Super Stock Blog

Let's make our own bull run!

Month: January 2009

United States Real Estate Prices Expected to Go Lower

Looking at the prices of real estate in the 2005-2006 levels, we had homes in California going over $500k-600k that have now dropped 30-40% from these levels.  The median price of a home in March 2007 as reported by C.A.R. was an astounding $582,930 for a single-family detached home.  In March 2008, this dropped 29% to $413,980.  The projected for 2009 will be at $358,000.  With federal interest rates at all-time lows 0-.25% and the trend continuing from December 2008, we can expect things to finally stop declining.  This does mean there will be huge changes but it does mean growth will finally begin and you can expect prices to start steadying out.

The line between interest rates and california housing prices is not a direct connection especially with the inflated house prices.  The prices we saw from 2005-2006 in California will not be those levels for quite a long time.  Also, remember prices move inversely with interest rates.  Nationally, when the interest rates start rising again which will probably be a while with the economy these days, the prices of the houses will have to decrease to retain affordability.  Before that even occurs, the housing price levels still need to fall furthur.

There’s no stock tips in this article, but some strong information concerning the real estate situation.  The California real estate is not representative of the whole national situation but it does help reflect many of the problems we are seeing nationally and I hope it helps clarify what to expect in the future.  Check out this link to see a bit more of where this housing trend will continue and what we should be doing right now.

Dividends are the Way to Richness Part II

Smirnoff, Jonnie Walker, Guiness, Baileys, Captain Morgan, Cuervo, have you heard of any of these liquors?  All of these are owned by Diageo, stock ticker DEO, and they continue to sell even during our current depression.  An article from Smart Money states that “Diageo’s balance sheet, paradoxically, can become stronger the longer some of its products sit in the warehouse. That’s because while the products of most companies lose value the longer they remain unsold, more than a quarter of Diageo’s revenues come from some form of whiskey, which often commands higher prices as it gets older.”  How many companies do you know have inventory that makes more money the longer it sits?  This company can sell during good times and bad because everyone around the world drinks.  The president is even shifting advertising to the more ‘moderately’ priced alcohol because of the economic slowdown.  Sounds like they have all corners covered.

With a dividend yield of 6.10% at the current price of $52.08, this looks to be a great  bargain.  Even if the prices drop furthur and the economy goes down, you will get a much better yield from this then the bank.  You might as well drink some of those woes away while waiting also, and you can with the dividend.  Maybe your drink is some delicious Bailey’s on the rocks, or you like to mix it up with Bailey’s and Guiness, whatever your preference, you will be living up to drinks that continue to sell in bars, liquor stores, markets, etc.

Dividend Stocks Are the Way to Richness

I’ve been doing research on dividend stocks lately.  As the market continues to plummet and things continue to worsen, dividend stocks will allow you to continue to win.  They work for long-term investors.  People that can wait it out a few years.  As they wait, they get rewarded.  I have a couple stocks I like currently that are pretty safe and if you have money to invest it will make you pretty rich in a few years.

RSO, Resource Capital Corporation, is a very conservative REIT.  They give out loans to commercial buildings.  As the whole subprime mess unraveled, they continued to make profit and collect mortages.  They did an excellent job of checking their clients out and making sure they would not default on their loans.  Their stock has plummeted to a low as of friday to $3.09.  This is a very cheap price for a stock that is giving a dividend yearly of $1.56.  That means if you buy it right now, you will have a dividend of 50.50%!  In just two years, you will not only make your money back but you will continue to collect awesome dividends.  If you are thinking this might be a little risky, here’s a link that tells how they have been punished by the subprime crisis.

HTE, Harvest Energy Trust, is a open-ended investment trust in Canada.  Their primary investments are in oil-related industries including shale-mining, oil refining, and drilling.  They also do invest heavily in petroleum and natural gas.  Right now, with crude oil hitting lows of $33, their stock price has dropped to $8.71.  This is a real bargain for a stock yielding $2.85.  This gives you a dividend of 32.80%.  As with all stocks, make sure you do your due diligence!  I mention DD because HTE will get taxed in 2011 by the Canadian government and this will lower the dividend.  I do believe buying at this time will continually yield a pretty good dividend.  As oil prices go back up, you will see this stock price go up and you will happily be enjoying a nice dividend no matter what happens in the future.  I do believe oil prices will rebound, and I also believe this will rebound sooner than later.

If you have some money in your bank, put some of it in these two stocks.  Why not collect a fatty dividend!  When the market finally moves up, you will continually be rewarded and when the time comes when you need to sell, you can surely bet the price of these stocks will be more than it is right now!