“If there’s a better way to worship a bank than borrowing $800K on a 30-year mortgage at 6.5% for a 900-square-foot home, I have yet to hear it . . .

Photo above – 1480 E 85th street, NYC. Currently off market. This is apparently an example of the 900 square foot, $1 million dollar home which The Washington Examiner says is absurd . . .

The post title is a direct quote from The Washington Examiner (link at bottom). The reporter is trying to reconcile Americans’ opposing urges: living the dream as singles in an ultra-expensive coastal city, or to indebt themselves for their entire lives for a decrepit pile of bricks.

I suspect the article was penned before Trump started to thump his chest about 50-year mortgages. Sorry, Mr. "Tariffs will fix everything" - I’m not buying THAT one either. Nobody should have to sign up for a loan that only their kids can pay off. Wait . . . my bad . . . that’s what congress is already doing to us with the $38 trillion national debt.

Economists who make WAAAAY more than you and I do tell us: don't worry, be happy. That we can NEVER pay off the national debt ($140,000 per man woman child in America). We will just keep refinancing it. Or do something to make the dollar crash and hope nobody notices.

Back to the “worship your bank” thing. The article suggests that people should just move to where real estate is reasonably priced. And rents aren’t $5,000 a month for a cubby sized walkup. But that would require all the SINKs (single income, no kids) to wave goodbye to friends, relatives, and subsidized government amenities in those insanely expensive cities.

Those amenities are, in course, a large part of the reason our national debt is $38 trillion . . .

This is the point where some urban-dwelling “progressive” begins foaming at the mouth: “red states get more federal aid than blue states!! Grrr !!!”

Um yes, and people in red states earn less taxable income, have smaller mortgages, and don’t require free bus rides, free daycare, rent stabilized apartments, $100 million per mile subway systems to shorten their commutes, or a police force the size of Haiti’s army to prevent mayhem on their rural red state streets.

What’s my point? 50-year mortgages are a terrible idea. Borrowing $800,000 at 6.5% for 30 years is also a terrible idea. Signing up at age 18 for $100,000 in student loans - before you can even legally drink - is a terrible idea. A national debt the size of Mount Everest is a terrible idea.

Trying to solve all our problems by borrowing money is a terrible idea. Just ask any corporation – or citizen – who has filed for bankruptcy.

I’m just sayin’ . . .

If your city is too expensive, move. It’s the American way

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Avectoijesuismoi · 36-40

Where I live you can get a whole 1.47 acre plot for a mere $ 1099 000.
No pile of old bricks you have to bring them yourself and you have to build a nice property in keeping with the neighborhood and landscape so it looks nice too.

As for the $ 38 trillion hoping it will even be your grandchildren that finally pay it off is unrealistic unless there is 2 or 3 decades of very good management with very frugal policies that they are willing to impose and standby come hell or high water.

Tarrifs are not a good policy they hurt your own population more than the exporting country, they are collected at the point of entry by the importer.
What it will get you in the long term is less trading partners which is counter productive.
The main reason there is an in balance in trade is because you as a country are not producing things that the other country needs or its population needs or desires to have.
You are in fact also not producing or don't have the capacity to produce what your own population needs or desires anymore either or not doing it at a price they can afford to buy it at.

Bottom line if you did an inventory of the land in the US there is insufficient land to produce food of all types for the current population and that is not allowing for land that has been repurposed for solar farms etc..
So you import, but now you bang tarrifs on it ?????
So your population buys your own food you don't have capacity to produce in the first place. ??????
Then to add a bit of extra pain someone goes and thinks extra taxes on properties is a good idea.
Food prices are already on the rise anyway as there is huge demand globally for it. There is fast approaching a point where the world cannot feed everyone with current methods

swirlie · 31-35

@Avectoijesuismoi

As for the $ 38 trillion, hoping it will even be your grandchildren that finally pay it off is unrealistic unless there is 2 or 3 decades of very good management with very frugal policies that they are willing to impose and standby, come hell or high water.

Even with exemplary fiscal management practices suddenly being put in place to tackle the US National Debt of $38T, it is physically impossible feat to expect the US to pay-off their $38T in debt. This is because as a country, they don't make enough after-tax income to even address the current National Debt now, let alone having it paid off in time for any of today's taxpayer's grandchildren to reap those pending rewards of paid-off debt. The American debt crisis is far greater and far deeper than you actually realize.

