Sometimes you have to step back, take a breather and see the world.  Sounds like a great travel ad- but it’s always interesting to see how the other half of the world lives.

So thanks for your emails wondering if I was still alive- in spite of paying for international service my crackerberry/phone service didn’t work (at all) for half of the trip. (Lack of customer service is an entire story -coming soon).  I joined a group of travelers on a “walkabout” through New Zealand and Australia.  Both countries are great to see and after pricing some homes and condos- we should be grateful that we are not trying to buy real estate. 

After starting our trip in Rotorua, spending a few days at a magnificent home on a lake….

Wildwood Lodge

Boating around Milford Sound

Taking in the Sydney Opera House

And my favorite- the Wallaby

Like Cincinnati the cities we visited are feeling the effects of the world wide recession-the number of residential foreclosures are significantly lower due to better lending regulations and a philosophy of paying off your mortgage as soon as possible.  Interesting concepts that we should consider as we legislate changes in our country.

Tracking real estate activity for single family homes in specific zips and this week’s data indicates most areas have slightly lower pricing for active listings.  The one exception is the west side of town in the 45233 zip-code.

Below is the Market Action Reports for 6 zip-codes in the greater Cincinnati area:

45011

45014

45040

45069

45208

45233


This is the short version of the detailed information available for the zip-codes- call or email for detailed reports.

We arrived in New Zealand last night (Cincinnati time) after a very, very long flight.  We were excited to wake up this morning and find a sheep farm just outside our window.