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Those Who Have Tried To Sell Have Said There’s A Glut On The Market

A weekend topic starting with Go Banking Rates. “A housing bubble can cause property prices to soar to unrealistic levels, leading to an eventual crash that can have detrimental effects on homeowners and the economy. Seth Jacobs, an experienced mortgage broker and founder of Maine USDA Home Loan, said, ‘When housing prices rise at an unusually fast pace over a short period, it could indicate a housing bubble.’ While homes are appreciating assets, their prices won’t go up forever. So, if you start to see home prices plateau after skyrocketing, watch out. And if this price growth has significantly outpaced income growth and other economic indicators, you should be even more careful, he warned. ‘If there’s a surge in speculative buying or excessive construction of new properties without a corresponding increase in demand, it could signal an oversupply in the market. This oversupply can drive prices down as supply outpaces demand, leading to a potential housing crash,’ said Jacobs.”

KPVI in Montana. “Cameron Crossing, a Three Pillar Development community, was unveiled Tuesday with new manufactured homes starting at $200,000. In a press release, the company said this development would serve as an ‘affordable housing solution for Bozeman.’ At first glance, this development could be seen as a solution. The median price of a new-build, single family home in Gallatin County in 2022 was $950,000, double the price recorded in 2019, according to the 2023 housing report from the Gallatin County Association of Realtors.”

The Providence Journal. “Want to buy a house in Rhode Island? What about in that sweet spot of $340,000 to $440,000, the new median price for a single-family home? ‘It’s a madhouse, with 40 to 50 people showing up to open houses,’ real estate agent Constance Stowers said, referring to houses in the new mid-range price. March’s median price of $440,000 was up 66% from the pre-pandemic March 2019 median price of $265,000 for a single-family house. ‘When you go and look at a property right now, you look at the history and it’s almost hard to swallow that five years ago, it sold for $199,000, and now it’s selling for $420,000, and it’s worth $420,000,’ Stowers said.”

Market Place. “The typical homeowner enjoyed a 45% increase in net home value in just three years. Evan Karr, who recently bought one home and sold another, has been riding this home-equity train. ‘We just moved in about a week and a half ago,’ said Karr, walking through the midcentury modern home he and his wife are renovating in a leafy, hillside suburb of Portland, Oregon. Their previous home was in a high-demand residential neighborhood near Portland’s urban core. ‘We bought that at about $520,000, sold it for $860,000,’ he said. ‘Took about four years to renovate, but we were able to gain that market appreciation.’ Israel Hill, managing principal broker at the John L. Scott real estate agency in Portland, helped the Karrs with both property sales. ‘The leveraging of equity — that’s a big thing,’ said Hill. ‘Houses took a monster jump through COVID, and people are cashing out of that equity.'”

The Boston Globe in Massachusetts. “For the last few years, finding a summer rental on the Cape has felt nearly impossible as prices soared, making it increasingly out of reach. But in a rare bit of good news on the housing front — at least for vacationers — renting at a reasonable rate might be a little more possible this year due to an uptick in availability. A big reason is the ripples from the wave of second-home buying that hit Cape Cod during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many second homeowners are now looking to recoup some of their costs as they spend less time on the Cape and return to more normal work and school routines, said Paul Niedzwiecki, executive director of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce. That increased availability has stabilized the cost of rentals. Prices were unsustainable during 2021 and 2022, Niedzwiecki said, when people flocked to the Cape as a safe space during the pandemic, sending costs to rent a house for the week (or longer) soaring.”

The Lumberjack. “Shockwaves from 2016 state legislation that sparked unprecedented growth of short-term rentals in Arizona still ripple throughout the state as debate in communities continues over their impact on housing. The city of Flagstaff has identified a total of 1,299 short-term rentals within city limits as of Feb. 1, according to city officials. A Flagstaff renter earning minimum wage would need to work more than two full-time jobs — roughly 90 hours a week — to afford a two-bedroom apartment at the average rental rate. AirDNA found 92% of the short-term rentals in Flagstaff are not occupied by their owners on a seasonal basis or at all. The sample of January Flagstaff Airbnb listings had only six listings with a host who lived in the rental or on the property.”

“Flagstaff City Councilmember Lori Matthews said she is optimistic the new regulations will address some common residential complaints related to noise, trash and parties. ‘We can monitor if there’s a problem,’ Matthews said. ‘Some people felt unheard. Maybe these places were renting to party places and it was a nightmare all the time — noise, having to call the police, then not complying, and they weren’t the owners so they didn’t care.'”

KTLA in California. “The Santa Ana City Council has voted to ban short-term residential rentals within city limits. A recent spike in short-term rentals proliferated by sites like Airbnb and Vrbo has led to ‘a range of issues’ in Santa Ana, city officials said. ‘These rentals, typically lasting less than 30 days, have been linked to a range of issues including trash and litter, excessive noise, parking problems and neighborhood degradation,’ the city’s release stated.”

From Fox News. “A $2 million settlement — and pending lawsuits — after a tourist was murdered during a carjacking in a rental community is a warning shot to the short-term rental industry, the victim’s mother and lawyer said. Jeremiah Brown was 22 in July 2022, when he, his girlfriend and her children took a celebratory vacation from California to Central Florida, where they stayed at the sprawling rental community called ChampionsGate. Unbeknownst to them, the rental properties were actively targeted by violent criminals for months. Two days into Brown’s trip, he was fatally shot in the rib during a carjacking and thrown from his car, according to a police report. Lawyer Pedro Echarte, secured a settlement from ChampionsGate’s security company, RAMCO Protective of Orlando, Inc., but said the rental community, and the industry as a whole, has blood on its hands. ‘It’s a massive, unregulated industry that operates without any real regulations,’ he said.”