The truth is, the US National Debt will still be around 200 years from now, assuming the United States is able to survive as a country who is able to get out of bed in the morning and dress itself without assistance, which is an aspiration that is highly doubtful at this point in time.

The National Debt that got started during the time of Eisenhower will continue to drag down the US as a once-viable country and will continue to reduce the American standard of living to levels typically experienced only in today's Third World countries.

Tariffs are a form of taxation, just as sales tax at point of purchase is a form of taxation. Who will pay those tariffs that are imposed on countries who export their goods to the USA will be the US consumer, not the country who exported to the USA.

Americans therefore, will pay the price of Trump's tariffs; it will not be the countries who do business with the USA. That is why the US economy will collapse under the weight of it's own self-imposed National Debt, if allowed to remain under the guidance of Trump's own fiscal incompetence.

SusanInFlorida · 31-35, F

@Avectoijesuismoi land without roads, water hookups, electric service, etc is indeed affordable.

for people willing to build tiny houses (or manufactured trailer homes) and dig their own wells, install rooftop solar, this can be a bargain. they will probably survive the coming near-extinctioin event when the electric grid and water is shut off by state sponsored military hackers.

Avectoijesuismoi · 36-40

@SusanInFlorida you are only allowed to build one house on it and it has got to be in keeping with the $ 5-10 million dollar home's around it. Plus it has to be landscaped do it looks nice immediately.
Even the style of house is preset so it doesn't ruin the aesthetics of the neighborhood.

Avectoijesuismoi · 36-40

@swirlie all true but only one slight adjustment you can't actually blame Trump for the debt he got that with the job.

I reality whether it is Trump or had it been Harris they both would be in the same position neither would have a chance in hell of solving the problem of the debt. Nor would anybody else.
As you pointed out there isn't enough money coming to cover all the expenditure alone.
On top of that you have X amount of congressman and senators wanting to make a mess of any plan that is put forward even if it is a good one just because they are the other team.
The 50 governors who want to do something just to make sure they reverse any good the federal government can do by doing something at state level to mess it up.
To fix any crisis and it is a crisis everyone needs to be on the same page and working in the same direction to achieve the desired outcome.
Unfortunately it is politicians that run countries and they are too busy talking shit and making promises that they either won't keep or don't have the brains or money to deliver, so that they can get people that don't understand what they are talking about to draw crosses on paper next to their name.

AthrillatheHunt · 51-55, M

@Avectoijesuismoi Over an acre for that much huh? there’s only 3 rules to real estate :
Location , location , location

Avectoijesuismoi · 36-40

@AthrillatheHunt it is not exactly the best of locations in the area the homes around there are in about the $ 5 million range

AthrillatheHunt · 51-55, M

@Avectoijesuismoi 5 mill? Must be a wealthy suburb of a large coastal city.

Avectoijesuismoi · 36-40

@AthrillatheHunt actually I have a funny story about the location thing, we saw a black comedian in South Africa, they used to call the areas where the black people lived location. He flashed up a picture of a hill top bit of land and then pointed out that you could see location, location, location in three directions from it
It is one place where they don't do politically correct very well.

Avectoijesuismoi · 36-40

@AthrillatheHunt the top end hits the $ 80 million + level
But money there alone won't get you in you have to be the right calibre of person to be a suitable owner. Demographics 87.5 % Caucasian. I will leave you to guess who makes up the other bit and why they are there

AthrillatheHunt · 51-55, M

@Avectoijesuismoi sounds like what I said was true (provided we’re talking US) .Burbs of NY LA SF etc..

swirlie · 31-35

@Avectoijesuismoi

all true but only one slight adjustment you can't actually blame Trump for the debt he got that with the job.

Just one slight adjustment required on your end.... and that is, you need to learn how to read.

I never once suggested that Trump was to blame for the National Debt, nor did I suggest that Harris would have done a better job, contrary to your perception of what I'd written.

The only mention I made about Trump was his implementation of a new tax called 'tariffs' which will be paid by American citizens, not the country who exports goods to the USA.