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Aftermath of foreclosures
Oxnard compliance officers track derelict homes
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Video: Tracking foreclosures
Code enforcement officers in Oxnard have begun to track homes in foreclosure to try and prevent them from falling into disrepair and becoming magnets for crime and vandalism.
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Previous articles:02/17/08: A crisis hits home
02/17/08: Banks' earnings hammered by sheer number of bad loans
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Dana Rene Bowler / Star staff Vacant homes can put downward pressure on the value of surrounding homes. The abandoned homes can lead to graffiti, broken windows and petty crime that can spill over into a neighborhood.
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More from Local NewsJust reduced — three-bedroom, two-bath Oxnard home with unhinged wrought iron gate, brightly scrawled graffiti, weeds, abandoned car and squatters.
The house in South Oxnard is one of a growing number of abandoned and foreclosed homes in the city that have fallen into disrepair in the wake of the mortgage meltdown.
After the bank foreclosed on the property, someone pried a back lock open, went inside and scrawled graffiti over the white living room walls.
"We'll alert the bank or the Realtor," Christina Galindo, an Oxnard Code Compliance officer, said as she walked along an alley behind the property, noting the damage. "Vacant properties still have to be secured."
Galindo is one of the city's 13 code enforcement officers who — on top of their regular duties of citing people for housing code violations such as overcrowding — now track homes that are in foreclosure.
The idea is to prevent the properties, which often sit empty once banks take ownership, from falling into disrepair and becoming magnets for crime.
Local housing codes give city officials broad latitude to compel owners to maintain their properties, such as issuing liens on homes to cover the cost of repairs and installing locks. But the sheer volume in the number of properties now on the list makes it a challenge to stay on top of the problem.
'Realtors overwhelmed'
Recently introduced state legislation may help by giving officials the power to levy $1,000-a-day fines to banks and mortgage companies that fail to maintain properties.
The bill, supported by consumer groups and local governments, was introduced as a means of tackling the problems associated with having an estimated 400,000 homes go into foreclosure in the state over the next two years.
Even with the proposed laws and local codes, it will be a challenge to keep pace with the growing number of foreclosures in the city. Galindo already has a caseload of more than 100 homes.
"I can honestly say we're staying on top of it," she said. "The banks and Realtors have been cooperative, but (the Realtors) are saying they're overwhelmed."
It hasn't been easy for city officials, also. As more properties fall into default this year, the effort is likely to be even more difficult.
Oxnard is ground zero for foreclosures in Ventura County.
About one-third of the 1,500 foreclosures last year were in Oxnard. The pace has quickened this year, with about 1,000 Oxnard homeowners in default on loans and about 432 in foreclosure since Jan. 1.
Since early February, the Oxnard code enforcement office has added about 640 homes to the list of properties in the first stages of default, said Dirk Voss, manager of Oxnard Code Compliance.
"We can't solve the financial problems but we can require that homes are maintained and are clean and secure," Voss said.
Each vacant home can put downward pressure on the value of surrounding homes.
Beyond that, vacant homes are a lure for vandals. Overgrown weeds beget graffiti, broken windows and downed fences, petty crime that can spill over into a neighborhood.
Renters also have become vulnerable, sometimes getting little notice that homes they are leasing have been sold. City officials said some property managers have resorted to cutting off water to push some renters out, which only compounds health and safety issues. Some tenants who have nowhere to go stay in the homes, jury-rigging hookups to utilities and hauling in water.
At one home, Galindo said a family was secretly living inside a foreclosed property but was found out after neighbors noticed lights flickering on and off at night and a 5-gallon bucket of water by the door.
"They were just coming in at night," she said.
These problems are all too familiar to Nancy Pedersen, chairwoman of Oxnard's Cal-Gisler neighborhood council.
"We've seen this before," Pedersen said.
'That's not acceptable'
While the current slew of foreclosures is new, Pedersen said she's seen downward housing markets in Oxnard before that left for-sale properties languishing and abandoned. Owners board up the windows and leave the properties to vandals.
"We had one with boarded-up windows that ended up with graffiti through the whole house, covering the steps on the front door," Pedersen said of a neighborhood home in the mid-1990s.
"It took us six to eight months to get the owners to fix it. That's not acceptable."
