Buy American. I Am. by Warren Buffett

THE financial world is a mess, both in the United States and abroad. Its problems, moreover, have been leaking into the general economy, and the leaks are now turning into a gusher. In the near term, unemployment will rise, business activity will falter and headlines will continue to be scary.

So … I’ve been buying American stocks. This is my personal account I’m talking about, in which I previously owned nothing but United States government bonds. (This description leaves aside my Berkshire Hathaway holdings, which are all committed to philanthropy.) If prices keep looking attractive, my non-Berkshire net worth will soon be 100 percent in United States equities.

Why?

Full Article Here

Renters Lose Edge on Homeowners at WSJ.com

Excerpt from Wall Street Journal article By NICK TIMIRAOS

The relative cost of owning versus renting is swinging back in favor of homeownership in some U.S. markets, buoyed by several quarters of sharp declines in home prices.

At the height of the housing boom, as home prices surged, demand for rentals started to rise as the gap between owning and renting widened significantly. Even after the housing market soured, apartment demand grew as former homeowners became renters, allowing landlords to push healthy rent increases.

Now, after two years of rapid home-price depreciation, the relationship between the cost of rental payments versus after-tax mortgage payments is tilting toward ownership in a number of metropolitan areas.

Full Article Here

San Carlos Pending in 14 Days or less

San Carlos Pending in 14 Days - Six homes listed since 1/31 are now Pending.  San Carlos demand is still strong when the price is right.

 

Commentary: House Prices Will Rise Greatly over the Next Few Years, Buy Now

Excerpt from article by Mike Parker at RISMedia.com:

So, tell your clients the truth: Interest rates will never be this low again in their lifetimes. Home prices won’t be this low again in their lifetimes. This is the perfect storm economically, but it also the perfect time to buy a home; provided that you buy it as a home and not a piggy bank. It’s just a nice side benefit that five years from now, the home you bought today will have appreciated so much that you’ll be thinking (just like I did in 1979): “What a smart investor I am!”

This just happens to be the perfect confluence of opportunity and necessity: we must fix the economy and we’re going to, whatever it takes. Inflation is an unavoidable side effect. Buy that house this year!

Full Article Here

90 Cedar, San Carlos

Excellent price at 839K. 3/2, 1490sqft, 7260sqft lot. Nice layout, classic San Carlos. Listed by Wendi Selig of Coldwell Banker. Details at 90 Cedar, San Carlos

Peninsula 19 New Listings

19 new listings on the Peninsula in the past 2 days, check for details Peninsula New Listings

www.MyPeninsulaHomeSearch.com

www.MyPeninsulaHomeSearch.com

The San Carlos Real Estate Profile – 2008 Edition

Prices Down 8% Average

Number of Sales Decline

Days on Market Increase 20% 

Median prices dipped 8% on average in San Carlos from 2007.  This decline is only half of the overall 14% decrease that the Peninsula as a whole experienced.  Number of sales for San Carlos shows a double digit decline of 13% and days on the market rose to 43 days, a 20% increase.  Compare this to the Peninsula overall which showed a days on the market increase of 41% to 71 days.  San Carlos remains close to 50% better than the overall Peninsula in its statistical showing in both Median Price and Days on the Market.  This shows the strength of its demand – despite the negative financial events of 2008.

January Peninsula Sales

Click on a city to access all sales details for the month with photo.

San Carlos

Redwood City

Belmont

Menlo Park

Palo Alto

Mountain View

Mountain View Condos

San Mateo

Burlingame

Redwood Shores

Redwood Shores – Condos

Foster City

Foster City – Condos

Hillsborough