Oblivious

I just got back from an incredible weekend at Lollapalooza in Chicago. For those of you not familiar, Lollapalooza is a three-day outdoor music festival. This is a real estate blog so I won't go into music reviews, but suffice to say it was an incredible experience in a world-class city.

And as I stood in Grant Park listening to great music and staring at the half-full (or half-empty, depending on your disposition) high rise condos, I noticed a trend that mirrored what is currently going on in Long Beach real estate.

As certain popular bands played, some people insisted on being hoisted up onto someone's shoulders so they could enjoy a great, unimpeded view of the performances. Unfortunately, the masses of people situated behind these self-centered twits had their formerly-excellent view, which they waited up to an hour before the show started to secure, ruined.

Naturally, the formerly-patient fans revolted and within minutes loose change, ice cubes, trash, empty cups, and food were launched in the shoulder sitters' direction. Every successful hit resulted in a chorus of applause and cheers. Amazingly, the shoulder-holstered individuals remained oblivious to what was going on. Completely, totally ignorant. Being pelted with almonds, quarters and garbage through several songs did nothing to deter them from enjoying their privledged, wholly-oblivious perch.

Eventually, the throngs of frustrated fans were victorious, but not without a reluctant stand-off and plenty of offended, dirty looks from the pelted.

Metaphorically, the parallels between these oblivious, entitled fans and greedy Long Beach sellers are pretty clear. Long Beach ain't Chicago, yet sellers still insist on pricing that way, far beyond fundamentals. And they watch, with their arms folded, resolute in their entitlement and myopic beliefs about their position, as the days-on-market pile up like so many coins, ice cubes, or cashews. They are oblivious to reality and market fundamentals, much to the frustration of responsible, patient buyers waiting to buy affordable, economically-sound homes to live in--not to flip like a stock.

Full posts to resume this week.