Ilyce Glink over on 
’s MoneyWatch.com blog is bellyaching that home prices are still falling. While, this is not the best news, it has increased affordability and made it possible for many young families to buy their first homes. In these tough times, short sales are one
way an individual can up their socioeconomic standing.
Even Glink’s own anecdotes seem to contradict her feelings on falling home prices. She tells the story of an elderly woman who penny pinched her entire life, so that one day she’d be able to retire in her own home. And with the help of the $8,000 tax credit offered by the Obama administration, she was finally able to purchase a foreclosed home.
She also tells the story of a doctor, who lost his shirt in the stock market, so he teamed up with a Realtor and now rents out investment properties he will turn around and sell once the market bounces back, Glink describes this as a “no lose formula.” I definitely know a few Orange County area plastic surgeons that could use this tactic to make up for a loss in
patient volume!
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, who Glink quotes in her blog post says, “Fortunately, home buyers are being attracted to deeply discounted prices and are bidding up many foreclosed listings, particularly in California, Nevada, and Florida –this will set the stage for healthy market conditions going forward.”
So, while the current housing market is not ideal, especially since it comes bundled with a rise in unemployment and a disastrous financial market, foreclosed homes and short sales are providing opportunities to first time home buyers and seniors and allowing investors to recoup some of the funds they have lost in stocks.
Ms. Glink, short sales are the ever-present silver lining in a market full of cloudy days.
Minda Reves is a freelance blogger for SHORTsense.com