Left In Lowell

Thinking Out Loud for 1/5/2007

16 Responses to “Thinking Out Loud for 1/5/2007”

1. waittilnextyr Says:
   January 5th, 2007 at 8:51 am

   The cost of a home is driven by many factors, not the least of which is supply/demand ratio. There is some relaxing of that right now, so this may be the best year to buy if it is possible for one to do so.

   But the cost of everything is going up, and that is partially due to the depressing of the dollar that has occured over the past several years. The federal government just prints more of them to cover deficits that exceed $500B each year (don’t believe it when they tell you it is less than that), so the value of each one is less.

   Bottom line is that there is a current lull in the escalation of house prices, but we can’t expect a substantial reversal. Maybe there is some hope in limited areas if the price of land can be taken out of the equation by organizations such as CBA.

   As he has wrought havoc with the economy, so has he in Iraq, where he now comes 4 years late in trying to define his “mission”.

   “One thing is for certain: I will want to make sure the mission is clear and specific and can be accomplished,” Bush said Thursday

2. Shawn Says:
   January 5th, 2007 at 11:59 am

   Supply/Demand is a major issue when it comes to housing.
   Here in New England, most of our cities and towns have used up or are getting close to using up open space. Developers now often have to buy up old property (at current/market rate) and then get it rezoned, demolish and rebuild.

   Any developer will tell you that much of the costs involved in building affordable housing have more to do with the permitting processes and state regulations (ecological/conservation/smart growth/40b/building codes/labor).

   A general reduction in regulation, and getting towns to commit to a common permitting process would do a world of good in reducing costs.

   Once again, its a moonbat conundrum… trade-off of conservation and other regulations for affordable housing.

3. Matt Says:
   January 5th, 2007 at 2:55 pm

   Since you mentioned CBA, I was wanting to know, do they have any information on renting? I’m moving to Lowell and the online services seem outdated and limited.

4. Mr. Lynn Says:
   January 5th, 2007 at 3:41 pm

   Not surprising. The place we are in now we just happened to see while driving around. While looking though, we found craigslist to be fairly helpful. Just do a search on the term “Lowell”.

   http://boston.craigslist.org/about/apts.html

5. Josh Says:
   January 5th, 2007 at 11:26 pm

   It really doesn’t have much to do with the budget deficit or lack of land.

   In Massachusetts, (as Shawn pointed out) it has everything to do with the ridiculous amount of regulation in place. Harvard economist Ed Glaeser has done extensive research on the subject.

   The housing bubble in general is a result of Fed policies. I don’t wanna go into the theory (look up Austrian Business Cycle Theory if any of you gets bored. It’s interesting stuff), but it there’s excess credit being malinvested in the real estate market (sorta like the dot com bubble a few years ago). My prediction: Recession in the summer of 2007 as the market corrects itself.

6. Josh Says:
   January 5th, 2007 at 11:34 pm

   Also… Lynne, could you please give me a clear definition of “predatory lending?”

7. Matt Says:
   January 6th, 2007 at 9:53 am

   Ah, yes Craigslist. I used that a few weeks ago and forgot all about it. Thank you Mr. Lynn.

   Moderators, feel free to remove my unrelated comments.

8. Mike Says:
   January 6th, 2007 at 11:34 am

   Predatory lending usually happens in poorer communities where the lender comes in and will give a loan to anybody (at an extremely high rate), thereby ending up with large interest profits or real estate once the borrower eventually defaults.

9. JIM Says:
   January 6th, 2007 at 2:38 pm

   LYNNE, IF YOU SPENT 1/2 YOUR TIME CONCENTRATING ON THE GOOD OUR DELEGATION DOES OVERALL FOR OUR CITY, RATHER THAN BASHING THEM ON CERTAIN ISSUES YOU DONT AGREE WITH. YOUR TIME MIGHT BE BETTER WELL SPENT.THE NICKNAME YOU INHERITED “LOONEY LYNNE” MIGHT FADE AWAY AND YOUR REPLYS COULD DOUBLE IN NUMBERS.REMEMBER WHAT DEVAL SAID, WE ARE NOT ALL GOING TO AGREE ON THINGS ALL THE TIME,BUT LETS BRING OUT THE GOOD IN ALL OF US.THE POLITICS OF FEAR AND SMEAR HAS LEFT THIS STATE.
   MOVE ON LYNNE AND STAY POSITIVE
   HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND

10. Mr. Lynn Says:
    January 6th, 2007 at 3:14 pm

    Yeah… don’t actually look for problems… better to be a cheerleader. They, after all, grow up to be preznit.

11. Lynne Says:
    January 6th, 2007 at 4:23 pm

    Jim, posting in all caps is considered highly rude, a form of “shouting.” Maybe no one’s told you that before. You’ve been warned.

12. Atilla the Nun Says:
    January 6th, 2007 at 10:50 pm

    Hey Jim : Lay off the coffee, okay?

13. jim Says:
    January 7th, 2007 at 12:01 am

    funny guys just trying to make a point

14. Lynne Says:
    January 7th, 2007 at 2:48 pm

    It’s not funny, it’s rude. It’s not a joke. Not to mention, your post wasn’t even worth responding to on its substance. Public elected officials should be questioned - that’s the job of an informed electorate. Not my fault if you happen to take it personally.

    I’m not a damned cheerleader. I leave that for Councilor Caulfield.

15. Atilla the Nun Says:
    January 8th, 2007 at 8:34 pm

    Nice shot, Lynne.

16. Abbey Says:
    January 24th, 2007 at 4:38 pm

    scarrica winmix ….

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