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At the time, you may have had a job, a home and rising retirement savings. Sure, the housing market was hurting a lot, but stock prices were still holding up and Federal Reserve policymakers were offering reasons for calm, saying they expected strong consumer spending.
But the Fed was wrong: In December 2007, an economic earthquake already was convulsing the country.
It marked the beginning of the Great Recession, which lasted 18 months, becoming the longest recession of the post-World War II period.
"There was a lot we didn't see then," said Kevin Logan, chief economist for HSBC. "We didn't see the borrowing that was piled on top of borrowing, and how it had contaminated the financial system."
Big government at work trying to manipulate reality. What could go wrong? Lol
We'd still be in a recession if our fiscal policy hadn't been so proactive. The only reason we got out the recession was spending by the government. Europe did the opposite - look how they ended up.
I don't know how -- but thank goodness. My husband's career is based on residential development. We weathered that 18 months and have enjoyed a slow steady rise back to a very active housing market, job growth etc......The last 8 years have been good for us...I hope it continues.
We'd still be in a recession if our fiscal policy hadn't been so proactive.
We stayed in the recession, or close to it, for eight years, thanks to government interference in the economy that made it impossible for business to predict what was going to happen year after year, and thus very risky to introduce new products, hire new employees, expand production etc.
It's the same pattern that repeats every time the govt starts claiming they can "help" things. They wind up scaring the people handling the economy (that's you, me, and businesses) enough that they back away and stop taking the chances that expand the economy.
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The only reason we got out the recession was spending by the government.
That's what kept us in the recession, or nearly so, for eight years. Govt borrowed like crazy, soaking up all available capital, and making it hard for business (you know, the people who actually pay their loans back) to do the same for fear of defaults.
We got out of the Recession in the same way we always do: Businesses taking chances and raising production, hiring people and buying capital goods. Too bad govt made it so risky to do so, slowing the process WAY down and drawing out the bad economic conditions beyond all reasonable expectation... as government always does, at least since 1933.
We'd still be in a recession if our fiscal policy hadn't been so proactive. The only reason we got out the recession was spending by the government. Europe did the opposite - look how they ended up.
And created the greatest buy low investment opportunity in my 40 years of investing.
We stayed in the recession, or close to it, for eight years, thanks to government interference in the economy that made it impossible for business to figure out what was going to happen year after year, and thus very risky to introduce new products, hire new employees, expand production etc.
It's the same pattern that repeats every time the govt starts claiming they can "help" things. They wind up scaring the people handling the economy (that's you, me, and businesses) enough that they back away and stop taking the chances that expand the economy.
That's what kept us in the recession, or nearly so, for eight years. Govt borrowed like crazy, soaking up all available capital, and making it hard for business (you know, the people who actually pay their loans back) to do the same for fear of defaults.
We got out of the Recession in the same way we always do: Businesses taking chances and raising production, hiring people and buying capital goods. Too bad govt made it so risky to do so, slowing the process WAY down and drawing out the bad economic conditions beyond all reasonable expectation... as government always does, at least since 1933.
IMO it would have been worse without central counter action. Gov't didn't 'borrow' so much as it created new money. Capital wasn't 'soaked up'. Through QE the Fed created about $4T of new money, mostly left as excess assets, since there were continued low demands and thus less desire for big business loans for new or expanded business. Even as they lowered interest rates to the bone. Low interest rates are key if people and business want loans.
That's what kept us in the recession, or nearly so, for eight years. Govt borrowed like crazy, soaking up all available capital, and making it hard for business (you know, the people who actually pay their loans back) to do the same for fear of defaults.
How did government soak up all available capital by borrowing? Government is supposed to borrow and spend during a recession in order to get the economy going again, and then pay the money back when the good times return. Of course, it rarely works that way as politicians like to borrow and spend no matter what the economic conditions. But increased government spending during recessions is a good thing. What better time to fix infrastructure than during periods of high unemployment when labor is cheaper? Fixing stuff during a labor glut is actually pretty smart business.
We stayed in the recession, or close to it, for eight years, thanks to government interference in the economy that made it impossible for business to figure out what was going to happen year after year, and thus very risky to introduce new products, hire new employees, expand production etc.
It's the same pattern that repeats every time the govt starts claiming they can "help" things. They wind up scaring the people handling the economy (that's you, me, and businesses) enough that they back away and stop taking the chances that expand the economy.
That's what kept us in the recession, or nearly so, for eight years. Govt borrowed like crazy, soaking up all available capital, and making it hard for business (you know, the people who actually pay their loans back) to do the same for fear of defaults.
We got out of the Recession in the same way we always do: Businesses taking chances and raising production, hiring people and buying capital goods. Too bad govt made it so risky to do so, slowing the process WAY down and drawing out the bad economic conditions beyond all reasonable expectation... as government always does, at least since 1933.
Austerity doesn't work. The EU is evidence enough that cutting spending during a recession decreases investment in the economy. Tax cuts for the lower and middle classes combined with increased government spending is why we got out of the recession in 2009.
I work for an entertainment company and luckily entertainment is usually recession proof. I saw friends lose almost everything during that time but luckily they made a comeback. One of the friends is a residential appraiser. He has been raking in the money since about 2011 and has made more than full recovery. He now has a ton of rainy day cash to last him a few years.
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