More hard times ahead for the economy
Bankruptcy filings surge to 1 million - up 29%
The next wave of mortgage defaults
These should surprise no one. I didn't need to read anything more to figure this out, but after reading War on the Middle Class (Lou Dobbs) and The Great Risk Shift (Jacob Hacker), it's no surprise - most people are strapped money-wise, save for politicians, CEOs and anyone else at the top end of earners. We're house-poor and filing for bankruptcy won't do anything but further line the pockets of bank CEOs with the new law passed 3 years ago. All it takes is one injury/illness or accident to send one spiraling into a never-ending monetary disaster.
Another hindrance to home price rebounding
This isn't getting much play in talk about the housing bust, although some outlets like BusinessWeek have talked about it. Homes that are unoccupied will only deteriorate unless banks start keeping them up - and the chances of that are pretty slim. Sure, they want to get buyers, but let's face reality: the huge number of foreclosures mean a lot of folks have ruined credit and thus won't be able to get a mortgage anytime soon, and the rich can only buy so many second and third homes. That's also why trying to snap up houses in the hope of flipping them is risky, too - good luck selling them anytime soon with all the supply out there. Additionally, my pessimism about the housing market is exactly why I don't believe projections in this story for a nanosecond. If a housing rebound would be necessary for growth in jobs, it's not happening.
The more I read and hear about life in America today, the more I can see a scary possibility happening. Politicians, CEOs and those in the media would probably dismiss this as "being negative", but I've been right before on such matters. Think about the combination of things happening right now.
More and more homes are being foreclosed on, and many are walking away even before that. Their credit reports are taking huge hits as a result, and they won't be able to get a mortgage anytime soon - so they're out of the housing market entirely as possible buyers. Meanwhile, the rich and super-rich are only going to buy so many second and/or third homes even if they have the money. That means the supply of houses just keeps going up, which in time will depress prices even more.
But that's not all. The many foreclosures aren't being kept up, so the condition of those houses leads to further price drops and neighborhoods going into decline. Additionally, more people owe more than their homes are worth, and home equity loans are non-existent if needed. Add in job losses, and fewer folks can buy.
Then add in high energy costs, soaring inflation with food and many other products, education costs still rising for those who have kids, the need to save more and more for retirement or in health savings accounts, and you have people who are strapped to the max. Something's gotta give.
I've long been an eternal optimist in this life, but lately, I'm having a hard time with it. I believe there is a bright future, but it doesn't appear to be right around the corner. It looks to be a down-the-road thing at this point.
The next wave of mortgage defaults
These should surprise no one. I didn't need to read anything more to figure this out, but after reading War on the Middle Class (Lou Dobbs) and The Great Risk Shift (Jacob Hacker), it's no surprise - most people are strapped money-wise, save for politicians, CEOs and anyone else at the top end of earners. We're house-poor and filing for bankruptcy won't do anything but further line the pockets of bank CEOs with the new law passed 3 years ago. All it takes is one injury/illness or accident to send one spiraling into a never-ending monetary disaster.
Another hindrance to home price rebounding
This isn't getting much play in talk about the housing bust, although some outlets like BusinessWeek have talked about it. Homes that are unoccupied will only deteriorate unless banks start keeping them up - and the chances of that are pretty slim. Sure, they want to get buyers, but let's face reality: the huge number of foreclosures mean a lot of folks have ruined credit and thus won't be able to get a mortgage anytime soon, and the rich can only buy so many second and third homes. That's also why trying to snap up houses in the hope of flipping them is risky, too - good luck selling them anytime soon with all the supply out there. Additionally, my pessimism about the housing market is exactly why I don't believe projections in this story for a nanosecond. If a housing rebound would be necessary for growth in jobs, it's not happening.
The more I read and hear about life in America today, the more I can see a scary possibility happening. Politicians, CEOs and those in the media would probably dismiss this as "being negative", but I've been right before on such matters. Think about the combination of things happening right now.
More and more homes are being foreclosed on, and many are walking away even before that. Their credit reports are taking huge hits as a result, and they won't be able to get a mortgage anytime soon - so they're out of the housing market entirely as possible buyers. Meanwhile, the rich and super-rich are only going to buy so many second and/or third homes even if they have the money. That means the supply of houses just keeps going up, which in time will depress prices even more.
But that's not all. The many foreclosures aren't being kept up, so the condition of those houses leads to further price drops and neighborhoods going into decline. Additionally, more people owe more than their homes are worth, and home equity loans are non-existent if needed. Add in job losses, and fewer folks can buy.
Then add in high energy costs, soaring inflation with food and many other products, education costs still rising for those who have kids, the need to save more and more for retirement or in health savings accounts, and you have people who are strapped to the max. Something's gotta give.
I've long been an eternal optimist in this life, but lately, I'm having a hard time with it. I believe there is a bright future, but it doesn't appear to be right around the corner. It looks to be a down-the-road thing at this point.