WTSP in Florida. “It’s an issue that has been a hot topic across Tampa Bay in recent weeks: short-term rentals. In Harborview, there are several neighbors who have issues with short-term renters. One neighbor, Hillary Simpson, wants to know why the county has ordinances in place to restrict short-term rentals if they’re not being enforced. Simpson said she is on the phone with code enforcement nearly daily and just wants to be able to go 24 hours without short-term renters disturbing her family. Simpson said her neighbors often wake up her toddlers in the middle of the night. The rental unit’s backyard is adjacent to hers. She said when parties go on, the noise is unavoidable. ‘Noise is definitely the one that is the most disruptive,’ Simpson said. ‘There’s a ton of unknown, and that can be a little scary when you bought a home in a neighborhood where you intended to raise your children because it was safe and quiet and peaceful.'”

The Associated Press. “A single mother of two, Amy Chadwick spent years scrimping and saving to buy a house in the town of Lahaina on the Hawaiian island of Maui. But after a devastating fire leveled Lahaina in August and reduced Chadwick’s home to white dust, the cheapest rental she could find for her family and dogs cost $10,000 a month. Napili is where Chadwick thought she found a place to buy when she first went house hunting in 2016. But a Canadian woman secured it with a cash offer and turned it into a vacation rental. Gov. Josh Green got so frustrated he blurted an expletive during a recent news conference. ‘This fire uncovered a clear truth, which is we have too many short-term rentals owned by too many individuals on the mainland and it is b———t,’ Green said. ‘And our people deserve housing, here.'”

The Colorado Sun. “A bill that would have quadrupled the property taxes on many homes offered as short-term rentals in Colorado was rejected late Tuesday in a Colorado Senate committee, marking at least the third time in recent years that such a proposal has failed at the Capitol. Short-term rental property owners, who showed up in force at the Capitol to oppose the bill, said that if the legislation passed they would be forced to sell their homes or reduce their rental nights to avoid the legislation’s 90-day threshold.”

“‘This new bill … unfairly and discriminately singles out STR owners,’ Kristine Lee, who owns a short-term rental in Summit County, testified Tuesday night. ‘You see us as a cash cow.’ Lee said in reality she’s not making much money on her rental property as nightly rates decrease as demand wanes. She recently had to give up her property manager because she couldn’t afford it.”

CBC News in Canada. “A provincial rule to limit short-term rentals to a homeowner’s principal residence plus one secondary suite or accessory dwelling comes into force in British Columbia on May 1 in 60 communities, while 17 additional communities have chosen to opt into the rules, despite being exempt. ‘Balanced new rules to crack down on speculators who are effectively operating mini hotels, while also ensuring homeowners can still rent out spaces in their principal residence,’ said Premier David Eby. He said the changes will allow both the province and local governments to crack down on speculators. ‘If you’re flipping homes, if you’re buying places to do short-term rental, if you’re buying a home to leave it vacant, we have consistently, publicly, repeatedly sent the message: Do not compete with families and individuals that are looking for a place to live with your investment dollars.'”

“Earlier this spring a group of nearly 300 B.C. property owners took the province and City of Victoria to court over new provincial limits on short-term rentals. They claim the rules aren’t legal and will result in significant financial losses for short-term rental owners.”

Business in Vancouver in Canada. “An organization representing short-term-rental-unit owners announced Thursday that it has filed a petition in B.C. Supreme Court against the province and the City of Victoria in a last-minute bid to preserve their operations. Owners of short-term rental units have been fighting against the new legislation for months, saying it was brought in without consultation. Those who have tried to sell their units have said there’s a glut on the market, making sales difficult. They said many owners only have one or two units and rely on the properties as retirement investments and for income.”

From The Local. “Holiday lets have been pinpointed as one of the primary reasons property prices and rents have skyrocketed in recent years in Spain. But who owns these properties, and are rich foreign buyers the straw that broke the camel’s back? By the end of 2023, there were 340,000 short-term holiday lets in Spain, according to the country’s national stats body INE. Although they barely represented 1.3 percent of the total number of homes in Spain last year, the number of holiday lets increased by 9 percent after increases in all 17 regions except the Balearic Islands.”

“The autonomous regions with the most short-term lets were Andalusia (79,065), followed by the Valencia region (58,337), Catalonia (52,026), the Canary Islands (44,376), the Balearic Islands (26,507), Madrid (16,970) and Galicia (18,080). If the figure for Madrid strikes you as low that’s because the Spanish capital has a big problem with holiday lets without a licence, which in turn calls into question the real figure of Airbnb-style rentals across the country as a whole. Overall, it can be concluded that the number of tourism rentals in Spain is probably higher than the 350,000 suggested by the Spanish government, and that the role real estate investment firms and vulture funds are playing in warping the country’s rental market is most likely underestimated.”

Estate Agent Today. “It’s tempting to think that Michael Gove’s proposed clampdown on Airbnb-style short lets is a uniquely British form of small-mindedness, part of the current government’s haphazard approach to housing policy. Yet this sort of interference in the short let market is not unique and indeed is less draconian than many other parts of the world. Look at Spain. The Canaries, for example, is recruiting 35 inspectors to police new short let controls coming in later this year – new-build properties will be barred from accommodating short lets while existing owners will need a permit to let, including (wait for this) support from their neighbours. Barcelona already has 70 such inspectors while Madrid has a rather feeble-sounding eight.”

“Meanwhile in Germany – where many laws are heavily devolved to regions – short let hosts in Munich have a limit of eight weeks per year beyond which they require council permits, while in Stuttgart it’s 10 weeks. Berlin has had various regulations for many years: currently an entire property can be short let for no more than 90 nights in a year, but that requires host registration and a hefty fee. Amsterdam – which has made moves to deter tourist numbers in recent years – there’s a 30-night annual limit while most other Netherlands cities have 60-night rules.”

