This Time Its Different

"'South Florida, he said, is working off of a totally new economic model than any of us have ever experienced in the past'. Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors, predicted."

"'I just don't think we have what it takes to prick the bubble', said Diane C. Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial. 'I don't think prices are going to fall, and I don't think they're even going to be flat'."

"It just seems like everyone is doing it," Laurie Romano, a 26-year-old self-described real estate investor, said with a giggle."

"Perhaps the most troubling similarity, some analysts say, is the claim that the rules have somehow changed. In an echo of the New Economy investors' blase attitude toward unprofitable companies, the growing ranks of real estate investors are buying houses they never expect to be able to rent at a profit. Instead, they think the prices of houses will just keep rising."

"Holly Peterson, who is writing a novel about the idiosyncrasies of New York's rich, said that..she frequently hears complaints about high home prices, followed by claims of quick profits. 'They always hit you with their last jab: 'Of course my money's doubled three times over since I got married,' " she said.

"Five years ago, she said, friends at parties were crowing about "making millions of dollars on paper with $25,000 and $50,000 investments." But "most of those people," she added, "got wiped out."New York Times