Each year, millions of Americans bring the world of "Adult entertainment" into their homes. Now -- a rapidly growing number are bringing their homes into the world of adult entertainment.
Here's the gist: According to a January 16, 2009 Bloomberg story, California property holders hit hard by the real estate slump have found a new way to earn extra income and stave off foreclosure: Residential Filming, or leasing one's house to production companies for the use of shooting commercials, big-budget pictures, and yes, low-budget porn.
Bloomberg observes: From Hollywood mansions to "small houses" in the valley, the (alleged) $5,000/day rent paid by the porn industry is too good for "recession-pinched" residents to refuse. As one participant reveals: "A few months ago, I probably would've said, 'you want to do what in here? That's reserved for me and the missus.' "
Some might say -- residential xxx-rated filming brings the "shock-and-awe" housing blitz to a whole new level.
We'd say, there's nothing "SHOCKING" about said blitz to begin with.
The fact of the matter is, while leading economists
"thought 2007 would bring a real estate recovery -- NOT the worst collapse on record" (CNN Money.com) -- Elliott Wave International president Bob Prechter saw the cracks in housing's foundation long before they were visible to the masses. In his 2002 best-selling book
“Conquer The Crash,” Bob wrote:
“What screams ‘bubble,’ giant historic bubble, in real estate is the system-wide extension of massive amounts of credit to finance property purchases… When prices begin to fall, lenders will experience a rising number of defaults on the mortgages they hold.”
Three years later, the animal spirits surrounding the U.S. housing bull had become stronger than the animal itself. Our analysts saw the potential for a serious breakdown and issued the following alerts:
March 2005 Elliott Wave Financial Forecast: "The Real Estate Bust begins… the next phase of the housing market will see weakening demand and supply spikes higher. As the most aggressive dispensers of credit to the industry, [sub-prime] firms are on the front edge of the housing bubble."
The March publication also likened the near vertical rise in the S&P Homebuilder Composite Index to the notorious NASDAQ rally from October 1998-2000, AND suggested a similar fate was due the former via the following chart.
That year, the S&P Home Builders Index peaked to confirm the end of the housing bull’s record run, and has plummeted nearly 90% in value since. All the while, every credit instrument and institution that facilitated housing's boom on the way up has come crashing down.