Wonder how we got in this economic mess?  Here it is folks:



This has been coming for years.  Too many people in this country feel entitled to live like they are wealthy.  I bet everyone on this board knows at least one person driving a car that cost more than that person makes in a year.  High end clothes, vacations, you name it.  Credit was too easy and no one knows how to live within their means anymore.  Keeping up with the joneses required forgetting all common sense.  This is a reckoning.

I found this animated piece to be a little more complete picture of how our current economic situation came about.  


">The Crisis of Credit Visualized from http://vimeo.com/jonathanjarvis">Jonathan Jarvis on http://vimeo.com">Vimeo.

How exaclty can a school bus driver and a construction worker afford an $800,000 house?

Hard work and a rich wife.

How exaclty can a school bus driver and a construction worker afford an $800,000 house?

Seems they can\'t!  They overextended... that was easy to do when banks were giving away $$$, now they\'re probably in debt up to their ears only paying the interest on their credit cards ...I mean I don\'t know that for a fact, just an educated guess.  I myself was caught off guard by the economic collapse and now have a vehicle I can\'t afford... oh well, I\'ll drive it like I stole it \'till the bank comes to take it away ho ho, hee hee, ha ha... if they can find it!!

Quote from: tyzack;222048

How exaclty can a school bus driver and a construction worker afford an $800,000 house?

A good contractor can make serious bank.

But I definitely see your point.  Where are the checks and balances?  Why would you buy a house you couldn\'t afford.  BUT why would a bank give them the loan.  10 years ago, you had to QUALIFY for a loan.

Because there are many unethical mortgage brokers who approved loans that people could never pay back.

Working with mortgage brokers in my business, all the those I spoke to said, they heard and seen brokers approve people for more than they were worth.

I guess I knew things were going to get bad when amoung a certin group of my friends it was "cool" to buy property right out (or even still in) of college.

...i would love to know how those tripple deckers in new beddie are holding up

If I know the Beige like I think i do, there are probably hords of immigrant fisherman living in those homes which are being destroyed slowly.

Quote from: Spacey;222059

Because there are many unethical mortgage brokers who approved loans that people could never pay back.

Watch that "The Crisis of Credit Visualized" movie.  It explained that brokers were encouraged to write subprime loans.

Definitely true. Many were thinking about the money they would make.

Throughout history I don\'t think anyone really ever thinks far enough ahead. Maybe it is because while we live we only see the time line from our birth to our death.

Quote from: Spacey;222064

Definitely true. Many were thinking about the money they would make.

The regulations had to be relaxed in order for the brokers to even have the option of signing subprime loans.

The fault for this situation is at so many levels, from the stupid home buyer getting in over his head, to the greedy bankers and investment houses.  They were all trying to take advantage of a situation to get more then they deserved.  

And now the rest of us will pay for their mistakes and pray that we don\'t get taken down with them.

I blame our parents.

hey.....we got out of vietnam.....****...we gotta do everything?

Yes!

Don\'t you understand that we are entitled to a world that we don\'t have to do anything.