The Housing Bubble

Can’t he be drummed out of the church for drinking caffeine in any form (hot cocoa excepted)?

No. Even if he were drinking coffee in church he wouldn’t get “drummed out”, but he wouldn’t be able to get a temple recommend. The gray area is with colas and that sort of thing because nobody has said for sure whether that’s OK or not, they’ve only been specific about coffee and tea. So different personality types interpret differently and otherwise easygoing folks occasionally raise an eyebrow at each other’s decisions.

I expect he’ll be welcome as long as he pays his tithe.

“So different personality types interpret differently and otherwise easygoing folks occasionally raise an eyebrow at each other’s decisions.”

Some nonmembers who place a high value on logical coherence remain nonmembers in part due to the conspicuously incoherent set of rules which govern the LDS church, which its holier-than-others members somehow overlook.

Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:5

the conspicuously incoherent set of rules which govern the LDS church

I’d have to know more specifically what you’re talking about to even have a comment.

And boy do they have the money.

At least until they sign on the dotted line!

“I’ve heard that doctors and dentists aren’t very sharp when it comes to investing or pursuing business opportunities outside their realm of expertise.”

Demonstrating how difficult it is for even intelligent people to be expert in multiple fields. And do we really want doctors and dentists to have to be expert investors?

“And do we really want doctors and dentists to have to be expert investors?”

I personally find the dumb real estate investor sort of dentist to be far more entertaining; and ditto for hair dressers who are dumb real estate investors, as opposed to the smart real estate investor type hair dressers.

“for various reason$, …”

Why $uch complexitie$?

Their may be many reason$, but truly … only one purpo$e.

“Now, $weat boy, $weat!,” the line bo$$ told John Henry

It had nothing to do with “do-gooders” and everything to do with driving down labor costs and breaking unions.

The do-gooders were just cover and “useful” idiots.

“It had nothing to do with “do-gooders” and everything to do with driving down labor costs and breaking unions.”

Labor costs should always find equilibrium (Go up OR DOWN) in any market or that system malfunctions. Unions have been broken for decades. Any mildly objective look at the UAW or Teamsters will prove that.

It’s broke the other way too.

Managers/owners don’t want to pay the “market rate” to get highly skilled, blue collar specialists.

So they whine about a “shortage of qualified people” and beg the government for taxpayer funded training programs/government cheese.

Got a call last week, to go down to another airport. The shop at a local airport with several jets has lost all but one of their mechanics. And he’s not trained to work on jets.

The “free marketers” will say that the pay scale will rise until the shortage has been addressed, one again putting the world in equilibrium. That ain’t what’s happening.

The jet owners have budgeted for labor at a certain price, and that’s what they will pay. The only way it’s going to change is if they start missing trips, and some chief pilot/manager gets fired.

There is no such thing as “equlibrium” in economics, Beer and Cigar Guy. That’s just some fantasy.

In real life, markets are gamed, rigged and manipulated every day in every way imaginable. A true “free market” would only result in the strong preying on the weak.

Wall St. and the “global economy” are good modern examples of that.

“The jet owners have budgeted for labor at a certain price, and that’s what they will pay. The only way it’s going to change is if they start missing trips, and some chief pilot/manager gets fired.”

Or if some CEO’s jet crashes and burns and the cause is determined to be human error via poor maintenance.

Hopefully, you’ll get a better paycheck through a missed trip.

Oh so right, turkey.

“Free market ” is just code for “free to eff us up the bum”.

