor Colin Krieg said much the same thing. He found that Re/Max realtors had written half as many offers last week as they did a month earlier. ‘What’s causing all this?’ Krieg asked in a video accompanying the release. ‘It could be buyer fatigue. It can be exhausting being out there, competing with other offers and having your heart broken just to do it all over again.'”

“‘It may be an early sign some buyers are reaching their limit to engage in bidding wars,’ states a report issued by RBC Economics. The RBC report suggests the upward trend in sales just wasn’t sustainable. ‘It wasn’t a surprise to see Canadian home resales decline 12.5% in April,’ the RBC report stated. ‘After successively setting new record highs through the fall and initial months of 2021, they had little upside left. And unusually strong winter activity likely altered the traditional seasonal pattern, bringing forward activity that would have taken place in the spring.'”

The Australian Financial Review. “Residential landlords are planning to dump thousands of rental apartments in the Sydney and Melbourne central business districts in the coming months to avoid a further cash flow crunch following the termination of mortgage repayment holidays at the end of March. The owners of 2037 apartments in Melbourne and of 2282 flats in Sydney intend to list their property, potentially flooding markets grappling with oversupply and poor demand because of border closures, a survey conducted by Digital Finance Analytics shows.”

“‘Property investors with units in high-rise buildings are the most likely to list, as net rentals are often negative, meaning they lose money in cash flow terms, and they are hoping to get a buyer given the slight rise in some unit prices – though across many suburbs they are still falling,’ said Martin North, director of Digital Finance Analytics.”

“DFA’s findings mirror a survey conducted by ME bank that showed 23 per cent of investors indicated they want to sell their property in the next 12 months, compared with only 11 per cent of owner occupiers. CBD apartment landlords would struggle to support their mortgage with the current high vacancy rates and falling rents, despite the low interest rates, said Andrew Wilson, chief economist of Archistar.”

“‘There was a high proportion of investors taking advantage of those mortgage repayment holidays, so they were on life support to some degree,’ he said. ‘Those investors were finding it hard to get a tenant or they have to take a much reduced rent. Now that they don’t have that support mechanism, some investors may have to sell because their outgoings can’t match their income,’ he said.”

“The situation for CBD apartment vendors was unlikely to improve in the near term, warned Louis Christopher, SQM Research’s managing director. ‘Listings for sale in the CBDs are going up and up and we’re nearly at an all time high, particularly in Melbourne CBD,’ he said. ‘This is not showing enthusiasm from vendors who are capturing hot prices, it’s them wanting to get out of a market that’s in a lot of trouble. The surplus stock is going to get worse this year, so first-home buyers or investors looking for cheaper apartments may find even better buying conditions six months from now,’ Mr Christopher said.”

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  1. ‘What you’re saying is just not true on the availability of housing stock,’ said Rep. Calvin Musselman, R-West Haven and a real estate sales executive. He noted that home listings were currently being snatched up within five days of going on the market, down from 26 days less than a year ago. ‘In 25 years, that is beyond anything I’ve ever seen, ever’

    And writing offers on the hoods of cars Calvin. You forgot that one. They don’t say that anymore do they, or feeding squirrels? Probably 5 or more times a day I read some UHS saying, “in my 150 years of peddling shacks, I’ve never, ever seen…”

    1. The latest RealtorClownWorld mantra is “we’re having bidding wars out on the street in front of the house.” 😂

      These guys really need to learn how to lie more effectively.

    3. “‘No matter where you go, there is a significant percentage of the population that are having housing insecurities due to housing not being affordable, even though there are a lot of vacant units and excess supply,’ David Fields, housing economist with the state Department of Workforce Services told members of Utah House Political Subdivisions Committee.”

      That’s a pretty interesting disagreement in the ranks of the Utah state government about whether or not there are vacant housing units. Unlike nonphysical assets like cryptocurrency accumulations, vacant housing units are something that can be physically documented. I wonder what data the economist sees that the used home sales executive doesn’t?

      1. No point in trying to rent them until the eviction moratorium has been permanently lifted; nobody needs a squatter.

        1. ** “No point in trying to rent them until the eviction moratorium has been permanently lifted; nobody needs a squatter.”

          that’s the damn truth! another relative left us another hoarder house: oh boy!
          after a year of cleaning out this nightmare from hell there is no way I’m going thru another type of hell by renting it out here in CA, where landlords are considered less-than-human.

          it can, and will, just sit there.

          empty.

      2. I see a lot of people waiting for the bus. I don’t know why. There are plenty of vacant cars down at the Beemer dealership.

      3. On my occasional internet-searches for a new rental, there is an increasing number of “brand new, never lived in” townhomes in the new developments south of SL County and west of Provo/Lehi.

