Amazon created a concrete shortage

[NoTrespassing]

The apples in California are giant Honeycrisp Quarter Pounders. The apples where I live are tiny unedible crabapples. Real estate hasn't risen much around East Central Illinois where I live. I paid a little over $3,000 an acre 22 years ago and I think my property might be worth five thousand per acre if I'm lucky. Back in the 80s when Manufacturing was big in this area home prices and property values were up. All that manufacturing left and depressed the local economy. Real estate has never really recovered.

 

[NoTrespassing]

I drive about 70 miles round trip to work in a college town where wages are higher. The cost of living 35 Mi away from that town is about 3/4 what it is in the college town, maybe less than that.

 

[ljjhouser]

When my boss says "I can't find anyone to work" then I say "pay more".

I think it is good for business to compete for good workers, rather than workers compete for good jobs. The truth is good pay, good benefits and opportunity for a good standard of living used to be important. Workers don't need a job that pays $12-$15 dollars an hour. That will never buy a new car of even pay most rent or house payments. They really need a career that can pay for a family security. Drifting from job to job (with no specific trade or skill), cannot provide opportunity for future security. Good workers, job security, better pay and better benefits can insure workers.
Any community should welcome the opportunity for business to compete for workers.

 

[ljjhouser]

As I read about empty Walmart and Kmart buildings, as though they are a hazard to our society or country, I thought -That is true. It does seem to take a long time to tear down the older buildings.
So I went to Wikipedia to get some information and educate myself. I thought - how many years was Kmart and it's founders in business hiring local people?
It seems that Kmart was first S.S Kresge corporation founded in 1899. Then Kresge Corp was renamed Kmart in 1977. (according to Widipedia - which is good enough for me).
So, now I wonder how many people had jobs and income because of this closed enterprise?? Is an empty building is so important to us that it should have never been built? Wonder how many of our early family members were glad to get jobs there. How about Sears and Montgomery Wards. Should they have never existed. Were the jobs they provided of no value?

I guess if that is the way you feel, you agree with Bronx NY who encouraged Amazon to move on and not build there. What was that about - 100k new jobs the averaged $150k each?
Companies make investments. If we don't want job investments in our community, there will be many more empty buildings and houses in the future. I worked in Detroit in the early 1970s. Things have change there. Wonder what happened. I hear they are doing better now, but it had been tough.

The warehouses we see everywhere now may simply be a stepping stone to a new way of business. We may or may not like it, but it seems Amazon in venturing into these new ways to operate. Who else offered employees and opportunity to start their own trans company mostly funded by amazon.

Anyway, I guess success breeds complaints. Wonder why it is so hard to give a little credit for accomplishments. Why is it so easy to nit pick. It doesn't represent us well.

OK, said too much I guess. If you are angry about this post, I have to thank you for reading it. Thank You.

 

[MossRoad]

Remember...

What a house is 'worth' and what a house costs to replace are very different things.

Our current house is 'worth' a tad over $100K. However, insurance company says it would cost well over $200K to replace.

Our first house in 1985 was $20K. Many houses could be purchased for that price. Minimum wage was $3.35.
About 6000 hours.

Today, that house is valued at around $73K. Many houses can be purchased for that price. Minimum wage is $7.25
About 10,000 hours.

Now if they raise the minimum wage to $15, that would put the $73K house down to about 4900 hours. Considerably less expensive in 2021 VS 1985.

Just some things to think about.

 

[NoTrespassing]

Remember...

What a house is 'worth' and what a house costs to replace are very different things.

Our current house is 'worth' a tad over $100K. However, insurance company says it would cost well over $200K to replace.

Our first house in 1985 was $20K. Many houses could be purchased for that price. Minimum wage was $3.35.
About 6000 hours.

Today, that house is valued at around $73K. Many houses can be purchased for that price. Minimum wage is $7.25
About 10,000 hours.

Now if they raise the minimum wage to $15, that would put the $73K house down to about 4900 hours. Considerably less expensive in 2021 VS 1985.

Just some things to think about.

Does replacement cost include contents?

 

[MossRoad]

Does replacement cost include contents?

No. That's just the cost to rebuild the structure. Contents are covered by a different part of the policy.

 

[beowulf]

Already a problem with vacant Walmart stores. The Wals won't sell because they are afraid someone else will open a big box store, so there they sit, huge buildings surrounded by acres of asphalt parking lots.

What Do We Do With These Empty Wal-Marts?

The McAllen Public Library is a breathtaking space. Its 20-foot ceilings are illuminated with streams of natural light, its cozy reading…

medium.com

I once saw two identical sporting goods stores directly across the street from each other. When I went into one to shop, I asked them why they had two stores so close. The answer was that they took over the space for the second store because they did not want a competitor sporting goods store to have that space and compete. I suppose it made sense, but I now see that they have closed one store which is now occupied by a different business. I guess they were just holding on to the second one until they could sell the space, or lease it, to a non-competing business.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

Remember...

What a house is 'worth' and what a house costs to replace are very different things.

Our current house is 'worth' a tad over $100K. However, insurance company says it would cost well over $200K to replace.

Our first house in 1985 was $20K. Many houses could be purchased for that price. Minimum wage was $3.35.
About 6000 hours.

Today, that house is valued at around $73K. Many houses can be purchased for that price. Minimum wage is $7.25
About 10,000 hours.

Now if they raise the minimum wage to $15, that would put the $73K house down to about 4900 hours. Considerably less expensive in 2021 VS 1985.

Just some things to think about.

