A Tale of Five Cities - NBR Talks to Homeowners about the Mortgage Crisis
Friday, May 02, 2008FOR RELEASE:
CONTACT:
Amy Benson
amy@rosengrouppr.com
212.255.8455 ext. 236
A Tale of Five Cities
PBS' Nightly Business Report Talks to Homeowners
about the Mortgage Crisis
Miami, FL (May 2, 2008) -- In 2007 the United States won notoriety for having the worst housing market in the world. On the heels of this dubious distinction, PBS' Nightly Business Report delves deep into five distinct corners of the country to offer personal accounts from the regional fronts of the housing slump.
Nightly Business Report sits down with homeowners from DC, Manhattan, Detroit, the Silicon Valley and Southern Florida to talk about shopping for new homes, selling old ones and making ends meet during a depressed economy.
Series Overview:
Monday, May 5th -- Washington, DC: Homeowners taking advantage of falling prices on the outskirts of the DC metro area are holding their breath to find out if their investments will pay off. Economists predict those in the further out -- and harder hit counties -- will have to hold that thought for another year and a half, six months longer than those inside the Beltway are expected to have to wait for the market to stabilize.
Tuesday, May 6th -- Manhattan: Until late last year, Manhattan managed to remain a sweet spot in an otherwise souring housing market, but the answer to whether or not it's now softening and why depends on who you ask. The Big Apple, which never likes to play by the rules, thought it was going to get out of the credit crisis unscathed, but with even Wall Street feeling the effects, the housing market may be losing its footing.
Wednesday, May 7th -- Detroit, MI: When it comes to real estate, Southeast Michigan is not only a buyer's market, it's a market in distress. In the first quarter of this year the Detroit metro area ranked sixth in the nation for foreclosures, affected not only by a plummeting housing market, but a sinking local economy, as well. Numerous programs are in place aimed at curbing its job and population troubles, but analysts predict it will be years before the area's housing market is booming again.
Thursday, May 8th -- Silicon Valley, CA: Three out of four Silicon Valley households can't afford a median priced home in a market peppered with families unaffected by the credit crunch. Set amid a backdrop of luxurious lifestyles, there is a growing crisis for those being forced out of the housing market and into rentals in a market of skyrocketing rents. In an area where the median priced home is a cool $620,000, homeownership is still a dream for many.
Friday, May 9th -- Southern Florida: In February of this year Cape Coral, FL was tops in the nation for foreclosures and while, analysts anticipate a bit of an upswing, it's more difficult to find optimism in areas like Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, where the market remains on life support. A huge inventory of unsold units and properties are being joined by freshly minted condos, contributing the problem that experts say won't be over until the units already on the market are absorbed. Florida is poised to remain a buyers' market for a long time to come.
"Essential to understanding the housing market is an appreciation of the fact that it isn't one market that we can view as a cohesive whole, but rather a series of unique circumstances affecting different regions in distinctive ways," explained Rodney Ward, Executive Editor/Senior Vice President, Nightly Business Report. "Even more important to understanding the challenges we now face as a nation, is a realization that we're not dealing with numbers or headlines, but with people and families who are facing a turning point in their lives."
For more information, or to speak with a Nightly Business Report representative, please contact Amy Benson at 212.255.8455/917.806.1584 or amy@rosengrouppr.com
About Nightly Business Report: For almost three decades, the award-winning Nightly Business Report has provided business news in a fast-paced format. Timely investment information helps viewers manage their money and stay abreast of the news that affects their portfolios. Nightly Business Report premiered as a Miami regional program on January 22, 1979, with national distribution beginning in 1981. Underwritten by Franklin Templeton Investments, Nightly Business Report is distributed live to public television stations at 6:30pm EST every weeknight. Local broadcast times vary.
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