        Since real estate always goes up, it’s a really, really, really smart investment. You just buy a house with a cheap interest rates and renters literally pay your mortgage!

        When the above line is a common refrain from every realtor, it’s not a surprise there are potentially many empty units. The state repeats the “50,000” annual deficit mantra, and it hasn’t changed since like 2012 which is a long time for a number to remain static with regard to something as dynamic as population and shelter construction. I’m not sure if I believe it anymore. The local birth rate is no longer above replacement, and the move-in rate has declined as well.

        My spouse is a teacher and their enrollment has dropped since school reopened in autumn 2020; lots of kids said they were moving to Texas. Utah prices are near non-coastal California prices at this point but wages are still noticeably lower, especially when it comes to quantity of jobs that pay an individual above $100,000 per year. A common thing I hear is “I couldn’t afford to buy into my neighborhood today”, even from well-paid professionals.

        All I can say is I’m glad I have a decent landlord and live below my means!

        1. I KNOW! Paoburen, you are right! I’ve been thinking the same things as you and agree with your points. I brought up the same point a couple days ago in Ben’s post about Utah – I constantly see the new construction up for rent in South Jordan, Bluffdale, Herriman, and Riverton too. It seems like a lot of investors are buying these units up, not necessarily families. Maybe a flood of new rentals will hit the market after June 30th… I’m really starting to wonder what this market will look like in Utah this coming fall…

          I’m so sick of hearing realtors/builders say Utah is short 50K units. Lies! I think there might be some over building going on between Ogden to Payson. First time buyers are committing financial suicide if buying into this market, especially if they don’t have a great job. College grads must leave Utah to get high paying jobs and excellent opportunities. Staying in Utah can be career suicide because the jobs just don’t pay as much as they should. Utah has a lot of jobs for “workers” but lacks leadership opportunities, and management and executive positions are very limited and are usually reserved for nepotism…

          1. Realtors are always quick to point out the potential for a mother-in-law unit to help pay the mortgage. Because it’s there’s one thing I want as a new homeowner it’s roommates!

      4. I thought the same thing. But they are both right. There is low inventory, a growing population and high prices.

        The nuanced shadow inventory of which Field speaks is still lurking in the shadows but doesn’t help fix high prices today. Many of the units are likely in resort towns or condos not good for families.

  4. ‘According to Zillow, the average home value in Phoenix is $328,883—a 21.6% increase over the past year’

    I’m glad they got brought up. So how is it zillow and redfin lose money on every shack flip, quarter after quarter? That’s some red hotcakes right there.

    ‘But Lieb argues that in this market, the sky’s the limit. ‘There just really is not any reality on what the homes are worth because people are willing to pay whatever they’ve got to pay to get the house’

    No reality. It’s all fun til somebody loses an eye:

    ‘‘Once I got the keys in my hand, I was so ecstatic, it still feels so surreal,’ she beamed with pride’

    I see articles these days asking, “are we in a housing bubble?” Can bubbles exist? Last decade the REIC finally admitted yes. So who calls it? Is it Diane at CNBC? Is it the Bezos clown writers? This statement says a lot:

    ‘And Lieb has good news for recent buyers like Cynthia. ‘Check back at the end of the year, your home is going to be worth probably 10% more, or 15% more, just because it’s gotten later in the year’

    2. “… people are willing to pay whatever they’ve got to pay to get the house.”

      Which is easy for them to do because the money they use belongs to somebody else.

      If people can buy houses or anything else using money that they do not have then why should these people care how much it costs?

      Or, looked at differently, what does one suppose would happen to prices if the seller cared more about the price than the buyer?

    3. ‘‘Once I got the keys in my hand, I was so ecstatic, it still feels so surreal,’ she beamed with pride’

      LOL. Reminds me of my ex girlfriend right after she’d buy something at the mall. She’s ecstatic for awhile, then, within hours, she flipping through the “on sale” catalogues, hunting for that “next thing to buy” to keep her stimulated.

        1. Ya know…. just thinking back. 10 years ago, the shoulders of every road in America were littered with donkey carts and down, crippled and exhausted donkeys….. and here we are again. Bankrupt, broke and insolvent debt donkeys from east to west and north to south.

          It’s an amazing sight.

  5. He found that Re/Max realtors had written half as many offers last week as they did a month earlier’

    No biggie Colin, I’m sure you saved some of that river of money you got doing almost nothing the past year.

    ‘What’s causing all this?’ Krieg asked…’It could be buyer fatigue. It can be exhausting being out there, competing with other offers and having your heart broken just to do it all over again’

    You know it’s strange. I haven’t had my heart broken, even once. But then again I’ve never wanted to live in a frozen sh$t hole with nothing to do but shovel snow and feed penguins either.

