Team Editors Note: This article is regarding the rising price of Real Estate. Real Estate is a great investment and the market is definitely showing it.  Anyone with a interest in real estate or investing could benefit from this article.

Time was not so long ago, that seven figures could buy you something really special. A penthouse with amazing views. A stunning Hamptons home. A really, really great place in California. On the beach.

But in nearly every corner of the U.S., the days of million-dollar mansions are, sadly, over. Welcome to an era of million-dollar bungalows, garden apartments and two-bedroom condos, in need of renovation.

However, most Americans still consider $1 million a lot of money, no matter what their real estate agents tell them--and rightly so. The problem is that in certain markets, there seems to be a complete disconnect between property value and the buying power of a dollar. In Manhattan, for example, one million bucks buys a two-bedroom condo--and usually not in a great part of town or with oodles of compensating charm. In the Hamptons, it will buy a modest A-frame unfashionably deep in the woods.

Fortunately, not everyone has to pay such crazy prices or live in such overpriced places. There are still many desirable markets around the U.S. where a million still goes a long way. In Las Vegas, for example, thanks to a booming housing market and low interest rates, the market continues to offer good value for the money, in spite of rising prices, as do Raleigh, N.C. and Albuquerque, N.M.

What happened to the power of a million? From 1999 to 2004, U.S. home prices increased by a whopping 48%, according to the U.S. Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. In states such as California (up nearly 100%), New York (an increase of about 68%) and even Maine (63%), costs have risen even more dramatically.

New York is more expensive than ever--the average Manhattan sales price passed the $1.2 million mark in the first quarter of 2005. Most new buyers are probably scratching their heads wondering what they spent their money on. "A million dollars, these days that's a two-bedroom," says Richard Hamilton, a real estate agent at Halstead. "There are one-bedrooms going for that much. And the days of studios under $400,000 are rapidly disappearing."

These days, a lot of it comes down to lowering your expectations of what a million can buy.  You still don't have to--if you know where to look.

Source: WWW.Forbes.com

About:  Fred Harteis, owns Harteis International and serves on the Independent Business Owner Association International (IBOAI) board. A background in construction and agri-business laid Harteis’ business foundation. 

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