Hi dAK,
Except they and their governments aren't in debt to the tune of the American.
I don't know that that's necessarily a true statement.
I read somewhere (maybe on this thread) that the average Japanese family (especially in urban areas) has a mortgage that would be a back-breaker elsewhere. Compounding the problem of the high mortgage is that many (or maybe most) of the properties or underlying assets have actually decreased in price since the mortgage was signed, meaning that people are paying more than the home is worth. But because available property in urban areas of Japan is relatively scarce, they hold on to what they have for fear of losing everything.
A similar situation exists in Hong Kong, which has 4 distinct classes of residents. There are the ultra-wealthy, the upper income group, the great middle class, and the poor/working poor. Of these groups, the middle class is by far the group with the biggest problems, foremost of which is an inability to pay huge mortgages and/or rent on reduced incomes. Property in Hong Kong is very expensive, and for a time anyway, it seems everyone wanted to own a piece of the rock...
I'm not familiar enough with all of Europe to comment on their debt situation, which probably varies by country. Problems in Germany, France, Great Britain and Italy are well documented, but one only rarely reads about the remainder of the European countries.
Overall, most Americans are currently meeting their debt obligations. But corporate and personal bankruptcies are currently at record levels. It's much easier to wipe out debts here in the USA than it is in other countries. And, as you noted, our biggest problem is the debt of the US government itself...
KJC |
