lorelie:

I got my tax statement yesterday.. my house value went doen.. taxes went up.. wtf?

 Really?  That is so odd.  Mistake?

 The value of homes are not upside down, they are coming down to there real value.

People got caught up in the hype and over paid for homes by 2, 3 , 4 .... times they were really worth. 

I always have lived by a single rule when it came to house, they are for living in not flipping for a profit, that's where people got caught, they thought they were going to get rich on the house they bought and didn't think that is where they live.

Another problem was the home developers like KB Homes, these companies built new homes and sold them for outragous profits and they even had there own mortgage companies that made an additional profit. This was a big cause of homes over valuation.

Majic, I agree with you.  I do think houses are meant for living in.  We had developers here in Ohio that made so much money.  I would think that they still had plenty of money left over from all the profits they made but they will most likely say they are broke. Houses were so over priced here in my area.  I always knew the blubble would burst one day but I didn't think it would cause as much trouble as it has.

Most of the problems with the home builders is that they reinvested the profits they made right back into new land for development.  It takes so ridiculously long to get approvals and permits and get the site ready that they lost all their profits when they lost the ability to continue to build on the new land when the market crashed (excuse the run on sentence lol)

I know the builders around here have just about come to a stand-still and the really sad part is all the other small companies that are hurt by this.  My nephew worked for a dry-wall company delivering drywall to new homes and there is just no work because there aren't any new houses so it affects everyone.  What a sad time we are in and just around the holidays too.  I'm so sad for so many families.

majik13:

 The value of homes are not upside down, they are coming down to there real value.

People got caught up in the hype and over paid for homes by 2, 3 , 4 .... times they were really worth. 

I'm not a homeowner, but . . . I could not understand why some people that I know would sell their houses and buy a condo (basically an apartment) for the sale price (or higher) of their house. In these times, wouldn't a house regain value quicker than a condo in an economic recovery?

Well said.

Thats so crazy I would like to know why housing prices have gone down so much.

TeriJ:

majik13:

 The value of homes are not upside down, they are coming down to there real value.

People got caught up in the hype and over paid for homes by 2, 3 , 4 .... times they were really worth. 

 

I'm not a homeowner, but . . . I could not understand why some people that I know would sell their houses and buy a condo (basically an apartment) for the sale price (or higher) of their house. In these times, wouldn't a house regain value quicker than a condo in an economic recovery?

Yes Teri, a house should regain its value a lot quicker than a condo during economic recovery.  It does seem unwise to buy a condo for the same price or higher than a house but I guess it is a personal preference on their part.

Does anybody know what our Government is planning on doing for the people in the "Underwater" houses whose mortgages are more than the value of their houses?  Curiosity killed the cat. lol

It's gonna take a true genius to figure that one out.

Paula, I wish I knew but I don't think anyone knows what to do. 

Another proven fact of why so many homeowner owe more on their homes than they are worth is that the mortgage comapanies willingly refinance many homeowners so that the homeowners could payoff car loans and credit cards. The worst part is many went and filled up their credit cards again and/or got other loans to buy their toys. Then when the economy started to tank and many lost their jobs (which is happening alot where I am at), many now find they cant afford the payments that were once affordable.

 What irks me is that Congress just does not care about their constituents, or they're plainly inept.

  What congress needs to do is get this economy going, get the jobs going again, the wages can once again = house payments.