  6. It’s almost like something is distorting the natural market into a bubble on purpose…

    ‘No matter where you go, there is a significant percentage of the population that are having housing insecurities due to housing not being affordable, even though there are a lot of vacant units and excess supply,’

  8. I came across this, I think I’ve posted articles about this shack before:

    $1.86M Price Drop On San Francisco Mansion

    ‘Known as the Mayor’s Mansion at the crest of Dolores Heights, this home recently underwent an $8 million renovation. This extraordinary 1930 mansion on a triple width lot underwent a 5 year, $8,000,000 expansion and renovation 7 years ago.’

    Address: 3690 21st St, San Francisco, California
    Price: $9,985,000

    https://patch.com/california/san-francisco/1-86m-price-drop-san-francisco-mansion

    So I looked it up on the a$$ pounded site:

    https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3690-21st-St-San-Francisco-CA-94114/15145412_zpid/

    $9,985,000
    3690 21st St, San Francisco, CA 94114

    Date Event Price
    5/14/2021 Price change $9,985,000 (-15.7%) $2,124/sqft
    Source: SFAR #421532539
    4/9/2021 Listed for sale $11,850,000 (+175.6%) $2,521/sqft
    Source: SFAR #421532539
    8/22/2008 Sold $4,300,000 $915/sqft
    Source: Public Record

    So if it’s true (you can’t know with these dogs) it looks like they paid 4.3M, spent 8M, and now it’s listed for a hair under 10M. Oh, and they paid taxes, insurance, etc for over a decade.

    1. Also:

      ‘This west side Petaluma bungalow bursting with charm hit the real estate market just eight days ago and has already had its price reduced by $50,000.’

      ‘These sellers are motivated; are you? For $825,000, you’ll get a spacious two-bedroom, one-bath with 1,100 square feet of living space. The nice, large rooms have built-ins and other original 1920 details, while the back yard has a deck, a well-tended garden and a storage shed. There’s also a cute cottage studio that can be used as a home office, guest quarters or a place to meditate or do yoga.’

      https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/realestate/price-cut-charming-petaluma-bungalow-has-cottage-studio/ar-AAKb9I8

      8 days and they’re a sawin’ and a slashin’.

      1. Holy sh*t. I wonder if others out there understand TPTB just opened a door that’s going to be ten times harder to close.

    3. It’s almost like making shoplifting legal caused more shoplifting. Weird.

      Also, it is way past time corporations stood up for themselves instead of just going along to get along. Where was Walgreens and all their lobbying money when decriminalizing shoplifting was just a CA state proposition on the ballot? They could have campaigned against it, but no. They probably thought the decriminalization would hurt their small business competitors but they would be protected via government cronyism. Didn’t work out that way, did it, Walgreens?

    4. Shoplifting Has Forced Walgreens To Close 17 Stores – San Francisco News
      https://www.thesfnews.com/shoplifting-has-forced-walgreens-to-close-17-stores/77228

      (snip)

      “On Thursday, May 13 a hearing was held by the Board of Supervisors with retailers, the SFPD, the district attorney’s office, and probation departments. Brendan Dugan, director of organized retail crime and corporate investigations, believes that San Francisco is at the center of organized retail crime. He brought up a state bust in the Bay Area from last year in which $8 million in stolen merchandise was confiscated from five suspects. The merchandise came from CVS, Target and Walgreens stores from all across San Francisco. A VP for Walgreen stores, Jason Cunningham, said in the hearing that Walgreen stores in San Francisco face theft four times the average for stores inside the city than anywhere else.

      “In a statement given by Safeway at the hearing blamed the rise in shoplifting on Prop 47 which was passed by voters on November 4, 2014. The prop lowered penalties for thefts under $950 to being punishable by up to 6 months in county jail. The district attorney’s office will pursue aggregated charges for people who commit multiple petty theft incidents.”

  10. The Deep State Uniparty controlling Congress says that the January 6th “insurrection” is the equivalent of Pearl Harbor or 9/11.

    Globalists have no allegience to this country, its Constitution, or its citizens.

  11. I got this email today:

    Hello there,

    ‘I’ve been reading about and researching the top Covid 19 Vaccines and I came across your website. I found your article here: (xxx) very helpful and would like to thank you for it.’

    ‘Like many people out there, I am extremely worried about the negative publicity most vaccines have received.’

    ‘I’d like to share with you this unique guide I came across, that provides unbiased information on the top 5 vaccines and a bit more. It really put me at ease and I now have a better understanding of what is available out there.’