Now, she senses it might be worse.
"I don't think they're (the city) keeping up," Pedersen said. "I think they're just barely treading water and there's a tidal wave coming."
Others are more optimistic.
Joe Avelar, chairman of the city's Inter-Neighborhood Council Forum and a former Oxnard code enforcement officer, said bank and mortgage companies are much more responsive when problems are brought to their attention.
In turn, the city's code enforcement officers respond when neighbors complain of problems, Avelar said.
"Oh yeah, we've had a few problem homes in our neighborhood (Lemonwood), and I get my Code Compliance guy out here right away, and they got them (the bank) to get the weeds cut," he said.
But Avelar isn't so sure the city is willing to hire the number of Code Compliance officers needed to keep up with the problem.
"They need more people," he said.
Posted by SmashyCrashy on May 6, 2008 at 2:36 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Who would buy into such a market, clearly prices are going much lower. What was a deal 6 months ago is a overpriced listing today. What was a deal a year ago will be underwater for the next ten years. I realize there are many emotional components to people buying a home but few of them can overcome the cold hard facts of the bursting housing bubble today.
Posted by ssakoian on May 6, 2008 at 6:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The pity of all this is that people who worked hard have lost their homes. With Amgen closing, with crackdowns on this and that, people are losing to big business - and big business has been supported by the middle class, lower class, upper class. At this point, only the upper classes and the banks and mortgage companies win.
Bernanke is telling congress it is time to act - and quickly - as he foresees more foreclosures coming up over the rest of the year. But, has congress done much? Doesn't seem so. Instead, the builders of tracts get breaks. The average Joe doesn't. Instead, those who struggle to make a home, have a family, live their lives are homeless and unemployed.
Instead, war is far more important, and the overall financial and physical and economic health of this country continues to shrivel up. How long before we all are homeless and in bad health? How long before the revolution begins? When the rich and poor gap is huge, and the middle class vanishes, that is when internal wars begin.
Oxnard has always been a tough place, but when homes are abandoned and people leave, the town will only get worse. Crime will increase, services decrease, and it will all be because of the people who tried to make it . . . and failed because of no help to remedy the situation.
Ahhhhh. Capitalism!
Posted by try_mee_76 on May 6, 2008 at 8:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
What about all the other homes in the city of Oxnard?? Are they being addressed?? I think Code Enforcement should be paying attention to all the homes in need of help not only those that are being forclosed.
Posted by JohnGC on May 6, 2008 at 9:07 a.m. (Suggest removal)
"...Oxnard has always been a tough place, but when homes are abandoned and people leave, the town will only get worse. Crime will increase, services decrease, and it will all be because of the people who tried to make it . . . and failed because of no help to remedy the situation."
You are totally discounting the impact of the scumbags in the immediate are who are inflicting the damages on the properties, and the hard-working citizens that remain.
Posted by freethought on May 6, 2008 at 10:19 a.m. (Suggest removal)
ssakoian - Sorry to break it to you, but Bernanke's plan (which is also Bush's plan) will only bail out the banks, not the homeowners. A small percentage of homeowners in dire straights will be helped, but the vast majority of those looking to default in the coming years will lose their homes whether congress acts or not.
The rebate checks are a joke, since most will simply use them to pay down bills or buy food and gas, which has become increasingly unaffordable. The who nonconforming loan cap thing will do no good, sisnce people can no longer qualify for loans to buy those houses. That is why prices will continue to drop - when no one is buying your product, you either drop you price or don't sell that product.
However, you are dead on about big companbies getting breaks, while the average Joe doesn't. That is someothing that will never change, no matter what congress or the White House does.
Posted by guy133 on May 6, 2008 at 10:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)
"Now is a great time to buy!"
Posted by freethought on May 6, 2008 at 11:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Yes, guy133, that is correct - if you're the one collecting the commission.
Posted by guy133 on May 6, 2008 at 11:18 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Check out this piece of junk for $450,000: http://www.ziprealty.com/buy_a_home/l...
Posted by oxnard40 on May 6, 2008 at 11:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I just bought a $1.8 million yacht. I work at Wal-Mart pushing carts. Can the feds bail me out?
