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What We’re Dealing With, If We’re Lucky, Is Half A Dozen Buyers For Over 120 Properties

It’s Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. “Condos that were around when the Hurricanes lost a national championship game to the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Orange Bowl are flooding the South Florida market. That was 30 years ago. There is a crush of condos built in 1994 or earlier for sale in South Florida — almost 18,000 condos of that vintage were on the market in the second quarter. About nine of every 10 condos for sale in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties dates back to at least 1994, according to ISG Worldwide. ‘What we’ve seen in the last 12 months is a rush to sell by the owners of those condos,’ said ISG Worldwide CEO Craig Studnicky. ‘That’s met with a lack of rush from the buyers who want to buy that stuff. The buyers who are moving to Florida are specifically asking, ‘Realtors, don’t take me to one of those [older buildings].'”

“Texas and Florida are seeing the biggest increase in homes sitting unsold on the market, new research has revealed. In Dallas, 63 percent of listings sat on the market for at least 30 days in June – up from 52 percent a year earlier. It is followed by four metros in the Sunshine State – Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville and Orlando. Stale inventory is growing fastest in these states as supply outweighs demand and insurance rates skyrocket, Redfin found, despite property prices beginning to fall. ‘Overall, the market is fairly stagnant,’ said Shay Stein, a Redfin Premier agent in Las Vegas. ‘There are more listings hitting the market, but a lot of them aren’t in good condition or they’re not in a desirable neighborhood – and sellers are pricing unrealistically high.'”

“While real estate is a tried-and-true path to building wealth, putting all your eggs in this basket and ignoring retirement vehicles such as a 401(k) can come with huge downsides. ‘Real estate can be an excellent long-term investment,’ says Richard Redmond of Richmond Mortgage Capital in San Rafael, CA. ‘A small investor in income-producing real estate—one limited to a few properties in one area— is very exposed to local market conditions, including the local economy, regulations, and natural disasters,’ warns Redmond. For example, Redmond says he has seen many small real estate investors going after Airbnb-type rental properties only to see either their market become saturated or they’ve fallen victim to regulations that restrict short-term rentals. ‘Local jurisdictions passing rent control laws or zoning changes can hit income and affect property values,’ Redmond explains. ‘There are a host of problems that can arise in any one locality that can hit real estate income and values.'”

“Richard Goncher of Backyard Mortgage Group in Garnerville, NY, says a friend’s property in Newburgh, NY, lost value after a shooting at the local high school. Properties risk ‘bad tenants and the local area going out of favor,’ he says. In a nutshell, real estate as an investment ‘is for someone sophisticated and diligent,’ says Mark McDonough of Assume Loans in Brookline, MA. Even with a management company taking care of things on the property owner’s behalf, he warns, ‘there are still possibilities of getting burned by a malignant tenant, squatter, or any number of problems that don’t plague a 401(k).’ Plus, McDonough adds, a real estate market can turn quickly. During the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, ‘everyone was looking for lab space, and now you can’t give it away.'”

“In a public auction that unfolded in about 15 minutes outside the Baltimore Circuit Court on Thursday morning, the former Charm City home of actor Kevin Spacey sold for $3.24 million to a proxy bidder for a buyer whose name has not yet been disclosed. The two-unit waterfront condo in the Pier Homes at Harborview complex spans more than 9,000 square feet and last sold in 2017 for over $5.6 million to Clear Toaster LLC. Court records showed he owed a significant sum in back payments.”

“When interest rates topped out last year, the rise drove a wedge between what sellers were asking and buyers would pay. The gap dragged New York City investment sales activity to around a decade low, according to Ariel Property Advisors. Now, higher rates are fueling its comeback — at least for multifamily. The boom was largely driven by maturing loans that positioned sponsors to be saddled with higher interest rates. Some owners were facing two options: sell or default. ‘More sellers were forced to capitulate,’ Ariel head Shimon Shkury said. Pricing for free-market properties in Manhattan declined drastically in the past year from an average of $971,849 per unit in the second quarter of 2023 to $532,207 per unit during the same period of 2024, according to Ariel’s report.”

“For example, 826 Crown Street sold for $4.8 million during the quarter, which is 58 percent below its 2018 price, according to Ariel. Shkury said the deal was most likely driven by a maturity. Other operators, exhausted by the rent laws restrictions, are working to unwind themselves from the asset class altogether at any price they can get.”

