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"Wall Street" - ie the big investment houses - frequently remind me of a draft horse from the horse-and-buggy days. Drivers put blinders on the horse's heads which kept them from seeing anything to the sides, to keep them from spooking. The sequester, the debt default, this has been looming on the sides for six months AT LEAST (the last time they voted on a temporary budget), yet all of the sudden it is all front and center in the media. The horse carrying the cart is freaking out about this sudden development, which isn't even remotely sudden. Congressional Republicans seem horrified to learn about the ACA, when it was made law 3 AND A HALF YEARS AGO.
Well. yeah, sort of.
But being the minority party had put them in the position of having very little leverage for that period of time.
So, they are playing nuclear brinksmanship.
Right now, anyone with a brain knows we cannot default. So, the scramble will be to not default, and to save face for all the (non-partisan description) cretins involved in the power structure.
If they don't resolve this shutdown.. it could be another Lehman situation.. I'm just not comfortable making a move until this is resolved.. here are a couple articles that explain effects:
“We can’t even imagine all the things that might happen, just like Henry Paulson couldn’t imagine all the bad things that might happen if he let Lehman go down,” said Bill Isaac, chairman of Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bancorp and a former chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., referring to the former U.S. Treasury secretary. “It would create chaos in financial markets.”
Higher borrowing costs could slow the housing recovery. If 30-year mortgage rates climbed to 6.5 percent from 4.5 percent, a borrower who can now afford the monthly payment on a $200,000 loan would only be able to take on about $160,000 of debt when buying a property, forcing down sale prices. A U.S. Default Seen as Catastrophe Dwarfing Lehman
I'd think that the only real possible danger would be that interest rates might go up substantially. The Fed has been keeping them artificially low. If that stops, rates are going to fly upwards.
So, if you are buying, you might consider picking out that house and applying for the mortgage and get a rate lock. You can always back out if you change your mind or something bad happens to your personal economy. If rates don't go up, no harm no foul. If rates do go up, you'll have your low rate locked in.
The market goes up and the market goes down. My point is that there has been nothing like the massive drop that happened back when the bank bailout was voted down.
The market goes up and the market goes down. My point is that there has been nothing like the massive drop that happened back when the bank bailout was voted down.
See below. No default at this time. But, it is being priced in, IMO, slowly.
With the last two years' solid record of higher highs, and higher lows, people are taking money off the table. That will accelerate if we go to the brink of default.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rational1
> Right now, anyone with a brain knows we cannot default.
If that statement is true then there are a bunch of senators and representatives walking around without brains.
Well, while it is difficult to argue that our DC statesmen have functioning gray matter, we have also not yet defaulted.
Last edited by MikeJaquish; 10-09-2013 at 12:41 PM..
The only thing different from writing an offer on a property today verse a couple of weeks ago, is you need to add a week or two to your originally expected closing date to allow the rest of the current files to close from any initial backup. Contracts in my area are typically 4 weeks. I'm writing one this week and I'm going to put a 6 week closing period on it to make sure we're good and don't have to ask for extensions.
The world is not coming to an end. The sky isn't falling!
The government was shut down 12 times when Tip O'Neill (DEM) was Speaker of the House. This was under both Reagan and Carter . . . and I think if you look back at those time periods, nothing significant happened that would affect buying a house. Even with interest rates at 13%, some of us moved and had to buy another house or face capital gains consequences - so we bought houses with mortgages of 13%.
I can't understand why folks are getting all ginned up over this shut down when it wasn't that long ago that a government shut down was not even unusual. Has everyone just forgotten their history or is everyone (but me) too young to remember this stuff? lolol
The Feds are keeping interest rates lowered . . . this may be the BEST time to buy a house, as opposed to waiting six months to a year - and facing higher interest rates.
The government was shut down 12 times when Tip O'Neill (DEM) was Speaker of the House. This was under both Reagan and Carter . . . and I think if you look back at those time periods, nothing significant happened that would affect buying a house. Even with interest rates at 13%, some of us moved and had to buy another house or face capital gains consequences - so we bought houses with mortgages of 13%.
I can't understand why folks are getting all ginned up over this shut down when it wasn't that long ago that a government shut down was not even unusual. Has everyone just forgotten their history or is everyone (but me) too young to remember this stuff? lolol
The Feds are keeping interest rates lowered . . . this may be the BEST time to buy a house, as opposed to waiting six months to a year - and facing higher interest rates.
Just a thought . . .
The issue is the apparent intransigence of the parties playing with default, which I don't recall from prior shutdowns.
When coupled with the concerns about ACA hurting many people significantly, we see Carter's malaise + worry.
Heck, I just posted on FB that it is a great time to sell a house. We are starved for good inventory.
The issue is the apparent intransigence of the parties playing with default, which I don't recall from prior shutdowns.
When coupled with the concerns about ACA hurting many people significantly, we see Carter's malaise + worry.
Heck, I just posted on FB that it is a great time to sell a house. We are starved for good inventory.
I see your point . . .
But I still think it is as good a time to buy a house as it has been for a year. Every situation is different, of course.
I have had two realtor friends ask me in the last 2 months if I would be interested in selling my house - as they are looking for inventory in my price range and location (in Charlotte). Hubby is reaching retirement age (which is why they asked about my possible interest in selling).
There are certainly buyers out there and I have a feeling they are thinking about rising interest rates in the future. It's a good time to buy a house, imo.
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