    So they are spamming the HBB with this horsesh$t.

    1. I understand its a completely new kind of vaccine that does not have FDA approval and under federal law employers cannot force citizens or deny your right to work , it takes years of testing to develop a safe and viable vaccine . ( Nuremberg Code )

      1. it gets even worse….i see a divorce/foreclosure within a year or two….
        Mr. Pollock, who installs fire sprinklers, agreed to submit an offer of $270,500, adding $20,500 to the asking price. To sweeten the deal further, he waived his right to an inspection of the plumbing, roof, foundation or any other part of the house.

  14. Between the medical mafia and the monetary mafia , its hard to get up in the morning , wealth transfer and medical experiments on a society can really only be done with deception , Damm i’m not even entitled to the dirt i’m made from .

    1. Sir, I cant give you this McDouble unless you show me you are vaxxed. Meat is for closers.

  15. So a big selling point of Bitcoin is that it is a form of currency that exists independent of government financial authorities, which can serve as an inflation hedge when central banks are deliberately eroding the value of fiat money through inflation, or a way to move wealth outside a country’s borders when official channels are blocked.

    But can’t governments put a stop to cryptocurrency whenever they want by regulating its production or its use as currency, or even declaring it to be counterfeit money?

    Exhibit A: China

    1. It turns out that Bitcoin has much in common with houses and Dutch tulips! Who’d’ve thunk?

      The Financial Times
      Opinion Unhedged
      Unhedged: bitcoin is equity, not money
      The rising price was never proof that the technology works
      Robert Armstrong yesterday
      …
      Years ago I was hired, with no experience in finance, as a trainee analyst at a hedge fund. I asked my soon-to-be boss how I should prepare. He said: “Get a financial calculator and learn to use the net present value keys. That’s really all there is to it.”

      He was right. I have thought ever since in terms of streams of future cash flows, terminal values, and discount rates. Every other analytical tool I have acquired since has been secondary.

      … a lot of bitcoin believers have made a mistake. They think when the price of bitcoin goes up, that is itself evidence that the technology is closer to working, and becoming money. It’s not! Lots of things, from baseball cards to cases of Château Lafite, go up in value. That does not make them money. It makes them assets. Assets are fine things, but the value of the said bitcoin comes from the possibility that it becomes a specific kind of asset, namely money.

      Evidence that bitcoin is becoming money would involve people transacting in it more, in more places and more smoothly (whether there is any evidence of that is a topic for another day).

      A final point. The nominal reason for the drop in bitcoin’s value on Wednesday was that the Bank of China said that it “should not and cannot be used as currency in the market”. Is that evidence that bitcoin technology will not work, and become money? Maybe, but remember that an essential part of bitcoin’s appeal is that the opinions of third parties and especially governments are not supposed to matter. Yet the latest volatility suggests they do.

      There is an easy way to resolve that contradiction: by positing that much of the current value in bitcoin is pure, untethered speculation, with no connection whatsoever to the fundamental character of the technology.
      …

      1. It’s a great article, but one aspect of Bitcoin’s value he doesn’t cover is the Keynesian beauty contest, or in an earlier version of the idea, The Emperor’s New Clothes perspective. What gives Bitcoin value is a cult of true believers willing to trade actual money to purchase it. Like the judges in the Keynesian beauty contest, or the townspeople in Hans Christian Anderson’s tale, the true believers in Bitcoin are the only reason it maintains any value, as it has no intrinsic worth and is not even physically verifiable. If this cult of true believers ever dies out, what will hold up the value of Bitcoin?

        1. Lieb has good news for recent buyers like Cynthia. ‘Check back at the end of the year, your home is going to be worth probably 10% more, or 15% more, just because it’s gotten later in the year,’ he said.”

          how in the world did she ever top the deep-pocketed corporate & chinese/russian/indian bird dogs?
          that in itself is incredible.

        2. Yesterday the financial folk said that a consolidation to $30K, and possibly to $20K, is normal for the crypto. After all, BTC fell from $20K to $6K and zoomed up to $60K. So following the same pattern, BTC should fall from $60K to $30K and zoom up to — I dunno, $300K seems too high. Max Kaiser was predicting $220K.

          But IMO, that regulation out of China could put the kibosh on the normal BTC curve. Just the threat governments quashing crypto is enough to disqualify the typical technical tools.

          2. typical technical tools

            Grampa once said “You can’t use logic to explain something illogical.”

          4. How about the latest proposal from the IRS to require crypto HODLers to pay income taxes on their gambling winnings?

            Can you believe the nerve?

