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Bunuel
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Hello Experts -
The question stem - Which of the following, if true, would undermine the validity of the investment advice in the paragraph above?
The only investment advice in the paragraph is "Investing in real estate would be a profitable venture at this time." All the other statements are facts.
which answer choice can weaken this? I am unable to find any of the choices right.
Please help!
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Type Weaken question solve with this pattern for less time and quick response

"1. Understand logic and conclusion
2. A. if question is open ended - weaken the above passage or B. the question is saying weaken a specific part of passage by providing conclusion in the question stem ?
3.If B type - then Pre-think would only require thinking option which can weaken Logic. If A type - we need 2 prethink options one for logic and one for conclusion
4. Rule out option by glance and here you go."

In our case the question stem falls in option B - we just need to think for logic

What is logic here ? 85% are up for buying second homes. Pre-think

weaken would be - Either data is wrong or People say something but later only few does.

So answer E
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The conclusion is :-
Investing in real estate would be a profitable venture at this time.

We have to weaken this conclusion.

Option E does that.

(E) Only a quarter of those who claim that they want a second home actually end up purchasing one.
This says that only 25% of those who claim that they want a second home actually end up purchasing one. If less people will actually buy a new home then investing in real estate would be not a profitable venture at this time.

All other options don't address this fallacy.

D is strengthening. A,B and C are irrelevant.
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Bunuel
Investing in real estate would be a profitable venture at this time. A survey in House magazine revealed that 85% of the magazine’s readers are planning to buy a second home over the next few years. A study of the real estate industry, however, revealed that the current supply of homes could only provide for 65% of that demand each year.

Which of the following, if true, would undermine the validity of the investment advice in the paragraph above?


(A) Some home owners are satisfied with only one home.

(B) About half of the people who buy homes are investing in their first home.

(C) About half of the people who buy homes have to take out a mortgage to do so.

(D) Only a quarter of the homes that are built are sold within the first two weeks.

(E) Only a quarter of those who claim that they want a second home actually end up purchasing one.

TWIN QUESTION: https://gmatclub.com/forum/investing-in ... 69847.html
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need to understand , kindly explain please
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C -> Investment in R.S is profitable

Hence, we should check which statement undermines the profitability.
E imo is not contradicting the profitability. Nothing relatable can be concluded about financials from that.
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Alright, so the conclusion is that investing in real estate is profitable, while the reasoning for the same is based on a magazine survey indicating interest from second-home buyers. Now, just pause and ask yourself: if one invests right now, when would that not be profitable? Most likely when there is either too much supply or not enough actual demand for property in the coming years.

Option 1: Some homeowners are satisfied with only one home.
(Even the survey implies this—after all, the remaining 15% might have said "no" to a second home. Hence, INCORRECT.)

Option 2: About half of the people who buy homes are investing in their first home.
(Even if half of the buyers are first-time homeowners, and the magazine survey is correct, this strengthens the conclusion: it indicates additional demand alongside second-home buyers. Profitability doesn’t depend on whether the demand is from first-time or second-time buyers. INCORRECT.)

Option 3: About half of the people who buy homes have to take out a mortgage to do so.
(Let them take out mortgages—there’s still demand. This doesn’t challenge the survey findings or the assumption about future profitability. INCORRECT.)

Option 4: Only a quarter of the homes that are built are sold within the first two weeks.
(The survey says 85% are planning to buy over the next few years. It’s not about quick sales but longer-term demand. INCORRECT.)

Option 5: Only a quarter of those who claim that they want a second home actually end up purchasing one.
(If you understood why the above options are wrong, this option just shouts out loud: "PICK ME!" It directly undermines the demand prediction that the conclusion relies on. CORRECT.)

Hope it helps.

PS: For the first time, I’ve posted such a long explanation, and it just increases my respect for the other patrons of this platform who take the time and effort to explain all these concepts—it takes a hell of a lot of time to articulate your thoughts and then type them out as well (lol).
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