This is simple. YOU DON'T BUY THAT WHICH YOU CAN'T AFFORD.
You can try to blame it on those shady real-estate and loan agents that tricked the economically disadvantaged people into believing they could afford property.
But, once again YOU DON'T BUY THAT WHICH YOU CAN'T AFFORD.
Posted by hotwildflower on May 6, 2008 at 12:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
ok, so I am not really well versed on the whole bank mentality as far as issuing loans and so forth, I have been fortunate to understand enough to get our family a decent loan to avoid alot of this mess...but here is my thought...why can't the people who are having trouble with their payments, go to their existing lenders, ask to have their mortage changed from an adjustable to a maybe 50 year fixed, which would give them consistancy to their payment, may extend the duration longer than either the bank or homeowner would like, but would buy them some time to ride this nightmare out. I understand the banks want their money, but wouldn't they rather they get it over a longer period of time instead of losing so much with a foreclosure? When you look at the big picture, the bank is on the hook for the inflated mortgage whether the homeowner pays or not, so why not try to keep the homeowner paying? It just seems like it would be such an easy fix, but again...I have no idea how that works from the inside.
Posted by richard on May 6, 2008 at 2:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Also, keep in mind some of these foreclosures are the fault of the homeowners for buying homes out of their price range and/or having an adjustable rate mortgage. Banks share blame to for giving loans to everybody and anybody without some checking into. So all shares blame in this mess.
Posted by Face on May 6, 2008 at 2:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
These homes should be officially burned down for use in training firefighters.
Posted by hotwildflower on May 6, 2008 at 2:35 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I understand that there are a variety of people at fault for the current situation, but there seems like there should a half way point to fix some of these mortgages, not anything like a bail out, but some way the current lender could help the homeowners, I mean it seems like it took two (home buyer and lender) to get in this position.
The constant reporting forclosures, which might have alternatives options, are just further harming the market because people are too scared to buy, legitimate people who would be able to afford their payments.
Posted by Face on May 6, 2008 at 2:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
And those of us who didn't buy with those horrible terms and wanted to buy a home. We just get f---ed while the knuckleheads get free bailout. Where is the fairness in that??
Posted by hotwildflower on May 6, 2008 at 3:10 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I am not suggesting anything remotely like a bail out, just a locking of rates from adjustable to a fixed and extend the period of time for the loan to make the monthly payments managable for the homebuyers and the lenders retain some money coming in...if it would even be something that would work, I have no idea.
I don't think anyone should be given a handout in this situation, but there should be a resolution that makes sense, maybe we should look into it.
Posted by Face on May 6, 2008 at 3:30 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Any solution should include a way for first time homebuyers to qualify for loans who now cannot because of the credit backlash.
Posted by hotwildflower on May 6, 2008 at 3:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
works for me...
Posted by dragstripgirl on May 6, 2008 at 3:48 p.m. (Suggest removal)
ssakoian
you are ignorant
Posted by rebel123 on May 6, 2008 at 3:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
dragstrip girl....I think ssakoian has some good points. I would have to guess that your political views are not in synch with ssakoian, which doesn't make him/her ignorant.
Posted by holdenon_2000 on May 6, 2008 at 4:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The city of Oxnard is a prime example of a city that allowed this foreclosure mess to happen in the first place, that is why most of the Foreclosures in this county are in Oxnard. If Oxnard had cracked down on the homeowners who bought houses they could not afford and overcrowded them with migrant workers, Oxnard would not be in this situation. The homes are single family homes with 3-4 families living in them, and the city did nothing to stop this. So agents convinced people that if they buy a home and rent out all the rooms they can afford it. Most of the homes in Oxnard are this way. I have a house across the street with 10-12 adults living in it, and another house next door with 8-10 adults and 5-6 children. I have notified the city plenty of times, but nothing has happened. The city let people destroy neighborhoods by not regulating the single family homes, and now the problem is too large for the city to manage. At least in Port Hueneme they cracked down, and notice Port Hueneme does not have as high as a foreclosure percentage. Dont blame the real estate agents for making money, blame your city for not enforcing occupancy of the homes. Blame idiot buyers who bought a home they cant afford, and rented out every room including the garage, to people who trash the home, and bring down the value of surrounding homes who are occupied by single families, who budget to make the mortgage. I am ashamed to say I live in Oxnard, because Oxnard has assisted in allowing the city to be turned to garbage, and of course I will pay for the repairs & loss of value, and now also pay for the increased city code enforcement, who now is trying to fix a problem that they should have fixed 10 years ago. GOOD JOB OXNARD, you have failed again, and will always fail, as long as the same idiots vote for the current idiots. We need a complete turnaround in Oxnard and it starts with the Mayor, city council, and public services. This is not the real estate agents or banks fault, it is the local governments fault for allowing people to buy homes trash them, over occupy them and now go on foreclosure. Shame on Oxnard, shame on the code enforcement, shame on the idiots who bought homes they can not afford. I don't want to see the government help any of the people who got themselves in this mess. Why should I pay for other peoples poor money management?