“A buyer has emerged for the distressed office tower at 777 S. Figueroa St. in Downtown Los Angeles, Commercial Observer reported, citing anonymous sources. The tower owned by Brookfield DTLA Fund Office Trust Investor is reportedly set to sell for $120M, or less than half the $289M in debt attached to the building at the time of its default in February 2023. Another Brookfield property, The Gas Company Tower at 555 W. Fifth St., was attached to the $465M in debt that defaulted in February 2023. That property is headed to a foreclosure auction next month, Bisnow reported earlier this week. It has been a busy week for distressed DTLA assets. In addition to news about Brookfield’s properties, a stalking horse bidder for the partially built, graffiti-riddled Oceanwide Plaza project emerged. An auction for that property is expected in September.”

“Two arrest warrants were added this month to the pile of legal troubles facing a Vancouver real estate developer who’s advertised large returns for regular people investing in his projects across B.C. In the span of just two days last week, a B.C. Supreme Court justice and a provincial court judicial justice both issued orders for the arrest of Bob Fraser, CEO of the Cynterra Group. Both warrants are for failing to appear for hearings on how he plans to repay more than $80,000 he owes to contractors on a partially completed townhouse development in Kelowna. Until recently, Cynterra held regular seminars to pitch its projects to investors across Canada, and advertised regularly on Facebook, running ads that enticed users to ‘boost your TFSA and RRSP earnings,’ with ‘15% annual returns.'”

“But as the IJF first reported in April, Cynterra, its predecessor Evest Funds and their associated companies have faced a long list of lawsuits from contractors who say they haven’t been fully paid. Fraser has also acknowledged in a previous interview that some of his investors are ‘very, very angry’ because they have yet to see any returns. In the meantime, homebuyers and investors have been left to wait and wonder. Buyer Tracey Shaw said that when she signed a contract to purchase a one-bedroom unit at Promontory in the fall of 2019, she believed it would be ready within a year. Nearly five years later, she recently received notice that completion has been pushed back to the end of 2024, at the earliest. ‘The biggest frustration that I’ve had is just the lack of communication. There’s just been no meaningful updates,’ she said. As for those investors who dedicated retirement savings to Cynterra projects, the future is uncertain.”

“More than 80 per cent of new condo investors in the Toronto region are bleeding cash as the rental income from their units is not covering the increasing mortgage and costs of owning the property, according to a new report. The losses are dissuading investors from buying new condo units, also known as preconstruction condos. The preconstruction condo market is ‘clearly in recessionary territory with conditions deteriorating to levels not seen in decades,’ said the report. Many more investors are paying out of pocket to cover the costs – a situation known as being ‘cash flow negative.’ According to the report, 81 per cent of investors who took out a mortgage to buy newly completed condos this year were cash flow negative and were losing an average of $605 a month.”

“If preconstruction condo investors are unable to cover the shortfall in rental income, they may be forced to sell. That would increase the number of condos for sale and further reduce prices. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce deputy chief economist Benjamin Tal said investors who own multiple preconstruction units are the most vulnerable. ‘The main correcting mechanism will be to sell,’ he said, adding that this would put further downward pressure on resale prices and widen the gap between preconstruction and already-built units. This year, a near-record number of newly built condos are expected to be completed and occupied.”

“Some residents living in the popular East Lothian seaside say the holiday lets boom has had a less than positive impact on the local economy – and for residents. Edinburgh Live spoke to North Berwick locals to hear their thoughts on short term lets in the area. Residents were quick to criticise the amount of holiday lets. Ronnie William, who has lived year-round in North Berwick since 1990, said: ‘I used to walk my dog in the evening along the High Street, and it was all dark in the off-season. There are so many holiday homes, none of the houses had lights on.’ Jim, who lives just off North Berwick’s high street, said he had to cable tie his bins because they would otherwise ‘overflow’ with rubbish from the tourists. Jim’s flat is attached to two short term let properties, and he reported ‘a direct experience of hassle with absentee landlords.’ ‘There’s lots of not following rules. It’s purely an investment for them.'”

“House prices have fallen in a string of popular Victorian tourist towns as holiday-home owners and investors sell up amid cost-of-living pressures and land tax increases. The steepest fall was in Mansfield at the foot of the Victorian Alps, down 9.1 per cent in 12 months to a median of $663,750, Domain’s House Price Report for the June quarter shows. ‘What regional buyers will be finding now is that fear of missing out is certainly not there,’ said Domain chief of economics Dr Nicola Powell. ‘I do think that provides grounds for many buyers to place in offers and seize this unique opportunity to actually purchase when prices are below peak.'”

