Mortgage Principal Reduction?

[RIJIMMY]

people lost BILLIONS in the tech bubble of the 90s. A reeession followed.
Why didnt the government step in and make them whole? Why wasnt there a program to help investors recoup their losses?
Because people were investing and investments can result in a loss. A home is an investment. Period.

[spence]

Originally Posted by RIJIMMY

people lost BILLIONS in the tech bubble of the 90s. A reeession followed.
Why didnt the government step in and make them whole? Why wasnt there a program to help investors recoup their losses?
Because people were investing and investments can result in a loss. A home is an investment. Period.

You're using "investment" in a very broad way.

The only reason people invested in tech stocks was for capital gain.

The primary reason people invest in a home is for shelter and quality of life.

As such the regulations regarding these two methods of investment are quite different. Period.

-spence

[RIJIMMY]

Originally Posted by spence

You're using "investment" in a very broad way.

The only reason people invested in tech stocks was for capital gain.

The primary reason people invest in a home is for shelter and quality of life.

As such the regulations regarding these two methods of investment are quite different. Period.

-spence

both have risks, you can have shelter easily without buying a home, and you should only buy both if you can afford them.
Neither are GUARANTEED. period

[spence]

Originally Posted by RIJIMMY

both have risks, you can have shelter easily without buying a home, and you should only buy both if you can afford them. Neither are GUARANTEED. period

You're missing the point.

Irrespective of income, the affordability of a stock is highly dependent on risk and return, while the affordability of a home is highly relative to location and market conditions.

I don't have to put any of my income into high tech stocks, but I do have to put income into housing. Most people can't afford to buy a house (or rental property) with cash so large loans are required.

Because of this dynamic, there is risk for both the lender and the borrower (in contrast, a business takes no real risk when it sells me shares of it's company) and as such both ends of the contract are regulated...this is very different from buying and selling equity shares.

That neither is GUARANTEED is an abstract point.

-spence

[Jim in CT]

Originally Posted by RIJIMMY

people lost BILLIONS in the tech bubble of the 90s. A reeession followed.
Why didnt the government step in and make them whole? Why wasnt there a program to help investors recoup their losses?
Because people were investing and investments can result in a loss. A home is an investment. Period.

EXACTLY, EXACTLY, EXACTLY. Why didn't the feds come in and give me back the money we all lost.

I'll disagree that most homes are simply investments...to many people, a home is just that, a "home", a place to raise kids and watch them grow. But a lot of these people who are now underwater bought these houses SPECIFICALLY as investments, planning to sell the house when the price doubled, because they knew they had no chance of re-paying the mortgage when variable rates were re-set. Their financial loss is no different than what people lost in the stock market crashes of 2001 and 2008.