Posted by try_mee_76 on May 6, 2008 at 4:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Wow someone is upset--holdenon_2000. Although I don't completely agree with everything you wrote. I have to agree there is a big issue with multiple families per home, I live in Oxnard and have to say that lately I have been noticing that there is less and less parking on my block. High rents/mortgages is the cause for all this chaos. Unfortunately real estate agents made money selling these home to unqualified buyers by lying on the paper work and "poof" a year later they are losing the house. If only there was honest agents out there much of this would have been prevented.
Posted by holdenon_2000 on May 6, 2008 at 4:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The city has the guts to tell banks to fix the trashed homes, but the city does nothing to stop the overcrowding of homes that is the real root of the problem. My wife and I looked at a home over the weekend that had an illegal addition, made of scraps from job sites. You could tell that easily a dozen adults lived at this home, and the illegal addition was added to house more people then the home initially could fit. The home is now a horrible mess, that will not sell because of its condition, so It will be an eye sore for everyone on the block. Now the city wants to punish the bank, when they should have punished the homeowner who made it this way. The bank did not over occupy the home, the banks, did not add illegal additions. The city is chasing the wrong cat. They need to tackle the problem where it starts, the overcrowded homes need to be fined, homeowners would not have bought homes if Oxnard had enforced occupancy in the first place. People would have known that the city will not tolerate overcrowding, and they would not have bought the home with the intention of over occupying it. Again Oxnard let this happen, not the banks, but the city is looking for someone to blame, so lets blame the banks, realtors, etc. But in no way will the city address the real issue "OVERCROWDING HOMES"
Posted by holdenon_2000 on May 6, 2008 at 4:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
try_mee_76
who lied on the paperwork, the lenders, or the buyers. The buyers lied when they signed a contact that they knew was incorrect. Quit blaming the banks, blame the buyers. I didn't make the mistake of buying a home during this false interest buying boom, so why should anyone else have made the same mistake? STUPIDITY
Posted by holdenon_2000 on May 6, 2008 at 5:03 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Investors are loving this, we will buy up the foreclosed homes, rent them, then sell them for a great profit in 5-10 years. And hey why not rent it out to as many people as can fit, the city keeps allowing it, it will keep happening. Also if the city had enforced occupancy years ago, less homes would have sold, bringing down the prices, during the interest rate boom. But since so many people saw a way to afford a home they really couldn't afford, they took advantage of the occupancy and filled the house to the rim. RENTS and Mortgages would be less if the city enforced occupancy, so the city is at fault for the high rents & mortgages.
Posted by Face on May 6, 2008 at 5:46 p.m. (Suggest removal)
It is everyone's fault for continuously voting for the status quo.
Posted by SmashyCrashy on May 6, 2008 at 7:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)
holdenon_2000:"Investors are loving this, we will buy up the foreclosed homes, rent them, then sell them for a great profit in 5-10 years"
If you can find a cash flow positive property, you definitely should buy it and rent it out. The vast majority of n00b investors leave out things like vacancy factor, maintenance and management costs when considering whether a house is a good investment deal or not. Imho, They also over estimate capital appreciation but that is much more subjective. Since it wasn't in whatever infomercial tapes they watched or real estate guru book they read they don't know the mistake until they are knee deep in it.
To think prices in 5-10 years will be anywhere near where they are today is completely misunderstanding what drove the market to its heights. Once you do understand you will understand why we will most likely never see real prices (prices adjusted for inflation) like that again in our lifetime. I only say most likey instead of never because I don't want to underestimate the irrationality of people.
