Thanks to reader DaveyDave for sending me this MSNBC news clip that aired today:
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
It’s starting to look like we may be special after all… just not the way some folks imagined.
MSNBC on Super Special Seattle
By The Tim on January 29th, 2009 at 6:05 PM · 56 Comments
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→ 56 CommentsCategories: Media
Tags: MSNBC, Seattle_is_special, video
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Scotsman » Jan 29, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Yup, we’re late to the party, but drinking as fast as we can to catch up…
DavidB » Jan 29, 2009 at 6:24 pm
The news is officially out, “Seattle isn’t so special after all”. Our economy is as dependent on the US and world economy as every other city.
The reports of Seattle being special were simply real estate industry spin to try to keep real estate prices high! Those beliefs certainly didn’t help the home seller who believed that if they held off selling their house until this spring they could get a higher price!
I expect the drop in Seattle home prices will quickly catch up with the nation! It’s good to be a renter in this kind of market!
Michael » Jan 29, 2009 at 6:29 pm
Seattle was in need of a reality check. This is not “Doom & Gloom”. It is reality.
Groundhogday » Jan 29, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Yep, Seattle folk got a little full of themselves…
TheHulk » Jan 29, 2009 at 7:45 pm
Must have been all the coffee….
rose-colored-coolaid » Jan 29, 2009 at 7:46 pm
A guy in the video said 3% of jobs are expected to be lost this year. Who wants to bet this is still an overly optimistic number?
Groundhogday » Jan 29, 2009 at 8:01 pm
My BIL is still convinced that house prices won’t fall on Queen Anne. Now THAT is some attitude.
Jonness » Jan 29, 2009 at 8:08 pm
I love it when the going gets tough! It brings forth purpose to living, and the walking dead begin to look like they’re partly alive. After years of listening to zombies ramble on about how their employers were cheating them out of being millionaires, I’m starting to hear conversations with meaning and purpose out on the general street. People’s brains are waking up, and they’re experiencing reality. Some of them for the very first time. This downturn is a gut-wrenchingly beautiful thing and is purifying the nation of it’s excessive lust and madness for valueless material goods.
Bang your head
Wake the dead
We’re all metal mad
It’s all you have
So bang your head
And raise the dead
Oh yeah!
Metal Health
It’s not too bad
Groundhogday » Jan 29, 2009 at 8:38 pm
3% is a big number. As in unemployment moves from 5 to 8%? But since the economists have been behind the curve all along, I’m with you in guessing job losses could easily be double that figure.
Just wait until plane order cancellations start cascading.
faster » Jan 29, 2009 at 8:47 pm
House prices on Queen Anne already have fallen. Your brother-in-law is only seeing what he wants to see.
Angie » Jan 29, 2009 at 9:25 pm
Wow, Jean Enerson (sp?) is really rocking that red coat and glove combo!
All I have to say is: if you still don’t think Seattle is special, have a look at the weather reports for the eastern half of the continent for the past few days.
Michael » Jan 29, 2009 at 9:57 pm
How soon people forget about all the flooding that took place. Like that is any more desirable. Now go look at the San Diego forecast. Seattle has NOTHING on that.
NimChimpsky » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:00 pm
I had lunch with a co-worker yesterday who was encouraging me to buy now because “there are good deals to be had!” Now, her idea of a good deal is 20,000 off of 2007 prices, so she’s a little off to begin with. She went on to talk about how Seattle was a special place, how prices won’t go down too much more because of the great industry we have and proceeded to list all of the major local companies that have recently announced layoffs as examples.
I think that this mantra chanted by realtors has sunk in so deep into most homeowners around here that everyone’s blind to what is going on. The economic problems that are yet to come will blindside Seattle because we’re not even aware of all the warning signs. We had many years of watching the tide creeping in and drowning other places in the country and didn’t do jack to move to higher ground.
It’s funny to me that it takes a national news story to point out our own problems to us.
TheHulk » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:00 pm
I know plenty of people here who hate the cloudy weather. AFAIK, the only places where people don’t complain about the weather are: Bay area, San Diego (or for that matter coastal southern cal as long as its not LA) and Hawaii.
Of course people will female-dog (cmon Tim you cant even say that? ) about overcrowding, pollution and what-not. The grass is always greener.
Don’t get me wrong, Seattle weather is a little *special*, I have to admit. But that doesn’t make the city or its real estate market *special*.
The Tim » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:04 pm
Hey, I for one love the weather here. Every time I visit CA I’m miserable.
And no, you can’t even say that. My site, my rulez.
somn » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:08 pm
As a new employee of Amazon (5 months) AND a renter, I gotta say, Im pretty excited about the news clip.
somn » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:17 pm
Oops, seems like the video linked in the RSS feed is different then the video in this article. I was referring to the video here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/28920812#28920720
Thomas B. » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:20 pm
How can a reporter and photographer afford a house, first off, and how can they afford renovation of a house, second?
Markor » Jan 29, 2009 at 10:24 pm
Last week’s sunny skies were a drag. Other than that, loving it.
