Are Hurricane Prone Areas Losing Population Due To Fear Of Storms Or Housing Slowdown?
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Owning real estate in hurricane prone regions of the country has always had it’s risks. So after a particularly bad stretch of storms over the past few years one would expect the population to decline.
And it has, by about 1 percent since 2000.
Of course, according to the study by USA Today, the regions hardest hit by Katrina are the ones which have lost the greatest population. That is obvious as they are still rebuilding nearly 3 years later.
What is interesting is how the housing slowdown has played into this. For Has the housing slowdown affected those trying to move to Florida from the north? I think so.
First selling a home in the upper Midwest and northeast has been tough. Add to that the falling housing prices in Florida. This combination has not rushed potential buyers to make that buying decision.
So will this trend continue? I doubt it.
The lure of coastal living is too strong to the human spirit. Once housing prices stabilize and the market regains it’s equilibrium, I think the trend of buyers to the coast will continue as strongly as it has before the series of storms and the housing slowdown. Hurricanes be damned.
The number of people who live in coastal areas that are most vulnerable to wind and water has fallen slightly since 2000, reversing a boom that brought tens of thousands of homes and high-rises to low-lying regions from Texas to Georgia, a USA TODAY analysis shows.
About 2.1 million people live full-time in those areas, down less than 1% over the past eight years.
That doesn’t mean Americans are thinking twice about living in vulnerable spots, says Robert Hartwig, president of the Insurance Information Institute. Instead, he says, the slowdown is more likely a result of a housing market crunch that’s left some homes vacant — and others half-built — in once fast-growing parts of the South. USATODAY.com
It probably is a really good time to buy real estate - monthly payments are about equal to market rents ...
The part about the inventory is right on but in my area they are mostly low end and beat up ...
I worked for this man, he is a great con man and has done this in more than States then ...
You're right. If you come from Central Jersey (as the Boss and I do), you go to Florida at some ...
Maybe it was kryptonite...
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By Mike ...
I couldn't agree more.
The newspaper has always "stuck" it to the real estate agent with rates that were much higher ...
By the way, homeowners trying to get short sale approval should be aware that lenders are comparing the initial loan ...
Ouch! Thankfully I haven't come across anything like that yet. We normally don't have situations like that in ...
well, the guy was here illegally.
serves him right. 
BY USING FIRST CLAIM INSURANCE ADJUSTERS YOU WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO LOOK AT YOUR INSURANCE SETTLEMENT AND REALIZE FIRST ...
Comment by Susan Hilton - Texas Aggie Realtor in College Station Home Sales on 31 May 2008:
I can’t imagine people that really want to live by the water letting a little hurricane keeping them away.
Comment by cannibal on 5 June 2008:
Better to live in tornado country, where you get killed without warning. No more hurricane evacuation anxieties.
Comment by Tom on 5 June 2008:
Cannibal
Man I disagree. I grew up on the ocean and now live in a tornado prone region. I will take a hurricane in an instant over tornadoes.
Comment by Aaron Pugh on 8 August 2008:
The real estate market is showing signs of improvement. The sales are up and the inventory is still high. These are good signs of a strong buyers market. Please email with any questions. Thanks. Aaron Pugh