Real estate values prior to 2001?

Question

I am looking at a new home to buy. The price has dropped from 280,000 in 2006 to 204,000 now.
I live in Orlando Florida that had the highest price increase and now fall.
I believe that house before the bouble would sell for 150,000 but I cant remember.
Is there a formula to come up with a house value?
I have been researching online and have seen one number side value 3 times median income for area?
another was payment need to be very close to rent payment but is that with 20 percent down?

So what formula should I use to come up with a pre bouble value? not the highly inflated current value.

Answer 1

There isn't any simple formula, only ball park estimates that are distorted by local conditions both high and low. A recent article in Fortune used the rent value as a drag on mortgage+utility costs, but you have put up one variable of many - almost no one pays 20% down on houses and during this bubble, almost no one was paying 10% or 5% down. Thus low interest was making a low monthly payment on a higher primary amount.
If you want an estimate of pre-bubble value, go and look at the public records for assessed value and discover the distortion in those values.