Half of U.S. Homeowners and Renters Struggle to Afford Their Housing Payments

[neurosis]

The new American dream? 

I wonder what it's going to be like in another decade when nobody can afford medical care or housing. 

More than one of every six people (17.9%) who struggle to afford housing borrowed money from friends/family, and 17.6% dipped into their retirement savings. Over one in seven (15.6%) delayed or skipped medical treatments.

"Housing has become so financially burdensome in America that some families can no longer afford other essentials, including food and medical care, and have been forced to make major sacrifices, work overtime and ask others for money so they can cover their monthly costs," said Redfin Economics Research Lead Chen Zhao.

https://investors.redfin.com/news-events/press-releases/detail/1077/redfin-survey-half-of-u-s-homeowners-and-renters-struggle#:~:text=SEATTLE%2D%2D(BUSINESS%20WIRE)%2D%2D,to%20cover%20their%20housing%20costs.

[JParis]

I wonder what it's going to be like in another decade when nobody can afford medical care or housing. 

That's easy...it'll be womb to the tomb care and support brought to you by government.
 

[neurosis]

That's easy...it'll be womb to the tomb care and support brought to you by government.
 

When nearly 25% of affordable housing is being purchased by investors and insurance premiums increasing nearly 10% every year, I don't see this getting any better.

[JParis]

When nearly 25% of affordable housing is being purchased by investors and insurance premiums increasing nearly 10% every year, I don't see this getting any better.

No, you are correct, it simply does not get better from this point forward.

You watch home prices and while I don't have the stats to support this, it feels like real estate prices are being bumped up by the cash investors & larger companies...

I am going to say this next thing with all understanding that an individuals' net worth in many cases is tied to the valuation pricing of the primary investment, their home. The reality is, the value of those homes right now is fake, it is a massive balloon and well, balloon's burst.....or do they?

Entities are buying real estate like they believe it's only going to keep going up and I've heard the argument that "they're not making any more land"....still, a buyer can only absorb so much of the cost before they are simply priced out. If you're an investor, you invest looking for a profit eventually. 

The question is, who will provide that profit?

Play through the possibilities...you won't like to answers

[gcode]

When nearly 25% of affordable housing is being purchased by investors and insurance premiums increasing nearly 10% every year, I don't see this getting any better.

In my neighbor, nearly every house that sells is bought by Chinese investors who rent them out.
I get 3 or 4 unsolicited phone calls a month offering to buy my house. The caller are always Asian women
speaking poor English. I've read that wealthy Chinese with no faith in the Chinese economy are illegally
smuggling a nest egg out of China and parking it in US real estate.

Home insurance is another painful issue. They have declared 2/3's of the state to be in a fire zone and doubled people's rates accordingly. People who live in actual fire zones are being cancelled or are no long able to renew their policies. They are trying to spread the pain around from the recent fires. People who have the good sense stay away from fire zones are carrying the weight for those who don't.

[YoDoug]

When nearly 25% of affordable housing is being purchased by investors and insurance premiums increasing nearly 10% every year, I don't see this getting any better.

That is the real issue, capitalist greed. The big corps figured out how to control the housing market to their advantage and it isn't good for individual home buyers. I tread lightly on having gov mandate a solution to market problems, but I have seen a few articles that talk about communities that institute rules that only a certain percent of single family homes can be corporate owned. They say it has helped affordability and availability.

[Brad St]

When you take a look at other countries and their ability to own homes it's usually labeled "Generational". From the opportunity to take a loan or whether its staying in their current one.

[gcode]

When you take a look at other countries and their ability to own homes it's usually labeled "Generational".

I've read that in Japan they write 100 year mortgages with the expectation that your next 2 or 3 
generations of children will honor that debt and assume the mortgage.
The big problem in Japan now is a very low birthrate. There are hundreds of thousands of homes sitting empty because the owners died and there is no one left to move in.
If current trends continue the Japanese race will cease to exist in a few more generations.

I read an article yesterday about a group of dignitaries who went to the home of the "oldest man in Japan" to honor his 111th birthday. They found a falling down house with a skeleton laying in a bed.
It turned out he'd been dead for 35 years and his family kept it quiet to keep his pension benefits rolling in.

[Del.]

I think we should just follow the pattern of the west coast. We'll be fine.

[mkd]

as a great economist once said, don't look at the tax rates, look at the gov't spending.That is the true cost.
 Servicing the interest on the national debt is now over a trillion and Bidet is adding 1 trillion every quarter, bribing fools with their own money.
 But yeah, let's idiotically blame free marketers for at least buying hard assets that will roughly compensate for the washington regime blowing up the currency with financing the world, and buying votes, etc

[ghuns]

A 160 acre farm just up the road from me sold for $21K/acre at auction last week.

Good farm ground, but a shitty little ranch house and one small out building.

I just don't get it.

[Del.]

My sister just sold her house. Was asking $199 500. Got $223,000

[Jim at Gentex]

...The reality is, the value of those homes right now is fake, it is a massive balloon and well, balloon's burst.....or do they?

It certainly did burst back in 2008, and it looks like it could happen again. 

We aren't very good at learning from our past mistakes because we seem to repeat quite a few of them. 

[CNCAppsJames]

"...Capitalist Greed..."

FFS... that is such horseshit!

No other economic system on the planet has brought more people out of poverty than capitalism. You want.to blame corporatism, consumerism, etc... fine. Don't blame capitalism. That's just fucking ignorant. And moronic.

[CNCAppsJames]

It certainly did burst back in 2008, and it looks like it could happen again. 

We aren't very good at learning from our past mistakes because we seem to repeat quite a few of them. 

Yeah... lenders really do not learn their lessons. Of course when Government keeps bailing them out of their bad decisions there is no incentive to correct the stupidity.