[cheerfulgreek]

Originally Posted by Educatingblue

I have been wondering about this for a while now. As our national debt increases in addition to the recent mortgage crisis and now some Federal loan programs being discontinued, I wonder if European Union or Japan will surpass the U.S.

My husband and I are in the process of looking for a new house and as everyone knows it IS a buyer's market. Not surprisingly, the majority of homes we have looked at are pre-foreclosure are already in foreclosure. We looked at a nice sized house (not even 2 years old) last weekend and the owners were so desperate to make a sell, they have it listed at a ridiculously low price (3 bdrms, 2 1/2 baths, 2-story for $112,000!!).

I am very concerned about our economy and wonder how much more we will have to pay for goods and services. It will be interesting to see how some people who have gotten used to a "comfortable" lifestyle will adjust paying more for less and unable to keep up with the Jones'.

We're not the only country that has experienced a housing bust. There are a few countries in Europe that lag slightly behind us. At one time we were experiencing a housing boom because of easy money and low long term interest rates, which were also plentiful in other countries too. Even for the countries that are experiencing a housing boom right now, eventually higher interest rates will put an end to it, leading to a domestic economic slow down for some and a recession for others.