“And then, of course, there’s New York. Officially the city has long had regulations effectively outlawing short lets, but this was rarely – some say never – enforced until the passage of Local Law 18, which strengthened existing legislation, beefed up enforcement and required mandatory host registration. NY short let registrations plummeted from approximately 13,500 listings in August last year to under 3,000 in December. Australia is curbing short lets too, most vociferously in Western Australia which is introducing limits similar to those proposed here by Gove. It wants new short lets to require planning consent, some exemptions for long-standing existing hosts, and a 90-night limit.”

“The Italian city of Florence – by density, the country’s most heavily touristic city – has banned new short-term listings by property owners in its historic centre, and is offering three years of tax breaks to landlords of existing short lets if they switch to ordinary long-term letting. In Iceland you can let out your home, or part thereof, for no more than 90 nights per year and there is an annual income cap on how much a host can receive. In Tokyo – where the annual limit is 180 nights – hosts must either live and remain in the property that’s let, or have an administrator employed to do the same.”

“In France the annual limit is 120 nights and in some cases council approval is required; in San Francisco there’s a 90-night limit and strict compliance rules, while in Canada – particularly some parts of Quebec, including Montreal – there are selective complete bans on short lets. I could go on, because almost all western countries now have restrictions. You get the picture, I’m sure. So while the UK’s short let clampdown pledged by Gove and his government looks of a piece with the rest of their restrictions on other forms of landlordism, on this occasion it’s part of a bigger global picture.”

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This Post Has 86 Comments

  1. ‘This new bill … unfairly and discriminately singles out STR owners,’ Kristine Lee, who owns a short-term rental in Summit County, testified Tuesday night. ‘You see us as a cash cow.’ Lee said in reality she’s not making much money on her rental property as nightly rates decrease as demand wanes. She recently had to give up her property manager because she couldn’t afford it’

    So yer cleaning toilets day after day for free Kristine? You are a winnah!

  2. ‘When you go and look at a property right now, you look at the history and it’s almost hard to swallow that five years ago, it sold for $199,000, and now it’s selling for $420,000, and it’s worth $420,000’

    There’s nothing but air under that number Connie.

    1. The wipeout of fake wealth created by fake money is going to be epic as the Fed’s Ponzi markets and asset bubbles implode under the weight of their own debt, fraud, and mark-to-fantasy accounting.

  3. ‘When housing prices rise at an unusually fast pace over a short period, it could indicate a housing bubble…If there’s a surge in speculative buying or excessive construction of new properties without a corresponding increase in demand, it could signal an oversupply in the market. This oversupply can drive prices down as supply outpaces demand, leading to a potential housing crash’

    USDA loans are subprime by definition Seth. You can’t get one if yer not a subprime borrower.

  4. ‘I could go on, because almost all western countries now have restrictions. You get the picture, I’m sure’

    It never fails. Eventually people get sick of the beer cans and people parking on the lawns or shootings. The only difference is now you’ve got billion pesos companies hiring lawyers and bribing guberments. But that only lasts so long.

  5. America Last.

    The Hill (4/20/2024):

    “The rare weekend votes were the culmination of months of fierce debate within the House GOP conference over how — or even if — Congress should step in with another round of military help for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan while providing humanitarian aid for civilian victims in Gaza and other war-torn regions around the globe.

    The debate had split House Republicans into warring factions, pitting Reagan-minded traditionalists — who support strong interventions overseas to counter the imperial designs of Russia and China — against a newer brand of “America First” conservative who fought to limit the foreign spending and focus instead on domestic problems, particularly the migrant crisis at the southern border.

    Passage of the foreign aid bills marked a moral victory for the inexperienced Speaker, who took the gavel less than six months ago. The package — passed with four separate votes — includes roughly $61 billion for Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel, $8 billion for allies in the Indo-Pacific …

    Johnson had initially demanded that any new foreign aid be accompanied by provisions to bolster security at the southern U.S. border. But he went on to reject a Senate-negotiated border deal that was linked to foreign aid, and later abandoned his border requirement altogether in favor of a strict focus on assistance for allies overseas — a move that left conservatives incredulous.

    “How much sense does it make to secure other countries and not secure America,” asked a frustrated Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.).

    https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4608263-ukraine-israel-aid-passed/

    Keep paying those federal income taxes, cattle tax slaves.

    1. Related article.

      The New York Post, and any other Murdoch owned “conservative” media outlets (Daily Mail, Fox, News dot Au, etc) are America Last globalist rags.

      New York Post (4/20/2024):

      “House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Saturday crushed a putsch by far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Republican rebels — pushing through a $95.3 billion aid package that funds the fight against Russia, the defense of Israel and resistance against China.”

      Far-right.

      “The bill passed 311-112 with all “nay” votes coming from Republicans, including Greene who was hailed as “Moscow Marjorie” by members of both major political parties.

      “Putin’s Special Envoy to Congress already delivering for Mother Russia,” quipped Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) afterward.

      He was responding to a social media post by Greene saying, “Mike Johnson’s House of Representatives so proud to work for Ukraine. Not the American people!!! It’s despicable.”

      Former Rep. Ken Buck (R-Co.) a day earlier told CNN “Moscow Marjorie has reached a new low… She is just mouthing Russian propaganda.”

      The majority of House Republicans backed Johnson’s plans — with the exception of Ukraine aid —despite threats by Greene, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and other far-right lawmakers to oust him as speaker if he pushed through the Ukraine aid rather than prioritizing US border security as record-breaking numbers of migrants illegally enter the US and strain public funds.”