“Ray White Inverloch principal agent Fiona McMahon-Hughes said an oversupply of houses for sale on the Bass Coast, caused by a rise in investors and second-home owners selling, had resulted in falling prices in the holiday destination. ‘These are people on normal wages … suddenly they’ve got a bill of $7000, or some have been higher than that, and they’ve got to find that every year,’ she said. ‘We are a holiday destination … the people buying holiday homes aren’t there,’ she said. ‘What we’re dealing with, if we’re lucky, is half a dozen buyers for over 120 properties.’ Principal agent at McGrath Mansfield Kate Mcdougall said properties were still highly sought after in the popular alpine town as prices returned to pre-pandemic levels. ‘They’ve gone from what I would say nuts to normal,’ she said.”

“Waikato woman Helen – whom RNZ has agreed not to identify – has recently spent six months trying to sell her home. While she received a couple of offers, they were well below what she was willing to consider, and eventually she decided to withdraw the property from the market. ‘It’s really quiet, really frustrating. Anything in that slightly higher price point – we were trying to sell around $1.1 million – there’s nothing [happening]. From my perspective, it’s the fact that we worked really hard to get into this house and build our home – for us to turn around and get a couple of offers that were so low they weren’t quite a joke but they were so low it wasn’t worth it… for us it’s better to hold on to it.'”

“But she said she was also aware that the longer the property remained on the market, the lower any offers she received might potentially be. ‘We were told that by agents. We had one agent for three months then switched to a new agent who said we had to be more realistic because we had been on the market for three months, we had to drop the price. I get that but at the same time, the house hadn’t lost value just because it had been on the market three months.'”

“It was after she talked to someone who told her that unless she was willing to drop the price below $1m that she could expect it not to sell for months that she withdrew it. ‘I felt that was really refreshing. Everyone else was having us sign up and do this and that, within five minutes they were telling us to drop the price. For us it was refreshing to get a blunt, honest real estate agent.'”

“Property economist Ed McKnight, from Opes Partners, said other vendors were probably experiencing something similar to Helen. ‘Property prices have been falling by 0.85 percent per month since February, on average. So if a property had a ‘fair market price’ of $1 million in six weeks that value might fall to $987,000. So, if a seller lists at too high a price, they may find that by the time they drop the price and find a buyer they have to accept less than they would otherwise get.’ He said one vendor he knew wanted to sell for $1.8 million. But at auction the top bid was $1.75m, which they did not accept. ‘After many months they eventually sold for $1.63 million. That’s $120,000 – 6.8 percent – less than the original offer. So in a falling market, setting a price that is ‘too high’ can mean that some sellers will end up worse off.'”

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This Post Has 79 Comments

  1. ‘Buyer Tracey Shaw said that when she signed a contract to purchase a one-bedroom unit at Promontory in the fall of 2019, she believed it would be ready within a year. Nearly five years later, she recently received notice that completion has been pushed back to the end of 2024, at the earliest. ‘The biggest frustration that I’ve had is just the lack of communication. There’s just been no meaningful updates,’ she said. As for those investors who dedicated retirement savings to Cynterra projects, the future is uncertain’

    You know Tracey, like the US, K-da doesn’t regulate ponzi schemes. Until we get some kind of transparency to the process, these a$$ pounding are going to continue.

  2. ‘said an oversupply of houses for sale on the Bass Coast, caused by a rise in investors and second-home owners selling, had resulted in falling prices in the holiday destination. ‘These are people on normal wages … suddenly they’ve got a bill of $7000, or some have been higher than that, and they’ve got to find that every year,’ she said. ‘We are a holiday destination … the people buying holiday homes aren’t there,’ she said. ‘What we’re dealing with, if we’re lucky, is half a dozen buyers for over 120 properties’

    So yer saying there’s no fear of missing out Fiona?

    How did you lose yer shack Kate?

    They’ve gone from what I would say nuts to normal.

    1. “you will own nothing “

      I am perfectly OK with that, provided I am RESPONSIBLE for nothing.

      just leave me alone. handle your own self-created problems.

      hell, I’m better than OK w/that deal.
      I’m A-OK.

      where do I sign?

  5. In Dallas, 63 percent of listings sat on the market for at least 30 days in June – up from 52 percent a year earlier.

    But…but…the NAR said a lack of inventory was the only thing keeping buyers on the sidelines.

  6. ‘Local jurisdictions passing rent control laws or zoning changes can hit income and affect property values,’ Redmond explains.

    Die, speculator scum.

  7. “For example, 826 Crown Street sold for $4.8 million during the quarter, which is 58 percent below its 2018 price, according to Ariel.

    But the frozen soup guru & self-described NYC real estate expert confidently assured us that 50% reductions in NYC property values were a pipe dream. Guess I must’ve licked one of those hallucinogenic toads, because it seems the inconceivable is playing out right in front of us.

