There was recently an article in the Progress about foreclosures and real estate in Pickens County. I was quoted along with several other folks around the county. I can state that everything I said was correctly relayed to readers, and I think the article was very well written. However, at the end it said “everyone” who was interviewed was pessimistic about the future of real estate in Pickens County. I’m not happy with the way things are right now, but I would not say I’m pessimistic about the future.
The geniuses who can’t tell us when we are in a recession, or when we will come out of a recession have spoken. The longest recession since 1933 lasted for 18 months, started before we knew it, and has officially been over for several months. Dang! I don’t know about you but I’m feeling better already! The Sunday AJC had opinions about the “Great Recession” from Rajeev Dhawan, Cynthia Tucker, John Adams, Michael Kanell, and the AJC Editorial Board. I also read that HUD and the Department of the Treasury are telling us that the market for existing home sales is steadily improving. Of course the administration takes credit for this amazing recovery by claiming they succeeded in putting out a forest fire with a water pistol.
After absorbing all this wonderful information, I also checked the weather forecast and was told that my sidewalk is wet because it’s raining today. While things may be improving slowly, we are still some time away from the days of wine and roses. Unemployment is a huge problem, and many people are suffering either directly or indirectly from it. That 18 month recession sure doesn’t feel like it’s over for most of us.
So let’s put it all in perspective. The Appalachian Mountains we call home were formed by the North American and North African continents crashing into each other over a half billion years ago. They were once estimated to be ten to eighteen thousand feet tall, but have eroded through the years to an average height of about three thousand feet. The first human inhabitants got here about 12,000 years ago. The sensation that eighteen months is a long time is relative. Times of war causing great economic and human tolls have lasted many years longer during our lifetimes. Imagine the grief of losing a loved one, or suffering from poor health for most of your life, or never being able to experience any of life’s many joys. Depending on who’s counting, there have been as many as eleven recessions during my delicate young life. The one characteristic they all have in common is they all had a beginning and end.
We can all sit around and complain that Pickens County has over ten percent unemployment (or whatever). Compare that to Perry County, TN where the current rate is 14%, and the prospect of losing 300 jobs that will drive that figure up to 25%. We just picked up 300 jobs with Wal Mart which were not here before. Instead of complaining because Microsoft hasn’t built a plant in Jasper, we need to look at ways we can make our county better as individuals. Now is a great time to plan how we will handle the next wave of prosperity. Adversity breeds opportunity.
We all need to be realistic while not being delirious. If you have to sell right now, you’re probably not real happy with the market. If you are a home buyer right now, you should be ecstatic about all the choices you have that can be financed almost for free! We have seen the worst of the downturn. Of course we have challenges, but I don’t see anything pessimistic about the prospect of going up from here.
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