      Far-right.

      https://nypost.com/2024/04/20/us-news/house-approves-95b-in-military-aid-for-israel-ukraine/

      Note that the Post has blocked comments on this article.

      Gate keeping, controlled opposition.

      1. Ken Buck epitomizes the globalist salad tossers comprising Colorado’s Establishment GOP controlled opposition.

    2. Note that the globalist scum media is selling this phony war as a “jobs program.”

      Russia Today — $500 Russian drones destroying $10,000,000 American tanks – NYT (4/20/2024):

      “Expensive American M1 Abrams tanks delivered to Ukraine are increasingly falling prey to Russian drones that cost only a fraction as much, the New York Times reported on Saturday. Even “one of the most powerful symbols of American military might” is not invulnerable to the attacks, it said.

      At least five US-supplied tanks out of the 31 provided by Washington have already been destroyed by Russia, the media outlet said, adding that three others were “moderately damaged.”

      According to the NYT, the tanks turned out to be “more easily taken out by exploding drones than some officials and experts had initially assumed.” The media outlet cited Austrian historian and military expert Colonel Markus Reisner, who described the situation as “unbelievable.” The paper also described the Russian UAVs as “highly-accurate, low-cost tank killers.”

      The drones’ accuracy exceeds 90%, the NYT said, adding that they are also capable of hitting heavy armor in its weakest spots. The UAVs “can cost as little as $500,” the paper reported, and are capable of “taking out a $10 million Abrams tank.”

      https://www.rt.com/news/596323-russian-drones-destroy-abrams-tanks/

      The military industrial complex gets their billions, stolen from taxpayers. The brown envelopes are passed to All The Right People to buy their primaries and general elections. And you, the American taxpayer, are rewarded with the hyperinflation resulting from $35+ trillion of national debt.

      1. Meanwhile, as the KTLA article in yesterday’s thread documents, you need a six figure income to afford a shanty in all fifty states.

    3. Trending on Twitter: 70% of Americans do not support the blank check being given to Ukraine by their feckless uniparty “representatives.”

      1. Ukraine deserves it more than Israel. But I know people are waiting for the second coming while watching entertainment news.

        1. Israel should keep the territory in Gaza that it has conquered, and maintain the southern tent city until the neighboring countries can absorb the remaining Palestinians. Otherwise this region will continue to fester and cost U.S. taxpayers.

          The Ukrainians are still fighting trench warfare when drones and thermal imagery obviate old school infantry. I suppose their western benefactors are avoiding swift escalation while winnowing Russia’s armed forces of young men. I still don’t understand the reasons for hurried NATO expansion rather than a neutral east vs west buffer zone.

  6. Seth Jacobs, an experienced mortgage broker and founder of Maine USDA Home Loan, said, ‘When housing prices rise at an unusually fast pace over a short period, it could indicate a housing bubble.’

    Seth must look quite dashing in his Captain Obvious costume.

  8. ‘When you go and look at a property right now, you look at the history and it’s almost hard to swallow that five years ago, it sold for $199,000, and now it’s selling for $420,000, and it’s worth $420,000,’ Stowers said.”

    This artificial shack inflation was due solely to the Fed’s deranged money printing during the scamdemic.

  9. One neighbor, Hillary Simpson, wants to know why the county has ordinances in place to restrict short-term rentals if they’re not being enforced. Simpson said she is on the phone with code enforcement nearly daily and just wants to be able to go 24 hours without short-term renters disturbing her family.

    Stuffed brown envelopes going to the right apparatchiks will ensure non-enforcement of pesky ordinances and suppression of anyone who complains.

  11. “The median price of a new-build, single family home in Gallatin County in 2022 was $950,000, double the price recorded in 2019, according to the 2023 housing report from the Gallatin County Association of Realtors.”

    Totally normal. Nothing to see here folks.

    1. double the price recorded in 2019

      Curiously, prices in my little burg went up about 30% in that time frame.

  12. “She recently had to give up her property manager because she couldn’t afford it.”

    Oh the tragedy!!

    1. It’s Summit County.

      The poors can commute over 11,000 foot mountain passes from Leadville or Fairplay to make lattes for the Summit County pigmen, and when they get priced out of those towns, no more lattes for you!

  14. do what they do at nyc co-ops. A FLIP TAX. yes you sell in the first say 5 years say 90% of the profit goes back to the co-op. Or ive seen others its $2000 a room to the co-op even if you sell at. a loss. within X years……….It happened to a dj friend of mine having twins so the2 bedroom was too small, sold during a downturn lost about $15K on the co-op, and still had to pay another $10K for a flip of less then 3 years
    ——-
    A new modular housing development outside Belgrade is calling itself an “affordable housing solution” for Bozeman. But manufactured home resident advocates worry prices are already high and could go up– a reported pattern the developer has done in other locations.

    1. “affordable housing solution” for Bozeman.

      FFS, there is land as far as the eye can see in MT. 150,000 square miles and a 1.1 million people. That’s about 7-8 people per square mile.

      1. Bozeman suffers from the same issue that many western states have and that is the federal government owns most of the land around it. It is sort of a backdoor town to Yellowstone. Supply is artificially limited. Unless you are independently wealthy it is best to avoid areas with that issue.

    2. Yeah, that “affordable” housing in Bozeman caught my eye too. I haven’t been keeping track of the pre-fab community, but last I looked (maybe 5 years ago?), a basic 3/2 was around $125K. Buyer provides the land, foundation (usually slab), and hookups. In that case, $200K is probably not a bad price for something like this… IF you get the land too. But then you have lot rent too? No way, not in bumble-F Bozeman.

      $90-150K is a steep income for “workforce” housing. This is clearly a profit grab.