Jbeans » Jan 29, 2009 at 11:01 pm
We moved back to Seattle in August, and the chorus of “It’s a great time to buy!” started from our friends right away. “Nope, prices are going to keep dropping,” we said. “You really think so?” they would ask.
Now, replay that exact exchange of words countless times over the six months since. One of these days, maybe someone besides me will catch on to the repetitive nature of this conversation and get a clue.
redmondjp » Jan 29, 2009 at 11:21 pm
+1 Thomas!
I watched that clip tonight on the NBC news on Channel 5 and thought the exact same thing — what in the heck are two 20-somethings who MAY make in the low-six-figures between them doing tearing their house down to the bones — and (heh heh) they said something about having to do more of it themself now, good luck with that!
I still have bad feelings about this coming year. I think the job losses will get much worse, as the whole economy deleverages itself, ratcheting itself down like an old defective bumper jack (anybody here old enough to remember one of those?). Just heard on the radio that consumer spending is responsible for 70% of our GDP.
Mikal » Jan 29, 2009 at 11:51 pm
On the brighter side, the University of Minnesota beat #19 Illinois for the first time in ten years 59-36 . An ass whopping to be sure. Gotta love Tubby.
Mikal » Jan 29, 2009 at 11:52 pm
And if ther are any of you don’t know what I’m am writing about you are a NERD.
Alan » Jan 29, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Every other job in the world pays more than whatever it is you do.
Ray Pepper » Jan 30, 2009 at 12:14 am
You know the only thing that amazed me in the MSNBC clip is how hot Jean Enerson still looks. I moved here in 85 and have watched her since then. She must be almost 80 now and I know she had health problems. Go Jean!
LeftOverpricedSeattle » Jan 30, 2009 at 4:53 am
Angie,
What about the snow in December? The flooding that followed? The lahar on Mt. Rainier? The earthquakes?
Every region has it’s own set of calamities and poor weather.
Seattle is no different.
As someone mentioned, most people will choose the Bay Area weather over Seattle’s.
But then there are those pesky earthquakes and income taxes in California.
There are positives and negatives to ANY location regarding climate and natural disasters.
alex » Jan 30, 2009 at 6:27 am
I wish the RentersAreLosers guy would comment on this news, just for the entertainment value of it.
Now, if home prices decline solely BECAUSE of job lossess, will that improve AFFORDABILITY in any way?
dancingeek » Jan 30, 2009 at 6:34 am
I lived in various parts of southern and central California for almost two decades. I much prefer the weather in Seattle. Plus, it’s not brown everywhere up here.
Sniglet » Jan 30, 2009 at 7:04 am
I couldn’t help but notice that this news piece is ALREADY outdated. Boeing is laying off 10,000 people. Their numbers of Starbucks were off too (what with the latest announcements).
lurker » Jan 30, 2009 at 7:16 am
those numbers looked correct to me. It was specific to jobs being lost in WA.
DavidB » Jan 30, 2009 at 7:19 am
You have to give credit to the real estate industry for coming up with the spin about Seattle being special and getting the media to largely buy into it. Nearly everyone here believed that and to a large extent, still do! I’ve had similar discussions with people as noted above where I say I think prices will go down and people disagree and talk about how I should buy before prices increase!
Seattle deserves a round of applause for holding up as well as we have for the past couple years. If I were a home owner who needed to sell I’d seriously consider pricing my house competitively so it would sell in this market!
I feel sorry for anyone who bought in the past couple years. They would have been better off financially if they rented since they could have saved more money and borrowed less money.
Mikal » Jan 30, 2009 at 7:38 am
She just turned 93.
Ray Pepper » Jan 30, 2009 at 8:08 am
David dont feel sorry for the Buyers in the last 2 years. Principle reductions are coming and it will be the DEAL OF A LIFE TIME for upside down home owners. Watch and Learn how the FED will fight these foreclosures. UNFAIR? YOU BET! The next few years the history books will be written…..
SteveH » Jan 30, 2009 at 8:10 am
Huh?
softwarengineer » Jan 30, 2009 at 8:25 am
AMERICA’S ECONOMY DECREASED 3.8% THIS LAST YEAR; THEY SAY
Its a horrifying number if you consider how many people are on entitlements, unemployed/underemployed in 2008, and the underground economy [RE contact workers, illegals, etc]…..these get plucked/omitted from the 3% figure.
My guess is the real monetary downturn for Seattle is at least 10-20% if you get real. Of course mainstream media and their number crunchers never will get real when it comes to the economy.
Look at the unemployment and COLA % calculations today and the clear jokes they are to reality…..then you clearly see why we need to get real on any numbers MSM/government feeds us.
Mainstream media, government and RE statiticians can likely be liars, but “let’s get real” “We the People” statistics never lie.
Groundhogday » Jan 30, 2009 at 8:46 am
Actually they do complain about the weather in the Bay Area during the wet, cool months in the winter (or summer in San Fran).
jon » Jan 30, 2009 at 8:56 am
“Pew: Almost half of Americans want to live somewhere else”
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/census/2009-01-29-where-we-live_N.htm
shawn » Jan 30, 2009 at 9:05 am
The government is “we the people”.
shawn » Jan 30, 2009 at 9:11 am
Very minor research, but I like to go to zip realty and look at homes and see what they are priced at and compare that to what they most recently sold for. Many I see sold around 2000 – 2005. I have yet to see even one priced today for what it went for in 2005.
