Quote from drsteph:
IMHO, this correction is too long in coming. The longer it draws out the more protracted the pain, but that's how we like to take our pain in this country - long and drawn out.
A house is a place to live. A mortgage provides you with a way to buy the house. When buying is cheaper than renting, its a good thing. If renting is cheaper than buying, then you most likely won't buy until your needs exceed what you can find renting.
But what I don't get is married couples getting out, starting a family, and going to buy some 6000sf mcmansion(tm) the upkeep costs of which will rape them alive, filled with wasted space (500sf bathrooms - how many feet do you need to relieve yourself in?) and vaulted 20 foot ceilings which are impossibly expensive to heat and cool and echo like crazy.
You need 2000 sf for you and your s.o. and perhaps up to two kids while they are young. That's all. When they get older, you move up to a 3500 sf home if you want to. A nice 50's style ranch does it just fine.
And lo and behold - that's now the new hot design style - the return of the 50's home with current upgrades.
requiescat im pacem, uselessly large homes in bland neutral colors.
(Although I will be happy to pick up one of the larger and well built homes from the 50's-60's when they become sufficiently depressed in price and reno it.)
Sorry, bit of a rant.
We realized even with kids we could go down to 1800 sf. My mom lived in a country house in upstate NY with 3 siblings and 2 parents in 1800 sf. They managed just fine. Most Europeans don't even own a damn house. If we sell this place I may just downsize and pay cash in a couple of years. No mortgage, that would be beautiful. That would be stree free trading at it's best!
