"Price, Price, Price"

Long ago... before I ever thought that I'd be a Real Estate Broker... and be slugging it out for 22 years in this "challenging, yet rewarding" career... the mantra was: "Location, Location, Location"

And to be sure, it's still a key factor when considering the value of property. BUT, I'm thinking there's a new kid in town: "Price, Price, Price." Paul Samuelson writes for the Washington Post and asserts that "Houses will sell, when the price is right." Believe me when I say that the past couple of years have been tough here in Florida... and especially in Flagler County. In physics - and also in real estate it seems - that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Well, for about ten years (1995- 2005), real estate was a nice place to be, after the funk of 1989-2004. The first 5 years was a "slow rise" and the second 5 years was a "rocket ride." You know what happens when the booster expends its fuel? It falls back to earth.

The consensus of economists suggest that we will experience a 20% drop in property values, on average, in the US before it's all over. That would be about a $4 Trillion devaluation (not Million... not Billion... but Trillion)!!!! We've already seen that in Flagler and Volusia County, where our median prices have slipped from about $225,000 to about $179,000. The problem here is that we have some more to go. Why? Because we grew faster than most areas. We share this distinction with California, Arizona, and Nevada. Watch the YouTube Video, titled "Real Estate Outlook 2008," from Realty Times: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=real+estate+2008&search_type=

In his recent article, Mr. Samuelson says that, "This is actually good news. Lowering prices, says he, is the only real solution to the glut. The sooner prices fall, the better. The longer the adjustment takes, the longer the slump will last. It's elementary economics. Pretend that houses are apples. We have 1,000 apples, priced at $1.00 each. They don't sell. We can either keep the price at $1.00 and watch them rot, or we can cut the price until people buy them. Housing is no different." Think about it. It's not an over-supply, because that would be a surplus. I know this: There are millions of Americans who would love to purchase a home - but they can't - because prices are still too high. True economic "demand" is when "desire" is coupled with the "ability and willingness" to buy. To help this process along, I have developed a program called "Real Estate For Heroes" ( see: http://www.realestateforheroes.com/ ). It's designed to put real punch in the efforts of local community heroes to buy a home. It is helping "current or ex" Firefighters, Law Enforcement Officers, Military, Federal Agents, Teachers and Nurses. Check it out...