Posted by fannadair on May 6, 2008 at 7:48 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Sure sounds easy to blame everyone else for the current problems except for the current economic situation and many other factors. I never believe in one cause for all problems which seems to be the case in these comments. Too much to think about?
Posted by Face on May 6, 2008 at 8:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
But no solution from you, how convenient.
Posted by mephistomycat on May 6, 2008 at 8:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Than-n-nk god I sold my home in Oxnard last year. Now I am riding things out in Salt Lake City where the economy is much better.
All the comments I have read have their points.
Think carefully about your vote in November.
Posted by pfg93003 on May 6, 2008 at 8:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I saw this in 2004 and cashed out, took my money out of RE and put into other things. I am glad I did it. I'll be back in a few years, but now is a bad time for Calif. RE. Hold if you can, it will come back in about eight years. Good luck
Posted by daleeks on May 6, 2008 at 9:12 p.m. (Suggest removal)
'Investors are loving this, we will buy up the foreclosed homes, rent them, then sell them for a great profit in 5-10 years.'
There are a few eager seminar students who put "I buy houses" license plate holders on their SUVs who might buy in this environment but no serious investor would be buying in the current freefall conditions. Nothing much worth owning cash flows as of yet. Prices still have another 30-40% to fall and inventories are still rising. Look for investors to move in as the market bottoms when inventories are decreasing, probably around 2011-2013.
Posted by KathrynAsh on May 6, 2008 at 10:04 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Why doesn't Oxnard just start razing these eye sore foreclosed vacant homes like some of cities in the midwest are doing. What's valuable is the land, and most of these foreclosures are crappy small old houses in need of major repair, that have been vacant for some time with squatters and graffiti. Who'd want to buy that?
Knock 'em down and wait for the market to pick back up. Unless the banks start selling these foreclosures for fire sale prices, these foreclosures are going to be vacant for a long time. Oxnard has a glut of houses for sale, according to realtor.com there are 572 single family homes for sale in Oxnard under 400K.
Prices are too high, loans are hard to come by, and the economy's in a recession. There's no way Oxnard's code enforcers are going to keep up with the tidal wave of foreclosures, especially not with gas prices the way they are. Home prices are declining the most in the far-flung suburbs, and experts are saying that high gas prices and cost of commuting are part of that decline. I wouldn't be surprised if prices came down another 30% in Oxnard.
Posted by santabarbarasand on May 7, 2008 at 7:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The cost of homes was too high for the average person and although this is a difficult time, it is happening because the prices need to come down to somewhere where the average buyer can again own a home. It may take a few years before the solution is found but it will happen. It's the economy attempting to rebalance itself and although it hurts right now, down the road it will enable people like me, who works hard but cannot afford a $4000 a month house payment, to buy a home with a reasonable monthly payment.
In Santa Barbara the average home cost $150,000 15 years ago and the price skyrocketted over a short period of time so that now the median house price is $1,000,000. The American dream was shattered for many people and we find ourselves working 2 jobs just to pay rent on a house. Pretty soon it will cost less to buy a house than to rent. Am I the only one that finds that prospect exciting? I'm not a homeowner and not affected by the foreclosure issues (for which I am VERY grateful), so my perspective IS different. I feel bad for the people that are losing their homes and for those that are seeing their own home values reduced due to the situation but eventually the problem will resolve.
Posted by AnnaWhaat on May 7, 2008 at 9:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Idea: If these banks are foreclosing. Why not let the homeowners know, let them stay there at a reduced rate which the knowledge the home is being sold and will be shown. With exceptions the house be kept up, clean house, Clean yard etc. It would save the money the banks pay to pay for vandalism and help out those who are losing thier home to save up for another place to live. Just a thought!
Posted by freethought on May 7, 2008 at 9:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
mmshoot - Sorry, but hotwildflower is not correct. There were two points that he/she made.
The first - to change the terms of the loan to a 50-year fixed - won't work for the majority. Most of those in trouble took out pay option ARMs or interest-only loans and could barely afford the minimum payments. Once the loans reset, the payments skyrocketed to something they couldn't afford. While a 50-year fixed loan might lower the "new" (reset) payment, it will not be anywhere near as low as the original-interest only (or less than interest-only) payment, hence unaffordable.
