Vida en el Valle Logo

Thousands stuck in starter homes | Vida en el Valle

×
HOME SUBSCRIPTIONS
  • E-edition
  • Home
    • Customer Service
    • About Us
    • Contact Us

    • News
    • State
    • California
    • Fresno
    • Merced
    • Modesto
    • Sacramento
    • Stockton
    • Government/Politics
    • Special Reports
    • Nation & World
    • Sports
    • International Sports
    • Opinion
    • Cartoons
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Submit a Letter
    • Living
    • Entertainment

    • Fresno
    • Merced
    • Modesto
    • Sacramento
  • Classifieds
  • Place An Ad
  • Jobs
  • Cars
  • Homes
  • Rentals
  • Daily Deals

Nation & World

Thousands stuck in starter homes

Rick Daysog - The Sacramento Bee

    ORDER REPRINT →

August 29, 2011 03:38 AM

They're trapped, like so many members of their generation.

Steve and Tasha McLaughlin have had two kids since they bought their two-bedroom "Brady Bunch"-style house in South Natomas seven years ago. They need more room, but they can't move: The house they bought for $256,000 is worth just $90,000, and an attempt to sell it failed.

"We are literally stuck," said Tasha McLaughlin, 33. "There's no light ahead."

The McLaughlins and tens of thousands of others like them in the Sacramento region are unable to take the traditional second step on the American home ownership ladder. They are captive to outsized mortgages born in a real estate bubble, which have balances much higher than the homes are now worth.

During the boom years, young families could sell their first homes to buy larger ones, using the equity they built up in their starter models. But for those who bought at the height of the market, plunging prices have wiped out their equity and then some.

Many of these people haven't lost their jobs and aren't behind on their mortgage payments, so they don't qualify for a loan modification that could shave off big chunks from their monthly housing payments.

"If you bought in the last few years, you're not going to have a lot equity, and you're going to be stuck for a while," said Andy Thielen, a Realtor with Lyon Real Estate's downtown office.

One of the only ways to move with intact credit is to rent out the first house and buy a second, bigger one to live in. But only those owners with enough money for a second down payment can afford to pursue that course.

The forced absence of so many young adults from the homebuying market has eroded demand for move-up houses, a crucial piece of the local real estate economy.

Andrew LePage is an analyst with DataQuick, a San Diego real estate information firm. He said the lack of move-up buyers can easily be detected by looking at what's happened to sales of homes in the $250,000-to-$600,000 range.

In 2006-07, when the local market was near its peak, that segment accounted for 70 percent to 80 percent of all sales in the Sacramento region, according to DataQuick. These days, homes in that price range account for less than 19 percent.

To read the complete article, visit www.sacbee.com.

  Comments  

Videos

Padres puertorriqueños agradecidos con el Nicklaus Children's Hospital por salvar a su hija

Fotos capturan el caos del tiroteo en el concierto de Las Vegas

View More Video

things to do

Read Next

Maduro destina 1,000 millones de euros para “embellecer” a Venezuela

News

Maduro destina 1,000 millones de euros para “embellecer” a Venezuela

EFE

    ORDER REPRINT →

January 30, 2019 10:16 AM

El gobernante venezolano Nicolás Maduro informó este miércoles que destinó 1,000 millones de euros para embellecer las ciudades más pobladas en medio de la contracción económica del país y de la crisis de legitimidad que atraviesa su gobierno..

KEEP READING

MORE NATION & WORLD

Exilio venezolano en Miami se une a marchas de Guaidó y rechaza legislativas

Politics & Government

Exilio venezolano en Miami se une a marchas de Guaidó y rechaza legislativas

January 30, 2019 10:59 AM
El papa pide ‘transparencia’ y ‘honestidad’ de los Gobiernos desde Panamá

Nation & World

El papa pide ‘transparencia’ y ‘honestidad’ de los Gobiernos desde Panamá

January 24, 2019 10:56 AM
Pompeo pide a fuerzas de seguridad proteger Guaidó y anuncia ayuda Venezuela

Nation & World

Pompeo pide a fuerzas de seguridad proteger Guaidó y anuncia ayuda Venezuela

January 24, 2019 10:01 AM
Death toll from México pipeline blast rises to 79

Nation & World

Death toll from México pipeline blast rises to 79

January 20, 2019 10:23 AM
Pablo Ibar, una agónica lucha por evitar la pena de muerte

Nation & World

Pablo Ibar, una agónica lucha por evitar la pena de muerte

January 18, 2019 11:00 AM
Testigo asegura que el Chapo pagó $100 millones al expresidente Peña Nieto

Nation & World

Testigo asegura que el Chapo pagó $100 millones al expresidente Peña Nieto

January 16, 2019 08:44 AM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Subscriptions
  • Subscriber Services
Learn More
  • Customer Service
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
Advertising
  • Information
  • Place a Classified
  • Find&Save Local Shopping
Copyright
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story