          5. Bear, yup! I had to explain this to a co-worker who’s a Doge fan.

            The crypto nuts like to say: “You can buy stuff with Bitcoin now! Paypal does it (and Visa too).” But what really happens is that right as the checkout, you sell Bitcoin to Paypal for dollars and then use those dollars to buy flowers at Home Despot or whatever. But news flash, Bitcoin isn’t an approved currency. You’re not switching out currency for currency, as if you’re breaking a 20-dollar bill. You’re selling an investment. Paypal keeps track every Satoshi you sold during the tax year, and then next February sends you a 1099-DIV for taxes. Surprise, beeyotches!

      2. Another subtopic Mr Armstrong doesn’t address directly is related to his discussion of the present values of future cash flows. If the Fed and other central banks ever scaled back their bond purchases to pre-pandemic levels and allowed longterm interest rates to normalize somewhat, would assets with no fundamental value like Bitcoin be able to maintain their present lofty valuations?

        3. The Wall Street Journal
          Markets Decline Globally, and Fed Hints at a Policy Review
          Shares, commodities and other assets decline amid volatile trading as risk-takers lose heart
          By Paul Kiernan and Joe Wallace
          May 19, 2021 7:56 pm ET

          U.S. stocks, commodities, overseas shares and bitcoin dropped in turbulent trading Wednesday as investors’ risk appetite diminished and the Federal Reserve signaled an eventual shift away from its easy-money pandemic policies.

          The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined as much as 587 points in morning trading before paring its losses to less than 200 points, while other markets steadied as well.

          Investors continued to fret about the quickening pace of inflation. Fed officials also acknowledged that evidence of mounting inflation and a robust economic recovery could lead to an earlier review of near-zero interest rates and its massive bond-buying program.

          Although Fed officials have indicated the economy is still in recovery mode and requires stimulus from the central bank, several have said this week that the central bank is closely watching economic developments and will be ready to adjust policy when necessary.

          Minutes from the central bank’s policy meeting in late April, released Wednesday, reported that some Fed officials want to begin discussing a plan for reducing the Fed’s massive bond-buying program at a future meeting. The Fed’s purchases of Treasury and mortgage bonds currently total at least $120 billion a month.
          To Read the Full Story Subscribe
          …
          Bitcoin Volatility Signals a Long Road to Adoption
          China’s recent warning on cryptocurrency sent the market in a tailspin. WSJ’s Aaron Back explains why the recent shake-ups in the value of bitcoin, dogecoin, ether and other cryptocurrencies may point to obstacles in mainstream acceptance.

          1. Notice how risk asset markets crater at the mere hint that someday the Fed may have to scale back its pandemic bond purchases?

            The present bubble wave does not seem very sustainable.

          3. The present bubble wave does not seem very sustainable.

            Every time there’s a hint of a correction in anything, the BTFD crowd moves in and drives it all back up.

          4. “BTFD crowd moves in and drives it all back up.”

            They can do this so long as trillions of dollars in pandemic stimulus monies are continuously flooding the markets like ten kegs of beer at a frat party.

            Once the stimulus programs are wound down, it will be interested to see if the high risk speculators continue gambling away like there is no tomorrow.

          5. What was all the crypto hysteria about yesterday anyway, when Bitcon is now over $40,000?

      3. Bitcoin will never be a “currency”. It is effectively rate limited in the number of transactions that can occur. There are other crypto coins that aren’t so limited (in that effect) and are more suited to act as a currency.

        Just sayin…

    1. Dubya is all over the toobz, hawking his new book of his portrait paintings of immigrants. He wants to “change the face” of immigration, to garner sympathy/support comprehensive reform, i.e. amnesty.

      Libs heads must be exploding. I’m not sure who they hated more, Bush II or Trump (probably Trump due to recency bias). So, are they now going to start praising their hated nemesis just to forward the cause of illegal immigration?

      1. I have less respect for RINOs than I do for libtards, and I hate libtards with a passion. RINOs are libtards in disguise.

  17. This article is not about housing, but in a sense it is. Whatever the case it is a good read:

    How the Beanie Baby craze was concocted — then crashed
    https://nypost.com/2015/02/22/how-the-beanie-baby-craze-was-concocted-then-crashed/

    (some snips)

    “Warner would retire specific animals at whim, creating scarcity in the market and inspiring collectors to pay up to $5,000 for a plush toy that originally retailed for $5.”

    “People neglected other areas of their lives to spend all day trading, and some even invested their children’s college funds in toys that they believed would bring an astronomical return on investment.”

    “Gallagher put an ad in a collectors magazine offering a Beanie price list. She was creating the market, but, she told Bissonnette, was setting the prices based on nothing.
    “’In the beginning,’ he writes, ‘she simply decreed that most retired Beanie Babies were worth $10 or $20 each, and then watched in amazement as the market went there.’”

