Well, it would seem that consumers in general now believe that there will be a housing bust -- and it's coming soon. According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, over 70% of us believe prices will take a sharp fall; however, 56% of us are deluding ourselves into thinking it's going to happen somewhere other than where WE live.
That's positive thinking at its worst: we're all ready to predict the crumbling of the market, but we're all silly enough to think that we won't be affected. It's true that some areas haven't been subject to double-digit increases in price, and so may not have the same crash awaiting. But if the market takes a big enough tumble, we can all expect to be impacted.
Another interesting tidbit from the same article: the term "housing bubble" is being recognized and understood by more and more of us. Obviously, we hear it in the news and read about it in our local papers, and it's become part of our "lexicon". Perhaps that's unfortunate, as most things that happen with our markets are driven by human beings, and self-fulfilling prophecy can be at work even in those markets. After all, if we believe a fall is coming, and we all hunker down and take a defensive posture, we can actually bring that fall on.
Perhaps in line with our fears about the market, just 15% of ur think it's a good time to borrow money. Now that shows some wisdom, with interest rates still inching up.
Michael
