Wednesday, May 13, 2009

A New Price Per Square Foot Record: UPDATE

I have some updates on two incredibly overpriced properties featured in one of the very first Long Beach Housing Blog posts.

In January 2008, 1724 Bluff Pl in Alamitos Beach was asking a jaw-dropping $4,500,000. Mind you, the place was only half-built at the time.


What a dickhead.

Now, an excruciating 17 months later, the price has been reduced by $2,500,000. Just like that.

TWO AND A HALF MILLION!

Doesn't that just piss you off? This seller was so greedy, so arrogant, and had such disdain for his potential buyers that last year he insisted this not-even-completed monstrosity was "worth" $4.5 mil--only we find out he never really believed that, as evidenced by his decision to cut the price by more than half without even flinching.

This asshole was ACTIVELY trying to rip people off to the tune of $2.5 million. He knew it wasn't worth the '08 ask, but he treated every potential buyer like they were some rube too imbecellic to figure out the scam.

And guess what? This seller isn't alone. A vast majority of greedfaced Long Beach sellers and their equally delusional, dollar-signs-in-the-eyes realtors, slinging everything from shithole studio apartments to multi-million dollar waterfront palaces, are pulling the same shit on you. They think YOU are the sucker. That YOU just fell off the turnip truck. That YOU are too stupid to know any better.

It just makes me sick what these people are trying to pull.


I'll say this one more time for those of you feeling the pressure to buy because of so-called "once-in-a-lifetime opportunities" or "record-low interest rates" or the fear of "being priced-out forever":

DON'T BE A CHUMP. RELAX. WE ARE NOWHERE NEAR A BOTTOM. MOST OF THE PRICES YOU SEE TODAY MAY SEEM LIKE DECENT DEALS COMPARED TO PEAK PRICES, BUT A YEAR FROM NOW THESE SAME PROPERTIES WILL BE SMOKING DEALS. IF YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST BUY, DO YOUR HOMEWORK AND PROTECT YOUR FAMILY'S FUTURE BY PURCHASING ONLY WHEN FUNDAMENTALS ARE MET (OR EXCEEDED, CONSIDERING THE DEPRESSING EFFECT RISING INTEREST RATES WILL HAVE ON PRICES, AND ANTICIPATING FURTHER DROPS IN RENT AS UNEMPLOYMENT CLIMBS).

Now, I'm no real estate investment expert, but in my estimation the last thing you need is a self-professed "expert." Remember, in July 2008, Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors said, "I think we are very near to the end of the housing downturn."

How did Mr. Yun do on his "expert" prediction? I don't know, why not ask this jackhole seller on Bluff, who just cut $2.5 million bones without batting an eye? That sound like the end of the housing downturn to you?

In other words, THE SO-CALLED "EXPERTS" ARE LYING TO YOU BECAUSE THEY GET PAID TO LIE TO YOU.

Imagine if last year you had listened to a "real estate expert" like, say, the listing agent for this property, and bought because "it's always a great time to buy" and "beachfront properties are different." You, my friend, would be nostril deep in doodoo. Specifically, you'd be underwater by two-point-five million fucking dollars.

And here is another property from that 2008 post still languishing on the MLS:

6700 East Bay Shore Walk


Hey, check it out! This house comes with a free vagrant loitering on the sand! Hi!



The last time we checked in on this loon, he was asking $4,490,000. After a year and a half with no action, on 4/20/09, the price was reduced by $690,000. POOF! "Equity" and "worth" and "value" disappeared like a ladybug fart in a Boeing wind tunnel. But I thought the peninsula was immune?

Wrong, asshole. Enjoy another 544 days on the market.

If sellers can nonchalantly tear off huge chunks of "equity" like these two knuckleheads, what does that tell you? That the garbage for sale right now is woefully over priced and will continue to be until basic fundamentals are met.

The bottom--especially for upper-tiered properties--is nowhere in sight.

And in case you're not absolutely disgusted by the government's attempts to ensure housing is unaffordable for responsible families, you will be now:

SUBPRIME LENDING IS BACK

9 comments:

  1. Like a ladybug fart in a Boeing windtunnel!
    PRICELESS!
    And I keep getting things from my Zip "agent" telling me time has never been better!
    HA! Wait another year or two. With what my girlfriend and I already have saved, we'll be able to buy TWO!

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  2. Truly words of wisdom, el bee! We have only just begun to see the high end market suffer.