  8. Fraser has also acknowledged in a previous interview that some of his investors are ‘very, very angry’ because they have yet to see any returns.

    Seeing real estate speculators get burned always makes my day.

  9. “More than 80 per cent of new condo investors in the Toronto region are bleeding cash as the rental income from their units is not covering the increasing mortgage and costs of owning the property, according to a new report.

    This is un-possible. The REIC shills in the garbage legacy media have been unanimous in proclaiming that getting up on that RE ladder is the key to building generational wealth.

  10. According to the report, 81 per cent of investors who took out a mortgage to buy newly completed condos this year were cash flow negative and were losing an average of $605 a month.”

    When I see housing speculator scum who made shelter unaffordable for the prudent and responsible being bled dry, I feel joy.

    2. On our way to main street there is a corner lot house that had a couple of good looking dogs, one of them frightening. An older couple were out front working in the yard, and their pickup was stacked with chopped weeds and other foliage. I asked about the dogs, and the old man said they belonged to the former tenants. He said they couldn’t afford the rent increase. I said a recession was just around the corner, a bad time to increase rent. He said their mortgage payments increased dramatically. Gotta wonder how many “leveraged investors” are in this same pickle?

      1. You’d think that an “older couple” might have sold the shack at the peak of the insanity and hung onto the cash, which would now pay about 5% interest, with no back breaking yard work.

        Of course it is possible that the older couple bought at the peak of the bubble, in which case they might have to bring a check to closing should they decide to sell now.

  11. From my perspective, it’s the fact that we worked really hard to get into this house and build our home – for us to turn around and get a couple of offers that were so low they weren’t quite a joke but they were so low it wasn’t worth it… for us it’s better to hold on to it.’”

    You stick to yer guns, Greedhead Helen. This is just a gully, so don’t give that shack away to some low-baller who doesn’t recognize its true value!

  12. ‘Property prices have been falling by 0.85 percent per month since February, on average.

    So if property prices are falling every month, what kind of moron is going to buy into a bursting housing bubble? I fear this could complicate Always Be Closing.

  14. “Realtors, don’t take me to one of those [older buildings].”

    They will all eventually be ripped down and replaced with luxury-high rises for the rich to buy and never live in.

    Another example of losing the middle-class. We’re losing middle-class homes, middle class cars, middle class jobs, heck even middle class clothing. It’s all either super-luxe or Dollar General. Just like any third world country.

    1. ” . . . heck even middle class clothing.”

      agreed. I used to enjoy shopping at Macy’s for nicer styles of clothing.
      long-time card holder. same at Nordies.
      then, over time, I noticed the material got thinner & shabby . .
      WTH !?!

      so, if I pay more for a premium item, I’d EXPECT it to be well-made.
      is that too much to ask for? am I being greedy ? unreasonable!?
      add to the fact that massive amounts of pushy, overly aggressive Indian housewives clog-up the one open Macy’s check-out by trying to Bargain like its Bangladesh, as the line grows longer & longer, had me cancel my Macy’s card a few months ago. and the Nordstrom’s.
      I did it in-person at their counter, using their phone, to avoid toll-free number capture = get tele-marketed for life!

      the closed loop credit cards are restrictive & not for everyone, but the increasing risk of hackers PLUS the ridiculous APR increase was the final blow.

      my experience. yours may vary.

      1. Kohl’s once had decent middle of the road quality. I’ve switched to buying stuff at Duluth Trading, which is very pricey when not on sale.

        2. They do have the occasional sale. I picked up a pair of overalls today for $70, about 40% off. I find their firehose pants last a very long time.

  16. Whatever became of all the wealthy all-cash buyers who were willing and able to trump all other offers? They are as rare now as they were in 2008, just before a long slide into the CR8R.

    1. Yahoo Finance
      Benzinga
      Cash Crash: All-Cash Offers Tumble As Housing Market Shifts
      Margaret Jackson
      Fri, Jul 26, 2024, 3:30 AM PDT
      3 min read

      Remember the crazy housing market during the pandemic when investors with bulging wallets swooped in, buying houses with piles of cash?

      Now, things are starting to cool down. Investor cash purchases dropped to 64% in the first quarter of 2024, according to a recent Realtor.com report. That’s a big change from late 2021 when 69.7% of investors paid in cash to win bidding wars, and it’s the lowest share of cash buyers since 2008.

      This is great news for regular homebuyers. With fewer all-cash offers pushing up prices, the market might be fairer for ordinary people. This could mean more opportunities for buyers who need mortgages and maybe even an end to those crazy bidding wars.