    “In 1997, McDonald’s manufactured 100 million Teenie Beanie Babies, which were to be included in a special Happy Meals promotion. They expected enough demand to be able to sell ‘one for every household in America within a span of just a few weeks.’

    “Even this expectation was pummeled by reality. From day one, McDonald’s stores were inundated with ’15 to 20, sometimes 25 calls every half-hour’ inquiring about availability.

    “’Some customers,’ writes Bissonnette, ‘ordered a hundred Happy Meals and asked the cashier to keep the food.’ So many calls came in that one store in Ohio had employees answer the phone with, ‘Good morning, McDonald’s. We have the moose and the lamb.’

    “The promotion was scheduled to last five weeks, but all 100 million toys were gone in two, with McDonald’s canceling all scheduled television advertising over worry that ‘massive crowds were putting employees’ safety in jeopardy.'”

  18. https://www.theepochtimes.com/state-department-posts-warning-after-chinese-skyscraper-inexplicably-shakes_3823647.html

    ‘On Chinese social media sites, a number of people said that the building should be demolished.’

    “Shenzhen should not use this shaking building again. It’s fit for demolition,” wrote one person, according to reports. “In today’s cities, there’s no guarantee of the quality of these skyscrapers,” said another, referring to how many tall buildings in China are hastily made and with relatively lax safety standards.’

    3. We’ve known all along that it was only a matter of time before we would start reading such stories.

  19. You crypto freaks best pay your taxes. Government gonna want their cut. Thanks. Its going all towards Section 8

      1. Bitcoin $till up 1.6% despite new regulatory threats from both sides of the Pacific Ocean. Bitcoin always goes up!

        “Bitcoin reversed course shortly after the Treasury’s announcement and was last seen trading up 1.6%, according to Coin Metrics. Previously in the session, it was up more than 9%.

        A growing number of Wall Street analysts have over the past month sounded the alarm that regulators at the Treasury and the Securities and Exchange Commission could soon take a more active role in cryptocurrency regulation.

        The Treasury Department’s release came as part of a broader announcement on the Biden administration’s efforts to crack down on tax evasion and promote better compliance. Among proposals officials are considering are bolstered IRS funding and technology, and more severe penalties for those who evade their obligations.

        According to the Treasury’s estimates, the difference between taxes owed to the U.S. government and those actually paid totaled nearly $600 billion in 2019.”

  20. Lumber bounce from 1200 to 1400 like a hot knife through butter. Hide yo kids, hide your logs

  21. The evil of the Globalist Power Grab as a forced agenda, based on fraud and desire to alter humanity into controlled drones, or worse eliminate what nature created, has been launched.

    Killer bees trying to destroy the grand bee hive that has prevailed for thousands of years. Parasites who stole the honey produced, now wanting to destroy how nature prevailed, for a vision of altering humanity to be their socially altered and technology altered slaves.

    Its a arrogance and fear that wants to destroy the grand bee hive before the bee hive kills their poisonous cancer on society. The few want to control all the honey, and worse they want to alter the bee hive into something inferior to what nature designed. They propose that 500 million is the number for sustainable earth, and they wage a war on CO2, as if absence of this necessary element is desirable. Truth or Science doesn’t matter to them because it all about what narrative will achieve their perverse goals. Take Society backwards to a time where all energy was used for minimal survival and limit the sheep. Never allow the bee hive to advance to be independent from the looters who has been anti bee hive going back thousands of years. The few ruling the many , creating all the evil that has plagued the bee hive.

    But , the communist manifesto is just another trick to control the bee hive . Any trick to foil the natural advancement of the bee hive on its own merits. Any thing to destroy the individual who would discard what the tricksters do to keep humanity fighting with each other. Anything to distract the bee hive from the culprit psychopaths that fear the bee hive will eliminate them .

    So, in a way its good they are out in the open now wanting to take over by fraud and destruction, so humanity can see that the tricker looters are holding humanity back, and they should become extinct, not humanity .
    So, they are making headway right now, but look at how much evil has resulted so far . War breaking out, France on the verge of Civil War, lawlessness everywhere, fake rigged markets everywhere, tribal warfare, attack on math, science, biology, and go backwards , while they want to alter humans against their will, with their fake narratives.

    Their criminal rigging of the election to put their Puppets in, in combination with a fake Pandemic, lock downs and useless masks , with Monopoly fake news to censor any dispute to their scams.
    Experimental mass vaccination of the globe as Big Pharmacy pre planned to do as the corrupted Government agencies has become the pawn of this force.
    So, at least you know who the enemy of mankind is , and that they are trying to trick you into their One World Order, using fear and deceit and fraud to advance this anti human and freedom agenda.

