Trigger Words From the Past - Summer 2017

Remember these phrases from the boom times of a decade ago? “They’re not making any more real estate so you’d better buy now. I’m quitting my day job to flip real estate – it’s so easy.” And my favorite: “The value of the property is only going to go up, so there’s virtually no risk involved.”  Unfortunately, I’m beginning to hear these phrases and variations on them once again. It appears that some people have forgotten that real estate is cyclical in nature. There are consequences and pain associated with believing the hype and being blind to reality, as many experienced beginning in 2008 when euphoria about the Southwest Florida real estate market turned to gloom and devastation for some. “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” seems an appropriate phrase in these times.