It's All About Jobs

The housing market has still not recovered. In fact, new home sales are at a 47-year low. Increasingly, the jobs situation is being blamed for the slow housing market. There are too many unemployed people; not only can they not buy houses, but their large numbers makes those who are employed afraid to buy houses, because they worry that they could be the next to lose their jobs.

This long stretch of unemployment is caused by more than just the poor economy. Many of the jobs have been lost to automation or off-shoring and aren't coming back. We can't tell our children to aim for a single career. They'll have to be versatile and self-reliant in order to support themselves.

A House for the Price of a Car----Say What?

A recent article entitled "4 Bedrooms for the Price of 4 Wheels" is getting a lot of attention this week because it illustrates how low house prices have gotten in some areas of the country compared to the price of cars, which doesn't vary much geographically.

This story also illustrates the huge differences in how people in various parts of the country view this economy. If you live in an area where $40,000 is the going rate for a house, you've known about the economic difficulties we're having for quite some time. But if you live in an area where the average home price still tops $300,000, you may think of the recession as something that happened a few years ago and is long gone.

Nevertheless, the economic problems we have on a national level continue to cast a pall on our economic future. This is why it's so important to prepare your children for the new economy. Just because things are good where you live now doesn't mean they won't change, or that your children will stay in your area.

Modern Day Debt Slaves

This dad was so convinced that his children had to go to college that he co-signed student loans for ALL FOUR of them.....yikes! He and his wife lost their jobs, they've lost their home to foreclosure and are about to become homeless, and they can't shake off the tremendous student loan debt (one loan is for $108,000) through bankruptcy.

Proposed legislation may help them out by making student loans dischargeable in bankruptcy, but the lesson here is clear: don't get into student loan debt unless you're sure it will result in employment that pays so well you can repay the loans and still have money to live on. Not too many careers fall into that category these days.

College Grads are Moving Back Home

The economy takes its toll as college grads find that high unemployment and low wages has them taking refuge in their old rooms.

This isn't such a bad thing in and of itself; living with your family until marriage was once the norm. But it's very telling when we consider whether or not the economy is improving, as some say it is.

Labor Mobility is Down: What Does It Mean?

Americans used to move to where the jobs were. But these days, so many of them are stuck in mortgages they can't get out of that they can't move anywhere. According to this article, it's a trend that is expected to continue for a long time.

It once made sense for young people to buy houses as soon as they could before prices went up further. But these days owning a house can be a real trap, especially for a young person looking to get a career going. It's wiser to rent, at least for the foreseeable future.

Declining House Prices are Good!

Houses are plummeting in price in many areas of our country. This is a good thing for our kids. Prices haven’t been in line with incomes in years, and now incomes are dropping. So it makes sense that house prices should drop, too. It’s the only way our kids will ever become homeowners.