Forget the economy.... WERE SPREADING THE SEED OF FREEDOM!

It's not that I'm against what has been accomplished, I just wish some other countries would have taken some of the burden off of us... Perhaps if we weren't so impatient.... wait, then Saddam woulda' nuked us with all his WMD's!!!!!

 

^^ the ones that he swallowed before we got there in time??

 

Nobody said it was "so great."

The economy is growing at a reasonably good pace despite budget deficits. Regardless, spending does need to be reduced in order make the economy rise more.

Interest rates are at the all time low they have ever been in 40years. This still holds true even after the Fed raised rates a quarter point recently.

Rates are a weak argument in this case because if the economy wasn't so great then rates would be generally higher than they have been. Raising rates tends to boost the dollars value because there's less dollars flowing through the economy. The rate at which to borrow money becomes higher so there's less people willing to borrow money. It also encourages international investors to pour money into bonds. If it was that bad then we would have already tried make-up the fact the dollars is weaker awhile ago to avoid recent trends with the dollar today, you see? It's not a huge deal really...

Raising rates quickly isn't a good thing when the dollar is weaker because you want something to give in order to make-up for it. It usually has a negative effect on stocks and has actually had a similar effect on bonds for some odd reason. You don't want to limit the money supply to when the housing market is flourishing. Instead, you want to gradually raise the rates .250% in order to regain the value of the dollar without jeopardizing the recent good trends in the economy. Therefore, the recent economy isn't great but is certainly good and getting better.

 

From the looks of the dollar, it isn't so apparent to me that the economy is getting better. Where's that deficit graph over the last few presidential terms again?

 

so true, and I hope that nations that are able to take control of thier own government(s)will be way more effective then us trying too tell them how to do it.

yah reaaaal resonable. I should say I don't know everything and I'm more of a people's person when it comes to issue's of this type of matter (I'm a watcher)

so whats reasonable? well 5 years ago I bought a house for 119k and sold it 3 years later for 209k, bought a house in Reno with that money and now this house in 2 years is worth 419k? That doesnt sound to reasonable to me.................and how long can it last before we have rid ourselves from the middle class?

I do agree spending does need to be reduced but then again the American people should set the example for the government to follow...........how much debt can one man carry

this is a huge deal in America today, problem being money is blinding. Again I can only base my opion here and this is not directed at Salty but anyone that is reading this post. Right now millions of people our living outside thier means and using the equity in thier homes to bail them out. The problem with that is when the rates do have to rise the housing market will have to come down to meet what people can pay. Now you can become upside down in your house if you ever have to refinance again at the higher rate or have to sell with a loss on the property do to now current market value.


I hope so. otherwise it could get ugly real quick when people start filling BK's and they dont mind putting the house in with it just to get out of the loan....................

I would hate to see what happens to the lenders/borrowers

again no real post but more of the trend I see

 

You just covered the essential reason why our economy is stronger than you think. You're thinking that it's directly related to inflation when it's actually more related to property trends in your area. The housing market is the strongest pillar in the economy today. If rates are adjusted too drastically it would shock the market. Just because some people's paycheck have not been keeping up with the housing market does not mean that this hasn't happened before or is a bad thing. Although it's a PITA for first-time home buyers, people in metropolitan areas in CA, NY and FL have been doing just fine off these trends for decades. If one can't keep up with the bigger fish by investing conservatively then it's nobodies else problem but their own. You can find a job in Butte Montana or West Virginia and live lavishly on your 30acre lot for practically nothing. You may not have a hoping nightclub or Six Flags down the street but you're still making a good living off your choice and have to accept reality.

You personally see your house value rise and also see your equity rise as a result. You also pay more and more towards principle on everything you have in your possession. As a result, you feel comfortable with your current debt to income figures and know they can only get better. There's nothing wrong with this... The thing you have to remember is that people are borrowing against their equity and getting a mortgage that's essentially the same monthly amount they originally paid or lower than what they bought the property at.

For example, some can effectively do this because they bought the property at 7.0% years ago and have refinanced today for 5.375%. The security in doing this is that you're still comfortable with your monthly payments and the value of the property is still below your feet whenever you decided to sell. Unless of course there's something being build that can influence economic obsolence (airport) in which case you sell asap or accept the unfortunate loss that's a part of investing.


It is a big deal but it's something that can be fixed at the same time. This is exactly why the feds are SLOWLY raising rates. they want to establish the dollar and keep the current active markets stable.

 

I truely hope more people then not have your kind of knoledge I always fear the worst well atleast when it comes to man kinds sake

 

I'm surprised nobody mentioned the unemployment rate.