Nearly four years ago, “it was the height of a crazy bubble,” Ms. LeCount said. “We just wanted to buy something. We were like fresh meat.”In other words, while the housing boom and subsequent bust has put a lot of people out of homes, it also trapped many would be / should renters into long term mortgages. But, as the chart below shows, that trend may be shifting course.
But after living for three years in the condominium they bought in Weehawken, N.J., they regretted it.
They had no idea what they were getting into. “We are not home improvement specialists,” Ms. LeCount said. “We are not the people who should be going to Home Depot and looking at grout.”
It will be interesting to see how home ownership is viewed after this mortgage crisis dissipates. The traditional benefit of ownership (building wealth, tax benefits, pride) may now be offset by what a mortgage actual is... a long term liability.
Source: Census
Even so, the percentages are really only fluctuating by a couple percent in any region based on this graph. Granted, that's a big number when applied to a large population. But, I would have imagined the shifts would have been much higher given the shakeup in housing. I would've guessed 5-10% shift from owners to renters.
ReplyDeleteThen again, maybe more people would switch to renting if they could get out of their homes. I bet we'll see a bigger shift in the next 5 years as people find ways out and while the memory of the bust is still fresh.
"The traditional benefit of ownership (building wealth, tax benefits, pride) may now be offset by what a mortgage actual is... a long term liability"
ReplyDeleteAgree 100%.
To me a home is a form of a forced savings plan for those that cannot save by other means for whatever reasons.