THE HOUSING BOOM!
When we sold our first home we felt good about the selling price. A few years later it was selling for $50,000.00 more. We missed that real estate boom! When we sold our property and mobile home it was okay. When we sold our third home it also was okay and the home we bought wasn’t bad. Usually we were just in the market to buy or sell but not necessarily out to beat the market, or to fulfill a dream.

One of my favorite TV shows is HGTV, House Hunters. I guess you could say I am a ‘lookie lu’ at heart. For the last eight years I have looked at homes that I wouldn’t give a nickle for but the housing market was asking astronomical amounts of dollars. Condo’s, town houses, row houses and even the Co-op, where you buy the apartment and pay a monthly property fee, were asking half a million dollars. Some places you could buy a home with land, for the same price.

The most interesting thing is that people were paying the price. Some years ago, one of our nieces was paying $1200.00/month for a rental which I thought was outrageous, because the payment depended upon whether they could sell a Cadillac per month. I guess you can tell my age just by how I look at the housing market. Well, as you all know the housing market has crashed but it hasn’t come down far enough for me to want any part of it.

The real estate market has always had it’s ups and downs. It has always been a good investment! Today it is suffering because of the greed that has become common place in our culture. Greed for money; greed for the biggest and the best; greed for more and more. Why is it that we can’t seem to be satisfied? Why do we seem to want more than we need?

If the banks were willing to give loans to those who’s credit were suspect, the banks deserved their up-comings. Those who took out loans when their income was not sufficient deserved what was ahead. I am not being mean, nor am I condescending! I just think that we need to use our common sense. We need to look ahead! It is true that our eyes are bigger than our stomachs, but we stretch and stretch until we can’t stretch any further. We burst and ask; "What just happened?" We all fall pray to what the world has to offer, but can it satisfy?

"Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law". Romans 13:8. I find scripture interesting because we live in a society that buys and sells. We buy on credit and we fill our cupboards with lots of stuff and still want more. We have yard sales to get rid of excess stuff and go to yard sales to find bargains. "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another:" Galatians 5:13. We are free in Christ to live Godly lives but often we use our freedom to make us look good.

"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you would." Galatians 5:16-17 We all have our opinions as to how we should spend our money. We can’t take it with us and our culture tells us we need it to live our lives to the fullest.

I recently read that God doesn’t mean that owning things is bad. We need clothing, shelter and food. The problems come when our possessions take over our lives and we have no room for God. Living beyond our means is not living in the Spirit. God provided for Elisha through the Shunammite Woman. Within her means she prepared a room for Elisha and he was comfortable when he came into her community; 2 Kings 4:8-17. Living comfortably is a good thing! Can we look past the housing boom and rest in God’s goodness? Can we pick up the pieces of bankruptcy and foreclosure and begin again? Who is your Real Estate Agent? Jane Ann.