    I predict that there will be blowback and things will happen that these fraudsters didn’t even perceive would happen. They have unleashed their plan, which gets crazier by the day , but it won’t work , I predict, in the final analysis by something that can’t be perceived yet.
    In the meantime , real estate will crash eventually in spite of this temporary spike in some places . Nothing is stable under the current conditions of this fake world of a Innsurrection by these Entities.

  23. The reason people won’t go back to work can’t possibly be the free fedgov cheese. I’m sure the prospect of taking summer off while getting paid as much, if not more, than what a job pays has no impact on their decision.

    The state of Colorado will pay unemployed Coloradans up to $1,600 to get them to go back to work full-time, the governor’s office announced Wednesday.

    Gov. Jared Polis signed an executive order to create the “Colorado Jumpstart” incentive program. Those who have been unemployed for at least a week between between March 28 and May 16 (among other stipulations) but return to work full time before May 29 could receive up to $1,600 to help with the transition. If a person returns to work full time between May 30 and June 26, they can get $1,200.

    1. Republicans were in talks with Democrats to try to get a bill passed for a similar incentive program, GOP Sen. Rob Woodward of Loveland said, but Polis’ order lets the state move faster and negates the need for legislation.

      “We seem to be rewarding people for staying at home than going back to work,” said Woodward, who is himself a business owner struggling to attract workers

      https://www.reporterherald.com/2021/05/19/unemployment-payments-colorado-back-to-work/

      1. Well, they would be giving up their unemployment checks. When you consider that two months’ worth of UE on steroids could be worth as much as $6000 here in the Centennial State, I’m gonna guess that there will be few takers for the one time bribe. They’ll stay home and play XBox all summer.

  24. Appraisers be raycis!

    A housing discrimination complaint filed by a Black Indianapolis homeowner alleges that appraisers’ valuations of her home more than doubled after she removed items that identified her race and asked a white male friend to be there during an appraisal.

    I hope she doesn’t complain when her property taxes double.

  26. Why rising home prices could turn Colorado’s mountain communities into ‘modern-era ghost towns’

    Frisco is considering declaring an emergency. Estes Park developers are building workforce housing, all as communities fear the effects of rising rent and mortgages.

    https://www.9news.com/article/money/markets/real-estate/colorado-mountain-towns-rising-home-prices/73-88e59fa1-c4e5-4898-aeb2-fd46477b26ab

    Did you grow up in Estes Park and want to live there? Fuggedaboudit! The rent is to da*n high! And Estes isn’t even a ski resort.

    I have seen a lot of traffic coming of of the Big Thompson Canyon (Hwy 34) at the end of the work day. Apparently people are commuting to jobs in Estes Park from Loveland. I knew someone who worked at a bank in Estes who did that.

    1. AirBnb and other short term rentals started it, and “work from home” put the final nails in the coffin of every vacation mountain town. They are nice places to visit, but unlivable unless you are rich.

      1. The only thing keeping them going are the illegal aliens who are working for a pittance and living shoulder to shoulder in trailer parks.

  27. It’s harder than ever to buy a house, and bidding wars keep breaking out | MPR News
    https://www.mprnews.org/story/2021/05/18/npr-wild-bidding-wars-frustrated-home-buyers-dont-buy-into-a-frenzy

    (snip)

    “‘You’re at open houses and someone rolls up in like a 2020 Land Rover, you know, that’s all decked out,’ he says. ‘You just want to be like come on! You know, it definitely sucks to lose.'”

    These “it definitely sucks to lose” pukes are the ones who pay the highest price which resets the values of the comps.

    “The couple say it seems like some of the winners are reckless.”

    No kidding!

    “Their real estate agent told them that some winning bidders not only offer significantly more than the asking price, they also agree to skip the home inspection, offering to buy the house no matter what.”

    Bahahahaha … “No matter what”.

    Bahahaha … The Dotted Line patiently awaits.

    1. It’s harder than ever to buy a house, and bidding wars keep breaking out | MPR News

      Meanwhile, there are actually way too many houses out there. Speculative demand has led to mass amounts of empty houses in every market as more people than ever are homeless, living in their cars, RVs, tents, or worse, on the concrete.

      1. We also have an oversupply of oversized white elephants that the vast majority of U.S. households cannot afford and an undersupply of affordable housing for families to live in. It’s a natural consequence of the speculative bubble, as the same rate of appreciation on a larger, fancier home yields a larger payoff to a speculator.