  16. A reader sent these in:

    The Four Seasons Wailea in Maui has been added to the default watchlist on a $234 million CRE loan

    https://twitter.com/MacroEdgeRes/status/1781683671109394433

    Homie, a Utah-based ‘COVID-era real estate giant’ is eliminating its brokerage services and terminating all of its remaining real estate agents and support employees

    https://twitter.com/MacroEdgeRes/status/1781462597734125585

    A $300M CMBS Loan Backed by the Santa Monica Place Mall is Facing ‘Imminent Default’

    https://twitter.com/MacroEdgeRes/status/1781437742963995002

    Women Who Code – the largest female tech nonprofit advocacy group for women – is shutting down. It had around 400,000 members & all employees will be terminated.

    https://twitter.com/MacroEdgeRes/status/1781396203869028715

    US Treasury Bills now yield 4 TIMES more than the S&P 500’s dividend, the most since the Dot-com bubble.

    Over the last 100 years, a multiple this high has only been seen ONE time.

    By comparison, even in the 2008 Financial Crisis this metric peaked at ~3x.

    With interest rate cuts being priced-out, it is likely we see interest rates on bonds continue to push higher.

    This will keep US T-Bill rates elevated and perhaps push this ratio to its 2000-highs.

    Yet another Dot-com bubble similarity.

    https://twitter.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1781708148010541342

    Wow. Never thought I’d see a Four Seasons default. Especially in Maui.

    The 1% who fill these places always make money.

    https://twitter.com/StealthQE4/status/1781757593804841057

    This is absolutely wild:

    The effective interest rate on mortgages outstanding is 3.8%, effectively HALF of current mortgages rate of 7.5%.

    This is why the vast majority of homeowners have a financial disincentive to move.

    Currently, ~90% of borrowers pay interest rates below 6% and ~80% have rates under 5%.

    More than 20% US homeowners carry mortgage rates under 3%.

    Meanwhile, new home prices are on track to drop below existing home prices for the first time since 2005 as the latter supply is historically low.

    What’s happening here?

    https://twitter.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1781828228186865707

    The Fed broke the housing market with ZIRP/abominably low mortgage rates + buying $trillions of MBS

    This can only be cleared with true market rates (which we more or less have now) and lower prices (which we don’t….yet)

    https://twitter.com/menlobear/status/1781831008930947473

    ❖ TESLA CUTS MODEL Y, S, X PRICES AS EARNINGS LOOM

    Tesla cut the U.S. price of the Model Y, Model S and Model X by $2,000 on Saturday, the latest in a series of pricing moves by the EV giant.

    The Model Y now starts at $42,990 before incentives. The Model S entry price is $72,990 while the Model X starts at $79,990. The Model Y and Model X are eligible for IRA credits of $7,500.

    Tesla Cybertruck and Model 3 prices were left unchanged, with production of both EVs still low.

    https://twitter.com/DeItaone/status/1781712331040244043

    1. “COVID-era real estate giant”

      Why would such an entity even exist?

      40% of every dollar in existence was printed since the release of CCP Flu. All The Right People got their brown envelopes, you got a check for $1,400 and 50% inflation.

      “We’re all in this together”

      1. “’COVID-era real estate giant’”

        “Why would such an entity even exist?”

        Because: People are stupid.

      2. Why would such an entity even exist?

        Homie operates in states such as Utah and Arizona. They offered ‘100% cash offers’ to people. Essentially, they were creating loans, but closing it as cash during the COVID sales boom when cash was king, contingencies were waived, and offers over asking were a requirement.

        AFAIK, they also offered a flat cost for home sellers to use them as a platform, which was likely a great deal for sellers compared to using a realtor.

      3. you got a check for $1,400 and 50% inflation

        A whole bunch were getting $1000/wk unemployment. And some of them were very smug about it.

    2. “Meanwhile, new home prices are on track to drop below existing home prices for the first time since 2005 as the latter supply is historically low.

      What’s happening here?”

      I’ll tell ya what’s happening. New home builders are gonna break it off in your a$$ existing homeowners because they could give a rats rear end about your precious equity. They will build until they’ve squeezed every last drop of profit out of the dying breath moments of this super bubble as you see your generational wealth wither away.

      1. Plus building is what they do. The only thing that will stop them is a lack of construction loans.

    3. Women Who Code – the largest female tech nonprofit advocacy group for women – is shutting down. It had around 400,000 members & all employees will be terminated.

      I’d say “learn to code,” but that would be mean. Most of these “advocacy” groups are pushing DEI and “progressive” agendas, so good riddance.

      1. Atlanta-based Women Who Code abruptly shuts down due to finances

        https://www.ajc.com/news/business/atlanta-based-women-who-code-abruptly-shuts-down-due-to-finances/KH5LEQXBAFATRFM6EM3SF726JQ/

        [Here are some snips taken from the article …]

        Women Who Code, an Atlanta-based nonprofit that supported diverse women in technology, announced Thursday it was shutting down after a vote by its board of directors to dissolve the organization.

        “This decision has not been made lightly. It only comes after careful consideration of all options and is due to factors that have materially impacted our funding sources — funds that were critical to continuing our programming and delivering on our mission,” the organization said in a statement. It did not detail what factors impacted its finances.

        Women Who Code (WWCode) had volunteer chapters across the globe, from Kyiv to Kuala Lumpur. The chapters would host in-person and virtual events, helping build community among local women technologists.

        The organization also created a repository of learning resources on topics ranging from different coding languages to growing a career, hosted conferences, provided scholarships and discounts for tech courses and posted job openings in the industry. It had more than 360,000 members across 145 countries, according to the nonprofit.

        WWCode started in 2011 as a Meetup group in the Bay Area of San Francisco and two years later it acquired nonprofit status. The organization moved its headquarters to Atlanta in 2018, in part with the support of The Home Depot. The home improvement giant did not comment on WWCode’s closing.

