"Survivor": Millennials vs. Gen X

[Eric the Green]

(10-01-2016, 12:09 AM)Ragnarök_62 Wrote:

Eric The Green

   No, the housing bubbles depend on location, as you said. And 2nd mortgages still get tax deductions, for one thing.
[/quote Wrote:Yup.  I agree and I also think 2nd mortgages should not be subsidized by tax dollars.  2nd.... OK, here's another thing to nuke:


2nd mortgages are also  tax deductible.                  

I agree, but what I meant by 2nd mortgages was actually the same person getting tax deduction for more than one home. I think the deduction should be granted only for one's primary residence, not to speculators who buy and flip houses. That has been a primary cause of the housing bubble. Just making that clear in case I was not clear.

Quote:

Quote:   But if interest rates were higher, mortgage rates would be higher too, and it would be even harder for millennials to get a start than it is now.

Not if bubbles pop......

   :: Rags rubs hands together :: Actually, that's part of my master plan to pop all housing bubbles.
   1. Raise interest rates to 5% which is normal.
   2. Destroy foreign speculative demand.
   3. Destroy demand for 2nd houses

   4. Once all of those bubbles pop, I then plan on letting TBF banks, you know, fail. The FDIC can make depositors whole, so no biggie.

   5. House prices should crash enough that we'll have lots of happy Millies.
   

possibly your magic might work.

Quote:

Quote:The Fed is useful, up to a point. Lower interest rates are needed when the economy is slow, higher rates when it is high. I think the conventional wisdom is right on that; no sense in going conspiratorial-theoretical on that.

There's one problem.  It hasn't worked dude.  The FED has a problem. It can make $ available, but can't direct where it flows. So far it's gone to excess reserves [dead money], stockie market bubble, housing bubble, frakking bubble, and the like.

I'm not so sure that the fracking boom can be laid at the door of the Fed. High oil prices plus the innovations in fracking tech are certainly causes.

Quote:

Quote:   I don't see the connection between housing prices and QE either.

1. It does because the FED is buying mortgage debt that artificially depresses the interest rate.

The Fed had to buy mortgages to get rid of the 2007-08 bubble. So now prices are rising again. Low interest rates may be one factor in this, but only one, and the Fed's action was needed at the time.

Quote:

Quote:   More bank loans does not necessarily mean high housing costs, unless the banks are making dangerous loans to home buyers again. Are they?

The law of supply/demand?

Dangerous home loans: yup.  Nothing changes.

Not so sure

Quote:Sorry, I do not think any government should be subsidizing house purchases. That's corporate welfare for house builders, real estate agents, banks which get fees, landscapers, etc.

Not sure Mac and Mae were "subsidizing" houses; just helping people get loans. Not quite the same. So I don't agree; sorry maybe someday I'll change my mind tho; it's not set in stone (like Taramarie's oh sorry...... ) (ruff ruff, dog)