      Despite rising interest rates, the shift toward financing among investors is largely driven by the increasing dominance of small-scale investors. Small investors – those with 10 or fewer home purchases since 2001 – accounted for 62.6% of investor purchases in the first quarter, according to Realtor.com. This marks the highest proportion of small investors in the dataset’s history, indicating a significant change in the investor landscape.

      G. Brian Davis, a real estate investor and co-founder of property management software SparkRental, believes the rise of individual investors is a positive development.

      “It’s better for everyone involved that institutional money is withdrawing from the single-family home space,” Davis said. “It creates less artificial demand among buyers, therefore reducing some upward pressure on prices. It also leaves room for mom-and-pop investors to operate.”
      …
      https://finance.yahoo.com/news/cash-crash-cash-offers-tumble-103024535.html

    1. Consumer sentiment stuck at 8-month low on inflation angst

      Hedge funds held onto tech stocks during Wednesday market slide, Goldman says
      By Louis Goss
      Last Updated: July 26, 2024 at 9:17 a.m. ET
      First Published: July 26, 2024 at 8:27 a.m. ET
      Artificial Intelligence unit processing big data arrays. Hedge funds largely held firm in the face of Wednesday’s U.S. market selloff, Goldman says. Photo: Getty Images

      Hedge funds have largely held onto their technology stocks this week in the face of the biggest U.S. market selloff in over a decade, research by Goldman Sachs shows.

      The sell off saw the Nasdaq 100
      and S&P 500 indices suffer their worst single-day losses in years this week as investors piled out of U.S. tech companies on concerns about the profitability of investments in artificial intelligence.
      …
      https://www.marketwatch.com/story/hedge-funds-stayed-put-during-wednesday-market-slide-goldman-says-30b8260f

      1. on inflation angst

        I really hope that these people remember in November just who it was who ushered in the inflation, and not think “if we give them four more years they might get it right this time”

  18. WTH, I know 2 people, possibly 4, with COVID. And they’re all acting like it’s 2020!

    1. COVID is now just another cold, maybe one that hits a little harder than usual. I don’t think it’s a bad thing to stay home or wear a mask if you’re actively sick, even for a traditional cold. But yeah, no need to panic.

      1. The “be careful” and “stay safe” texts have me rolling my eyes. Granted, one person’s mom does have heart problems that the doctors are attributing to COVID rather than the jab.

        1. The “be careful” and “stay safe” texts have me rolling my eyes.

          As does sending a picture of the COVID test when you have a f”n cold!

          1. Speaking of the “eye”. Steve Kirsch substack just revealed that Kirsch suddenly lost sight in right eye while on the computer.
            Also a report came out today about weird blindness and eye problems as a side effect of the Covid vaccine.
            One of the first things that happened to a friend of mine ,after taking the shot, was 4 stye in eye, than needing operation in eye to prevent blindness. Of course same friend continued to have one medical event after another, and emergency events requiring 6 pints of blood, weird infections, and now on air 24/7. Doctor saying heart problems now on top of everything else. Nurse comes in daily, but seems to me this is some kind of hospice situation.

            Another friend couple I know , who took 5 shots, both got cancer after shots, and the wife also has new heart problems. She had a heart attack, but survived it. She also has gotten Covid 4 times.

            Recently they have been claiming a surge of Covid cases during summer .
            But , the Oct 2, 2024 Bird Flu Summit scheduled in Washington DC, (scheduled a month before election), might be a signal of what is to come.

          2. Agreed. If I don’t want to see a snap of your restaurant meal it goes double seeing your snot covered swab!

      1. Always has been. I’m reminded of a cartoon from the ’80s where a hospital nurse rushed into a doctor’s office exclaiming, Doctor, we have a real epidemic on our hands here! The cases are piling up day by day and our staff just can’t keep up!

        Doctor: What’s the disease? AIDS?

        Nurse: No, AIDS hysteria.

    3. getting over COVID missed a week of work but I can work from home

      Like a bad flu in my case not fun

  19. Are rents falling in your area? It must make it tough for real estate investors to pay the monthly on last year’s property investments when rents are CR8Ring.

    1. NBC 7 San Diego
      Housing
      Monthly rent in San Diego County drops significantly year-over-year: survey
      The average rent dropped from $2,338 in 2023 to $2,170 in 2024, a drop of slightly over 7%
      By City News Service
      • Published July 25, 2024
      • Updated on July 25, 2024 at 5:21 pm
      NBC Local

      The Southern California Rental Housing Association Thursday released its Annual Vacancy and Rental Rate Survey, revealing a spike in the San Diego County vacancy rate and a large year-to-year drop in rent prices over the past year.

