Beware the Media!

Long-time friends and colleagues know me well enough to know that I take in my news with a fair amount of skepticism. No matter who you are listening to (in and out of media) its wise to keep mindful of their bias and objectives. Its a pretty simple rule. This is why the nightly news advertises stories about which of your dinner ingredients might kill you tonight!... but the story runs at 11pm... they just want some attention so they can sell commercial time to their advertisers.

Look at the difference between two different stories on the topic of baby-boomers and the implications for housing. From the perspective of Real Estate and Mortgage companies, Realty Times reports of the generation "They've got all the money ... They've got all the real estate, too". The article makes the case for the next wave of Real Estate activity with baby-boomers leading the charge by buying 2nd homes and vacation property. This is no new speculation by the way; stories about this appear weekly.

But look at this article. It basically reports that baby-boomers are far more likely to remodel their homes than move to the beach, or the desert, or to buy a 2nd home on the shore of some lake. And who is behind the so-called study? Home Depot!

The only way you can get a sense of anything out there, especially in the real estate market, is to get as many angles and opinions as possible. Do your best to triangulate reality among all of the self-serving junk in the news.