Not to mention the interest rates today. Our first home purchase was 1985, and had a 13.5% interest rate.

 

[LD1]

This post kinda reminds me of so many I see on Facebook. City people moving to the "country" then complaining about everything.

If you don't want large tracts of land being developed...be it commercial or residential ...then buy said land. If not....don't stop what someone else wants for progress.

Everyone throws a fit if there is a proposed landfill to be built near them. No one wants it, cries how it isn't fair, devalue properties, etc etc. Yet 99% of the people crying use a trash service.

Classic case of "out of sight out of mind". No one cares where their trash goes....they just don't want it around them. And will lobby and petition and create groups to fight it. But at the end of the day, it has GOT to go somewhere.

Substitute the above with Walmarts, Amazon ware houses, sewage lagoons, new road construction cutting through farmland, housing developments, etc etc.

Everyone buys their 5 acre tract and expects to dictate what can/cannot be done in a 15 mile radius. Don't work that way.

Again....everyone uses these things they complain about constantly. They want and need them. They just don't want them close. But they gotta go somewhere

 

[Oaktree]

I think it is good for business to compete for good workers, rather than workers compete for good jobs. The truth is good pay, good benefits and opportunity for a good standard of living used to be important. Workers don't need a job that pays $12-$15 dollars an hour. That will never buy a new car of even pay most rent or house payments. They really need a career that can pay for a family security. Drifting from job to job (with no specific trade or skill), cannot provide opportunity for future security. Good workers, job security, better pay and better benefits can insure workers.

Not quite sure what you're trying to say. Not all jobs are created equal...some require extensive, specialized skills, others very little skill, and all shades in between. The skill level for some jobs doesn't even warrant $12/hr in some cases. If you want a well-paying job that can provide a new vehicle, house payments and family security learn some skills that will get you that kind of income.

That having been said, unfortunately the days are gone where someone willing to learn & work hard can get a factory job and make some decent money.

What a house is 'worth' and what a house costs to replace are very different things.

Our current house is 'worth' a tad over $100K. However, insurance company says it would cost well over $200K to replace.

A house (or anything else for that matter) is "worth" what someone is willing to pay for it. Are real estate values that depressed where you are that it would cost more to build your house than it's worth?

 

[MossRoad]

Not to mention the interest rates today. Our first home purchase was 1985, and had a 13.5% interest rate.

HA! We paid 3 points to get ours down to ONLY 12.5%.

 

[MossRoad]

Are real estate values that depressed where you are that it would cost more to build your house than it's worth?

Heck yes. Has been my entire life and I'll be 61 shortly. This area is dirt cheap to live in. You can go to nearby areas where houses sell for 2, 3, 4, 5, X times more than they cost to build if that's your thing, but we chose to go into an older neighborhood that's still quite safe and quiet, home prices (with the exception of this year) do not rise quickly, and no one considers their house an investment. It's a nice place to live and much cheaper than rent. Been in the black since we said "I do" in '85 and been debt free since the mid 90's. Helps to have a partner that is in agreement about finances.

 

[JDZ735M]

Not to mention the interest rates today. Our first home purchase was 1985, and had a 13.5% interest rate.

I bought one in '82 or '83, cannot recall just now exactly, financed by the owner for 10 years at 10% because we could put a significant amount down.

The '80's was a decade for owner financing.

Now it's pretty hard to get owners to consider OF even with large DP's and higher than bank rates.

 

[JDZ735M]

A house (or anything else for that matter) is "worth" what someone is willing to pay for it. Are real estate values that depressed where you are that it would cost more to build your house than it's worth?

Almost any are.

 

[RickB]

Almost any are.

Yeah, I didn't understand that either.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

HA! We paid 3 points to get ours down to ONLY 12.5%.

Ah... but CD rates were pushing 10%; older people with money never had it so good.

 

[Dftodd]

Not quite sure what you're trying to say. Not all jobs are created equal...some require extensive, specialized skills, others very little skill, and all shades in between. The skill level for some jobs doesn't even warrant $12/hr in some cases. If you want a well-paying job that can provide a new vehicle, house payments and family security learn some skills that will get you that kind of income.

That having been said, unfortunately the days are gone where someone willing to learn & work hard can get a factory job and make some decent money.

A house (or anything else for that matter) is "worth" what someone is willing to pay for it. Are real estate values that depressed where you are that it would cost more to build your house than it's worth?

We just sold our house for double what we paid for it.

My exact words to our realtor when he approached us with the offer were "Someone is actually gonna pay us that much for this place??!!!"

My next question was "Are you sure the house will appraise for that???!!!"

 

[Dftodd]

Ah... but CD rates were pushing 10%; older people with money never had it so good.

Now with the little pittance they give you in interest, you will be lucky to get enough interest money to cover the monthly service charge on your checking account.

 

[Oaktree]

Ah... but CD rates were pushing 10%; older people with money never had it so good.

Even higher than that, I had a CD in the late 80s that was around 14%. Even plain old savings accounts paid 3 or 4 % for many years, even before inflation took off in the 70s.

When I bought my first house in the mid 70s I think I was paying 8.5% (I put down 20%), but I snuck in just under the wire. Had a friend who bought his first place maybe 6 mo. later and his was over 9%.

Now with the little pittance they give you in interest, you will be lucky to get enough interest money to cover the monthly service charge on your checking account.

No kidding. Had a savings account with ~$30k in it a few years ago, and even it didn't make enough to cover the service charge. Closed that one out!
Fortunately, my bank has a special 62+ checking account with no fees, and one free order of checks a year. Small regional bank, not one of the big chains.