Tuesday, August 09, 2005  HBAS #4: "Everyone Needs a place to
Live'  The housing bubble argument that says 'Everyone needs a
place to live' is probably the most ridiculous one out there.
The implication is that therefore prices will continue to rise
or that prices won't decline. Here is my response:    • People
do not need to buy. People can and do rent.   • People do not
have to live in a bubble market. They may move to cheaper
locales.   • There is a practical limit on what people can
afford based on income, other expenses, interest rates, and
lending standards   • Many of the people now buying are not
living there, they are renting ( or trying to rent) their highly
leveraged housing units.   • People have always needed 'a place
to live,' which did not stop prices from falling in California
in the early 90's  Another Housing Bull Argument ( HBA )
debunked.     1. Nor did the "need" for a place to live stop the
market in NYC from crashing in the early 1990s.      This is the
worst argument of all - I rent no