Originally Posted by Jake
that system encouraged people to buy housing which was an investment/savings...


I tend to think that "investment" idea was a marketing sham as well. Housing to me is, well, shelter. Buy it and pay it off. It's not an "investment" or a bank account.

Especially today when it appears that millenials have no interest in buying housing (and the debt, maintenance, and other hassles associated with property ownership), it would appear that my housing "investment" may not produce the kind of yield that the industry touts as reason to keep buying bigger houses.

And who would be the beneficiary of this housing "investment"? I can't realize the net gain on the house until I sell it, and then I'm out of shelter? Or would my beneficiaries get the gain when I'm dropped in a hole in the ground?

Shows how out-of-fashion my thinking is these days prioritizing security (financial/physical) over some "net worth" or "buying power" figure on papers...


Jay