If you've been in the stock market since COVID, congratulations, you made money. So did your neighbor. So did your cousin who doesn't know what a P/E ratio is. So did everyone.
You're not Warren Buffett. You're not a trading savant. You rode the easiest bull market in modern history, fueled by free money, meme stocks, and AI hype that made the dot-com bubble look restrained.
But now? The game's changing. And if you don't move your chips before the music stops, you're going to learn a very expensive lesson about the difference between a bull market and actual investing skill.
The COVID Bull Market: Everyone Was a Genius
Let's be honest about what happened since 2020.
The Fed printed money like it was going out of style. Interest rates hit zero. Retail investors flooded Robinhood. Stocks only went up. Then crypto went parabolic. Then AI made Nvidia a religious experience.
From 2020 to late 2024, the S&P 500 more than doubled, and anyone who bought anything tech-adjacent made a fortune. Tesla, Apple, Microsoft, pick your poison, you won. Even the dumbest trades worked.
But here's the thing about bull markets: they make everyone feel smart until they don't.
The AI Bubble Is Cracking
Right now, the market is being held up by one sector: artificial intelligence. AI investments accounted for 75% of S&P 500 returns in recent years. That's not diversification, that's a house of cards.
And now, the smart money is getting nervous.
Michael Burry, the guy who called the 2008 housing crash, is short on Nvidia and Palantir. Burry recently disclosed short positions against these AI darlings, betting that their valuations have detached from reality.
When the man who predicted the last financial crisis is betting against the market's biggest winners, maybe, just maybe, it's time to pay attention.
If AI stocks crater, they won't go down alone. They'll drag the entire market with them. Just like the dot-com crash. Just like 2008. Just like every bubble before.
Your "Safe Havens" Aren't Safe
So where do you go when the market turns?
Traditionally, investors flee to gold and Bitcoin. Safe havens. Stores of value. Assets that hold up when stocks crash.
Except... not anymore.
Gold Is Overvalued
Gold recently surged past $4,100 per ounce, hitting record highs. It's priced for perfection. Everyone who wanted gold already bought it. The easy money's been made.
Bitcoin Is Not Digital Gold
Here's the uncomfortable truth: Bitcoin is correlated with the stock market, not against it.
Bitcoin's 30-day correlation with the Nasdaq 100 has reached 0.80, the highest level since 2022. That means when stocks fall, Bitcoin falls harder. When stocks rise, Bitcoin participates weakly.
Bitcoin now behaves more like a leveraged tech stock than a defensive hedge. It's not protecting you from a market crash, it's amplifying your losses.
Bitcoin ETF investors treat their crypto holdings the same way they treat stocks, applying the same buy-and-sell logic during macroeconomic events. The "digital gold" narrative is dead. Bitcoin is just another risk asset now.
So if gold is expensive and Bitcoin crashes with stocks, where the hell are you supposed to go?
The Answer: NYC Real Estate (Yes, Really)
Here's the play nobody's talking about: move your stock market gains into beaten-down NYC real estate.
Why? Three reasons.
1. There's a Housing Shortage
New York's multifamily vacancy rate is around 2.8-3.0%, far below the U.S. average of ~8%. There aren't enough homes. People need places to live. That's not speculation, that's math.
Analysts forecast that 2025's housing completions in New York will be below recent peaks, keeping the market tight. Supply is constrained. Demand is strong. Fundamentals win.
2. NYC Real Estate Is Down
While the stock market partied, NYC real estate got beat up.
One in three Manhattan condo resales between July 2024 and June 2025 were sold at a loss. Manhattan median price per square foot is essentially flat from a decade ago.
Translation: you're buying at a discount.
Luxury property starting prices are down 6.1% from their peak. Sellers are motivated. Inventory is available. This is the opposite of the frothy stock market, this is value.
3. Multifamily and Condos Are the Sweet Spot
Multifamily: NYC multifamily investment activity rebounded in 2025, with the market on track for around $10 billion in sales if momentum continues. Rents are rising. Vacancies are near record lows. Cash flow is real.
Condos: Co-ops are making a comeback, and luxury condo transactions are expected to surge in 2025 as interest rates ease and corporate bonuses rise. The smart money is rotating into real assets.
The Trade: Stocks → NYC Real Estate
Here's the move:
- Take profits from your AI-inflated tech portfolio before Burry's bet pays off.
- Avoid gold (overpriced) and Bitcoin (correlated with stocks, not against them).
- Buy NYC multifamily or condos while they're down, before the market reprices.
You're not market-timing. You're arbitraging cycles. Stocks are expensive. Real estate is cheap. One is priced for perfection. The other is priced for pessimism.
Why This Works
Real estate isn't sexy. It's not going to 10x in six months. But it's real. It's tangible. It produces cash flow. And it's not going to zero if the Nasdaq drops 30%.
Even with some distressed sellers in the NYC market, there's not an oversupply, many owners are holding through the high-rate period if they can. The fundamentals are intact.
Meanwhile, the stock market is riding on AI hype, meme momentum, and vibes. When that sentiment shifts, and it always does, you'll wish you had hard assets.
The Bottom Line
You made money since COVID. Great. But don't confuse a bull market with brilliance.
The AI bubble is wobbling. Gold is expensive. Bitcoin is just a leveraged Nasdaq trade. And the stock market is one bad earnings report away from a reality check.
NYC real estate, especially multifamily and condos, is down, fundamentally strong, and positioned to outperform when investors remember that real assets matter more than speculative narratives.
So what are you going to do? Hold your Nvidia shares and hope Michael Burry is wrong?
Or take your winnings, buy something real, and sleep well while everyone else rides the roller coaster?
Your call. But don't say you weren't warned.