That’s actually a rather gross and misguided simplification. The average “Englander” is a hard-working person who is competing with 3rd world populations that have invaded the mainland.
The “empire” has a long history of world-wide expansion, and unfortunately, with the claiming of a colony, often the people are now defined as “British”.
People from the Bahamas, Jamaica, and other foreign countries are part of the “Commonwealth”, and therefore can claim citizenship. That allows them to migrate pretty freely to the mainland.
It’s sort of like our relationship with Puerto Rico. We allowed it to become a protectorate state, independent of the US, but still allowing it’s citizens the right of US citizenship. So, what happened? Mass exodus to the “home country”.
I am certain there are many more Puerto Ricans living in New York and Florida, than in their home country.
I don’t think the US was looking for a servile state of slaves, no more than the U.K.
ALL empires seek tax revenues from their “colonies”. That’s why they are empires. The US has done a horrible job at getting tribute from the many places we have invaded, but that’s another tale for another time.

You might be right, but that’s not the way the average Brit sees it. I’ll tell them “nice try you lazy no-good” next time.

I think most the imports are unemployed and living on the dole.

“I think most the imports are unemployed and living on the dole.”

(Not to mention that the $ufffering $o’s have enough Castle’$ on the hill & next to the river, hard workers those thick skinned Royalist’$)

Ha, back to gruel & grey skies eyes says, no “colorful textiles” or flavored food for them & their bland minions … (that reminds me’s, need to check fer micro-brews on sale this week, ah, Smithwick’s …

“…Someone get Dickens, eyes need some descriptive adjectives right ’bout now!” Forget Shakespeare, it’s over their heads, …”

You confuse people with oppressive corrupt governments. It is the UK empire and those who run it that are the problem.

“The US has done a horrible job at getting tribute from the many places we have invaded”

modern day tribute = u.s. treasury

see Japan.

I like it.

Stopped eating there for good about 7 years ago after it felt as though I had drunk a melted candle after eating a breakfast sandwich.

Dr. Nick Riviera says, “If you’re not sure about something, rub it against a piece of paper. If the paper turns clear, it’s your window to weight gain.”

You love him.

Slick Willie!

In other words, five and a half years of rent will offset $150K of loss in house value? Thanks!

In other words, five and a half years of rent will offset $150K of loss in house value? Thanks!

Makes me want to run out and be one of those in-VEST-ors who thinks that they’ll get rich from renting SFRs.

In other words, five and a half years of rent will offset $150K of loss in house value? Thanks!

You ignored his entire last paragraph, oxy… The actual break-even would be FAR further out if you modeled the other costs of ownership. The ITI of PITI are also all sunk costs, in addition to the capital losses.

But if you bought today with 20% down in say, Temecula, CA. you could own for $1300 a month PITI, vs rent for $1800 or more and your rent goes up each yr.

In some places, buying now makes sense, unless you expect rents to crash. Have they ever?

I agree that ITI is a sunk cost, but isn’t the LL just passing those sunk costs onto the Prof as part of the rent?

Avocado, that’s where it gets touchy.

Does housing still have a ways to drop? Yes, it does. But the question is: will it drop far and fast enough to make renting worth the wait.

Avocado-good example.
Oxide- You’re also right.

To buy or not at this time, isn’t a one size fits all answer.

Another 150K drop ? with the FED willing to spend trillions of dollars to keep housing up?

I think in the end the dollar will collaspe

I like Gary Shilling but ..

I’ll take my dividends in shares, thank you, and pay the capital gains rates sometime later.

and pay the capital gains rates sometime later.

And what if those evil commies start taxing capital gains at the same rate as income?

Can you imagine the horror that would result from such class warfare as making the rich pay the same rates as everyone else? America would crumble and eat its own, if the rich were taxed like the rest of us. Or so the rich and their apologists tell us.

The rich have you at a disadvantage. You see a door closing. They see six other doors wide open.

The rich have you at a disadvantage. You see a door closing. They see six other doors wide open.

I see a door opening in the American mind, that is starting to realize that the system as currently constructed unfairly favors the rich over everyone else, and the results are destructive to the country as a whole.

And I see some desperately trying to close that door of realization.

