Gas Prices and Real Estate

Yeah, there is a correlation. the gas goes up cause of the real estate crash last year, then effect to the stock market market crash, so the panic investor turn their investment into commodities which caused the oil priced skyrocketing, then the high energy price turned into more crisis.

it was a snowballing process.

let's find a way to make those commodities looks suck.

The gas price...wow

The real-estate/mortgage disaster...self inflicted All got caught ~

Passion to know the difference and curb the inflictiion. The economy was very ill...now just getting more ill.

There is little any homeowner or real estate investor
can do about the stock market price of a barrel of oil.
Oil is purchased and sold globally everyday (supposedly)
based on supply and demand. The price of oil affects the
prices of a gallon of gasoline which varies from country
to country, state to state, city to city, and locally from gas
station to gas station.

Selling your home and moving into or closer to the area
where you work should be carefully considered. There
is much more at stake when you relocate. For example,
will your property taxes rise? Will the price of your rent
or mortgage be affordable? Moving expenses, telephone
and cable charges, electricity, water and other expenses
should be added to determine the actual cost of relocating.
When you change your address there is a service charge
you will have to pay to reconnect the service.

If you have children attending school ,will the quality of their
education be better or worse? Schools are not all equal.
If they are involved in after-school activities, how will they be
affected by this change? How wil this change affect the
friendhips they have developed with other students?

If you are single, without children, will you let the price of gas
affect your social life? Often the price of food at restaurants are
higher the closer you get to large metropolitan areas.
Entertainment can cost more even if there is greater variety.

Will your paycheck remain the same or will you get a raise to
justify these new expenses?

Gas prices fluctuate and so does the price of real estate.
If you can find real estate at a price you can afford without
putting yourself into a disaster ( like a future foreclosure
because you failed to do your homework) then "go for it!"

"Moving on up" has always been a real estate goal.
Just be sure you're moving UP not DOWN.

When fuel prices go up, people will bite the bullet for awhile first, then they will likely drive a little less and finally move towards smaller, more economic vehicles. What they DO NOT do is uproot their lives to embrace urbanism ESPECIALLY if they have children. No offense, but I think the premise of this article is somewhat humorous to me.

If anything, I actually think that telecommuting will continue to grow, which will to a small degree reduce dependancy on driving. But no, I don't see fuel prices as the core issue of white flight, which is IME a strong driving factor in more recent decades' suburbanization. I understand the history of the suburb and how our infrastructure was built largely with the automobile in mind, but that has changed since the political upheaval of the 1960's.

What I do see is continued urban renewal for younger types and a strong future in (increasingly) more rural, secured neighborhoods and communities for those with children and retirement to consider. That's where I would diversify my money.

Personally, to move to the city on my income and all things considered, my lifestyle would be reduced by about 4X.

One of the things people don't seem to want to change
is mass transit. Buses are everywhere but alot of people
view this as a stigma instead of an affordable means of
transportation. For instance, in Connecticut where I live,
there are buses that follow a regular schedule everyday.
I took a bus into New Haven to go to a Trump
Institute Real Estate seminar because I didn't want to
drive in congested traffic with maniacs that run each
other off the road to get to their destination 10 seconds
earlier. Parking is a big problem too.

I have to admit I didn't like the experience. The people
on the bus did not look professional. In fact, many of
them looked like street people. Why?

If hard-working people are so interested in the cost of
gas, why aren't they using the services that already
exist?

Is this an Arrogant American Stereotype that
needs to be changed?

@ Cheryle-

Thanks for the posts and please continue to come back and do so. Your opinion is valued here. Brett

My husband and I just don't know what to do. We moved out here in Ozawkie,Kansas seven years ago to get away from Topeka, Kansas to start a new life. . Now due to the cost of gas we might have to give up what we call our dream home to move to the city. We really don't want to but what else can you do. He works part-time at the Post Office we are hoping he gets full time soon. He worked and I mean worked for Payless shoe Source for 20 years then they annonced a closing so my husband left and took the buy out. But that didn't last long . We are hoping I don't lose my job because the work load is so slow and my company lost a major contract. (Medicare Contract) I am hanging in there and will stay as long as my company will keep me. We have been lucky to make ends meet. We have manged to pay his truck off and working on paying the car off. We both work 30 miles away from home. so therefore gas gets alittle tough. Sometimes I think about owning more real estate but don't have the first clue about it. I even thought about buying houses and fixing them up and flipping for profit but can't even afford or know how to get started. Where can I get this information to get started or to make an extra income. We have now had our house on the market for 1 1/2 years . Thanks for letting me vent.

Mr. Carmen, I would say your predictions are right on. My sister and her husband have just done this. They left a beautiful spacious house on the river, in a great neighborhood, in one city, to move to a smaller house and lot with a view of a big box store, but it is just a few blocks from work. The only reason - cost of fuel.

It seems gas and heating fuel prices seem to run the same slope. Being in a rural community, here, as far as housing, we are seeing lots of wood stoves being installed. I believe that the few who are building will probably be looking for cost effective energy efficient products and designs to reduce costs as well. Also, vacation homes are up for sale.

I utterly agree to the article that the two has the correlation. Moreover, it already explained the reason why. These days, soaring gas prices is one of the burdens that most folks are being worried about. And if it will continue to rise on its cost, many people will surely force to ride on public transportation rather than use their own car to be able to save their money. Survival is the thing on everyone’s mind since the recession started on December 2007. Many people have turned to their grandparents for advice on what they did for survival during the Great Depression, when stock prices plummeted, the economy tanked, almost a full third of Americans were out of work, and there weren't installment loans to float them. Well, they tightened their belts and did whatever they had to do to get through it, and they also knew that as long as they kept at it, and didn't despair, things would turn around, which is exactly what we should do today. Being resourceful is one of the keys in order to survive. Read here http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2009/03/18/tough-economic-tim...