It's good news, bad news again. Housing starts for July were up over fifteen percent. On the surface it sounds really promising, until you get to the part that housing starts were mostly apartment buildings.
Throughout the depths of the real estate crash, the government response has been to help people leave the homes they thought they owned and return to being renters. There were programs to help folks short sell their homes, and there were programs that encouraged banks to lighten the monthly payment load just enough to squeeze a few more bucks out of the distressed home "owner" before they finally were shown the exit.
Coupled with the "return to renting" theme supported by our government was a way to keep potential new home buyers out of the market. They called it "tightening lending criteria." So, we have people being encouraged to leave their homes and find a nice rental, and we have people who want a home of their own being told to go occupy one of those nice new apartments being built everywhere. We are about to cross the line to become a nation of renters. Some would claim that it's not our leaders' intent, and some would see it for what it has become. Thank you, Mr. President.
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