40,000+ JOBS - GONE

8.30.07

The fallout from the turmoil in the financial services industry has resulted in the loss of over 40,000 jobs at mortgage lending institutions since the start of the year (25,000 this month alone), according to one news report I heard last week. It may not be over and bonuses for many may be much smaller this year. A percentage, small I hope, of those jobs probably belong to people in the Northeast, who might be current, or future buyers of real estate around our NW corner.

It will take some time for things to settle for any accurate short, or long, term prognosis of the real estate market for this particular area; yet some of my past comments made during other uncertain periods remain absolutely the same:

• The NW corner is unique in enough ways to continue to attract knowledgeable buyers who have the means to purchase property here and understand why it is such a lovely place to be; and



• The continued preservation of our area by Conservation Easements, the extensive State Forests, and other similar actions will keep prices relatively high since supply does not change (read grow) appreciably from year to year, in categories most sought by discerning buyers.

The Labor Day weekend is the last "leisure" weekend for many although families have been driving kids off to schools and colleges all week. Fall can be a busy time but this Fall may prove to be somewhat different as some buyer categories have to figure out their long term strategies, and future.

©2007 R Leech features