Our government let me down again. I actually had high hopes for them a few weeks ago when I heard rumors that they were actually thinking of a home buying credit of $15,000 for everyone who purchased a home this year. When I heard that I thought WOW thats incredible and will get us out of this mess much faster or at the very least get all of those buyers who are on the fence off the fence and into a new home.
Here is why I liked it. I heard one time (couldn't tell you where or when) that when someone buys a home it puts $25,000 on average back into the economy and circulation. How..... simple.... you buy a home what is the first few things you do, paint it, new furniture, new wall hangings, new improvements and so forth, all of these things that you buy provides a sale for someone else, provides income for a company that provides jobs. Its not that creative really, its quite simple. I am not sure if my numbers are accurate but it makes real good sense to me.
I will give them some credit, they are trying. But once again its politics as usual and they are more worried about looking righteous and re-election than getting the job done and making the hard decisions that us self employed people must make every day. For example, back before Christmas we all heard rumblings of a possible government backed interest rate of 4%, sounds wonderful right? What did those rumblings do for us on the front line, it put our buyers higher on the fence, why should they come down and buy a home with a 5% or better interest rate when all they have to do is wait until spring and get a government backed rate of 4%. It didn't happen... don't get me wrong, I don't want it to happen as the government should not be in the direct lending business but the mere mention of it hurt us front line guys who are trying to fight what our government honestly helped create through too much deregulation.
Now our government has cut the home buying credit in half and limited it to first time home buyers only. Thats great and will help some but not nearly enough and with little impact. Who is it that we want to spend money?...... the people with the money! Do first time home buyers in todays world typically have money after they purchase?? Few of them have money BEFORE they purchase!!
I love this country, what it stands for and what is was founded upon. Politics was never intended to be a career opportunity, it was meant to be a temporary service to ones community or country with a return to private life after one or two terms. Until we get back to that we are destined for politics as usual.
Jack Gross, Cassidon Realty, Bethlehem Pa jack@cassidonrealty.com
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