Betsy

Golden Triangle of Spain, go away. Your writing emanates a stressful, depressing energy like a thousand Amway salesmen on the edge of a breakdown combined with an army of evangelical Christians. Most people here would be interested in hearing opinions as to why the market is in the place it is and where it is going but you come over all wrong.

Hi All, I’m an Australian in my late twenties who has been lurking here for over a year at least! I’m glad that prices have finally started to fall noticeably in Australia and there is now mainstream media coverage. I only hope the stats follow quickly as they are becoming the last refuge of bulls here is AUS (the last ones still showing relative stability in prices) Why am I posting here? Well a few years ago I thought that I would buy a house with my partner, within two years prices had doubled where we live. I thought hmmm perhaps move to another State. Prices then became ridiculous everywhere and I refused to pay upwards of 300,000 to live in a hovel well outside any major city. I though blow it, I’ve got a UK ancestry visa, if I am never going to buy I might as well totally change my life and move for some excitement to the UK. Then the home desperado in me came out and I started to see what the situation was in the UK. Even worse that in AUS! That’s been the interesting thing I’ve realised about this housing boom, if you let it it can totally change the trajectory of your life. I have friends deciding to delay having kids, going to uni, move states therefore away from the rest of the family, just because of this housing boom. This is the only time their parents realise maybe it isn’t such a wonderful thing that prices are sooooo high. Even my own mother tried to tell me in a whining voice ‘but it’s for my retirement’. Bah humbug! Nobody in my shoes can dream of a house as a financial investment. I just want a home. And on that maudlin note, nice to meet y’all! Cheers, Betsy

Yes here in Sydney the mainstream media has been quiet on the whole thing up until now. They gleefully reported about how wonderful it was that prices were doubling every year, barely a whisper when they were stable and then suddenly about four months ago they took to reporting real estate agents in their last crazy efforts trying to convince everyone that prices were in fact about to go up.

Hi All, I live outside of Sydney in the Blue Mountains and have recently seen a house come on the market for 220,000 that a couple of years ago the owners were trying to sell for 360,000. This for me signalled the beginning of the end of the pretence that housing prices would plateau, or be 'on their way up again soon!’ Even the mainstream media with its own vested interests can’t spin this type of downwards trend and whip up hype to the magnitude of 140,000 dollars. Don't lose heart you guys in the UK as we’ve had all the disbelieving media/real estate/political spin here as well for the last few years. Each country has its own spin; it’s different this time because of immigration, inflation blahdy blah blah blah. Bullsh*it. It'll happen. Cheers, Betsy