The only tax break people should get on investing is long term capital gains and long term should be 3-5 years. This would of course get management to focus on increasing the value of the company instead of massaging the numbers for their quarterly reports. CEO’s should get a break on taxes only if they take their stock in a restricted fashion that mandates that the stock is sold exactly 3-5 years after it is given to them. Again this would get them focused on actually making a company better.

The only tax break people should get on investing is long term capital gains and long term should be 3-5 years. This would of course get management to focus on increasing the value of the company instead of massaging the numbers for their quarterly reports. CEO’s should get a break on taxes only if they take their stock in a restricted fashion that mandates that the stock is sold exactly 3-5 years after it is given to them. Again this would get them focused on actually making a company better.

Seconded.

Blue - if you take the dividends in shares, but had the option of taking them in cash, you still have to pay tax as if you had taken it in cash. When you sell, you get a basis of the value you paid tax on.

Thanks for the explanation Polly! I admit to never getting something called a dividend. My suspicion is always that when one thing comes along advertised as adverse to the money centers, that there are six ways from Sunday to avoid it, if you are in the know. Not for guys like me of course.

The rules are actually a LOT more complicated than that for shares distributed with respect to already existing stock. I’m sure there was a time I knew a lot (though not all) of it off the top of my head. Probably right before an exam, but I don’t now.

But it is a good general rule in tax. If you get to decide whether you take something in cash or another way, you have to pay as if you got the cash even if you don’t take it. I’m sure there are exceptions, but not a bad starting assumption.

But they’re already Lucky Duckies!

Thank you, Polly. (Again.)

So thankful I don’t live in that poor man’s head….

I know a whole lot of wealthy people–with a whole LOT of money– who are not being punished for not being in debt.
You’ve flogged this dead horse for way too long.

I thought that it was Bush who tried to means test Social Security. Does anyone else recall some sort of dividing line at “$20,000″ income? Heck, even with Medicare and a paid-off house, it’s tough to live on $20K.

Not to mention the fact that cheap, unhealthy food is heavily advertised in areas where the poor live. Just like malt liquor, lottery tickets, and payday loans/check cashing services.

In 2006, I experimented with eating on the food-stamp allotment. I tried to fit in fresh vegetables, at least one serving of protein, and over 1000 calories. I clocked in at $117, which was a little over the allotment. It’s probably even more impossible now.

Were you depending partially on a pantry? And what time of year was it? Just noticing that strawberries have fallen drastically in price in the last two weeks. Maybe Mexico had a good growing season? Its still too early for the Florida ones, isn’t it?

Polly, I started from a clean pantry, and went from mid-January to a week into February. Berries of any stripe were too expensive at any time of year fresh or frozen. I relied on the cheap bag of “mixed fruit” which was apples and oranges and the occasional pear. Veggies were carrots and kale on sale. Plus I allowed myself some Lean Cuisine on sale because $2 each was the cheapest meal one can find anywhere. I purposely kept only a rough tally of nutrition like “servings fruit, servings protein,” and i STILL needed a spreadsheet to stay within the limit I did.

I discovered that anytime I needed a staple food (carrots, corn flakes, vegetable oil, bag of mixed apples and oranges), there conveniently was a “guaranteed value” low-cost brand there for me. I wonder if the State encourages or requires stores to carry such items just for the poor.

Having grown up poor, I’ll tell you why we’re fat.

-Decent food is expensive, compared to crap. Decent food never makes it to grocery stores where poor people live

-People working two-three jobs (or $hitloads of overtime) to make ends meet don’t have time to shop, or prepare meals. So the kids get a lot of fast food, or stuff they can fix at home by themselves.

-Poor/country people have this idea that an big/overweight (”healthy”) kid means that you aren’t “poor”/”neglectful”. To this end, you see things like babies getting Carnation’s Evaporated milk, instead of Formula or breast feeding.

-You can add to this the “clean your plate” directive. When I was growing up, this was enforced by summary ass-kickings up to the age of 15.

