Real Estate and Bird Flu

Could real estate values be sent to a sick bed by a bird flu epidemic? No one will know until or if it happens, but even a small epidemic could cause a panic.

Right now the news media is reporting the daily spread of bird flu in countries that are an ocean away. The disease has jumped from birds to animals and even to a few humans. Most of the infected people have died.

All those news stories have already placed a sliver of fear into the hearts of North American residents. How do you suppose the majority will react when the first case of bird flu hits the U.S.? I am afraid it won't be pretty.

Remember the near panic that occurred as we approached the year 2000. There were warnings of dire financial results and people were scared out of their wits. That may be just a small preview of what will happen when people believe the disease is about to sweep the nation. A disease that may have already killed tens of thousands in Europe and Asia before it hits here in full force.

Do you think Kentucky Fried Chicken stock will crash? How about Tyson Foods, the country's largest chicken processor? Their business will be in trouble when consumers stop buying chicken and they can no longer export poultry products.

Eggs could be selling for $10 dollars each... if you can find one. Any business having anything to do with fowl will be out of luck.

Tens of thousands of people could be thrown out of work. That will certainly have a ripple effect on real estate. People out of work can't buy homes, pay rent or keep up with mortgage payments.

If a bird flu epidemic proves to be as severe as some predict we could see hundreds of thousands of people dead or at least very seriously ill. That can't be good for the economy or real estate.

Fear could cause thousands of people to flee cities as they try to avoid being infected. There could be a lawless panic like we have never seen in the history of the U.S.

Maybe!

Please don't consider this a prediction of what is surely going to occur. We certainly hope that it won't. We have all heard disaster false alarms before.

Medical scientists are working feverishly to develop a vaccine to immunize people against the disease. We hope they make it in time, but even if they do there may not be enough manufacturing capacity to produce vaccine in the quantities needed to save more than two or three million. Government officials and the wealthy will surely be first in line.

Will banks close? Will the government cease to function? Will water and power utilities be unavailable? Will certain foreign countries be in a position to attack us in our weakened state? Will terror cells do all they can to spread the disease?

It has been reported that the military now has plans to quarantine the first area of the country to be hit by bird flu. No one will be able to get in or out.

Even if you were absolutely certain that a bird flu disaster was going to hit this country, what would you do? How would you cope with vacant property? Could you survive financially without the income from the notes you hold?

Some would recall that old saying "Fortunes are made when there is blood in the streets." Savvy investors buy property during bad times and turn a profit when good times return. Would you plan on buying property from distressed owners at the height of the bird flu disaster? With thousands dead it could be decades before demand for housing would catch up with the left over supply.

Should you sell everything now, buy gold coins and move to a remote area where there are few people and you can control your contact with birds and animals? You might regret that drastic action if the flu danger proves to be far overblown, like what happened with the arrival new millennium.

What can you do? First, be sure that every member of your family has their estate plan in order - including yours! After that, perhaps the only sensible solution is to do your best to protect the health of your family and hope for the best.

Investor Mark Walters is taking action to protect the health of his family and perhaps ward off bird flu. You can do the same with a guide you will find when you Click Here!