Words of wisdom from my father! They are still true today. He survived the great depression, literally making his own way in the world starting at the age of 13 as his family had fallen apart and he was forced to strike out on his own during very trying times. He dropped out of school in the 8th grade! He made it to WWII, serving in the Marine Corp. and wound up on Iwo Jima during the famous assault, ducking bullets while working with the Navajo Code Talkers in the radio fox hole. After the war had ended, which he had survived, he learned to fly on the GI bill and was subsequently hired by United Airlines, where he enjoyed a distinguished and stellar career as a airline pilot until his retirement....Whew!
As you can imagine, he went through a lot - the best of times and worst of times! I respect his insight - that from a man who became self-educated, and persevered through very difficult circumstances. His final passing, to me, will be sad, but he will be immortal in that the wisdom he imparted to me will never die. The title words are those that he frequently repeated, and I think about them in today's context.
When the real estate market was red-hot just a short time ago, he would have counseled caution - i.e., don't necessarily follow the herd! By the time everyone had realized what a lucrative market we where in, it was too late to enter - just like a hot stock market cycle. Many people are now feeling the pain of getting in at the peak. Now look at the downturn we are in - the same caution applies - be patient, don't panic, and don't do what the herd is doing at this point. Ride it out. It will improve. The key is really to take the long view in real estate, just like in investing in stocks. Stock market timers, on average, don't fair as well as the steady investors. Buy your home to live in. Over time, it will appreciate - on average. The people hurting the most now are the ones who leveraged their assets to purchase investment property which they had intended to "flip", hence the bankruptcies, etc.
Bottom line: ride through these economic waves with a steady plan and, over time, you will be in great shape financially!