February 10, 2009

Who caused the housing bubble?

By Rosslyn Smith
Fannie and Freddie and the Community Reinvestment Act certainly did their part, but I know where the blame really lies for the housing bubble.Forget about Obama spreading doom and gloom. I'll be more likely to believe the economy is truly sunk when Jeff Lewis and Ryan Brown of Flipping Out start talking about the fine attributes of FORMICA® and Kendra Todd of My House is Worth WHAT? starts advising homeowners on how to reface laminate kitchen cabinets.  It's well known that Joseph Kennedy would tell how he knew to cash out his stock portfolio before the stock market crash of 1929. Taxi drivers told you what to buy. The shoeshine boy could give you a summary of the day's financial news as he worked with rag and polish. An old beggar who regularly patrolled the street in front of my office now gave me tips and, I suppose, spent the money I and others gave him in the market. My cook had a brokerage account and followed the ticker closely. Her...(Read Full Article)