I read an interesting article yesterday about the housing slump.  It was an article from the Wall Street Journal (Online).  The bottom line was that right now is the best time to buy; your dream, vacation, or retirement home; whatever.  But that you should beware because you'll be responsible for the mortgage, property taxes, maintenance costs etc. for an unspecific amount of time as they can't predict how long the slump will last.


In the article, the writer used a phrase that really stayed with me. 

He said, "Financial lore says you should buy when there's blood in the street -- which suggests real estate is a bargain, because there's blood all over the neighborhood."

This is so true it's not even funny.  Just yesterday the Hubby and I were out and about, running errands with the kids and we drove by several homes with auction signs in the windows and many other homes with dilapidated for sale signs.  There are at least two houses that I know of, in our neighborhood, that are abandoned.

I was actually thinking what a great idea it would be to buy one of those homes that are for auction.  Can you imagine what a steal one would be?

I wish we were in the position to purchase another property.  On the other hand, we have a friend who bought a second house not too long ago and is now dealing with the headache of a crappy tenant.  The guy is causing him all kinds of problems.

So, I guess it all depends on what you're willing to handle.

I know people who've made their fortunes in the real estate business.  Unfortunately, there are also people who've lost everything trying to achieve the same thing.  So, maybe the real estate business is a bit like the stock market; you win some you lose some.