The numbers can be manipulated, twisted, smoothed and shifted into a hundred different ways depending on ones point of view.
First, "The Housing Bubble".
The fact that we are in a housing bubble seems to be a generally accepted point of view these days. Maybe it's my contrarian nature, but, I've been traveling around Europe for a couple of years comparing home prices with those in the U.S. And the prices of homes in many areas of Europe are significantly higher than in the U.S. Especially, when you consider the total package you're buying. Now, help me to understand this carranza, how can a country like Spain or Greece with a per capita income far less than America's support home prices which are much higher in so many areas?
Let's also consider how much equity people now have in their homes vs. a few years ago. And consider how many people have second homes and what kind of equity they've built in those homes. I think these numbers are significant, yet they're rarely discussed when talking about "the housing bubble, gloom and doom just around the corner" scenarios.
Second, "National Debt"
While on the surface it appears the national debt is spiraling out of control, we should not just look at absolute numbers. The size of the economy matters as a percentage of debt, just as the size of a family income matters as a percentage of debt. Here is a good article describing the issue.
heritage.org |
