RECENT BLOG POSTS
On the thirteenth anniversary of my association with the real estate profession, I've decided it's time to move on.  A drifter by choice, I'm more interested in equity trading (my own portfolio only) than burning gas and working with folks trying to find a new place to live. The business has evol...
10/01/2014
It's good news, bad news again.  Housing starts for July were up over fifteen percent.  On the surface it sounds really promising, until you get to the part that housing starts were mostly apartment buildings.  Throughout the depths of the real estate crash, the government response has been to he...
08/18/2014
One reason that first time home buying rates are down is allegedly that there are so many younger people strapped with the obligation to repay student loans.  The president seems to be aware of the situation, and he is taking action to appear as if he is reducing their load. Just as their parents...
06/10/2014
How's the market?  Everyone seems to be asking that question when they learn that I'm a real estate professional.  Like most folks in my business, I try to say something positive and true.  The market is great, the market is improving, the market is back.  Fact is that the condition of the market...
05/23/2014
Shakespeare described the future tactics of our political leaders with the Weird Sisters' chant.  In its never ending quest for something deceptively called fairness, members of the Washington gang of 535 plus one often speak of tax reform.  They say they want to increase revenue by cutting taxes...
03/23/2014
In a Marketwatch article titled, U.S. home prices decline 0.1% in December, Ruth Mantell explains that there was a 0,8% increase in home prices for the month.  She apparently bases her headline on the fact that November prices rose 0.9%.  Once again, we see another example of just how useless som...
02/24/2014
We all know the old cliche about when politicians lie, "When the lips move."  How about the economists?  Perhaps, " When the pencil (or calculator, or slide rule) moves?  Although there may be more legitimate intent among economists, the result is similar. Today, we have been informed that Novemb...
01/27/2014
Stock traders generally differ from stock investors in the duration and purpose of their holdings.  An investor may identify a stock that he/she feels will grow or provide dividend distributions over a long period, maybe years or even decades.  A trader attempts to identify some catalyst that wil...
12/27/2013
A while ago, I wrote about how you may miss your opportunity to buy a home at a great price.  Well, if you didn't buy then, you may have missed that opportunity.  Although still reasonable compared to historical prices, home prices have crept up in 2013.  The number of homes available at a given ...
12/23/2013
Most businesses either provide or claim to provide great customer service, and real estate professionals are no exception.  We all have our own conception of just what constitutes great customer service, and most of us strive to do our best to constantly improve.  Lots has been written, and lots ...
11/24/2013
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Mike Carlier

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