Housing market is back in Business!

Recently many of Americans have been forced out of their homes due to foreclosures with record numbers in job losses and a downfall in the economy. Finally we are starting to see some relief and encouragement that better times are coming. In February there was a 5% increase in established home sales. Why you may ask? People are jumping on the low, low prices that are being offered to buyers. Many houses have cut their profits just to get out from under their payments, or they have decided to downsize. Many people are being foreclosed houses and with the little that they invest in them they have more money to spend on fixing them up how they want it, which will also create higher revenue for stores such as PotteryBarn, Pier 1 and Home Depot who have all also been affective buy the economy. Many banks are slowly getting out of the mess that they were in which is allowing people to be able to receive loans. However the loans are a lot harder to receive now, so you need to be completely qualified to receive one. Banks are making sure that the people they are letting loan out money is good for so that they can prevent future foreclosed houses and losses for the bank. With President Obama's help with refinancing rates and loans for home buyers it has also helped people save on their payments.
Overall with lower rates and extra incentives for buying people now spend their days driving around new areas or looking online for a future home. The bracket that has seen the most increase was the houses that are priced under $200,000 however the greatest saving are sometimes the larger houses that the owners can't afford anymore and they are taking a big cut on the overall price. Also there is a $8000 tax deduction for new home buyer which is incentive enough for going to purchase a new house if you were planning to do so soon. The deduction is similar to the one previously offered however this deduction does not have to be paid back while the other does over a 15 year period of time. With the housing market on a rise hopefully the economy will receive a domino effect and allow the spending to contribute to other markets such as restaurants, shopping, etc which will pull the economy back up. Now is the time to buy with very low rates and lower prices on houses, it is truly a buyers market... but maybe not for long!


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/24/business/24econ.html?hp

Has the Economy Hit Rock Bottom?

With almost every headline on the news being about the housing market and the stock market are low in addition to the millions of jobs that are being lost everyday people begin to wonder have we hit the bottom yet? In that past few weeks we have noticed an increase in the stock market and several banks and establishment not needing extra bail out money, but is that enough? How do we know or is there a way to know when our economy is at its worst times. Many people agree there is no way to know for sure. It is a combination of things and i feel that the way our economy is it could be worse. Like during the great depression people were rationed food and supplies. We are so use to having everything and having it all at our fingertips that when it doesn't happen that way we can't stand it. No we may not be able to lead a luxury lifestyle but we still have family and basic necessities, people need to get back to the basics.
I think that a lot of consumer shock is based from the news. Every night there are stories about people loosing their jobs, the crisis we are in, and how bad things are. Yes we want to know what is going on but i think it scares people more than informs them. When they keep hearing that our economy is so bad they cling on to what they have and don't go out and spend which creates a recession. The housing market is slowly starting to come back up as people realize that it is a great time to buy buy rates are super low. However it is harder to get a loan because the banks are being so closing watched. This downturn of events has been churning for some time now It could have maybe been better predicted and better handled but it wasn't so now we are stuck here trying to get out of it. But i know one thing approving stimulus packages which gets us in more debt is not going to help. There is no immediate fix which is what I think people are looking for, it's going to take time and effort from every American. We should focus on creating more jobs, which would give people money that they can put back into the economy buy spending it. I think its ridiculous the amount of people on welfare and support systems, they are there when people really need help but I feel that they are too often abused and people get comfortable with getting their money check instead of trying harder to better themselves. I would be great if there was a way to allow anyone who wanted to work a job and not a government issued check.
Many saw that the stock market is the first thing to show hard times, well it has been back and forth lately. So I don't think there is any true way of knowing when we have hit the bottom I just know that many people have seen harder times then what we are experiencing now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/15/weekinreview/15vikas.html?pagewanted=2

A Slow Down in America

Many Americans are known for working long extensive hours or working more than one job. And it is now common to not a have a Monday through Friday 9-5 job, but people work more weekends and more nights. Recently mainly employers have cut days during the work week whether it be cutting a Friday or cutting the hours in a shift per day. This cut in hours is to allow many people to still keep their job but to help with other cuts for the company. They don't have to worry about the cost of being open for the day or worry about having to pay the employees for that day. So yes it is a cut in income but is having an extra day such a bad thing? Americans rely so much on daycare and nannies to watch and teach their kids. And many adults spend too much time in the work place that they completely miss out on their kids growing up. And its not just about parents and children, but also other relationships. When you work all the time you have less time with other family whether it be with your parents or siblings, etc and less time with you husband or boyfriend or trying to find one. I feel that it is very important to take time for myself and set my priorities in order. EVERYONE needs *ME* time. After the recent cuts that employers have made it has been proven that employees have decreased stress and anger. However on the the other hand some have increased those issues because it is now that much harder to pay the bills.
Bottom line we only live once and who wants to look back on their life and only be able to remember how much they worked and how they missed out on so many events and missed out on time with family and friends. Time is also looked upon as wealth and it is important for people to make time to do things that make the happy. In another article that i read a Russian professor predicted that the US would collapse by 2010. And that it would divide into 6 parts. I must say it was a little disturbing to read this however, no one knows what will happy with the country that we live in. With economic times as they are and the rise in crime no one knows what will happen but everyone should be able to look back and say i tried and more importantly i was happy. To me happiness is more important than money and status. What ever happened to the "American Dream" of owning a home and having a family, etc. Its gone! I think we are at a time where we as Americans need to reevaluate our priorities and get back to basics!

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/01/weekinreview/01dewan.html?pagewanted=1

http://www.rr.com/news/politics/article/9002/7049934/Russian_scholar_says_US_will_collapse___next_year