For the last couple years, the media has been in a “sky-is-falling” frenzy about the state of the housing industry and apparently revels in piling on (and rehashing endlessly) stories about the always impending, but never occurring, burst of the nation’s housing bubble. The problem is, and admittedly we’re a bit biased here, they bury the real lead several paragraphs down in the story – or don’t report on it at all. Most of these stories have silver linings, but you have to look for them – at the bottom, between the lines or right here on SeaMoreSays.com.
Sometimes what the media doesn’t report, or how they choose to report it, is important.
Take today’s nugget from REALTOR® Magazine Online about a Reuters News story by Jonathan Stempel:
Wells Fargo Analysis: 200 Troubled Markets (the whole article is here)
Wells Fargo & Co., the country’s second-largest mortgage lender, says it has identified more than 200 housing markets nationwide where the mortgage crisis has spread. Wells Fargo tightened its lending standards in affected markets in 24 states and the District of Columbia.
Wells Fargo said California has at least 33 housing markets “at risk,” and that at least 20 counties, including Los Angeles and San Diego, face severe distress.
Florida has 33 at-risk markets, followed by Michigan and Virginia with 15 each, and Maryland and Ohio with 13 each, Wells Fargo said. Other at-risk markets are located in Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia.
News is what it is, but sometimes it’s also what it’s not. Let’s rewrite this recap a little.
“Legions of researchers at lending giant Wells Fargo, charged with collecting and analyzing data to manage the risk of a successful long-lived publicly-traded company, have identified troubled markets in 24 of 50 states in the country.”
OK, maybe there’s more analysis here than straight editorial copy, but the point is Wells Fargo, a successful mortgage broker (and a notably conservative one at that), reigned in its lending practices for some markets in less than half of the states in the country. There is an old adage that real estate is local. Well, it’s not an adage, it’s the plain truth. In this case, Wells Fargo’s news didn’t name the First State, or any of its three counties, including Sussex.
We like this headline better for local distribution:
Sea Colony is not a troubled real estate market – and neither is any county in Delaware.
Neither Sea Colony, nor any other community in Delaware’s Quiet Resorts, is a troubled market, according to the criteria used by the country’s second largest mortgage lender.
Never heard of Sea Colony?
Located just south of Bethany Beach, Delaware, and known as “The Premier Family Beach & Tennis Resort Community,” Sea Colony features 2,202 homes ranging from oceanfront condos to secluded single family homes, plus a half mile of private beach, 12 pools (two indoor), world class tennis, fitness centers, activities for all ages, community shuttle and year-round security. With 34 courts (including four indoor and 14 Har-Tru) and 25 teaching professionals, Sea Colony is ranked among Tennis Magazine’s “50 Best U.S. Tennis Resorts” – including #3 for families, #3 for match-ups and #1 for bargains – and #19 in the world by Tennis Resorts Online, published by former Tennis Magazine Editor Roger Cox.
ResortQuest Real Estate has been providing comprehensive real estate sales and vacation rental services to Sea Colony and the surrounding Quiet Resorts of Southern Coastal Delaware for 36 years … and counting. Visit us on the Web for more information on Sea Colony real estate sales or Sea Colony vacation rentals.
Sea Colony is not a troubled real estate market – and neither is any county in Delaware
For the last couple years, the media has been in a “sky-is-falling” frenzy about the state of the housing industry and apparently revels in piling on (and rehashing endlessly) stories about the always impending, but never occurring, burst of the nation’s housing bubble. The problem is, and admittedly we’re a bit biased here, they bury the real lead several paragraphs down in the story – or don’t report on it at all. Most of these stories have silver linings, but you have to look for them – at the bottom, between the lines or right here on SeaMoreSays.com.
Sometimes what the media doesn’t report, or how they choose to report it, is important.
Take today’s nugget from REALTOR® Magazine Online about a Reuters News story by Jonathan Stempel:
News is what it is, but sometimes it’s also what it’s not. Let’s rewrite this recap a little.
“Legions of researchers at lending giant Wells Fargo, charged with collecting and analyzing data to manage the risk of a successful long-lived publicly-traded company, have identified troubled markets in 24 of 50 states in the country.”
OK, maybe there’s more analysis here than straight editorial copy, but the point is Wells Fargo, a successful mortgage broker (and a notably conservative one at that), reigned in its lending practices for some markets in less than half of the states in the country. There is an old adage that real estate is local. Well, it’s not an adage, it’s the plain truth. In this case, Wells Fargo’s news didn’t name the First State, or any of its three counties, including Sussex.
We like this headline better for local distribution:
Sea Colony is not a troubled real estate market – and neither is any county in Delaware.
Neither Sea Colony, nor any other community in Delaware’s Quiet Resorts, is a troubled market, according to the criteria used by the country’s second largest mortgage lender.
Never heard of Sea Colony?
Located just south of Bethany Beach, Delaware, and known as “The Premier Family Beach & Tennis Resort Community,” Sea Colony features 2,202 homes ranging from oceanfront condos to secluded single family homes, plus a half mile of private beach, 12 pools (two indoor), world class tennis, fitness centers, activities for all ages, community shuttle and year-round security. With 34 courts (including four indoor and 14 Har-Tru) and 25 teaching professionals, Sea Colony is ranked among Tennis Magazine’s “50 Best U.S. Tennis Resorts” – including #3 for families, #3 for match-ups and #1 for bargains – and #19 in the world by Tennis Resorts Online, published by former Tennis Magazine Editor Roger Cox.
ResortQuest Real Estate has been providing comprehensive real estate sales and vacation rental services to Sea Colony and the surrounding Quiet Resorts of Southern Coastal Delaware for 36 years … and counting. Visit us on the Web for more information on Sea Colony real estate sales or Sea Colony vacation rentals.