On those mornings when I have way too much coffee my brain seems to turn in strange directions. Today is no exception. Inventory has really declined in Manhattan Beach and in fact in all the Beach Cities. So it occurred to me that maybe the reason inventory has gone down and people appear to be buying is that there have been almost no negative articles on real estate in the last few months. In fact when looking at the archives for our local South Bay newspaper.. The Daily Breeze the last really negative feature was on October 27, 2006. In 45 articles on California home prices in The LA Times the last dismal real estate sucks article was October 12, 2006.
So I'm thinking that perhaps people pay a whole lot more attention to media news then we think and especially to negative media news. The reason for this great epiphany is that Wednesday The Daily Breeze ran a headline on how prices have dropped in the Beach Cities. It was one of thoses the Sky is Falling pieces. It was the first one I had seen in a long time. I had two clients ask me about the article so I discussed it in my other blog. The basic facts were almost true. This morning another article titled More First Timers Locked Out is featured. I find it troubling that just as the market seems to be settling down negative publicity is once again on the move.
We may be making a major error if we dismiss the influence these articles have on the general public. The LA Times might not be able to find a buyer but The Daily Breeze seems to be doing just fine. The Beach Reporter serves not only as the local community throw-a-way but as a major source of real estate listings for Manhattan Beach and the other Beach Cities..Hermosa, Redondo and El Segundo. The paper comes out once a week on Thursday and by Friday morning you will be hard pressed to find a copy. It is the Holy Grail of Real Estate listings for most buyers and sellers in our area.
I know other cities have similar publications that write about real estate prices and trends. In the Active Rain archives there have been 97 blogs mentioning newspapers. Most of them are aimed at advertising and how the internet will completely take the place of print advertising. This assumes that the real estate market is nothing more then a giant classified ad for buying and selling homes and I think that's wrong. Almost none of the articles mention the influence of newspapers in local markets. I think this is a big mistake. While many people no longer purchase a newspaper it doesn't mean they don't read them especially the little local papers.
Walk into a Hospital waiting room, Carwash, Laundromat, Hotel Lobby or other public gathering place and they aren't giving away laptops or i-pods to catch up on the local news. I think we often get so caught up by our view of the internet and how technology seems to be driving our business that we forget that not everyone is wired nor do they care to be. They use the internet to read e-mail, maybe shop for an airline ticket or send a gift from Target. They may look at Realtor.com or search for Manhattan Beach Real Estate but they are still leery about giving out their real names and phone numbers.
Now it may just be a coincidence the our real estate market improved when the negative headlines declined but it is certainly something I'm going to watch a bit more closely. As I said... some mornings I have way too much coffee.
All content copyright © 2007 Kaye Thomas
Manhattan Beach CA/ e-PRO..... Kaye Thomas... 
Posted by 
;)
;)
I have made the same observation. I believe the local papers sometimes create perception, which becomes reality.