Government Taking California Homes
Many have heard of the government’s improper use of eminent domain to take private property, usually in ‘blighted areas’ for redevelopment and improvement. Right here in San Diego eminent domain was used to take some of the land to put in the new downtown baseball stadium, Petco Park.
It seems now that LA County has put another twist on taking private property. Yes, it looks like they are using unreasonable, stringent code enforcement to force a number of homeowners in the Antelope Valley off their property. The Antelope Valley is a vast patch of desert on the outskirts of Los Angeles County, and a segment of the few rugged individualists who live out there increasingly are finding themselves the targets of armed raids from local code enforcement agents, who’ve assembled into task forces called Nuisance Abatement Teams (NATs). Read more 
Housing Bust – Who is Really to Blame?
Housing Bust
Being in the front lines of the residential real estate market for many years it’s always been quite clear to me that it was government policies that precipitated the housing bust. Talking with many Californians about the disaster in the real estate market, it would seem that many have a short-term memory deficiency.
Operation Twist – Good For Home Mortgages – Bad For Economy
The Feds Operation Twist could spur home mortgage refinancing but, will be bad for small business and banks. Could this be the corner-stone for a new bank bail-out?
Housing Sales News
Home sales increase
Home sales
Well, today we finally have some good news on the US real estate market. The National Association of Realtors just released the report showing that existing home sales for August rose 7.7%. I’m sure all the national media outlets will be proclaiming the August home sales increase. But, I wonder how many will also report the other major housing news in this report. Yes, the other side of the coin is (as reported in this report) that median price for an existing home in August was down 5.1% from a year ago! Read more
Peter Schiff Testimony Before Congress
Real estate market
Reality Warning: this is for my California subscribers, before viewing this video please understand that this is harsh reality and not the fantasy theories that many Californians believe in.
In order for the San Diego real estate market, or for the entire US real estate market to turnaround, first the economy must improve. Yes, the unemployment rate must go down people who get jobs must be secure in those jobs and taxes, fees and living expenses must not be so high as to stifle savings and investment.
Housing Starts Fall in August
New home starts fall
housing market
The Commerce Department said today that housing starts in August decreased the most since April, down 5.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 571,000 units. Plus, July’s starts were also revised down to a 601,000 unit pace, which was previously reported as a 604,000 unit rate.
New housing starts are now running less than one third of their rate during the housing boom. Read more