One of my daughter’s boyfriends gave me some insight into this. (His dad wad a drug user, recently died of an OD and his mom was an alcoholic, whenever she happened to be around, and was mostly raised by his (also alcoholic) grandparents.

He would hang around our house every night. Said he didn’t realize how fooked up his home life was, until he saw how normal families lived.

And of course, fat people don’t have any discipline or intelligence. That’s common knowledge.

Unfortunately, GS- you’re correct. You can stay thin on a low budget if you stick to high-fat ground beef, chicken thighs, frozen vegetables, and green tea, and if you forgo wheat, rice, and corn and use cheap olive oil instead of soybean oil.

Of course, what are the top subsidized crops in the country? What food has the longest shelf life, least preparation, and easy to eat out of hand — yeah… I thought so….

-You can add to this the “clean your plate” directive. When I was growing up, this was enforced by summary ass-kickings up to the age of 15.

I’m trying to break the cycle on that one. That’s how I grew up and it irritates me to see waste, but I try to bite my tongue and just let my son eat what he wants rather than infect him with the same fat-producing virus.

Wow. I grew up poor as well and I was all skin and bones as I didnt have enough to eat. My parents were too proud to go on welfare going as far as hocking my dads wedding ring to the lady across the street to put food on the table. That being said, I go to the supermarket every week and it is expensive as hell nowadays…but no inflation here….keep printing those dollar bills FED……it’s not like gas prices are going to keep rising or anything…..

“clean your plate”

Mom had a more complex appraoch. Don’t put it on your plate if you’re not going to eat it. Eat some more veggies before you take any more meat. Everything can be repurposed at the next meal, except what you have already put on your plate.

Diner was a slow affair as well. The grownups had a habit of engaging the youth in conversation, which does slow the eating enough that one’s appetite can adjust.

“And of course, fat people don’t have any discipline or intelligence. That’s common knowledge.”

No GS, just mostly the poor ones.

I’ve lived in the ghettos and not for just the summer. It’s sad, but the stereotypes are real.

I grew up poor as well. Our casual family photos would shock people today at how thin we were. Hell, it would get my parents ARRESTED these days.

ecofeco — look up “Wheat Belly” by William Davis. His thesis is that the we’re eating a different breed of wheat — dwarf hybrid — than we did 40 years ago, and this new wheat essentially causes obesity, diabetes, and all sorts of bad crap.

I’m pretty sure he’s right. It’s definitely true about the wheat. We’re all accustomed to images of 4-foot high amber waves of grain being cut by the light of the Harvest Moon in September. But when I lived in the Midwest, suddenly the wheat was 20 inches high and was ripe and harvested in mid-August. WTF? Yeah, it was dwarf hybrid wheat.

That’s why we were all so skinny years ago.

“-Decent food is expensive, compared to crap. Decent food never makes it to grocery stores where poor people live”

Fascinating contrast (and I hope FPSS is around to back me up on this one): In India, the default diet for poor folks is much healthier than the default diet for poor Americans. By contrast, the wealthy Indians can afford enough meat to provide heart disease risk.

“That’s how I grew up and it irritates me to see waste, but I try to bite my tongue and just let my son eat what he wants rather than infect him with the same fat-producing virus.”

Not raised by that rule, but saw my cousins subjected to it as a kid.

Adult consequence: I generally clean my own plate, because I don’t take more than I can eat, but I don’t force feed my kids when they overestimate. And we are all reasonably thin…

“This “integration” policy has been going on for decades and is part of the HHS budgets and SSI as part of Social Security.”

The projects of the 60s were a horrible failure, too. Moving welfare people next to working people was the next idea. What is your solution?

This is where you seem to think I am different than I am.

I was actually responding to Blue’s “only country in the world where the homeless live in houses” post.

You can take all of Warren Buffet`s money I don`t care, please do. Put the banksters in jail, fine with me.

Wow, you’re a lot more hard-core than me, unless those were just straw men (which I suspect is what they were). I just want the rich to pay the same tax rates as everyone else, no matter what the source or the form of their income is. Kinda boring, but boring is good when it comes to governments and financial systems.

