For investors, I am pretty sure people will agree real estate market is more comfortable get into rather than stock market or FX market. And, investing is so called investing, the rule number one is high risk high return. Any one of investors should understand it fully and be well prepared before they get into playing a role.
it's funny but there's a contradiction there.
the notion that RE is less risky than stock market, etc is what got alot of people into trouble;
and unfortunately RE is still touted by many as a sure thing.
ask yourself, how many times have you heard RE investing having any risk except from some fellow members here who try to give a balanced view with pros/cons/data. (forget doomers that say values will drop by 50% without any supporting facts, etc)
almost every time i hear a RE agent quoted, it's always a good time to buy;
RE always goes up; buy before you get priced out; etc.
there are many out there that think the past 15 years of unprecedented RE appreciation is normal, especially those in the 20-35 year old (ie typical 1st-time buyer) and alot of RE agents are touting that to buyers.
there's also an erroneous statement by many that say we won't have a dramatic correction b/c interest rates will not hit the rates of 15-20% from the late '80s.
while i agree that those rates will most likely not be seen, we don't need to see those exact figures to have a dramatic effect.
when the BofC bank rate is at 0.50% (and 5-yr/10-yr bond yields are 2.70-3.65%), an increase of a few hundred basis points to a historical average of 5.00% (6.50%) will/can have a similar effect by increasing the monthly mortgage payment by 30+% ...
