Schadenfreude

It's my favorite German term ever. In the movie business, it's part of one's every day work life. It means taking pleasure from other people's misfortune. Here's what i don't understand: people on the NY Real Estate blogs bubbling with schadenfreude over the downward market.

Some of it I get: the frustrated masses, long shut out of the real estate market, trying to raise a family in NY. It's the only place I know of where being middle class, or even Upper Middle Class, gets you almost nowhere. These people are positively giddy over the prospect of finally being able to afford a home.

Almost every post I read is either about A) the poster's total hatred of real estate brokers or B) How the market is still crashing and prices will reach absurd numbers not seen since the 80's. They relish every price drop, they snicker at every closing price.

But here's the thing: this country, their friends, their neighbors, their family...don't they know someone who is suffering? It's like they are echoing the sickly cries of Rush Limbaugh. They are hoping for the NY Real Estate Market to crash.

Aren't their 401K's affected? Haven't they lost a percentage of their net worth? I don't know one person in NY who hasn't been affected by the downturn in some real way. Aren't these people getting giddy at their own expense? At some point, isn't it bad taste to relish others misfortunes?

Isn't their hostility misplaced?