        In 2022, the organization reported revenues of $3.98 million, but its expenses outpaced what it brought in, resulting in an income gap of more than $190,000, according to the most recent tax records available. Salaries, other compensation and employee benefits increased by nearly $900,000 from 2021 to 2022 and other expenses also increased, though the organization ended that year with $3.43 million in net assets.

        WWCode went through organizational changes earlier this year. In January, the nonprofit’s co-founder and longtime CEO Alaina Percival stepped down and handed the reins to Elberfeld. In February, the nonprofit brought in five new board members.

        Last month, the nonprofit seemed to be continuing business as usual. In March it announced a global virtual conference to be held in May and some of its chapters had events scheduled for later in April, including one on cybersecurity and artificial intelligence scheduled for this Friday afternoon.

        On a LinkedIn post Thursday promoting the AI event, the Women Who Code Emerging Tech account commented, “Really looking forward to it!” Hours later, the nonprofit announced it was closing and canceled all events.

        2. 400,000 members. Couldn’t they afford $20/year each for membership? My math says that’s $8M a year for a budget.

      2. advocacy group

        If the women coded as well as the men, they wouldn’t need an advocacy group. Isn’t there some advocacy/union association for all coders? Just join that.

        1. Similarly, if WNBA games were as popular as NBA games, they wouldn’t need to enlist Democrat politicians to suggest women basketball players should get the same pay as NBA players.

          For that matter, I know of no law prohibiting women from trying out for NBA teams. Because that would be unfair discrimination against women basketball players.

          1. Every performer — athlete, musician, dancer, actor — is a salesman working on commission, like any used car dealer. You get paid based on selling product. Tom Cruise and Harrison Ford have ZERO Oscars between the two of them, yet they are among the highest-paid performers in the business.

          2. DealBook Newsletter
            Can the W.N.B.A. Make Money?

            A wave of star power has lifted hopes that viewership will pick up for the women’s league.

            Caitlin Clark and Cathy Engelbert, both smiling, hold up an Indiana Fever basketball jersey with the number 1 on it.
            Caitlin Clark, left, with the W.N.B.A.’s commissioner, Cathy Engelbert, after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Indiana Fever on Monday.Credit…Brad Penner/USA TODAY Sports
            By Lauren Hirsch, Tania Ganguli and Sarah Kessler
            April 20, 2024

            After the Indiana Fever made Caitlin Clark the W.N.B.A.’s No. 1 draft pick this week, the team’s ticket prices soared. The basketball star’s long-distance shots and huge following have landed her on “Saturday Night Live,” attracted interest from sponsors like Nike and sold out jerseys at a rapid pace.

            In exchange for Clark’s once-in-a-generation talent, the W.N.B.A. will pay her … $76,535.

            News of the paltry first-year salary has ignited a countrywide debate that even President Biden weighed in on, commenting that “even if you’re the best, women are not paid their fair share.”

            It also highlighted a hard truth that largely goes unspoken about the W.N.B.A. and many women’s sports leagues: They aren’t profitable.

            The simplest reason the W.N.B.A. isn’t paying Clark more is that the league brings in just $200 million annually and relies on the N.B.A. for some of its funding. The N.B.A., by contrast, brings in about $10 billion.
            …
            https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/20/business/dealbook/wnba-womens-basketball-money.html

          3. “…the league brings in just $200 million annually and relies on the N.B.A. for some of its funding. The N.B.A., by contrast, brings in about $10 billion.”

            $10,000,000,000 ÷ $200,000,000 = 50 if I lined up my zeros correctly. Men’s professional basketball makes 50 times as much revenue than women’s basketball, perhaps because the male players are a lot better and more fun to watch.

    4. People are starting to do Santa Monica walk-thru videos just like they do for Ookland, SF, and LA showing the decline and rampant vacancies. A local business group made a giant banner and hung it on one of the buildings proclaiming they change the name to Santa Methica as well as calling out some of the local officials who are allowing the problems to fester. It’s sad to see.

  17. Which counties saw the most ON MARKET pile on in Florida?
    Connect2Florida

    3 hours ago

    On Sunday we do a weekly Florida real estate update. What went right and what went wrong in the market in the week or so prior. This week there were 3 counties that took on heavy amounts of listings. These could be counties to target for a decent buy since its such a strong buyers market in these Florida counties.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qyEeOOlQYI

    12:43.

    1. When it rains in Florida it is so heavy that you have to pull over and stop driving because the wipers are unable to keep up. That said, it’s incredible that developers would be able to obtain permits to build housing in flood prone areas.

