Wow, I’ve been deluged this week by enthusiastic e-mails from so many of you about this story about San Diegans who stayed out of the housing market, even some who earn six-figure incomes. A bunch of readers identified with Bill Curtis in the story.
Here’s some of what you had to say. From reader JM:
I work in software. I’ve done management and engineering. At the time of our wanting to buy, $480k was considered a ton of money for a nice place to live. My wife had just gotten her Masters Degree, and our cash position was pretty small as a result. We made a lot of money, but in early 2003, hiring was pretty weak for another 8 months, so every decision we made we based on one of us losing our jobs. We went in on a $530k house in the neighborhood by the new Intuit building. But our position would have been pretty precarious at a $3800/month payment. Then I went online to research the housing market and found very few resources, but I did find the Real Estate Journal board and I think Piggington was coming online around that time. We bailed on the house at the time. …
For someone who isn’t involved in real estate, I know more about MBS, CDOs, and the secondary markets of mortgages more than some mortgage brokers. … That’s not to brag, but just a state of how little most people (including many professionals) know about how all this stuff worked. No wonder it’s exploding all around us!
Tina in Yuma, Ariz., ran across the story on the Housing Bubble Blog, a consortium of real estate stories collected by blogger Ben Jones. Check out that post for more comments from people who identified with the Curtises.
Here’s Tina’s take:
I do not feel sorry for people who are going into foreclosure because they put zero down on a house they could not possibly afford. I’ve been renting for 3 years from my landlord who lives in San Diego. They were simply “renting” from the bank.
CM said this:
Good article. As a former homeowner who sold in March 2005 and is waiting on the side lines of the real estate game, I’m keenly interested in this subject.
Finally, I heard from Bill Curtis about this post, the one where “Dan from Wichita” touted his Midwest quality of life. Here’s what Curtis wrote:
In your Dan post, it made me smile when he mentioned how he had never seen a tornado. The funny thing is THEY say similar things about us here in CA. They say things like, “I wouldn’t live there, they will have the Big Earthquake someday and half of California will drop into the Pacific Ocean.” Another true anecdote. Funny how people focus on the wrong things.