I actually do not mind capital gains taxes being 15% for dividends only, as long as a full 30% corporate tax was paid on the company income that generated the income to distribute as dividends. The rest of it tho… it should have the same tax rate structure as regular income. 0-15k = 0% 15-30k = 10% etc, at whatever rates are for personal income…

There were “sizable” crowds around here. Half of them were college and high school kids who weren’t there to shop, but to witness the carnage.

When the “Black Friday” specials/givaways were snapped up (ususally within the first hour), the crowds disappeared quickly. I went to Best Buy at 1pm, and the place was a ghost town.

As far as car sales are concerned, even the numbers 5 years ago were due to the “Only in America” position that the Big 3 found themselves in; building cars to sell at a loss, because they lost less money that way, than what it cost to shut the plant down. Those days are done.

Prices on used cars/trucks with less than 100K miles continue to go up around here. Had lunch with my buddy yesterday, says a guy he works with wants to buy his 2004 F-150 4×4, 80K miles. He’s offering him $18,500, which is what he paid for the truck four years/40,000 miles ago.

with such low financing rates on new, why buy slightly used?

Because rates on used vehicles are around 2.99% around here.
(checked at my credit union last week)

Because a 2012 F-150 4×4 has an MSRP of around $40K.

This is in Flyover, where $80K will get you into a decent (albeit small) house.

I was at the Ford dealer last week, looking at cars for my youngest, and talked with the Sales Manager and the salesmen for a while. (I was the only guy on the lot for 2+ hours).

Asked them what they were going to do, when the average price of a truck or SUV exceeded the price of a nice house. The fact that they took the question seriously spoke volumes.

I was at the Ford dealer last week, looking at cars for my youngest, and talked with the Sales Manager and the salesmen for a while. (I was the only guy on the lot for 2+ hours).

The only guy on the lot for more than TWO HOURS? Yeesh! Not even a random tire-kicker? Just you and the sales force?

I’ve heard that things are bad in car sales, but I didn’t know they were this bad.

It’s why they are predicting a banner year for new car sales, IMO.

I for one, refuse to pay $10K plus for any vehicle with more than 80K miles on it. A new Ford Focus makes more sense than a $10K, five year old, 80-100K mile Honda Civic.

If you play your cards right, you can get both. BMW gave me 0.9% financing on a 2008 at half the original price. It should have been even cheaper, but that’s what they cost right now. I spent a year looking before I pulled the trigger on that one.

I guess it’s different here in SW Fla. Car dealer here is boasting he sold 1,200 new Kia’s in the month of January…along with 300 used cars off his HUGE lot in Cape Coral.

To me this seems simple incredible. That’s like 40 cars a day being sold. My brother in law who’s a car salesman in another state says it’s impossible. But nobody is questioning this guy’s numbers. He gave away 7 new cars as part of the promotion on got literally thousands of people to turn out on the day of the drawing.

The problem is, statistics have been so manipulated, many people, myself included, aren’t going to disregard what we are seeing with our own Mk 1 Eyeballs.

Jeff and I differ, in that he wants to go after the serial freeloaders he sees everyday. I believe that until some banksters go to jail, or take it in the pocketbook, only more freeloaders will be created.

He’s probably right. As of today, all I see is the government handing out parking tickets for financial genocide.

Come to Clearwater and meet the beach folks living in waterfront or gulf-front condominiums and driving around in new sports cars and luxury vehicles. They can afford new cars, since the $3000/month condo mortgage is now longer a financial burden. Lot’s of folks out for dinner every night, and not just the tourists.

“Well, what if the landlord was Cindy Crawford and she collected her rent$ in person, how would YOU feel then?”

The same.

I have a wife, three daughters, a mother, three sisters, an ex-wife, a bunch of old girlfriends some of who I remember fondly and five nieces of whom two have daughters. Not to mention one of my nephews has a daughter. I love or loved them all at one time but I want a house not another girl.