  19. Ok, so now that they expect the WHO Treaty with Countries to be passed in May, 2024, to get the WHO full power on Global Health Response, it will be time for a new Panademic.
    In addition they claim they can produce the counter measure vaccine within 100 day.
    So, many predict that the next Panademic will be the Asian Bird flu. In fact Vaccine Companies are already engaged in producing the counter measure vaccine.
    Basically the next Panademic would have to be a invisible respiratory type flu type thing that moves at lighting speed and of course is air borne .
    So, now chickens and cattle are being slaughtered by the millions over the Asian Bird flu, based on the same PCR testing used for Covid. And lately claims of some human cases based on a mutation into human species the WHO is mongering closely.
    Is this the disease x that is predicted that will be 100 times worse than Covid? The Bird flu is really scary because it has a claim of a 40 or 50 per cent fatality rate if humans get it.
    So, firstly this is a attack on the food supply IMHO with this mass slaughter of chickens that also lay eggs, and they claim the cows are getting it.
    So, this might explain why under no conditions are they going to allow the expiermental fake gene therapy technology vaccines to be taken off the market. This technology is required for fast production of vaccines for starters.. They are putting this failed and unfit for human or animal technology in everything.
    The overwhelming evidence that the Covid 19 vaccines didn’t stop Covid or the transmission of Covid, along with it being responsible for massive excess death and injury and disability globally doesn’t matter to the POWERS THAT BE.
    And even the fact that the evidence shows that DNA altering chemicals have been found in the vaccines,nothing will make them take this lethal technology off the market.
    The technology is absolutely necessary for their attack on humans, as well as bird and animal food supply.
    They want you to eat bugs and fake food . Also, C02
    carbon emissions fraud , that is the fake culprit in doomsday Climate Change , is another way of attacking plants, animals, humans and energy so they can control all resources and consumption.
    Its a way of justifying the ridiculous power grab of the One World Order dictorship they plan.
    The problem is that the bulk of Global Governments have already been infiltrated and captured to partner with these Enemy Entities, to advance this power grab of a One World Order.
    The Enemy is a terrorist insurrection against the world where governments won’t stop them , and they are the “market forces “that John Kerry recently said no governments can stop.
    So, the great fraudulent Narratives, that were manufactured over 1/2 Century ago , have gone into operational attack on global human populations.

    1. MALINFORMATION.

      [I ran across this post and thought a snip from it placed on Ben Jones’ blog would be appropriate,]

      “According to an alliance of social media platforms, government-funded organizations, and federal officials that journalist Michael Shellenberger calls the “censorship-industrial complex,” I had committed the offense of “malinformation.” Unlike “disinformation,” which is intentionally misleading, or “misinformation,” which is erroneous, “malinformation” is true but inconvenient.”

      https://reason.com/2023/03/22/the-crusade-against-malinformation-explicitly-targets-inconvenient-truths/

      1. Unlike “disinformation,” which is intentionally misleading, or “misinformation,” which is erroneous, “malinformation” is true but inconvenient.”

        * Malinformation is a controversial term for information which is based on fact, but removed from its original context in order to mislead, harm, or manipulate.

  20. Don’t hate me for talking about evil and shocking things. Do you think I want to acknowledge a pre planned sinister attack on humanity and the earth by these monsters. Much easier to dig your head in the sand and believe it couldn’t be possible.
    But the truth sets you free to wage the proper defense or offense against any threat to your life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

    1. “dig your head in the sand”

      90+ percent of people I deal with day to day are NPC’s.

      1. “90+ percent of people I deal with day to day are NPC’s.”

        [Wow! I did a Wikipedia search for “NPC” and came up with a large load of info. Here are some snips …]

        NPC (meme)

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPC_(meme)

        [snip snip snip snip]

        The NPC (/ɛn.pi.si/; also known as the NPC Wojak), derived from non-player character, is an Internet meme that represents people who do not think for themselves or do not make their own decisions; those who lack introspection or intrapersonal communication. The meme gained further viral status on TikTok, with the surge of “NPC Streamers”. In terms of politics, it’s often been used by those with anti-establishment views to describe those who fail to question authority, “groupthink”, or a stance that would display conformity and obedience. The NPC meme, which graphically is based on the Wojak meme, was created in July 2016 by an anonymous author and first published on the imageboard 4chan, where the idea and inspiration behind the meme were introduced.

        The NPC gained widespread attention during the presidency of Donald Trump. In October 2018 the meme was covered by numerous news outlets, including The Verge, the BBC, and The New York Times, who called it a popular insult among “the pro-Trump internet” as well as a “collective mascot for the far-right commenters”. The following month, the far-right InfoWars held a competition promoting the creation of NPC memes; the winning entry was endorsed by Trump on Twitter. In 2022, the NPC garnered popularity on video sharing service TikTok.

        In 2016, the concept was revived in a 4chan post by an anonymous user who initiated the NPC meme, titled “Are you an NPC?”, detailing the behaviour of individuals acting similarly to non-player characters in video games by repeatedly using phrases such as “JUST BE YOURSELF”, and ended the post with the following description of people the NPC meme intends to depict.

        “If you get in a discussion with them it’s always the same buzzwords and hackneyed arguments. They’re the kind of people who make a show of discomfort when you break the status quo like by breaking the normie barrier to invoke a real discussion. it’s like in a [video game] when you accidentally talk to somebody twice and they give you the exact lines word for word once more.”

        — Anonymous, “Are you an NPC?”, 4chan (July 7, 2016)

        [snip]

        Twitter mass ban
        In October 2018, users of r/The_Donald, a large subreddit that supported United States President Donald Trump, coordinated in creating accounts presented as NPCs on the microblogging and social networking service Twitter. According to The Week, the accounts spread “bland, politically correct messages intended to mimic and provoke liberal pronouncements”. Following the mass creation of NPC Twitter accounts, the term “NPC” was used over 30,000 times on Twitter in a time span of 24 hours. Twitter responded to the event by banning more than 1,500 of its users presenting themselves as NPCs. The created accounts typically used profile pictures of NPC with slight modifications, such as colorful hair or partially covering masks. According to one or more anonymous sources quoted by The Week and The New York Times, the users were banned for violating a term of use by Twitter against “intentionally misleading election-related content”, ahead of the United States 2018 midterm election. The claim that NPC memes were used to spread misinformation about the 2018 United States midterm election was also reported by other news agencies, including The Verge, BBC and The Independent. According to the BBC, the decision by Twitter to remove NPC accounts has upset many conservatives.

  21. Will the stock market’s recent swoon end before any sort of capitulation transpires?

    2. Would it be best to avoid investing in the S&P 500 up until the point when it becomes a sort of swear word?

      1. Stocks are headed for a decade-long ‘dead’ zone with losses on par with the dot-com bust, fund manager says
        Jennifer Sor
        Apr 10, 2024, 11:27 AM PDT
        Stock market crash
        OsakaWayne Studios/Getty Images

        – The stock market could be in for a decade of next-to-nothing returns, one top fund manager warned.

