Yet the policies that underlie regulation should embody a more affirmative set of social goals. One obvious example is the housing market, which remains depressed today, although there are at last some signs of gradual improvement.
As has been widely observed, mortgages are not available to many potential homebuyers who appear creditworthy by most reasonable measures, despite the fact that home affordability judged by traditional measures is greater than at any time in decades. The flawed mortgage securitization system that provided too much financing on too lax terms has been eliminated or constrained.