“but I want a house not another girl.”

You musta cornfused my question it was about “attitude” not “relationships”. Anywho, your female sit-u-ation is not too dis-similar from my pal Tom who used to live next door to Ms. Cindy. He had a different POV drinkin’ with Hwy50 at the local pub. “loose lips sink ships!” that’s all eyes have to say.

Me? I’d rather live some place where the pythons aren’t. Not to mention alligators. I’m not too comfortable around them either.

The “deadbeats” will get theirs, in due time.

It’s only a matter of time before the banks get around to setting up a system to pursue deficiency judgements. Or even better, selling off their non-performing loans to collections agencies.

And look for the IRS and other tax collection agencies to get involved at some point, as well.

There’s too much money on the table to just let it slide.

You used to grouse occasionally about HP not giving raises or bonuses, so I’d say you need to leave Colorado. You should trade rentals with jeff saturday. Or maybe do a multi-team trade so we can get aNYCdj to New Orleans, the only city that appreciates zydeco music.

I think Mark Cuban may need to be involved to put this trade together.

“If I was you I would high tail out of Florida, pronto. The “deadbeats” would be the least of my problems. If the banks choose to not evict these people, that’s their business. I would leave Florida because of the weak economy, crime, steaming hot weather, bugs, etc. It’s one thing to visit Disneyworld for a week, and quite another to live there.”

It aint all bad. There are nice areas and good neighborhoods, the ones that are kept artificially unaffordable. To the best of my knowledge it is not anyone in Florida that has the power to keep these prices artificially high. So where do they live? Cause I wouldn`t want to move there either. It`s 78 degrees today, back home in Connecticut I don`t think it hit 78 yet did it? And yes in the summer it is really hot, but I haven`t had any days that I lost feeling in my fingers and toes in January since I moved here either. The ocean is beautiful and really a pretty blue. Unlike Todd`s Point in my home town of Greenwich Ct. on Long Island Sound. Are there hoods to stay out of here? You bet your @ss. But I have a feeling there are probably some neighborhoods in Denver you wouldn`t want to take your family for a stroll in either. For the last 8 years the Deadbeats and this housing bubble have not been the least of my problems but my biggest problem. I can take the heat in the summer, the winters are paradise and in the right areas it`s a pretty nice place to live. So I should pack my sh#t up and leave so the banks can have their shadow inventory and flush balance sheets and the Deadbeats can cry Robo and live for free? Not if I can help it.

But after all of this the question still remains, if you had experienced what I have since 2003, do you think you would feel any different about the Deadbeats? If you answered honestly I would already know the answer.

One of the problems of having a deadbeat landlord is that you inherit their problem with none of the benefits. You have the threat of eviction hanging over your head even though you are fulfilling your obligation.

My landlord is also in default though I do expect the lenders to respect the terms of our 2-year lease as long as the property is not sold to a private party at the foreclosure sale. Such a sale is highly unlikely in my area particularly given the delta between the market value of the house and the loan balance. You may want to check the provisions of the Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009 to see if you have some rights that would prevent or delay eviction. Good luck!

I feel so loved and apprciated….

You should trade rentals with jeff saturday. Or maybe do a multi-team trade so we can get aNYCdj to New Orleans, the only city that appreciates zydeco music.

“Why is it that big brother has to fix everything?”

Because the private sector washes its hands while saying “not my problem”. For the same reason the government has had to drag the automakers, who resisted while kicking and screaming all the way, into making safer and more fuel efficient cars.

Hypocritical that now the GOP wants the gov to fix everything?? I thought they stood for less gov.

Exactly.

Read Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”, among thousands of other books about business crimes against humanity.

Business, left to its own device, will ALWAYS go with the cheapest possible solution, even if it kills people.

Always.

It is NOT, “different this time” and probably never will be.

