Irvine Housing Blog

Open Thread 1-31-2009

Talk about whatever is on your mind.

Curb Demand or Limit Supply?

How can we prevent future housing bubbles? Do we try to curb demand through draconian taxes? or do we try to limit supply by regulating lenders?

Today’s featured property is a 2003 rollback that recently sold at auction for 40% off its peak purchase price.

Asking Price: $330,000

Address: 125 Greenfield #118, Irvine, CA 92614

How Did You Spend Your HELOC?

Are you curious how people spent their HELOCs? I am. Let’s see if anyone will share their experiences.

Since this is turning into HELOC abuse week here at the IHB, I thought I would share yet another one (They are not difficult to find). It is a high-end property in Turtle Ridge with a WTF asking price.

Asking Price: $1,250,000

Address: 53 Sweet Bay, Irvine, CA 92603

Spenders and Pretenders

I have written many times on this blog about the upcoming foreclosure problem due to ARM resets. I have posted the available statistics and presented all the data-driven arguments about why this is going to be a problem. However, today I am going to ask you to think about this issue more intuitively. Based on what you know about human nature, I think you can see how big this problem is.

Today’s featured property is a median-sized 3/3 condo where the onwer managed to extract almost $300,000 in HELOC money.

Asking Price: $499,900

Address: 38 Daisy, Irvine, CA 92618

More Free Money

HELOC abusers really had a good time during the bubble. The economic stimulus they provide becomes apparent now that it is gone.

Today’s featured property is a small condo in Deerfield that was drained of all its equity by the owner. The ATM is now closed.

Asking Price: $349,900

Address: 329 Deerfield, Ave #15, Irvine, CA 92606

The New Real Estate Sales Business Model

The current business model for selling real estate needs to change. The collapse of the housing bubble may be what causes a major shift in the way real estate is sold in the United States.

Today’s featured property was purchased by us at auction. IndyMac, which is now owned by the US taxpayer, bought this property, and now they are trying to get some of their money back.

Asking Price: $631,900

Address: 4 Rockrose Way, Irvine, CA 92612

Open Thread 1-24-2009

The Man Who Sold the World—Nirvana

You’re face to face
With the Man who Sold the World

I have been working on expanding the reach of The Great Housing Bubble, and I would like to tell you more about what is going on. As many of you have probably noticed, we have a new eCourse offering in the sidebar of the IHB. This is a no-cost eCourse that you may opt out of at any time. If you choose to sign up, you will receive the entire text of The Great Housing Bubble over the course of 16 emails. There is nothing to lose.

Like all free offers, there is a catch. There are some emails asking you to buy the book, and there is an ad at the bottom of each email. The emails come frequently at first, but then they slow down to one per week. It takes 3 full months to obtain all the text emails. However, if you are patient, and if you want to read the whole book in small, bursts to help you get through it, this is a good way to do it. And of course the best part is that it is totally free.

I am still offering the full-text eBook for $4.95. It is a great way to review the whole text of The Great Housing Bubble without spending much money. However, this ebook cannot be printed, so to complete the book, you will be reading 250 pages of text from a computer screen.

The new offering I am most excited about is the self-taught eCourse. This is the format best suited to really learning about the housing bubble. When you sign up, you will receive a link to a printable version of the eBook. You can print this out to read and review at your leisure. Then over the course of 16 days, you will receive the full text of The Great Housing Bubble in email form. This will remind you to read the material and it breaks it down into small pieces you can easily get through. Also, the emails contain the useful end notes where I provide more depth on the subject matter.

Of course, everyone who wants an attractive reference on the subject should obtain the book itself. Amazon now has the book on sale for $13.57, a full 32% discount off the $19.95 retail price.

Free Offers

The Great Housing Bubble has the answers! 

See for yourself with our great FREE offers…

Free eCourse!

Sign up for our free 16-part eCourse. A series of emails will be delivered to you with the complete text of The Great Housing Bubble. There is no charge, and you can stop the emails at any time. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Sign up now!

Free PDFs!

These PDFs are completely free. Each one contains a different section of The Great Housing Bubble. They are a great way to preview the work.

> What is a Bubble
> The Credit and Housing Bubble
> Preventing the Next Housing Bubble
> Housing Bubble Psychology
> Fundamental Valuation of Houses
> Conservative House Financing
> Buying and Selling During a Price Decline

Buy this book now!

Full-Text Ebook Download

Do you want the book, but you are unsure if you want to spend $19.95? What if I told you there was a way to get the complete text for much, much less? Well, there is. You can download the ebook.

Get this full-text eBook for the amazingly low price of just $4.95!

Self-Taught eCourse

Have you ever purchased a book or an ebook but failed to read it? We have designed a program to help. Our self-taught eCourse combines the full-text ebook with regular full-text emails. The eBook version with the self-taught course is printable so you can obtain a hard copy to facilitate easy reading. Also, when you sign up for the eCourse, you will receive our 16-part eCourse emailed to you once a day for 16 days. This breaks down the work into small sections which are easy to read and retain. If you are serious about learning about The Great Housing Bubble, this eCourse is the way to go.

Get this self-taught eCourse for only $9.95!

Paperback on Amazon.com

The paperback version of this book is available for sale at Amazon.com. This book is destined to become the authoritative reference for one of the most dramatic events of our times.

This book is available for only $19.95! $13.57!

Amazon has gone crazy.

Buy now!

This price will not last.

We passed upon the stair, we spoke in was and when
Although I wasn’t there, he said I was his friend
Which came as a surprise, I spoke into his eyes
I thought you died alone, a long long time ago

Oh no, not me
We never lost control
You’re face to face
With The Man Who Sold The World

I laughed and shook his hand, and made my way back home
I searched for a foreign land, for years and years I roamed
I gazed a gazeless stair, we walked a million hills
I must have died alone, a long long time ago

Who knows? Not me
I never lost control
You’re face to face
With the Man who Sold the World

The Man Who Sold the World—Nirvana

Anyone else want some TARP?

(hat tip to Calculated Risk)