      The point-in-time survey, conducted each spring, found a substantial increase in the availability of rental units and a notable decrease in rents compared to last year.

      San Diego County’s vacancy rate climbed to 6.36% in Spring 2024, up from 3.9% in Spring 2023. Within the region, the city of San Diego also experienced a rise in its vacancy rate to 4.22%, compared to 2.64% last year.

      According to the rental housing association, the increase in vacancies can be attributed to the addition of new properties to the market and higher than usual vacancy rates in older properties.
      …
      https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/monthly-rent-in-san-diego-county-drops-significantly-year-over-year-survey/3577206/

    1. Florida Housing Market Faces ‘Nightmare Scenarios’ as Deals Collapse
      Published Jul 26, 2024 at 5:13 AM EDT
      Updated Jul 26, 2024 at 7:35 AM EDT
      By Giulia Carbonaro
      US News Reporter

      Florida homebuyers are backed out of deals to purchase properties at a record rate, according to a new report from real estate brokerage Redfin, as prices continue rising and mortgage rates aren’t budging.

      In June, nearly 56,000 home-purchase agreements were canceled in the Sunshine State, the equivalent of roughly 14.9 percent of all homes that went under contract that month. It’s the highest percentage of any June on record.

      “We’re seeing nightmare scenarios where deals are getting canceled at the last minute for the most minute reasons,” Rafael Corrales, a Redfin Premier agent in Miami, said in a press release. In the coastal city, around 2,500 home purchases were canceled in June—about 17.6 percent of all homes that went under contract.
      …
      https://www.newsweek.com/florida-housing-market-nightmare-scenarios-deals-collapse-1930532

  21. A selloff in technology stocks Wednesday drove the Nasdaq and S&P 500 indices to their worst performances since 2022. The slump in high-tech follows a year-long rally by the “Magnificent Seven,” a group of seven industry giants that have led markets into record terrain.

    The slump continued on Thursday, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq index slipping 0.5% in morning trade. Chipmaker Nvidia shed 1.4% and Google-owner Alphabet fell 1.2%, while four other members of the group — Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms and Microsoft — also lost ground. The only member of the group to gain on Thursday morning was Tesla, which rose about 3%.

    “The Magnificent Seven stocks now look like the “Lag” Seven,” noted Piper Sandler analysts in a research note.

    https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/3-reasons-tech-stocks-once-hot-are-suddenly-not/ar-BB1qCANR

  22. On a typical summer day, tourists flock to the historic Marais district of Paris, wandering its charming medieval streets dotted with ultra-chic boutiques, gazing at stunning private mansions, strolling through the elegant 17th-century square Place des Vosges, and filling humming restaurants and bars.

    But this summer has hardly been typical, and those streets, shops and cafes have been markedly emptier in the days leading up to the Paris Olympics — leaving businesses like Stolly’s Stone Bar, a pub popular with English speakers, pining for summers past.

    It’s a far cry from what business owners expected when they first heard the Olympics were coming to Paris, says David Carroll, who stood behind the bar on a recent, slow weekday.

    “It’s sure not the Olympics we were hoping for — so far, anyway,” said Carroll, a Canadian who has been working in the neighborhood for 20 years. “It’s the same for everyone around here.”

    https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/they-expected-an-olympic-boon-but-some-paris-businesses-are-experiencing-a-bust/ar-BB1qFoaw

    1. Perhaps the cash strapped visitors are shopping at Carrefour (France’s version Walmart) and preparing their own meals.

    2. The bird is watching the Olympics’ opening ceremonies. On my return trip from the bathroom I stopped to see what I’m missing, but I didn’t even get 45-sec before being presented with a dancing drag queen in sequin garb. See ‘ya!

  23. The average price of a three-year-old used electric car has dropped by 43.8% over the past 18 months, according to INDICATA UK’s latest Market Watch report.

    In June alone, used EVs saw a price decline of 2%, pushing them closer to price parity with internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles across various sectors.

    Overall, UK used car prices remained relatively stable in June, with a minor decline of 0.1%, indicating a levelling off after a 16.5% drop since January 2023.

    In June, EVs accounted for 9.3% of the market share of used cars up to four years old, trailing diesel at 10.8% and hybrids at 30.6%. Petrol cars remained the dominant fuel type with a 49.1% share.