Dave » Jan 30, 2009 at 9:36 am
I can only hope that there are no principal reductions. Unfortunately, this is probably the only solution to the “underwater” foreclosures, as lower interest rates has not had much effect. This solution represents the ultimate “moral hazard”.
But I don’t think we will be seeing this. First, the dollars needed to fix the problem will be huge. Second, you saw what happened when they wanted to spend $700B on the banks. There was a tremendous outcry, even though it eventually passed. But at least people understood that the banks needed to be fixed. Not so the underwater homeowners. And third, although it will prevent those foreclosures, it will not prevent prices from falling. Ultimately, prices will be determined by incomes, and all the money spent on principal reduction will not benefit the future homeowner who still will not be able to afford a house.
Ray Pepper » Jan 30, 2009 at 10:08 am
Zip Realty. Are you serious? They are not long for the living. At least use Red Fin tools.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=ZIPR
Scotsman » Jan 30, 2009 at 10:32 am
GDP was down 3.8% annualized in the 4th quarter, BUT up 1.5% or so for the year as a whole.
geon » Jan 30, 2009 at 11:35 am
Jean doesn’t looks so good in Hi-Def. :) But, neither do I.
SeattleMoose » Jan 30, 2009 at 12:33 pm
Luckily the video did not mention Ballard, only Seattle. So things are still lookin up for Meshugy!!!
It took a long time after the fact for the MSM to start admitting that we we were in a “Recession”. I wonder how long after the fact before the MSM stops being afraid to use the word “Depression”.
So far the closest MSM sound byte that I have heard is “worst downturn since the Great Depression”.
I predict that it will take about 1 year before we hear the “D Word” from MSM sources….well after we all know it…..and are living it.
AndySeattle » Jan 30, 2009 at 12:47 pm
He was B&
Herman » Jan 30, 2009 at 12:48 pm
No, it’s concrete gray thanks to overdevelopment.
The Tim » Jan 30, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Actually I didn’t ban anybody. I did however implement some disemvoweling on two of the more aggressive / flat-out rude commenters.
DaveyDave » Jan 30, 2009 at 1:20 pm
Tim!! Some of these are priceless… My favorite so far is:
“Mon, Jul 7, 2008 at 6:57 PM
…If you were indeed educated like your ‘bros here you all would be sitting on a s***load of equity like me. But your not.
How are you enjoying your cockroach infested rat trap with an ever increasing rental rate?”
Dated July 7, 2008— Man, that’s goooood.
redmondjp » Jan 30, 2009 at 9:18 pm
I talked to a real estate agent tonight who has been working with/for one of the major RE offices in our area. She got into the business about three years ago, and took out a line of credit against her house from WAMU (HELOC I imagine) to get the cash to do so. Then WAMU contacted her and told her that her credit limit had been substantially reduced because her house was no longer worth what it had been.
So she’s seriously considering selling the house and moving out of state (the RE business is dead and the first half of $xxK she makes goes directly to the office anyways from what she told me) and trying to change to another career. The reality of today’s market has affected her in a significant manner. And she seems very level-headed and didn’t drink the cool-aid like many did from what I can tell.
It’s tough for everybody out there right now. And my offer of contract employment as M$ seems to be dead as well (that sucks — I was really looking forward to working there and it was 1.7 miles away from my house), was supposed to start next Monday, and I got a call today to say they now don’t have the funding. God provides, so I’ll keep looking!
shawn » Jan 31, 2009 at 12:34 am
k Ray. I just use their site cause it is easy and they were one of the only ones that showed how long a property was on the market and the price reductions.
Markor » Jan 31, 2009 at 12:53 am
Thanks for sharing. M$ will need to get some work done eventually, and so hire contractors again.
Aaron » Jan 31, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Microsoft’s 5000 layoffs aren’t all in Washington, so either it’s wrong about Boeing or it’s wrong about Microsoft.
BondsOfSteel » Feb 1, 2009 at 10:52 am
Maybe I’m missing something, but Ballard is one of those places I think will be slaughtered. Tons of new luxury condos comming on the market… this market… well it’s like watching a Greek tragedy unfold.
With all the condos comming online at South Lake Union (aka Allentown), it would be a buyers market if it was still 2005-2007.
Plus, who would choose 15th and Market over say the Veer?
DavidB » Feb 1, 2009 at 3:27 pm
FYI, Ballard is part of Seattle. Ballard is not a city.
WestSideBilly » Feb 2, 2009 at 11:05 am
Some of you missed the joke there. Meshugy swore up and down that Ballard was special, somehow isolated from whatever may happen to the rest of Seattle.
DavidB » Feb 3, 2009 at 9:53 am
Interesting, I’d like to know how Ballard is so special. It’s become trendy over the past few years but I wouldn’t expect it to hold up better than any other Seattle neighborhoods.
I grew up here in Seattle and 25 years ago, no one would have believed Ballard would become a trendy place to live! It’s not where I’d choose to buy anything!