  28. Lego reveals first LGBTQ-themed set, “Everyone is Awesome”
    nypost.com/2021/05/20/lego-reveals-first-lgbtq-themed-set-everyone-is-awesome/

    1. It’s all about sex changes for children and raping kidz, the globalists are not even trying to hide the agenda anymore.

      Clown World gonna clown.

    1. No worries, I’m sure they will dutifully pull the D levers next election, because “reasons”

  31. When you’ve already declared your affiliation with the Democratic Party, adding a hammer & sickle to your Twitter bio seems redundant.

    Ilhan Omar’s daughter, a prominent climate activist, adds communist hammer and sickle to Twitter bio

    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ilhan-omar-daughter-isra-hirsi-hammer-sickle

    Climate activist Isra Hirsi, the 18-year-old daughter of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., added the communist hammer and sickle to her Twitter bio and has openly called for a communist revolution online.

    Hirsi, who co-founded the U.S. Youth Climate Strike and has received fawning coverage from liberal media outlets, added the infamous symbol to her profile at some point in the last three weeks, internet archives show.

      1. Right, but then you’re in a van in a Walmart parking lot.

        “Hi, where do you live?”

        “In a car in a Walmart parking lot.”

        No focking thanks. This country is really, really sick.

    2. Living in a van would suck on many levels. I could imagine blowing my brains out at some point. A “micro apartment” of 400 square feet looks like a mansion by comparison.

  33. Oh dear….

    Shaking of Shenzhen skyscraper sends people fleeing, leading to evacuation and official investigation

    https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3133926/shaking-shenzhen-skyscraper-sends-people-fleeing-leading

    A landmark skyscraper in downtown Shenzhen started to shake for unknown reasons on Tuesday afternoon, leading to an emergency evacuation of thousands of people.

    The Shenzhen Emergency Management Bureau said it had received reports that the SEG Plaza, a 20-year-old, 79-floor building with a height close to the Empire State Building in New York, was wobbling and that relevant authorities were still investigating the matter.

    1. Funny how the 100 year old Empire State Building, which was built in the stone age, is just fine, but new high rises are not.

  34. PBS station defends drag queen skit for kids: ‘performance art that can inspire creative thinking’

    Sam Dorman
    Thu, May 20, 2021, 5:09 PM
    ·2 min read

    Sam Dorman
    Thu, May 20, 2021, 5:09 PM·2 min read
    A PBS station in New York is getting attention for airing a children’s program that featured a singing and dancing drag queen.

    The skit was part of a “Let’s Learn” television series that is produced in partnership with WNET and the New York City Department of Education. Footage surfaced on social media with the drag queen known as “Lil’ Miss Hot Mess” promoting their book “The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish.”

    https://news.yahoo.com/pbs-station-defends-drag-queen-210943880.html

  36. Insana: The pied pipers of cryptocurrency are leading investors to their doom
    Published Thu, May 20 2021
    2:22 PM EDT
    Updated Thu, May 20 2021
    2:55 PM EDT
    Ron Insana
    A visual representation of digital currencies.
    Yuriko Nakao | Getty Images

    If it is not already patently obvious, and has been for a couple years, it would seem we have entertained the Crazy Town section of Crypto-Land.

    We have jumped the shark, crossed the Rubicon. We are over our skis and out of our minds.

    A couple days ago, so-called investing legend David Portnoy, held an “emergency news conference” to reveal his latest cryptocurrency purchase.

    After teasing his followers with a variety of choices, Portnoy revealed that he had purchased $40,000 worth of “safemoon,” a “currency” for which he had no explanation and no idea as to whether it was a Ponzi scheme or a legitimate token. And he bought, if my math is correct, about five billion of them.

    At the time of the announcement, safemoon was priced at $.00000817. This morning it was quoted at $.00000679.

    That’s five zeroes before you get to an actual number.

    Late Wednesday, Twitter was all aflutter with the minting of yet another token called “CluCoin.”

    I have no Clu what it is, who’s behind it or what it represents.

    Within hours of being minted, launched or foisted upon an unsuspecting public, not only was it “trending,” its market value hit $125 million in a matter of hours. It’s probably worth more now.

    It’s being billed as a “hyper deflationary token with a smart staking system.” Are you kidding me? I’ve been covering money and markets for 37 years as of next month, and I have absolutely no idea what that means.
    …

    1. no idea what that means

      It’s technobabble meant to fool fools. Elon Musk is fluent in it.

    2. Late Wednesday, Twitter was all aflutter with the minting of yet another token called “CluCoin.”

      There is no limit to the number of crypto’s. But the allure of easy riches will lure many into what will be an ass pounding that will make real estate losses look trivial.

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