Roland Barcos

I agree with most of what you have to say, but have to dispute the grim outlook for boomers. Most boomers have probably been homeowners for 25-40 years and should have plenty of equity, regardless of the latest setback. The barrier is psychological rather than economic. It is sometimes difficult for people to accept that their home dropping in value doesn't represent a loss. If they paid $100k thirty years ago and the 2007 market value of $1.1 mil dropped to "only" $1 mil today, did they really lose $100k? It just looks to me like their gain dropped to $900k instead of $1 mil. How bad is that? Of course, whatever they are apt to buy is going to be less also and in California they could likely transfer their low property tax base. Boomers should feel good about their options to trade homes even in this horrible market and shouldn't obcess about a fictional loss from yesteryear's peak. Roland

These people believe they need to be compensated for a perceived loss in a down market, so I wonder if they would reward agents for any appreciation that an up market would provide. Since, in my area, most down markets are brief and less than 10% in value, and up markets last 3 to 5 years with gains of 50 to 100%, I kind of like that idea.