        – That’s because inflation and interest rates could remain stubbornly high.

        – Stocks could see near-term losses on par with the dot-com bust and the 2008 crash, he said.

        Investors cheering the rally in stocks this year should be prepared for the good times to end, and the S&P 500 risks seeing dismal returns for the next 10-15 years.

        That’s according to Bill Smead, a top 2% fund manager who remains one of Wall Street’s biggest bears, even in the face of the market’s 8% rally in 2024. That’s because stocks look to be in the midst of a speculative bubble, he’s warned previously, and it could set investors up for a “dead ball” era of performance, the Smead Capital Management founder said in a recent note to clients.

        That “dead ball” period will last for at least the next decade, Smead said, and it will only end once all the enthusiasm for the market’s most expensive stocks has bled out. The process could lead to losses on par with the dot-com bubble and the Great Financial Crisis, he said, when stocks suffered double-digit drops.

        “It will be more like the ’00-’03 bear market, or more like ’07-’09,” Smead said in an interview with Business Insider. “We’ll probably get two full-blown bear markets in a 10-year time period that will basically negate making any money in the S&P 500 index. You won’t want to buy the S&P 500 index until it becomes kind of a swear word.”
        …
        https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/stock-market-crash-inflation-fed-rates-outlook-dot-com-bubble-2024-4

    3. Finance
      Warren Buffett’s favorite market gauge hit a 2-year high, signaling stocks are heavily overvalued and could crash
      Theron Mohamed
      Mar 22, 2024, 4:43 AM PDT
      Rick Wilking/Reuters

      – Warren Buffett’s go-to market gauge surged to a two-year high of 184%.

      -:The “Buffett Indicator” compares the stock market’s total value to the overall size of the economy.

      – Buffett has warned that buying stocks at a reading near 200% is “playing with fire.”
      …
      https://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-indicator-stock-market-outlook-bubble-crash-ai-tech-2024-3

  22. ‘The leveraging of equity — that’s a big thing…Houses took a monster jump through COVID, and people are cashing out of that equity’

    That didn’t take long Israel.

  23. ‘A Flagstaff renter earning minimum wage would need to work more than two full-time jobs — roughly 90 hours a week — to afford a two-bedroom apartment at the average rental rate’

    And they had a yuuge minimum wage increase a while back.

    1. Which means that two minimum-wage roommates can afford the apartment. Which IMO is fine. If you want a private apartment or a even a car, maybe you need to think about making more than minimum wage.

  24. ‘These rentals, typically lasting less than 30 days, have been linked to a range of issues including trash and litter, excessive noise, parking problems and neighborhood degradation’

    Other than that, how’s the weather in Santa Ana these days?

  25. ‘Noise is definitely the one that is the most disruptive…There’s a ton of unknown, and that can be a little scary when you bought a home in a neighborhood where you intended to raise your children because it was safe and quiet and peaceful’

    It was still cheaper than renting Hillary.

    1. My lawn mowing neighbor was power washing his equipment on the driveway this morning, Sunday at 0800-hrs.

  26. ‘If the figure for Madrid strikes you as low that’s because the Spanish capital has a big problem with holiday lets without a licence, which in turn calls into question the real figure of Airbnb-style rentals across the country as a whole. Overall, it can be concluded that the number of tourism rentals in Spain is probably higher than the 350,000 suggested by the Spanish government, and that the role real estate investment firms and vulture funds are playing in warping the country’s rental market is most likely underestimated’

    These are the games that can be played when big bribe money and influence peddling muscle into the housing market.

  27. Barrie Police Chief Calls For More Officers Down Amid Opioid Crisis
    Mark Turcotte

    38 minutes ago

    Barrie Police Chief emphasizes the need for increased police presence in downtown Barrie to address the escalating opioid crisis. Watch as the community rallies behind this call to action and discusses the importance of visible law enforcement in combating the crisis. Stay informed on the latest developments and solutions to tackle this pressing issue.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tl7p-NLNnD4

    17:37.

    1. “Its value increased by over $200,000 since January 2023, despite higher-for-longer interest rates.”

      That’s why the Golden State is always a good buy!

  29. Won’t see this on the CBS Evening News

    R A W S A L E R T S
    ·
    Apr 20, 2024
    @rawsalerts
    ·
    Follow
    🚨#BREAKING: Multiple people have reportedly been shot at a mass shooting during a block party/street takeover, with hundreds of shots being fired

    📌#Memphis | #Tennessee

    Multiple law enforcement and emergency personnel are currently on the scene in Memphis, Tennessee, where…

    10:52 PM · Apr 20, 2024
    from Memphis, TN·

    https://x.com/rawsalerts/status/1781878688545386997

    R A W S A L E R T S
    @rawsalerts

    🚨#UPDATE: Here is more footage of the mass shooting that took place earlier this evening. As Memphis Police have just announced that 16 people were shot, with at least 2 killed, during the block party/street takeover

    Post
    See new posts
    Conversation
    R A W S A L E R T S
    @rawsalerts
    🚨#UPDATE: Here is more footage of the mass shooting that took place earlier this evening. As Memphis Police have just announced that 16 people were shot, with at least 2 killed, during the block party/street takeover

    0:42 / 1:01
    11:23 PM · Apr 20, 2024

    https://x.com/rawsalerts/status/1781886571580440714

    1. Memphis 620K population. 65% Black 25% White.

      You sure that didn’t happen in Vermont somewhere?

      1. Scott Adams said to keep your distance. He and Dilbert were cancelled because of that statement.

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