Awhile back when the prices of homes in Southern California were doubling every 2 to 3 years, some bloggers were predicting a crash. Back then most people didn’t believe them. I think it was hard to see the forest through the trees. I think people didn’t want to believe them because it would mean giving up wealth. At least wealth on paper. I know it is a good feeling to have your home continue to go up in value. I think there were some people who were lucky enough to sell before the housing bust came along. Right now we are in the midst of a tough recession. There are the headlines related to our housing crisis:
Foreclosure fix faces murky future
Senate fast-tracked legislation to stabilize housing. But House will propose its own ideas and may even push for broader economic stimulus package. (More)
The futile $100M foreclosure fix
A new bill would allocate millions for foreclosure counseling. But is that enough to help keep at risk borrowers in their homes? (More)
Pending home sales at all-time low
Realtors’ group says its index of homes under contract to sell fell sharply in February. (More)
Builders: No full recovery until 2010
Head of National Association of Home Builders said it could be several years before demand for homes returns to typical levels. (More)
Housing rescue: What you need to know
There are so many plans being floated to stem the subprime crisis and avert foreclosures, it’s hard to keep track. A cheat sheet on the major proposals. (More)
Senate takes up $15B housing fix
Senate begins debate on compromise measure aimed at averting foreclosures and helping those hurt in housing crisis. (More)
Careers vanish after subprime ‘free fall’
Kent and Mysti Cope were well-paid executives at subprime lenders who never thought the industry could disappear overnight. Now they’re just trying to get by. (More)
Welcome to subprime’s ghost town
A year ago Irvine, Calif., was still riding high on the subprime boom; then almost overnight the industry and more than 4,000 good paying jobs vanished. (More)
The residential real estate market continues to deteriorate in 2008, with 20 key markets reporting steep drops. (More)
Foreclosures hit all-time high
Over 900,000 borrowers are losing their homes, up 71% from a year ago, and a record number of home owners are behind on payments. (More)
Homeowners: Can’t pay? Just walk away
More and more borrowers are watching their house values sink while the cost of their loans skyrockets. What to do? Skip out on the mortgage all together. (More)
Gail Burks, who counsels troubled Las Vegas homeowners, says she encounters endless obstacles as she tries to get people the help they need. (More)
Foreclosures can be bargains for budget-minded house hunters even when they’re in the market for seven-figure homes. (More)
Unsold mega-mansions hit the auction block
These luxury homes were languishing on the market, or in builder inventories, as Florida real estate imploded. Now Sotheby’s is hoping to auction them off. (More)
I think this is the source of the severe recession we are going through. I don’t think there is any easy fix and I do think it is President Bush’s economic policy that has mucked up our economy. With Bernanke and Paulson running around with their heads chopped off not knowing what to do. The time to have responded was extremely slow. When the signs were there they thought they knew better than everyone and did nothing. Now with the 7 interest rate decreases, they have weakened the US dollar and caused commodities to go up to astronomical levels.
I have many friends with trucks and suv’s and to fill up their vehicles 4 times a month is equal their loan payment. Most everyone is hurting financially unless you are naturally frugal and conservative. It really is awful to see your family, friends, and relatives struggle during these tough times.
So what should we do to get out of this mess? Well, I guess we can only fend for ourselves. The next President will have a lot of crap to clean up to get us back to a normal level. I think the easiest thing to do is withdraw our troops and stop SPENDING money we don’t have trying to create a democracy in the new Vietnam we call Iraq. The second thing is to divert all the money we have earmarked for the War/Invasion of Iraq back into programs that will help build the infrastructure of the United States which will in turn create jobs. Third, we need to get rid of all these wasteful government programs. If you ever heard of the invisible Republican that the media refused to cover when he was running for the nomination, then you will know he has some progressive ideas that would help cut our wasteful government spending. Check out this guy named Ron Paul on youtube. Even though he is out of the race, I think many of his ideas are great.
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