Real Estate Economist Gary Watts #57

Bruce Norris and economist Gary Watts of Impact Real Estate continue their conversation from last week. This week they discuss when this current real estate downturn began, what statistic told us we were headed into a downturn, if Southern California is different from the rest of California, what percentage of the market was second home purchases, what has changed in the lending industry, the Federal Reserve and why they waited so long to do anything about the lending troubles, the new rules of being a lender, how certain minority groups stand to be hit hardest and how it happened, Bruce and Gary’s differing opinion on affordability, resets in 2008, lenders stalling on resets, if banks can truly be proactive and what choices they have in dealing with delinquent borrowers, due-on-sale clause, the media misleading the public on foreclosure rates, how the media’s lack of experience and understanding of the topics lead to bad reporting, press and its impact on real estate in an up market, consumers and attention paid to news articles, Orange County foreclosures, what cities are most affected, did builders overbuild in Orange County, how builders make mistakes, state-wide foreclosures and the never-before-seen sales ratio for Southern California, forecasting in 2008, why California wins migration, and how some areas in California are almost ready to cash flow.

Gary Watts has long been recognized as a forecasting expert by the real estate industry. His long-term analysis has also drawn the attention of the media due to his consistent accuracy. His Economic Outlook has been spotlighted in regional newspapers, including the Orange County Register and the Los Angeles Times. He has been seen on the PBS TV program Real Orange, he has been heard on the radio at KNX Money Talk and was featured in Fortune magazine. He holds a degree in economics with advanced studies in psychology from California State University at Sacramento. Gary's economic forecast and lecture notes are among the information pieces most widely circulated by real estate agents in Orange County. Gary's last speaking season drew over 17,000 real estate agents. His talks are also available in DVD and an English or Spanish CD format

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Real Estate Economist Gary Watts #56

Bruce Norris is joined this week by economist Gary Watts. Bruce and Gary discuss Gary’s long history of forecasting in California, what surprised him in 2007, how the financing industry put the breaks on the low and high end inventory in California, psychology playing a role in the California real estate market, how this cycle was different from previous cycles, renting versus buying in the mind of a buyer, how much of the loan pool is subprime, how much of the subprime is really a problem, collateralized debt and the mess it has created, FHA and VA loans, how the new loan limits for FHA will hopefully help, how the change might hurt the median price, pent-up demand in certain parts of California, who make up these new buyers, the FED and the solutions they’ve tried to implement, how freezing the subprime might help or hurt the market, foreign markets and lending practices, which foreign country buys the most real estate in the United States, foreigners betting on a short-term weak dollar and a good potential for a rebound, and how the election could effect real estate.

Gary Watts has long been recognized as a forecasting expert by the real estate industry. His long-term analysis has also drawn the attention of the media due to his consistent accuracy. His Economic Outlook has been spotlighted in regional newspapers, including the Orange County Register and the Los Angeles Times. He has been seen on the PBS TV program Real Orange, he has been heard on the radio at KNX Money Talk and was featured in Fortune magazine. He holds a degree in economics with advanced studies in psychology from California State University at Sacramento. Gary's economic forecast and lecture notes are among the information pieces most widely circulated by real estate agents in Orange County. Gary's last speaking season drew over 17,000 real estate agents. His talks are also available in DVD and an English or Spanish CD format

Listen Now