‘I wish they had a guardrail’: Gee calls out investment companies as Seattle ranks among worst metros for paid-off mortgages

The Seattle metro area ranks eighth-lowest among the 50 largest metro areas in the country for paid-off mortgages, according to The Seattle Times.

In light of the report, KIRO host Gee Scott called out investment companies for buying up homes in the area, saying the corporations will often skip the inspection and offer all cash, outbidding everyday buyers in the process.

“I wish they had a guardrail on the amount of properties that these investment companies can come in and buy, these corporations can come in and buy,” he said on “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio. “I wish there was a cap on that. Matter of fact, I wish that they were just allowed to buy just the commercial real estate and not any of these homes, and then that would make sure the price goes a little bit lower for the people.”

Gee added that people shouldn’t feel ashamed if they don’t own a house.

“Maybe sometimes home ownership, especially during this time, isn’t always the goal, and I don’t think that people should feel less than if they don’t own a home,” he said.

Gee attributed buying a home to finding the right timing, comparing it to a relationship, where sometimes it comes down to the right moment.

“Sometimes you get married or get in a relationship, and maybe the timing was right. Well, when it comes to real estate, sometimes it’s timing,” he said. “If you bought a home here in 2019-ish or 2020, you’re able to get in on the nice sweet spot of interest rates — good timing. Or if you bought during 2010, 2011, after the economic recession — that was good timing.”

Seattle’s tech boom drove up home prices

KIRO host Ursula Reutin said the first house she and her husband bought was in Ballard in 1993 for $155,000. They sold the house 10 years later for $255,000, but Ursula noted that the house would be worth $900,000 today. She attributed the rise in home prices to Seattle’s tech boom.

“Seattle continues to get a lot of younger workers, especially with the tech boom,” Ursula said. “Remember when they were just plunking down huge amounts of money and buying homes with cash, and that jacked up the prices? And so people who were buying in when the homes were going for a million bucks. I mean, for a lot of them, it’s like, ‘When am I going to pay this off?'” she said.

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.