“Why is it that big brother has to fix everything? I really don’t understand the “government as savior” mentality…”

Did you not notice just how well Wall St. “policed” itself?

At $30 TRILLION, ONLY the government can do anything about a disaster on that scale.

“Business, left to its own device, will ALWAYS go with the cheapest possible solution, even if it kills people.

Always.”

Business will also back politicians who voice their support for deregulation, right down to the point where the society reverts to lawlessness. It’s much easier for powerful corporations to steal under these conditions.

we can finally start dedicating resources to tackling disease, pollution, renewable energy and technology

That sounds fine until you realize that these fields don’t produce a lot of jobs, especially for ordinary people with IQs of 100.

As I said a few weeks ago were are stratifying into a “Brave New World” type of society, where the significantly above average IQ crowd lives a middle class lifestyle and everyone else is a Lucky Ducky.

Morlock/Eloi?

“Hopefully we can realize what a bountiful planet we live on and all get along on it before we massively suicide ourselves with stupid wars.”

History says “fat chance”.

History also said fat chance to surviving an infected cut on your foot. Thankfully, some things we can engineer our way to better survival rates.

Curing insanity doesn’t seem to be on the list any time soon.

“So, I suspect that he turned to food.”

Same as with my friend. I was blessed with pretty good metabolism, so even if I become sedentary I don’t gain much weight…

I also have a built-in feedback mechanism to signal me: I happen to think 34″ waist pants are what I should wear at my ideal, and desired, weight so I refuse to wear pants larger than that. When they start gettin’ tight, I know a change is essential and I’m instantly redirected.

See information below comparing 15-year to 30-year loan rates.

Then explain to me how rates can “bounce up” from 3.45 percent down to 3.41 percent.

Mortgage interest rates up for three weeks
by Broderick Perkins

(2/21/2012) - On a low-grade rise for three weeks now, the average rate on fixed rate mortgages (FRMs) for 30-year conforming loans, came in at 4.15 percent the week ending Feb. 21, up from 4.13 percent last week , according to the Santa Clara, CA-based “Erate Interest Rate Update.”

A year ago, the average 30-year conforming FRM rate was 5.13 percent.
…
The average rate for the 15-year FRM, 3.41 percent, also bounced up from 3.45 percent a week ago. The rate was 4.44 percent a year ago, according to Erate, a financial information publisher and interest rate tracker since 1999.
…

Not recommended, as you will pay a higher interest rate on a 30-year loan than a 15-year loan.

There is a premium paid in the higher interest rate if you go this route, but I consider it similar to an insurance premium. That premium buys you the option of dropping down to a lower payment in the future if your circumstances ever require it.

“Not recommended, as you will pay a higher interest rate on a 30-year loan than a 15-year loan.”

Well of course you will if you take it on its own. But the premise was how to knock your 30 years of payments down to…something less than 30.

See also: what Prime said. If you can afford the 15 year now but aren’t assured that you can’t prevent job loss or other expenses later, this gives you an aggressive payoff plan as well as insurance against your possible inability to continue to be that aggressive in the future.

In case we ever buy another domicile (currently doubtful), I am guessing we will do an affordable 15-year loan, which has to do with finding the combination of housing quality / purchase price / monthly payment that works for us. Most people seem clueless that the reason they cannot afford a 15-year loan is that they are trying to buy a house they cannot afford.

Excellent! I’ll be back with dates etc. soon.

Of course, you’ll get endless stories of my adventures in the midwest. Oh wait, I’m not having any adventures and the town I move to is still in a bubble. In Kansas!!!

Not me. I use it against them. I pay it off every month and get miles. Taking a “free” trip to New Orleans soon.

Oh, full disclosure: I expense A LOT of items due to work travel so that helps things add up quickly.

If demand is down AND we’re STILL the biggest consumers… does that answer your question?

Nope.

Demand is down HERE, but is global demand down?

It is a global market.