Real Estate Investing

“And the rich keep getting richer,” so the old saying goes. It seems now is one of those times when the saying is true. About 77% of the wealthiest people in America think the current state of the real estate market presents a “real opportunity,” and 40% plan to capitalize by purchasing real estate within the year. The group surveyed in American Express Publishing Corp.’s Annual Survey of Affluence in America is defined as households with discretionary income in excess of $500,000 per year.

Other groups included in the survey ranged from “upper middle class,” with incomes between $100,000 and $149,000, and “super affluent,” with incomes between $250,000 and $499,000. The vast majority of all income brackets agreed that now is the time to seize the day in the real estate world. Still, only 17% to 26% were committed to buying real estate within the year in those income brackets, nowhere close to the 40% in the wealthiest category.

This should come as good news to the 14% of homeowners who expressed concern they might miss payments in the next six months, according to the AP-AOL poll released Monday. As for average citizens, 60% stated they would definitely not buy a home in the next two years and only 11% expressed certainty that they would do so. Maybe we average citizens could delve into the real estate market if we go rob a bank play the stock market buy lottery tickets.