[Eugene]

There’s no point talking about ratios of home price to income or home price to rent. You are ignoring a big factor – interest rates. $59,000 income will support higher home prices with 6% rates than with 8% rates. A more meaningful measure is the ratio of a median home payment to a median family income. It was historically around 15% in areas with lots of free land and maybe 25% in highly desirable places with limited land like San Diego or Bay Area. (Before the age of creative financing, it couldn’t even climb much higher than 28% because you couldn’t qualify for a mortgage if your payments were more than 28% of your income!)

2000-2001 prices in Temecula are possible but improbable. Interest rates are lower and incomes are much higher today than in 2001. Overbuilding won’t matter much because San Diego will always be there to deal with excess inventory.

[Eugene]

There’s no point talking about ratios of home price to income or home price to rent. You are ignoring a big factor – interest rates. $59,000 income will support higher home prices with 6% rates than with 8% rates. A more meaningful measure is the ratio of a median home payment to a median family income. It was historically around 15% in areas with lots of free land and maybe 25% in highly desirable places with limited land like San Diego or Bay Area. (Before the age of creative financing, it couldn’t even climb much higher than 28% because you couldn’t qualify for a mortgage if your payments were more than 28% of your income!)

2000-2001 prices in Temecula are possible but improbable. Interest rates are lower and incomes are much higher today than in 2001. Overbuilding won’t matter much because San Diego will always be there to deal with excess inventory.

[Eugene]

There’s no point talking about ratios of home price to income or home price to rent. You are ignoring a big factor – interest rates. $59,000 income will support higher home prices with 6% rates than with 8% rates. A more meaningful measure is the ratio of a median home payment to a median family income. It was historically around 15% in areas with lots of free land and maybe 25% in highly desirable places with limited land like San Diego or Bay Area. (Before the age of creative financing, it couldn’t even climb much higher than 28% because you couldn’t qualify for a mortgage if your payments were more than 28% of your income!)

2000-2001 prices in Temecula are possible but improbable. Interest rates are lower and incomes are much higher today than in 2001. Overbuilding won’t matter much because San Diego will always be there to deal with excess inventory.

[Eugene]

There’s no point talking about ratios of home price to income or home price to rent. You are ignoring a big factor – interest rates. $59,000 income will support higher home prices with 6% rates than with 8% rates. A more meaningful measure is the ratio of a median home payment to a median family income. It was historically around 15% in areas with lots of free land and maybe 25% in highly desirable places with limited land like San Diego or Bay Area. (Before the age of creative financing, it couldn’t even climb much higher than 28% because you couldn’t qualify for a mortgage if your payments were more than 28% of your income!)

2000-2001 prices in Temecula are possible but improbable. Interest rates are lower and incomes are much higher today than in 2001. Overbuilding won’t matter much because San Diego will always be there to deal with excess inventory.

[Eugene]

There’s no point talking about ratios of home price to income or home price to rent. You are ignoring a big factor – interest rates. $59,000 income will support higher home prices with 6% rates than with 8% rates. A more meaningful measure is the ratio of a median home payment to a median family income. It was historically around 15% in areas with lots of free land and maybe 25% in highly desirable places with limited land like San Diego or Bay Area. (Before the age of creative financing, it couldn’t even climb much higher than 28% because you couldn’t qualify for a mortgage if your payments were more than 28% of your income!)

2000-2001 prices in Temecula are possible but improbable. Interest rates are lower and incomes are much higher today than in 2001. Overbuilding won’t matter much because San Diego will always be there to deal with excess inventory.

[Eugene]

I am not sure I feel I should pay for a healthcare system for the entire nation,

Here’s the choice … You could pay extra to extend healthcare coverage to all 300 million Americans rather than 250 million … Or you could pay extra so that insurance companies can spend money on screening prospective clients, denying coverage to anyone who’s likely to get sick, and then refusing to pay for procedures on a case-by-case basis in order to save money. (And also hope that you don’t develop some sort of condition that makes you virtually uninsurable until you’re 65)

The reality is that people who need expensive treatment ultimately get it anyway. If Mr. Rodriguez does not have health insurance and his appendix ruptures, he goes to the ER, they do the surgery and send him a bill for $50,000. Since he does not have the money, he declares bankruptcy and the hospital has no choice but to get the money out of its other patients (you, for example).

[Eugene]

I am not sure I feel I should pay for a healthcare system for the entire nation,

Here’s the choice … You could pay extra to extend healthcare coverage to all 300 million Americans rather than 250 million … Or you could pay extra so that insurance companies can spend money on screening prospective clients, denying coverage to anyone who’s likely to get sick, and then refusing to pay for procedures on a case-by-case basis in order to save money. (And also hope that you don’t develop some sort of condition that makes you virtually uninsurable until you’re 65)

The reality is that people who need expensive treatment ultimately get it anyway. If Mr. Rodriguez does not have health insurance and his appendix ruptures, he goes to the ER, they do the surgery and send him a bill for $50,000. Since he does not have the money, he declares bankruptcy and the hospital has no choice but to get the money out of its other patients (you, for example).

