Made In The USA

[Sailfish]

The United States is a service based economy and has been for years - anyone who thinks creating manufacturing jobs is going to keep the country employed doesn't have much of a grasp on what makes this country run, or the manufacturing sector.

If this is true then we might as well pack it in now.
Only so many maid, janitor, mechanic and waitress jobs out there.
There are MILLIONS of undereducated people in this county. If we leave the manufacturing to some other country........we will be done in no time.

[Woods Walker]

Have you seen what's happening to real estate? Id' say we ARE done....or "swirling the bowl" at the very least.

[ranwin33]

The United States is a service based economy and has been for years - anyone who thinks creating manufacturing jobs is going to keep the country employed doesn't have much of a grasp on what makes this country run, or the manufacturing sector.

If this is true then we might as well pack it in now.
Only so many maid, janitor, mechanic and waitress jobs out there.
There are MILLIONS of undereducated people in this county. If we leave the manufacturing to some other country........we will be done in no time.

It is true - but first understand service. That would include computer techs, lawyers, doctors, mechanics, engineeers, landscapers, and most other jobs in our economy today. Look at all those big buildings in cities, they are filled with paper pushers and people providing services. Sorry, that is just the facts of life here in the U.S.A. And has been for years. Economies change, just as the U.S. went from an agrarian economy to a manufacturing economy in the early part of the last century. That does not mean we pack it in; it means we adapt.

The manufacturing has already been left to other countries, if you are waiting on it to return and bring new jobs to the U.S., good luck and enjoy being unemployed.

[ranwin33]

Have you seen what's happening to real estate? Id' say we ARE done....or "swirling the bowl" at the very least.

I just wish farm land would come down in price. I would not mind buying some more, but in our area it still goes from anywhere between $2k and $5k an acre. One of these days that bubble will burst and I hope to be in position to take advantage.

Real estate has for the most part leveled off, although good luck trying to sell anything. But if you have a good job and do not already own a house, this is a prime opportunity to buy a first home. Both my nephew and my daughter have taken advantage of the depressed market and purchased homes they would not have otherwise been able to afford.

I don't think we are swirling the bowl, I think maybe we are all that stuff that comes back up when it gets plugged.

[Woods Walker]

It may have leveled off in Missouri, but it's still divebombing here in northern Illinois. Our homes here now are worth what they were about 20 years ago. Many people are being ruined, and there's no end in sight.

[ranwin33]

Sorry to hear about the situation in northern Illinois. I was in Chicago not that long ago, and things seemed to be going well.

The end in sight - about 3 years, maybe a little sooner. The job market will start to turn in 2015 and by 2018 the labor force will not be large enough to fill all the jobs available. With nearly 50% of the workforce in some major industry sectors ready to retire in the next 5 years, the current recession will turn to a boom. Companies in the energy, transportation and manufacturing sectors are already very concerned, knowing they will have jobs needing to be filled and no viable workpool from which to draw.

Of course that does not do much good for people now.

I wish you better fortune in the coming year.

[Woods Walker]

Maybe my view is a bit jaundiced, because my business is (or was) associated with the housing/building industry, and that's flat lined. Not only that, but very few people here are putting ANY money into their homes...short of vital necessities...because the reality is that a home right now is no longer a good investment. I've lived in my home for 22 years, and if I take what I might be able to get for it now, weighed against what I've paid in property taxes and insurance over the past two decades, and I come out a loser....a BIG loser. I'd have been far better renting. Until that changes, then we will continue to spiral down.

[ranwin33]

Granted, real estate values have declined precipitously during the past 4 years, but I do not believe anyone is a loser who bought there home using a fixed rate mortgage with a plan to stay in their home for some time. Values will rebound, and a home investment with the associated tax and interest write-offs is better than paying rent. Even if you only get from your home what you pay for it when you do sell it, its better than making all those monthly payments and getting nothing when you move.

Now people who tried the home flipping route, or people who bought homes with inflated values using variable rate mortgages where they had to refinance in 3-5 years might be in trouble if part of that refinance calls for a home reappraisal.

I understand economy associated with housing construction - I live in Johnson County Kansas where much of the affluence has been built on new construction. There are a lot of big time contractors who went under, there are a lot of housing developments with paved roads and street lighting and only the model homes finished. It is sad. But some part of me also feels like these guys got what they deserved and created many of their own problems given the price they were charging for things and the attitude they had toward customer service.

Last year we tried to have someone come out and build about half a mile of fencing on our farm down south. Of the 7 fencing contractors we called, 2 showed up for the appointments they scheduled. Of those two only one got back to us with a quote, and in this down economy he wanted $8 a running foot to install a basic woven wire fence in cleared field. Seems like a lot of people in the building industry around here still would rather not work, than work at a competitive prices. I am not even going to get into all the problems we have had with builders/contractors/electricians/plumbers so thats why I get a littly testy when people start praising American workers being better than anyone else - I have run into far too many who should be spanked.

[Woods Walker]

WOW! It is SO different up here. I'm bidding work for almost HALF of what I was turning it away for 6 years ago, and I STILL didn't get many jobs. Contractors here are almost at the point of paying the HOMEOWNER for the privilege of working for them.

And as far as being better off buying....I bought my house 22 years ago, well before the boom. Right now, if I were lucky I could get what I paid for it or maybe a little more, but I've also paid $160,000.00 in property taxes too in that time. When you weigh that it, it's a loser. In this area right now, you can't afford to keep your home, and you can't sell it for anything. Nice.......

And BTW.....my current property tax bill has the place valued for almost 50% MORE than what the current market would bring. And yes, I've tried to get them to change that. They won't. Must be nice to be in a position where you can charge people whatever the hell you like knowing that they have no other choice.

[ranwin33]

WOW! It is SO different up here. I'm bidding work for almost HALF of what I was turning it away for 6 years ago, and I STILL didn't get many jobs. Contractors here are almost at the point of paying the HOMEOWNER for the privilege of working for them.

And as far as being better off buying....I bought my house 22 years ago, well before the boom. Right now, if I were lucky I could get what I paid for it or maybe a little more, but I've also paid $160,000.00 in property taxes too in that time. When you weigh that it, it's a loser. In this area right now, you can't afford to keep your home, and you can't sell it for anything. Nice.......

And BTW.....my current property tax bill has the place valued for almost 50% MORE than what the current market would bring. And yes, I've tried to get them to change that. They won't. Must be nice to be in a position where you can charge people whatever the hell you like knowing that they have no other choice.

RE: Property Tax - OUCH! In 22 years we have paid less than $22k in property tax on our place. At one time it was bank appraised at $200k but now is appraised at about $160k. For tax purposes it is at $116k, up from the $90k it was appraised at before we did quite a bit of outside work.

I would try again on the reappraisal - our farm was appraised too high, of course anytime something gets bought they try to change to value to the actual purchase cost. It took a trip to a mediator and we were prepared to go to the third round if needed, but we got the appraised value cut by 25%.

Here in KS, by law, properties can only be appraised at fair market value. If the same is true in Illinois, and you can prove the fair market value of your property, they have no alternative but to revalue it - the people at the county may not be willing to do that unless pushed, but in the end they have no option. But I have no clue what the laws are in Illinois, but be assured there are laws in place determining how property taxes are figured. Might be worth investigating what your next steps are if you have only done the first round.