Bush's advisor: Housing slump to only last six more months

Between you and BT, I couldn't have said it better.

When I applied for a loan for my condo, I was told I was approved for more than twice what I had requested. But one person (well, at least THIS one person) doesn't need more than 1,200 square feet. Plus all the hassles of maintaining a home.

That's also why I intend to drive into the ground my seven-year-old Oldsmobile, which has almost 150,000 miles on it but has been paid for for three years (yes, it was a four-year loan). And why my condo is my home, not some extension of my personal wealth.

Biting off more than you can chew is not a new thing in society, but it seems to be ascending to a new level.

 

Excess has become the norm, it seems. Apparently a modest house with a small payment and driving a Camry is out of the question now. Nothing wrong with aiming high, I just don't get why you have to be overstuffed with materialism.

 

You know the ones that aren't doing this shit? The people who actually make money. One of my closest friends is management for a pharmaceuticals company ($$$$). He drives a company car and his wife is still looking in the 1998 Toyota Camry that has well over 100,000 miles on it. THis week they took it in......to get the rust fixed on it because she intends on "driving it until it dies."

They have two 50-inch televisions, which he bought on clearance because they were just sitting in the back when HD became the rage a couple of years ago. "I grew up with a 24-inch TV. This is still awesome to me without the HDTV shit."

The furniture he has from his first apartment out of college is still in their family room.

 

Good point. I highly recommend the book "The Millionaire Next Door" for a lesson on how people with average incomes can build fantastic wealth.

 

There is a lot to be said about the nouveau riche being the ones with out-of-control spending.

 

So housing shouldn't be subject to the same market forces as everything else? And this isn't an opportunity for first-time buyers? People are still buying houses every day. Just not at the same rate as they were during what was a long and incredibly sustained boom.

 

I think that should be re-named the pseudo riche. How many people do we know that are over-extended with a car lease and a mortgage and continue to crank up the credit cards? Only in America could a fucking car lease work. Only in America could we sell, "okay, here's the deal. You're gonna pay $300 a month for 36 months on this here vehicle and when you're done you own.....NOT A FUCKING THING. So you gotta' come back and do this all over again."

The finance industry has us trained to always be prepared to make payments. Never pay anything off, just keep making payments.

 

I wanna know how record foreclosures is a media-created issue? Did we hack everyone's bank account and steal their payments>

 

"Market forces."
The all-purpose excuse for economic oligarchy.