[quote=sdrealtor]CAR
Your comments about the buyer bringing the money show complete disregard for the fact that money is only one of the hard assets involved in the transaction. The seller is bringing something equally if not more important, a tangible asset with real value. Your comments make it seem as thought he seller is contribuitng nothing. At one point in time the seller paid cash for the property, for interest payments, for taxes, for maintenance and for improvements. At the sale they are getting that back and hopefully a positive return on their asset.
As for all the people you know who had positive experiences on their own, it sounds like the classic gamblers bravado. Ask anyone about their gambling experience and all you hear about is the wins never the losses. And of course no one ever losses in Vegas;)[/quote]
Certainly, the seller brings something to the table, but it’s less liquid. Some would say a hard asset is more valuable (in an inflationary environment), and some would say it’s less valuable (in a deflationary environment). I’m a deflationist. 🙂
Sellers aren’t the only ones paying real money for housing. Renters do, too; yet they don’t feel entitled to get all of that back, and then some. Sometimes prices go up and sellers can make a profit, and sometimes price go down, benefitting buyers instead. There is no rule about sellers being entitled to a profit…yet this belief is pervasive in our society. It’s the reason we had a credit/housing bubble.
We need to stop thinking of our primary residences as “investments” (they’re not — they are depreciating liabilities) and start investing in useful things that will make our economy grow stronger. Housing (and the debt that is used to buy them) is not what’s going to make our country great again.
