Why wait? Because in some markets there is a tremendous ’shadow’ inventory of homes in the foreclosure process or that are already bank owned that are not on the market. Also, some banks have ceased filing notice of defaults as well which keeps those statistics out of the reach of the consumer. I can only speculate, but it seems like the banks are controlling the inventory to create an artificial scarcity in San Diego (and especially in Riverside county) with the intention of raising or stabilizing house prices. The problem is that in some areas, the number of properties in this ’shadow’ inventory is swelling significantly faster than the absorption rate of properties listed for sale which is creating a potential new bubble that will need to be absorbed at some point. Can the banks hold the banks long enough to keep the bubble from happening? 5-10 years? Who knows. But that is why people are smart to at least consider waiting.
Brian Ward
http://www.diegoappraiser.com
