Central Ohio Real Estate : Glenn Beck RE Latest

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Glenn Beck RE Latest

By: Vicki Owens, ABR, CRS, GRI
Friday, August 22, 2008 6:56 AM

Ok, I am going out on a limb here because I am very positive and have to be with what we do for a living, but a little "water cooler" talk here. I happened by Glenn Beck last night on cable news and he was bashing the $7500 tax credit plan for first time buyers. Ok, I have to agree that it could have been done better - however, is he encouraging a world of landlords? Bottom line is that people need housing, the American Dream of homeownership is still alive and well. First time buyers (those that have not owned in 3+ years) who CAN get a mortgage now (with much more stringent credit requirements) are enjoying some of the lowest home prices and interest rates in a decade or more - and the market WILL bounce back. Not EVERYONE who has purchased a home in the last 5 years are over their heads if they had the proper guidance getting there. We do have a public that is very misinformed over financials and some that are not responsible - blame that on whomever you like - but if they do get into a home that the CAN afford as opposed to renting indefinately why discourage that? Should the entire housing industry come to a screeching halt because of this $53 trillion dollar Fannie/Freddie debt he is screaming about? What good will that do for recovery if people become renters, the public just gets scared to death over these rantings and do not get educated and work on their credit? This is a cycle that needed to end - values could not keep going up when earnings are not. It is good the days of "stated income" and interest only zero down loans are gone. The smart home buying consumers always knew there is not instant gratification when it comes to home ownership. They still know that, and if they are in a position to take advantage of the incentives now why yell at them? Let's hear a little more about the majority of owners who are still in pretty good shape. love their homes and quit telling horror stories about those that are not. Believe it or not, there really are smart homeowners out there with some equity. Bad news sure gets sponsors, huh?

Comments

Member Since '03	Gary Szolosi said: Vicki, perhaps your analysis of Glen Beck’s program was not correct as you portrayed it. I don't believe his argument is pro landlord but more fiscal responsibility. To explain what he might have been saying, I will relate a story that someone sent me this week. Here it is: I was talking to the son of a friend of mine the other day. I asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up and he replied, "I want to be President!" Both of his parents are liberal minded and were standing there. So then I asked him, "If you were President what would be the first thing you would do?" He replied, "I'd give rooms to all the homeless people." "Wow - what a worthy goal." I told him, "You don't have to wait until you're President to do that. You can come over to my house and mow the yard, pull weeds, and sweep my yard, and I'll pay you $50. Then I'll take you over to the grocery store where this homeless guy hangs out, and you can give him the $50 to use toward a room." Since he is only 10, he thought that over for a few seconds. While his Mom glared at me, he looked me straight in the eye and asked, "Why doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50?" And I said, "Welcome to the Real World." So you see Vicki, when it comes to government handouts, albeit a nice gesture to make something happen and even if it is good for Real Estate Market, it is not always the only way to accomplish something. We can talk about the good old days but we have to realize that your parents and their parents before them, saved, worked and sacrificed to own the American dream. It was not handed to them. I happen to agree with Mr. Beck since the cost when we have no money does not do anything but increase the US debt! August 22, 2008 11:31 AM
Member Since '03	Mark Cohen, Broker said: I'll add my 2 cents, I mean 750,000 cents to this. The $7,500 "tax credit" is actually a loan from the government. You have to pay it back at $500 a year for 15 years or whatever amount remains when you sell the home. It is the equivalent of a second mortgage on the home. There are some new home builders who will match the credit, I mean loan, with $7,500 in upgrades or price reductions which do help the home buyer. It was designed as a loan instead of a grant (free money) to keep sellers from raising prices to grab the money. As with all (every) government program there will be unintended consequences that nobody can predict. It will help and it will hurt and it adds more complication to a tax code that is a mind-boggling mess already. August 22, 2008 12:25 PM
Member Since '04	Vicki Owens, ABR, CRS, GRI said: Thanks for your input guys - I agree that the tax credit itself as a stimulus plan is bogus. I was not supporting that as a means to stimulate home sales. They would be best off doing a lower down pay FHA (instead of bumping it up to 3.5% soon) or make this a grant if they really want to stimulate the housing market. (Or even better yet a grant for assistance to home sellers - hmmm, now there is an idea to save us some of these crazy short sale pipe dream headaches from sellers right now and keep people out of foreclosure). My beef is that Beck is further blowing the problem way out of proportion as is all of the media right now. The market is excellent for buyers and they are jumping thru hoops to get credit - which is really how it should have always been. I agree it should have never been made so easy. The whole problem was just not the easy loans but declining values - and don't forget the second mortgage mess we have as well. And with all due respect, it is not just the young or even just first time buyers that I see have fallen victim to this. With the power of the media that he has, why not utilize that to propose some solutions that might really help people. It is easy to gripe, gripe, gripe - but the clean up and turn around is the challenge and scaring people to death is not helping with that effort. Maybe everyone tunes in just for the gripe? Sort of like reality TV and Springer? Yep, bad news gets sponsors. . .just think the whole country could use more hope but maybe that just doesn't sell. It will all work out in the cycle, meanwhile think my keeping the TV off is the best solution for me :) August 22, 2008 5:01 PM
Member Since '07	Nate Covington said: Vicky, I don't watch "Yellow Journalism" Television anymore, however it's not good to bury your head in the sand either. One thing I have learned in life is that "progressives" try to "fix" problems in our society(sometimes with unintended cosequences) and "conservatives" worry about the "good old days". The American Revolution was fought for these same ideals. I am glad that the "progressives" prevailed in that fight, otherwise we would be singing "God save the Queen". Gary, I think, is right however when relating to the "homeless" situation in America (and other social issues). We don't need a government bailout, but we do need better government oversite on the "mortgage debacle". The last eight (8) years, a severe decline in effective government regulation of the "mortgage" industry has created this mess. Not to different then the "Savings & Loan debacle" of the 1980's. Personally, I think we have way to much government "oversight" in the wrong areas. You can defraud someone out of their life savings and get a fine (maybe a little jail time). But wear the wong type of shoes and end up in "Cuba". August 23, 2008 12:31 PM
Member Since '05	Karen Weger said: Gary that is great! I would love it if you could send me that on an e-mail. And I am just glad the of all the goverment hand out and subsidies one is for real estate and stimulating our market. August 25, 2008 6:26 PM
Member Since '04	Ron Tarvin said: Glen Beck also recently ripped NAR for being too optimistic about the "bottom" of the housing market and while that wasn't suprising (their predictions have been way off!) what was suprising was his final conclusion. He said, and I'll paraphrase because it's been a few days since I saw it: Do not take real estate advice from the same person that is trying to make money on selling real estate. He was speaking of agents advice to sell or buy...but my thought really went to other occupations. Should you NOT take the advice of the exterminator who comes over to analyze your rodent infestation? I mean, he makes money based on his advice, right? How about your mechanic? Dentist? Family doctor? And if I can't get advice from my mechanic for my car problems, should I ask a disinterested third party like, say, my garbage man? The final conclusion to his big finish the other day made no sense to me at all and I really do usually like Glen Beck. August 28, 2008 4:41 AM