Tri-Cities growing like crazy

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Today's local news story that Pasco is the fastest growing city in Washington State, as well as our county, Franklin Co. I don't know if this is by sheer numbers or by percentage of population increase but people are moving here like we're the latest discovered best-kept secret in the country!!!



Our population has doubled in just 14 years! Went from about 24,000 to almost 50,000. Pasco is 1 of 3 cities clustered together here along the mighty Columbia with Kennewick and Richland. All together we're probably around 150,000. Richland and Kennewick are growing like wildfire too. I would say we were under 100,000 when I moved here 11 years ago. They are building mass developments and people keep buying 'em. Lots of high-end stuff too. A home in this fairly remote region of eastern Washington sold for an average of just over $100K in 2000. Now it's rocketed to $183K already this year.



Despite the dot.com bust and 9-11 our economy has been red-hot for the last few years. All I want to know is . . . . where the heck is everyone coming from?????



Vaughn

 

[CFast]

I hear ya. Down here in Fresno it's crazy. 5 years ago my I bought my house for 95K, now it's been appraised at 200K! It's getting stupid, over half the people here can't afford a house now. Where are they coming from, and where are they working? And, why are they moving here?

 

[Mille4212]

I feel your pain. Denver is just as bad anymore avarage price for a home in Denver is around 245,000 last time I heard.

 

[PJereb]

You don't even want to know....

I have an 1100 square foot 3 bed 2 bath 1972 track P. O. S. home with single pane windows, stucco and an 8,300 square foot lot. Its condition when we moved in "original". The place had no AC, and was in somewhat crappy condition.



Price paid in November of 2002 for this "fine" home in Livermore California (Very outside of the SF Bay Area)



EEEEEEK $340,000. 00



My wife and I both work our asses off to pay for a roof over our heads. That is why people are leaving the cities, because it is insane here. So they leave, and take their “Funny money” and drive up the prices elsewhere.



The only reason why I moved to the overpriced hell hole known as the "San Francisco Bay Area” is that both my wife and I have good Union jobs, and are getting training that we could never get in a small rural town. Hopefully we will be able to move back out of the hellhole within a year. As a plus, maybe we will walk away with a good down payment for a home wherever we choose to move, in trade for living in hell for 4 years.

 

[NVR FNSH]

Median home price in Sonoma County (60 miles north of SF on 101) is $450K... ... . and rising



Brian

 

[Mike Ellis]

All you folks living in the paradise areas (small towns, beautiful scenery) are just about to get dumped on BIG TIME. The first flood of baby boomers is hitting retirement age, and they're coming your way.



The boomers have lived in the cities stacked on top of each other for decades, now they are discovering the outdoors, RVs, toys, and "small town" life. Unfortunately they will also be bringing their own special brand of inept self-absorbed politics so they will transform your areas PDQ.



Here in Texas, Austin absorbed a huge number of young-to-middle-aged boomer types from California. They sold those $300K storage sheds in Cali for $500K, then discovered that $500K in Texas bought a LOT of home (3,000 sf plus). West Austin is covered with mini-mansions from the Cali transplants, and they have brought their hand-wringingly liberal politics with them. Watch out for that Left-Coasting effect in your towns, it will drive you nuts.



Since I am a boomer myself, I apologize to you boys for the pain you will soon suffer. On the positive side, you will have the enjoyment of watching boomers squander retirement savings on a scale never before seen...

 

[CFAR]

As someone who is originally from rural CA I can tell you, ha we finally got rid of some of them heheheheheheheheheh!.



But seriously, where I come from there is very little work, but the house prices are still high, why, retirees... .



Look at the Sacramento area, in the 4 years I was gone its exploded, if all these people come from the Bay Area or LA, who is taking buying taking their place. My $43k house I bought in 97', + 30k repairs, is now worth over 200k. What will happen if/when the interest rates go up?



And to set the record straight, most of the Liberal freaks that are "from California" originally came from somewhere else.

 

[rrausch]

So much of this growth is Immigration driven. Every year 1. 5 Million poor Immigrants move into all the big cities (and many small ones), and soon the crime, chaos, and contempt (of Americans) drive white people out of those neighborhoods. It becomes a sort of an upward-domino effect, as everybody is trying to get into safer neighborhoods. There are entire cities in So. Cal. which have been overwhelmed and "transformed" by this phenomenon.

 

[snowracer69]

holy crap!!! I agree with rrausch on something :--) what's wrong with me?

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Originally posted by Mike Ellis

All you folks living in the paradise areas (small towns, beautiful scenery) are just about to get dumped on BIG TIME. The first flood of baby boomers is hitting retirement age, and they're coming your way.

That's a scary thought but what you say makes sense! When commenting about our area growth they say a lot of people are retiring here.



Skyrocketing housing and no employment, how else do you figure it?



rrausch what you say has logic too, I think it's happening around here as well, displacing people from the east to west side of town (where the boom is happening).



Vaughn

 

[krs]

"Skyrocketing housing and no employment, how else do you figure it?



That's it, except they aren't necessarily retired (not by choice anyway). All those people have lost their jobs and the single largest asset they have is their home in high priced areas. So they sell the home and move to somewhere cheap. That releives them of a high mortgage and leaves enough in many cases to pay cash in the new area and keep living until the employment picture improves.

 

[CFast]

The next 30 years in this country are going to be real fun. With all the baby boomers retiring. Can't wait to work the next 30 years(i'm 27) to pay SS for all them. Just remeber who pays for, and works in the old folks homes, us young guys.

 

[NVR FNSH]

Originally posted by rrausch

So much of this growth is Immigration driven. Every year 1. 5 Million poor Immigrants move into all the big cities (and many small ones), and soon the crime, chaos, and contempt (of Americans) drive white people out of those neighborhoods. It becomes a sort of an upward-domino effect, as everybody is trying to get into safer neighborhoods. There are entire cities in So. Cal. which have been overwhelmed and "transformed" by this phenomenon.

I agree with you to a point, but I don't think you can attribute the skyrocketing housing prices in the SF Bay Area to immigration - the poor, flat out can't afford to live here.



Brian

 

[Andy Perreault]

Originally posted by rrausch

So much of this growth is Immigration driven. Every year 1. 5 Million poor Immigrants move into all the big cities (and many small ones), and soon the crime, chaos, and contempt (of Americans) drive white people out of those neighborhoods. It becomes a sort of an upward-domino effect, as everybody is trying to get into safer neighborhoods. There are entire cities in So. Cal. which have been overwhelmed and "transformed" by this phenomenon.

Immigrants flooding in while manufacturing jobs are going to China, Malaysia, etc. and tech jobs are being "outsourced" to India and wherever. Does this make sense?

Andy

 

[champspa]

the young guys are the ones that done it for the last generation , now it's our turn, sooner than you think it will be yours . the problem is the people we put in washinton [just to the north of me about a hundred miles or so] don't give a crap about you and have spent SS into a problem.

 

[CFast]

I'm not even planning on SS when I retire. I expect the gov't to somehow screw up whatever small amount is left after the Babyboomers suck it dry. by 2010 this country is going to be mostly old people. 55-65 will be the largest age group. I should buy stock in Buicks and golf equipment right now! Companies that make hip replacements and walkers would be good investments too. What else are you old folks gonna need?

 

[Andy Perreault]

Originally posted by CFast

What else are you old folks gonna need?

Hearing aids, from listening to too much loud rock 'n roll!

 

[CFast]

excellent! Time to drop my tech stocks and mutual funds.

 

[CougFan]

You would have to pay me a TON of money to live in the Tri Cities IMO.

 

[Bob Wagner]

GO COUGS