    Dean Merritt, INDICATA UK’s head of sales, noted the challenges for leasing companies with used EVs at the end of customer contracts. “Some are turning to secondary leasing for their younger, lower mileage used EVs as a means of reducing the residual value pain, which also helps to reduce the chance of ex-fleet cars flooding the market,” Merritt explained.

    https://finance.yahoo.com/news/used-ev-prices-drop-43-101521792.html

      1. Some of our California friends sit around at home all winter wearing sweat clothes and drinking warm water.

  24. The pre-Donald Trump Republican Party held certain core economic beliefs. Some were almost religious creeds.

    It believed in free trade and free movement of capital, and lowering barriers to both. It did not worry much about multinationals sending investment and manufacturing jobs to places like China. It believed that more government was bad, less government was good and markets always worked. It was in favour of balancing the U.S. federal budget, but since mention of tax increases was heresy, it spent a lot of time scheming about privatizing Social Security – the equivalent of the Canada Pension Plan – or downsizing Medicare, the program of health care for U.S. seniors.

    Mr. Trump became the GOP nominee in 2016, defeating a cast of conventional Republicans, because he recognized that that party’s neo-conservative operating principles were more appealing to corporate donors than its increasingly blue-collar voters. Mr. Art-of-the-Deal understood that selling less Social Security and less job security was a lot harder than dangling a future of more Social Security and more job security. So he promised the latter, and won.

    Eight years on, the Republican Party is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mr. Trump’s MAGA movement. But what does MAGA – Make America Great Again – believe in? If Mr. Trump wins in November, what would be his economic policies?

    But to a greater extent than ever, MAGA is also a set of ideas, with thinkers and think tanks fleshing out what post-neo-conservative conservatism means. That Mr. Trump chose J.D. Vance as his running mate is illustrative.

    Eight years ago, Mr. Vance was a conventional Republican and an anti-Trumper. He is now one of the chief ideologists of MAGA, and the heir apparent.

    In an interview this summer with The New York Times, Mr. Vance talked about his antipathy to traditional, pro-business Republicans, and how the people on the left “whose politics I’m open to” are the “Bernie Bros.,” meaning supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders.

    The far-left’s long-standing criticisms of globalization are partly shared by MAGA. Both believe that the movement of investment and jobs out of the United States, above all to China, has been bad for the American working class. There’s a fair bit of evidence that’s true.

    https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/commentary/article-how-do-donald-trump-and-the-maga-movement-want-to-remake-the-us/

    1. “The pre-Donald Trump Republican Party”

      Globalist vermin, most of them.

      And never forget that NAFTA in 1994 was heralded as a “bipartisan” achievement.

    2. I do no forget my liberal time of 20 years ago, when Bushy Jr was gallivanting off in Iraq while small towns bled jobs at home. I remember in early 2009 that Obama created a new office for helping the middle class, headed up by one Joe Biden.

      But right around 2012, somebody figured out that the real problems were caused by the big banks and started protesting in Manhattan. That’s when the big banks went after Obama and he caved. The Dems caved along with him. They obediently abandoned the working man and shifted to identity politics. Then social media came along and gave the crazies the attention they craved. Trump swooped in and scooped up the lost Working men, and here we are.

  26. House sold up the street from me for over a million dollars

    The werid thing is according to zillow they have almost no equity and I know it was sold in 2011 . 7146 University Dr, Moorpark, CA 93021

    1. “…they have almost no equity…”

      In California, both he and she are very likely to be employed, and a HELOC is the 3rd income.

    1. ‘Black Swan’ investor warns the ‘greatest bubble in human history’ is about to pop and stocks could lose more than half their value
      BY JASON MA
      July 20, 2024 at 2:36 PM PDT
      Mark Spitznagel speaks at podium
      Mark Spitznagel, chief investment officer of Universa Investments, speaking in 2017.
      MISHA FRIEDMAN—BLOOMBERG VIA GETTY IMAGES

      Mark Spitznagel, cofounder and chief investment officer of the hedge fund Universa Investments, has frequently sounded the alarm about bubbles popping and other extreme market events.

      In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, the long-time associate of The Black Swan author Nassim Nicholas Taleb said a severe crash is on the way and stocks could lose more than half their value, while acknowledging that his latest warning should come as no surprise.

      “I think we’re on the way to something really, really bad—but of course I’d say that,” Spitznagel said.
      …
      https://fortune.com/2024/07/20/black-swan-investor-mark-spitznagel-greatest-bubble-human-history-stock-market-crash-recession/

    2. Do you worry about stopped clock stock market crash warnings?

      If they’re stopped clock warnings, then they will actually be right at some point.

