patrick.net

Perhaps you've already seen this, but I'm just now reading about the much more accurate home value assessment of the compound where OBL was hiding out. I find it more than just a little ironic that a government that doesn't understand how to keep their hands out of their own citizens' residential real estate market - and clearly doesn't understand what homes "should" be worth (i.e. thinking that home prices "correcting" are really "crashing", and that lower home prices are somehow bad) - exaggerated the likely value of OBL's compound by 300%. Nice work .gov, gotta hand it to you. Where did you get your estimate of his compound? My guess would be the national association of realtors...which would explain the gross inaccuracy and exaggeration.
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Osama bin Laden hideout 'worth far less than US claimed'

Pakistan property experts say US government description of '$1m mansion' was way off the mark, as further exaggerations come to light

Declan Walsh in Abbottabad
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 4 May 2011 14.35 BST

Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, described by US officials as being worth $1m. Local property experts estimate its value at a quarter of that sum.

Osama bin Laden's house, described by the US government as a $1m (£605,000) mansion, is in fact worth no more than $250,000 say property professionals in Abbottabad, the town where he was killed.

The revelation is the latest of several erroneous descriptions about the nature of Bin Laden's hideout – and the manner of his death – which have dogged the White House in recent days.

On Tuesday US officials retracted claims that Bin Laden was armed when killed, and that he had used one of his wives as a human shield.

Descriptions of Bin Laden's hideout have also been prone to exaggeration. After Sunday night's dramatic raid by US Navy Seals, a senior Obama administration official told reporters that the property, an "extraordinarily unique compound" in an "affluent suburb", was valued at around $1m.

But two property professionals in Abbottabad – a quiet, military-dominated town – said that much of that was incorrect. Based on the size of the plot and the house, which was built in 2005, and using recent property sales as a guide, they estimated that it would fetch no more than $250,000 on the current market.

"Twenty million rupees, maximum," said property dealer Muhammad Anwar, a 22-year veteran of the local market, at his Abbottabad office. "No swimming pool. This is not a posh area. We call it a middling area."

Asked about the American estimate, he chuckled. "Maybe that's the assessment from a satellite. But here on the ground, that's the price."

#housing