Worried about the repercussions of the current real estate frenzy, I listed my home for sale a couple of weeks ago at a price that works out to a 64% annual rate of return over the past 6 months. This doesn’t quite match the 85% return of the Nasdaq in 1999 but it’s close enough for my blood. I found a buyer within five days willing to pay within 1% of my ask price.
Now it looks like the chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association feels the same.
“‘I’m going to rent for a while,’ said Douglas Duncan, who expects ‘significant reversals’ in regions that have enjoyed strong home price appreciation, including Washington, D.C., Florida and California. He plans to sell his suburban Washington home, which has tripled in value since he bought it a dozen years ago, and move into an apartment.”
-The Los Angeles Times – May 29, 2005
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