[Eugene]

I am not sure I feel I should pay for a healthcare system for the entire nation,

Here’s the choice … You could pay extra to extend healthcare coverage to all 300 million Americans rather than 250 million … Or you could pay extra so that insurance companies can spend money on screening prospective clients, denying coverage to anyone who’s likely to get sick, and then refusing to pay for procedures on a case-by-case basis in order to save money. (And also hope that you don’t develop some sort of condition that makes you virtually uninsurable until you’re 65)

The reality is that people who need expensive treatment ultimately get it anyway. If Mr. Rodriguez does not have health insurance and his appendix ruptures, he goes to the ER, they do the surgery and send him a bill for $50,000. Since he does not have the money, he declares bankruptcy and the hospital has no choice but to get the money out of its other patients (you, for example).

[Eugene]

I am not sure I feel I should pay for a healthcare system for the entire nation,

Here’s the choice … You could pay extra to extend healthcare coverage to all 300 million Americans rather than 250 million … Or you could pay extra so that insurance companies can spend money on screening prospective clients, denying coverage to anyone who’s likely to get sick, and then refusing to pay for procedures on a case-by-case basis in order to save money. (And also hope that you don’t develop some sort of condition that makes you virtually uninsurable until you’re 65)

The reality is that people who need expensive treatment ultimately get it anyway. If Mr. Rodriguez does not have health insurance and his appendix ruptures, he goes to the ER, they do the surgery and send him a bill for $50,000. Since he does not have the money, he declares bankruptcy and the hospital has no choice but to get the money out of its other patients (you, for example).

[Eugene]

I am not sure I feel I should pay for a healthcare system for the entire nation,

Here’s the choice … You could pay extra to extend healthcare coverage to all 300 million Americans rather than 250 million … Or you could pay extra so that insurance companies can spend money on screening prospective clients, denying coverage to anyone who’s likely to get sick, and then refusing to pay for procedures on a case-by-case basis in order to save money. (And also hope that you don’t develop some sort of condition that makes you virtually uninsurable until you’re 65)

The reality is that people who need expensive treatment ultimately get it anyway. If Mr. Rodriguez does not have health insurance and his appendix ruptures, he goes to the ER, they do the surgery and send him a bill for $50,000. Since he does not have the money, he declares bankruptcy and the hospital has no choice but to get the money out of its other patients (you, for example).

[Eugene]

Neither party will have much direct effect on the bubble. Democrats are planning to let Bush tax cuts expire in 2010 (if not repeal them as soon as they take office). That will disproportionately hurt high-earners and drive home prices down. Democrats are also more likely to spend federal money to minimize foreclosure blight (which will probably be a huge problem in 2009 and beyond in hard-hit areas like Florida and Californian exurbs), that will be good for inventories and depress prices in the long run.

[Eugene]

Neither party will have much direct effect on the bubble. Democrats are planning to let Bush tax cuts expire in 2010 (if not repeal them as soon as they take office). That will disproportionately hurt high-earners and drive home prices down. Democrats are also more likely to spend federal money to minimize foreclosure blight (which will probably be a huge problem in 2009 and beyond in hard-hit areas like Florida and Californian exurbs), that will be good for inventories and depress prices in the long run.

[Eugene]

Neither party will have much direct effect on the bubble. Democrats are planning to let Bush tax cuts expire in 2010 (if not repeal them as soon as they take office). That will disproportionately hurt high-earners and drive home prices down. Democrats are also more likely to spend federal money to minimize foreclosure blight (which will probably be a huge problem in 2009 and beyond in hard-hit areas like Florida and Californian exurbs), that will be good for inventories and depress prices in the long run.

[Eugene]

Neither party will have much direct effect on the bubble. Democrats are planning to let Bush tax cuts expire in 2010 (if not repeal them as soon as they take office). That will disproportionately hurt high-earners and drive home prices down. Democrats are also more likely to spend federal money to minimize foreclosure blight (which will probably be a huge problem in 2009 and beyond in hard-hit areas like Florida and Californian exurbs), that will be good for inventories and depress prices in the long run.

[Eugene]

Neither party will have much direct effect on the bubble. Democrats are planning to let Bush tax cuts expire in 2010 (if not repeal them as soon as they take office). That will disproportionately hurt high-earners and drive home prices down. Democrats are also more likely to spend federal money to minimize foreclosure blight (which will probably be a huge problem in 2009 and beyond in hard-hit areas like Florida and Californian exurbs), that will be good for inventories and depress prices in the long run.

[Author]

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