    I entered "long beach" into redfin today and it seemed like every fifth house was for sale. Time on market seemed to be eternities for many of the houses listed, at peak prices.

    Oh well, another year or two to pad the down payment won't be that bad...

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  3. GREAT article.


    I can still remember people telling me three years ago, that if I didn't buy now, I'd never be able to buy here.

    It wasn't due to me being ultra smart (though I am), it was due to me not having the money to take part in the hype. SO glad I didn't!!!

    God is good!!!!


    Anyways, let these sellers keep taking the sucker buyers to the cleaners. That's what the buyers get. It's just like the gangsters shooting each other. Just charge it to the game!

    Meanwhile, I'm sittin back with my popcorn, enjoying watching the prices fall, like sitting in a big window by the far near Christmas, watching snowflakes fall.

    Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

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  4. The photo...if that is you and this.....

    You assume all risk for your own use of the information provided as the accuracy of the information is in no way guaranteed. As always, cross check information that you would deem useful against multiple, reliable, independent resources. The opinions, jokes, and sarcasm expressed on Long Beach Housing Blog are for entertainment purposes and should never be considered investment advice.

    SAY IT ALL...

    You are one of the most ignorant, misinformed imbeciles that I have had the displeasure of reading...try climbing out of of your dark hole, investigating and securting the facts before you open that dark hole of a misinformed and ferstering piehole of a mouth....Good Luck CAPTAIN REAL ESTATE!!!

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  5. What's the matter, Bucky? Can't sell any of your overpriced listings?

    ReplyDelete
  6. YOUR PHOTO AND YOUR BLOG GO PERFECTLY HAND-IN HAND: Your uninformed ramblings mirror a stumbling, bumbling drunk bafoon rambling on with your little hopelessly-flawed blog instead of filling out and sending your unemployment papers so property owners like me can pay for your talentless ass to sit in your dank little low-rent apt. and curse those who are in the business and actually know what they are talking about and are trying to do good and honest business in an unstable environment. So sad that hours of your wasted time with research that fails to make a point does not help sellers, buyers, or fence-sitters to make informed decisions. Your points are not-well founded or realistic and the name calling and slanderous comments are way below-board. Professionalism is not a word that describes you or your "real estate" post, and it would be nice to end such a long read with some words of wisdom as opposed to complete quandry and disdain; we are no better off that where we started this morning.

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  7. Considering how poorly a awful lot of the listings are written, and the absolutely amateurish photos posted with them, I'd say start looking into your own profession for "professionalism". For every good agent I've met, I've also met three that were no more than get-rich-quick people.

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  8. Hi there Shame on You! Welcome to the blog, buddy!
    I have a GREAT idea for you! Since you seem to think that this property is a great deal....then YOU should definitely buy it!!!! Don't you let that big bad El Bee scare you. This is clearly the investment of a lifetime! So stop reading this blog and run as quick as your little feet will carry you to the bank...Run! Run!!

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  9. Well it seems we have a disgruntled seller/real estate agent or two.....

    GLAD TO KNOW YOU ARE READING!

    And glad to know that it bothers you, that us buyers are too. ;-}


    You make the claim that the blog author's research is somehow questionable, yet you fail to illustrate that. You just make the claim.

    Then you deride the blog author for using straight-forward commentary, and complain that he/she is being insulting and "slanderous", yet you just did the same thing.

    Is this a love/hate thing?

    Are you denigrating the author, or emulating the author here?

    I mean, how is it that you open your mouth to speak of professionalism, and then commence to engage in the same kind of commentary that you complain about?

    Seems obvious that there is some emotion in you, that the objective observers (like myself) can easily see.

    I am a buyer (or POTENTIAL buyer). I am not on anybody's side. If you have some points to make about the blog, or the blog author, go ahead and make them! Obviously they can't be that unfair, if they're allowing YOUR disagreements with them be posted on THEIR site.

    So if you have anything, come with it!

    Otherwise, you're just making a fool of yourself, and you're actually confirming the author's premises.


    Oh yeah, and as another commenter on here stated, you real estate agents really need to focus on yourselves, when talking about professionalism. You'd think y'all could buy a decent camera, and learn to take and post some "professional" pics!!

    Let alone all the bs descriptions, like calling a house on Gunshot Alley a "quaint and charming neighborhood".

    I feel for any unsuspecting buyer, who buys in one of these areas that weasel agents describe like this, and then if they have children (God forbid), to have them and their family subjected to the finest aspects of Long Beach ghetto/gang life.


    Good day.

    ReplyDelete