Two-Thirds Of Phoenix Homeowners Are Now Underwater! The Sky Must Be Falling!
Wow - sensationalist publicity caught in the act. No, it's not the National Enquirer, it's a AZ leading business publication.
It's important not to buy into the hype. Buyers and sellers, educate yourselves on the market, ask professionals in the business, and make informed decisions. Bob Hertzog hits the nail on the head with this post.
Is the sky falling? I think not....
Two-Thirds Of Phoenix Homeowners Are Now Underwater! The Sky Must Be Falling!
Could it be possible that 2/3 of AZ homeowners could be "underwater" right now, as we speak? According to Adam Kress of the Phoenix Business Journal, this is indeed the case.
Before everyone gets TOO excited/depressed, please note that his source for the article (yep, you guessed it, Zillow), which we all know is SO up-to-date with their figures (as per the clients we represent). This is tongue-in-cheek, in case you didn't already figure it out.
Folks, this is scary. The LEADING BUSINESS PUBLICATION IN ARIZONA is allowing one of it's reporters to write an article that is based on a 30-second search on Zillow, which we all know to be out-of-date (to put it nicely).
Did he bother to reference/contact the Arizona Regional ARMLS or The Cromford Report? Hell No!
Did he bother to call an AZ Realtor for a quote for his article? Hell No!
Instead, he chose to take the "easy way out", and do a 30-second time-sensitive search on Zillow (probably in order to meet his deadline), and came to his conclusions. In doing so, he also will get the ATTENTION of the readers, which we all know is most important to his superior(s).
We ALL know that people are struggling out there, but come on now Mr. Kress... Are 2/3 of all homeowners really underwater? I don't think so!!
If the only basis of your article was Zillow, you and your editors should be ashamed! Then again, if you read the last paragraph of your article, I think we can all understand where you are coming from:
"The U.S. economy is a long way from recovered, but conditions have stabilized significantly over the past 18 months. The same cannot be said for the local housing market. Not by a long shot".
I'm tickled that you think that "conditions have stabilized significantly over the past 18 months". What rock are you living under? Oh, never mind. I don't want to go there. You are no different than the rest of the liberal media goofballs that feel that things have "stabilized" over the past 18 months.
YOU ARE A REPORTER FOR THE ARIZONA BUSINESS JOURNAL. DO YOU REALLY FEEL THAT "CONDITIONS HAVE STABILIZED SIGNIFICANTLY OVER THE PAST 18 MONTHS" IN OUR STATE? BETTER YET, DO YOU THINK THAT THINGS HAVE "STABILIZED" IN OUR COUNTRY FOR THE PAST 18 MONTHS?
From what I can tell, "conditions" have done everything BUT stabilize in AZ over the past 18 months. You must be drinking a different type of Kool-Aid than me. Then again, I may be WAY OFF on this one.
Do you think it may have been a good idea to quote an organization that is actually focused on this market (i.e.ARMLS or the Cromford Report)? Or, were the Zillow statistics more helpful to what you wanted to achieve (i.e. response from the general public)?
Please, the next time you want to report on the Phoenix Real Estate Market, quote sources FROM the Phoenix Market, and not from an outdated website like Zillow.
Give me a break!
Bob Hertzog
Summit Home Consultants
Copyright © By Bob Hertzog 2010 *Two-Thirds Of Phoenix Homeowners Are Now Underwater! The Sky Must Be Falling!*
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