  29. ‘About nine of every 10 condos for sale in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties dates back to at least 1994, according to ISG Worldwide. ‘What we’ve seen in the last 12 months is a rush to sell by the owners of those condos,’ said ISG Worldwide CEO Craig Studnicky. ‘That’s met with a lack of rush from the buyers who want to buy that stuff. The buyers who are moving to Florida are specifically asking, ‘Realtors, don’t take me to one of those [older buildings]’

    You guys are well and truly fooked Craig. You got a ton of people in later age, counting on the big bonanza to lift them to heaven. 90% 0f yer airboxes are doomed cuz of decades of neglect, greed and sorry a$$ urban planing. The HOA finances are largely underfunded past the point of no return. And 40 years of insurance shenanigans with the guberment subsidizing ever more growth have finally caught up with you. Plus the commie urban living set up has every indication of producing really bad decision making putting the path forward that much more unlikely. A good Friday to you Sir!

  30. ‘there are still possibilities of getting burned by a malignant tenant, squatter, or any number of problems that don’t plague a 401(k).’ Plus, McDonough adds, a real estate market can turn quickly. During the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, ‘everyone was looking for lab space, and now you can’t give it away’

    That lab albatross got hung around yer necks while you still had the pom poms in yer hands Mark.

  32. ‘Some owners were facing two options: sell or default. ‘More sellers were forced to capitulate’…Pricing for free-market properties in Manhattan declined drastically in the past year from an average of $971,849 per unit in the second quarter of 2023 to $532,207 per unit during the same period of 2024…For example, 826 Crown Street sold for $4.8 million during the quarter, which is 58 percent below its 2018 price…Shkury said the deal was most likely driven by a maturity. Other operators, exhausted by the rent laws restrictions, are working to unwind themselves from the asset class altogether at any price they can get’

    Sounds like they are giving it away in New York City Shimon.

  33. ‘More than 80 per cent of new condo investors in the Toronto region are bleeding cash as the rental income from their units is not covering the increasing mortgage and costs of owning the property, according to a new report. The losses are dissuading investors from buying new condo units, also known as preconstruction condos. The preconstruction condo market is ‘clearly in recessionary territory with conditions deteriorating to levels not seen in decades’

    Yet more commie urban living speculative fiascos!

  34. ‘It’s really quiet, really frustrating. Anything in that slightly higher price point – we were trying to sell around $1.1 million – there’s nothing [happening]. From my perspective, it’s the fact that we worked really hard to get into this house and build our home – for us to turn around and get a couple of offers that were so low they weren’t quite a joke but they were so low it wasn’t worth it… for us it’s better to hold on to it’

    Strong woman Helen, hold yer ground!

    ‘But she said she was also aware that the longer the property remained on the market, the lower any offers she received might potentially be. ‘We were told that by agents. We had one agent for three months then switched to a new agent who said we had to be more realistic because we had been on the market for three months, we had to drop the price. I get that but at the same time, the house hadn’t lost value just because it had been on the market three months’

    Yer wavering Helen, I can sense it. Keep that last thought, it’s probably gone red hotcakes in the last three months for all you know.

    ‘It was after she talked to someone who told her that unless she was willing to drop the price below $1m that she could expect it not to sell for months that she withdrew it. ‘I felt that was really refreshing. Everyone else was having us sign up and do this and that, within five minutes they were telling us to drop the price. For us it was refreshing to get a blunt, honest real estate agent’

    Awe Helen, you’ve gone over to the dark side and now you are willingly giving it away. You will be sorry.

  35. You Have The Most To Lose (Peel Region Real Estate Market Update)

    Team Sessa Real Estate

    16 minutes ago MISSISSAUGA

    In this episode we take a look at the current Brampton, Mississauga, Ajax, Whitby, Pickering Real Estate home prices and market trends for week ending July 17, 2024. We also discuss why it’s important to think for yourself when making the large decision of buying or selling real estate. No one will know how ready you are to buy or sell but yourself, so take considerations from those around you but understand, the decision and it’s effects lay solely on you.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T328M8NlNcU

    14:33. Tales of woe.

    1. but understand, the decision and it’s effects lay solely on you.
      That sounds like accountability. That ain’t gonna play well for most of the knife catchers.

  37. MATT GOODWIN: The Conservative Party’s Fight for Survival Against FARAGE with Andrew Klavan

    Matt Goodwin

    8 hours ago

    Join me with this clip from the ‪@AndrewKlavan‬ show as we delve into the intense ideological battle shaping the future of British politics. With Rishi Sunak stepping down and a leadership contest on the horizon, the Conservative Party faces a crucial decision. Will they reunite with Nigel Farage’s supporters or witness Farage’s Trump-like takeover? We’ll explore how mass immigration and liberal globalisation have impacted working-class voters and what this means for the British right. Plus, we’ll discuss the broader implications for the Western political landscape.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PrhvT0KLrU

    12:42.

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