The second point - that the media is somehow exacerbating the housing downturn simply by report - does not hold water. I find it kind of funny when people blame the media for simply reporting the truth. Where were any of you when the media was running daily stories two and three years ago on how incredibly wonderful the real estate market was? No one seemed to mind that the media was "selling" the housing bubble. I did not see that as a spin in any way, because they were just reporting what was going on. Don't blame people for telling the truth. Blame yourself for not being able to stomach it.
By the way, I do like the usermane "hotwildflower".
Posted by freethought on May 7, 2008 at 10:13 a.m. (Suggest removal)
mmshoot - Not sure of your answers (could be lack of sleep), but your summary is definitely agreeable.
Posted by fungus on May 7, 2008 at 11:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)
ssakoian makes a good argument...for SOCIALISM! (And we all now how well that worked out for those who bought into that idea!)
Capitalism, at a basic exconomic level, is all about supply, demand and the willingness/ability to pay. The market is correcting itself (and the inflated prices) with this real estate crisis.
Posted by PonceMom on May 7, 2008 at 12:55 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I am glad I left. I moved to Texas, where the economy is still growing, the demand for houses outpaces the building, the cost is about 1/5 of the ones in California, the income level is better and there are no earthquakes. I bought a brand new house for $150K, the same builder, the same floor plan goes for about $750K in Southern California. Go figure.
Posted by BeaHappi on May 7, 2008 at 1:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)
KathrynAsh...I didn't realize that some other cities are demolishing foreclosed beater houses. I actually kind of like that idea. I'd rather live next to a clean vacant lot than a house that was sprayed with graffiti and had Lord only knows who living in it at night.
Seriously, asking code enforcement to keep up with all of these is like treading water...you keep moving but never get anywhere.
Posted by BeaHappi on May 7, 2008 at 3:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I wish that about a million CA residents would read PonceMom's post and move to Texas! :~)
Even with all of our issues (and I know we have plenty), I still love living in California.
Posted by sparks240 on May 7, 2008 at 6:57 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Texas is a great place to move away from.
Posted by LivinInPoorMansPV on May 8, 2008 at 12:06 p.m. (Suggest removal)
If it sounds too good to be true....
I have no pity for these people that are losing there homes. Unless they had a REAL loan, and did not re-fi so they can buys more toys or drive a nice car. If they lost there job, or are in an ugly divorce...then tough titties!
Posted by bruceski44 on May 8, 2008 at 3:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I bought a car that gets crappy gas mileage and now I can't afford to drive to work. It's the government's fault! Oh yeah, and the car dealership! Someone's gotta pay!
Sound familiar?
Posted by venturapagan on May 8, 2008 at 3:51 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I live in old town Ventura in a so-so area, and my neighbor has built on to his house, moved in his brother's family and his mom (about 10 ppl living there in a still fairly small house). I don't care, cuz they try to be good neighbors and they're nice, but they do have about 5 cars on street-only parking, which makes me crazy coming home from work and not being able to park. Heaven forbid I go out to eat Friday night, cuz then you're really screwed for parking. At least the house isn't trashed.
Posted by venturapagan on May 8, 2008 at 3:53 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Recommendations for an honest agent? I'll need one in October (I hope!)
Posted by daleeks on May 9, 2008 at 2:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
The housing crash is not half done. Prices have dropped 25% in Ventura County per data quick: http://dqnews.com/Charts/Monthly-Char...
They will drop a similar amount in the next year or so as prices come back in line with rents and incomes. All of these problems are only beginning. By the end of 2009, there might be neighborhoods in Oxnard where the police will not go.
Posted by 1958boss on May 9, 2008 at 5:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I'm sorry, I blame the agents taking advantage of uneducated people who had the desire to live the american dream, to be a homeowner. Most of the agents were Si Habla Espanol, and took those people for a ride. The agents pull up in land rovers, lexus' etc., and use everyone's income to qualify, then tell them to rent out the rooms to make the mortgage. But, not all of them are riding high on their commissions, I actually saw one driving a SCAT bus a while back.
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